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Dawn French sitcom Can You Keep a Secret? recommissioned for a second series after launch episode racks up 5.3 million viewers
Dawn French returns, alongside Mark Heap, Mandip Gill, and Craig Roberts
Can You Keep a Secret?, the hit sitcom starring Dawn French, will return to BBC iPlayer and BBC One after a stellar first run, where the series launch captivated audiences of 5.3 million across 28-days.
The series landed as the third biggest comedy launch on BBC iPlayer since 2024 with an audience of 3.3 million (62% of the audience) across 28-days (behind Ludwig 5.5 million and Amandaland 4.3 million).
Created and written by Simon Mayhew-Archer, and Big Talk Studios, Mayhay Studios and CBS Studios co-production, the sitcom wrapped up its first series run on BBC One last Wednesday (11 February). The full series is available on BBC iPlayer.
Watch Can You Keep a Secret? on BBC iPlayer
Series one of Can You Keep a Secret? followed Debbie Fendon (Dawn French), a domineering granny, who loses her reclusive husband William (Mark Heap), and makes a reckless decision to safeguard her family's future. However, William isn't dead. Declared deceased by mistake, he's hiding in the loft while they await the life insurance payout. The scheme shocks their high-strung son Harold (Craig Roberts), whose wife, Neha (Mandip Gill), is a local police officer. Just as the family begins to navigate this bizarre charade, Debbie drops another secret - one that could bring the whole family down.
For the second series, Dawn French will return as Debbie, alongside Mark Heap as William, Mandip Gill as Neha, and Craig Roberts as Harry.
Dawn French says: "As chuffed as an actual chuff to hear that we have a second series! More chance for Debbie to get her bossy boots on and create further havoc... hooray."
Simon-Mayhew Archer, Creator and Writer, says: "Making this series was a joyous experience. Comedy is a team game, and Dawn, Mark, Craig, Mandip and the whole cast and crew are dream collaborators. I love sitcoms and I want more of them on TV, so I am enormously grateful to everyone who has watched this show and taken the Fendons to their hearts. I hope our success will help even more comedy get made across the UK. It's one of our national superpowers - and we need it!"
Kenton Allen, Executive Producer and CEO Big Talk Studios, says: "At Big Talk, we're always searching for shows with a truly original comic engine and a distinctive voice and Simon Mayhew-Archer has created exactly that. Can You Keep a Secret? combines a brilliantly mischievous premise with genuine emotional truth, brought to life by Dawn French in one of the great sitcom performances of her career, alongside a world-class cast. The huge audience response speaks for itself. We're enormously proud to be making this with Jon Petrie and the BBC, and with our partners at Mayhay Studios and CBS Studios, and excited to continue building a comedy that we believe has all the hallmarks of an enduring modern classic."
Jon Petrie, BBC Director of Comedy Commissioning, says: "The response to Can You Keep a Secret? has been fantastic. Dawn French and the whole creative team have crafted a warm, mischievous comedy that clearly struck a chord with audiences. We're delighted to bring it back for a second series and can't wait to see even more secrets unravel."
Filming for series two will take place later this year in the West Country. Transmission details will be revealed in due course.
Can You Keep a Secret? (6x30) series two is a Big Talk Studios, Mayhay Studios and CBS Studios co-production for iPlayer and BBC One. The series was commissioned by Jon Petrie, Director of BBC Comedy. The Executive Producers are Kenton Allen, Simon Mayhew-Archer, Dawn French and Toby Welch. The series is written and created by Simon Mayhew-Archer. The Commissioning Editors for the BBC are Gregor Sharp and Roya Eslami. Can You Keep a Secret? is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution. Big Talk Studios is part of ITV Studios.
Source: BARB AsViewed: ranked by top episode 28-day volume, all viewing, all devices (except SVOD TV only), data run in TechEdge 12/02/2026
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