One of the most acclaimed and chilling Welsh hit dramas of 2018 — and a winner and four-category nominee of the prestigious BAFTA Cyrmu Awards — is back with a powerful second season: the BBC Wales/S4C psychological thriller Hidden unveils an all-new multi-faceted investigation of another brutal and senseless murder in North Wales in Series 2, premiering exclusively in the U.S. and Canada on Acorn TV on Monday, June 15.
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This latest gritty series from the award-winning co-creator and producer of the global hit Y Gwyll/Hinterland, Ed Talfan, marks the return of cunning, unflappable detectives: newly-promoted DCI Cadi John (Sian Reese-Williams, Emmerdale, Line of Duty, Hinterland) and DS Owen Vaughan (Siôn Alun Davies, Hinterland,) as they unlock dark secrets in a mining town in the slate-strewn mountains of Blaenau Ffestiniog. Series 2 was filmed back-to-back in Welsh and English – the all-Welsh version Craith premiered on Wales’ S4C in November 2019 and the English/Welsh version premiered on BBC One Wales and BBC Four in February 2020. Acorn TV will feature the bilingual version, with English subtitles.
Nine months after the action in series 1, Cadi and Owen head out on their next major assignment when an anonymous phone call is received at the police station about a local retired chemistry teacher, Geraint Ellis, who was found horrifically murdered in his bathtub. Rumors about the victim – and the reasons for his sudden and unexpected retirement – soon emerge. While Cadi and Vaughan have a new case on their hands, three teenagers – Mia Owen (Annes Elwy, BBC’s Little Women), Connor Pritchard (Steffan Cennydd, Last Summer) and Lee Williams (Siôn Eifion, 35 Awr) have blood on theirs. As their lives – and the investigation – unravel, they soon find out there is nowhere to hide. Was Ellis targeted for previous sins, or an innocent man unjustly singled out by disaffected teenagers? The investigation draws Cadi and Owen deeper into the troubled lives of these young mysterious characters – as they uncover a world of lies, revenge, cruelty, and neglect.
When not hotly pursuing new leads and navigating endless twists over the course of this complicated investigation, Cadi and Owen are reeling from personal milestones: Cadi is still grieving over the death of her ex-police detective father and feels guilt about disproving a very important case of his before his passing while lending much-needed emotional support to her family. Meanwhile, Owen adjusts to caring for his newborn baby girl.
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“Writing the second series of Hidden was a great opportunity to visit one of those small towns and examine a complex cultural and socio-economic setting,” explains series writer Caryl Lewis. “The three young people ricochet through the storyline and commit what seems to be a senseless act of violence. We stuck with the ‘why done it’ formula again this season in order to spend time with our three characters and drill down into their worlds. Among other things, we touch upon young people’s lack of agency; poverty, neglect, political apathy and abuse, and reflect on the fact that perhaps, in some ways, we all share the blame as a society for the outcomes of these problems.”
Adds Lewis, “Hidden is not meant to be an easy watch. It pushes us sometimes into difficult spaces. Hidden is about shining a light into dark places. Bracing yourself and trying not to judge. It is an exercise in understanding and compassion, and ultimately, because of that, an impulse towards hope.”
