A gritty crime drama filmed around Huddersfield and Calderdale is coming back for a second series next year.

Happy Valley, starring critically-acclaimed actress Sarah Lancashire, was partly filmed at North Light Studios in Armitage Bridge.

The series, which made headlines because of some of the violent scenes it contained, proved a big hit with viewers earlier this year.

Now the BBC has announced that the show – written by Bafta-winning Halifax screenwriter Sally Wainwright – will return for a second series.

Filming will start next year but there are no clues about the plot.

The first six-part series revolved around a kidnap in the small West Yorkshire town where Lancashire’s character, Catherine Cawood, is a police sergeant.

Sally, who also wrote Last Tango in Halifax, said she couldn’t give anything away about the new series – because she hadn’t written it yet.

“You always hope there will be a second series but you can’t plan for it,” she said.

“More often than not you don’t get a second series.”

Sarah Lancashire as Sgt Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley
Sarah Lancashire as Sgt Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley

Sally defended the graphic nature of the first series and said: “It was important it felt real. It was not gratuitous and I thought we handled it carefully and thoughtfully.”

The first series ended on a cliffhanger and BBC1 controller Charlotte Moore said: “It was fantastic to see our audience on tenterhooks, begging for more. I can’t wait for the second series to begin.”

Ben Sweet, a writer and producer who runs the North Light Studios, said he hoped to be involved again though no decisions had been made.

Lancashire, who also appeared in Last Tango in Halifax, was nominated for a Bafta for her role and is also tipped for another nomination next year for Happy Valley.

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