The BAFTA-winning BBC Scotland show has returned and Guilt series 2 promises to be just as dark and action packed as the gripping first series.
Audiences love a crime drama to sink their teeth into and it seems the BBC are hoping to follow the success of Vigil, filmed in the UK, with the return of another Scottish based thriller – Guilt series 2.
The contemporary thriller first aired in 2019 and drew in large numbers, going on to be dubbed Scotland’s answer to Fargo by critics and fans alike. And we can expect more of the same stellar cast, including an ex-alumni of Silent Witness for the next edge-of-your-seat viewing instalment.
When is Guilt on BBC?
Guilt series 2 airs on Thursdays at 9pm on BBC Two. Though Scottish viewers can watch it earlier on Tuesdays at 10pm on the BBC Scotland channel.
Fans of the show can also catch up with any missed episodes on BBC iPlayer, where they’ll also find the first series of Guilt available to watch too.
How many episodes of Guilt are there?
There are 4 episodes of Guilt series 2 in total.
Each episode is around an hour long without ad breaks.
All 4 episodes were made available on October 14, 2021, when the series dropped on BBC iPlayer.
Cast of Guilt series 2:
Guilt series 2 promises the return of some old faces and the introduction of new characters, all played by some of the creme de la creme of Scotland’s acting talent.
Mark Bonnar
Fans of season 1, can expect to see the return of brother Max McCall, played by actor Mark Bonnar. A familiar face on our screens, Mark has appeared in a number of BBC shows including Line of Duty and Silent Witness. He also appeared in Channel 4 comedy Catastrophe and ITV’s Unforgotten as Barrister Colin Osborne – a role that won him a BAFTA Scotland award.
Mark Bonnar returns as Max McCall (Credit: Expectation/Happy Tramp North – Photographer: Robert Pereira Hind)
Mark was taken aback at how popular the first season proved to be and was just glad that the show got given the green light.
“We were all surprised at the reception that series one got …Whoever was in charge pressed the right buttons at the right times you know and it was really lovely because it was something that we loved so much,” he said.
As for what we can expect from Max in series 2, Mark added:
“I think his outlook is quite bleak to begin with, but Max is a survivor if anything, and he is very clever and knows how to manipulate situations to his advantage, so he won’t be on his uppers forever.”
Supporting cast
- Emun Elliot (Paradox, Threesome) as Kenny Burns
- Sara Vickers (Endeavour) as Erin
- Rochelle Neil (The Nevers)as Yvonne
- Stuart Bowman (Bodyguard) as Roy Lynch
- Phyllis Logan (Downton Abbey) as Maggie
- Sandy McDade (Lark Rise to Candleford) as Jackie
Sadly actor Jamie Sives (Chernobyl) who played brother Jake in the first series, won’t be returning for season two. Though audiences will be delighted to learn that Emun Elliot returns as Kenny.
There’s also been a recasting of Roy Lynch, with Stuart Bowman replacing Bill Paterson as the crime boss. This season, viewers will also be introduced to his daughter Erin and wife Maggie (aka housekeeper Mrs Hughes in Downton Abbey).
Guilt season 1 plot
Brothers Max (Mark Bonnar) and Jake (Jamie Sives) are travelling in a car together after a family wedding when they accidentally run over and kill an old man. After much persuasion, Max convinces Jake to cover up the hit and run.
As the two battle to keep their crime a secret, they experience damaging consequences to both their troubled relationship with each other and their individual lives. And as the aptly named series continues, the guilt of their actions comes back to get them.
What to expect from Guilt series 2
It seems viewers can expect another crime as the backdrop to the second series, which coincides with the return of Max McCall, whose new reality sees him team up with an unlikely ally.
The official BBC synopsis reads:
“In an Edinburgh cellar, two gunshots ring out. Across town, Max McCall is released from prison. These two events gradually come together as Max tries to rebuild his life, and new arrival Erin tries to save hers.
“When Roy Lynch rebuffs Max’s efforts at a reconciliation, Max turns to Kenny for help – despite their troubled history. However, this is a newly confident Kenny, with a budding new relationship, and he provides Max with a tougher challenge than expected.”
BBC Scotland have also teased that Max is seeking revenge following the events of the first season…
Music from Guilt tv show
Audiences have been just as taken with the music in the award-winning crime show.
And whilst we don’t know the full soundtrack for series 2 yet, a review by The Scottish Herald praises its soundtrack “that has room enough for both Leonard Cohen and The Skids.”
Viewers can listen to the music in the first series via this Guilt soundtrack Spotify playlist. Which features three songs by the leading 70s German avant-garde rock group Can.
The full track list for season 1 is:
- Weval – The Weight
- Can – Moonshake
- Can – Pinch
- Annette Peacock – I’m The One
- Thundercat – King Of The Hill
- Deodato – Whistle Bump
- Steely Dan – Do It Again
- Erol Alkan – Spectrum
- The Stan Tracey Quartet – Starless and Bible Black
- Group Zero – Pursuit
- Eddy Arnold – Cattle Call
- The Soul Searchers – Ashley’s Roachclip
- Yusuf Lateef – Like It Is
- Jackson C. Frank – Milk & Honey
- Mark Lanegan – Keep Me In Mind Sweetheart
- Them – It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
- Marianne Faithfull – It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
- Roxy Music – Love Is The Drug
- The Fall – Hit The North
- Can – Spoon
- The Clash – The Magnificent Seven
- The The – Giant
- Working Men’s Club – Teeth
- Darondo – Didn’t I
Where is Guilt filmed?
Guilt series 2 is set and filmed in Edinburgh, Scotland. This is also where the first season was shot.
As was the case with most TV dramas over the last year and a half, production and filming was impacted by the pandemic. And the cast and crew had to adhere to restrictions to successfully shoot the second series.
Credit: Expectation/Happy Tramp North – Photographer: Robert Pereira Hind
Filming took place in the middle of the Scottish winter in 2020, which star Mark Bonnar credited as the reason for bad weather. Though he adds that the drizzly, wild weather in fact helped with the mood of the show:
“Being up the top of Calton Hill in the p**sing rain and the wind… it adds to the kind of… heaviness of what’s going on – the underhand stuff,” he told the BBC.
Director Patrick Harkins also shared how fans can expect some differences between series one and two:
“The first series is a suburban noir whereas this [series] is much more about regeneration,” he said. “It’s a bit more about seeing more of Edinburgh, making that much more of a character in the show.”
