2008 · six episodes

Kingdom Series 2 (2008)

Simon’s return brings danger and divided loyalties, while Honor, Daniel and Lyle reshape the Kingdom family story.

The continuing story

Simon returns to a changed household

Simon’s return transforms the mystery into a present danger. Honor and Daniel enlarge Peter’s improvised family, while Lyle is drawn further into both the practice and Gloria’s community schemes.

Series landmarks

Simon’s dangerous return
Honor and baby Daniel
The hidden money
A family story changed by loss

Series overview

Series 2 begins after a year has passed. Peter has built a household with Honor and baby Daniel, Beatrice is expecting a child, and the practice appears to have settled into a new routine. Simon’s return breaks that balance at once. His cash, criminal danger and changing account of the family past put the ongoing story in sharper focus, while six fresh client cases keep the programme’s comic, compassionate weekly rhythm.

The early episodes ask whether Simon can be trusted and what his presence will cost Peter, Lyle and the practice. A hidden stash of money turns into an immediate threat; Honor leaves, and Lyle’s decision to use the cash to secure Simon’s bail deepens the conflict. Outside the family, cases about capacity, service identity, reputation and authority echo the same uncertainty about what people owe one another.

The Cambridge research dispute briefly lets Peter and Simon work together, but the brothers’ different instincts remain visible. In the finale, Aunt Auriel’s retirement-home production of The Tempest runs alongside the storm surrounding Simon. He says the hidden money belonged to their father, drives away and is later found dead on the beach. His death closes one chapter while leaving the family history unsettled.

Guest appearances

The continuing cast gains Nigel Pearson, played by John Thomson, whose relationship and community stories carry into the next series. Episode-by-episode guests are presented on individual dossiers where the guide has a clear connection to the episode summary.

Broadcast and audience

Series 2 aired six episodes from 13 January to 17 February 2008. The audience figures recorded in this guide average about 5.66 million per episode. The series keeps its six-week Sunday-night run and moves the family story forward by a year before opening on Simon’s return.

Filming and setting

The second run returns to the Norfolk geography while widening its stories to the threatened lighthouse, an airbase connection and Cambridge. Happisburgh Lighthouse is a published identification for the opening lighthouse story; the episode pages link only to documented location associations.

Average of the six episode audience figures listed here: 5.66m.

1Series 2, Episode 1 · Lighthouse and Lay-bys13 January 2008 · 5.80m viewersDirected by Andrew Grieve
Written by Alan Whiting 2Series 2, Episode 2 · Seen and Unseen20 January 2008 · 6.16m viewersDirected by Andrew Grieve
Written by John Moloney 3Series 2, Episode 3 · Dereliction of Duty27 January 2008 · 5.41m viewersDirected by Andrew Grieve
Written by Jeff Povey 4Series 2, Episode 4 · Brother's Keeper3 February 2008 · 5.23m viewersDirected by Edward Hall
Written by Alan Whiting 5Series 2, Episode 5 · The Truth Will Set You Free10 February 2008 · 5.65m viewersDirected by Edward Hall
Written by Guy Burt 6Series 2, Episode 6 · Tempest17 February 2008 · 5.69m viewersDirected by Edward Hall
Written by Alan Whiting

Audience figures are historical viewing totals.