The Ludwig Christmas special has been confirmed by the BBC, with Sir David Suchet set to join David Mitchell and Anna Maxwell Martin for a festive, feature-length locked-room mystery, and the episode comes with a dream team behind the camera, too.
Sir David Suchet joins the Ludwig Christmas special cast
Sir David Suchet is the headline addition to an already packed guest roster for the one-hour episode. Joining him are Jason Flemyng, Joe Wilkinson, Cathy Tyson, Alexandra Roach, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Rebekah Staton, Claire Price, Ariella Glaser and George Rainsford.
The story sends John (Mitchell), Lucy (Maxwell Martin) and Henry (Dylan Hughes) to a remote, Christmas-themed hotel in Yorkshire for what is supposed to be a relaxing festive break. A sudden blackout, a blizzard trapping everyone inside and a real murder quickly turn the trip into something rather more stressful. John finds himself racing to identify the killer before anyone else can become a victim.
Suchet, who is playing a suspect rather than a detective this time around, sounded thoroughly at ease with the role reversal. ‘It was an absolute pleasure to work alongside David Mitchell and the wonderful ensemble cast,’ he said in a statement. ‘It made quite the refreshing change to be playing a suspect rather than the detective, and to sit comfortably in my armchair while David delivered the denouement. I had a thoroughly enjoyable time.’
Mitchell, for his part, was rather candid about what the collaboration meant to him personally. ‘I have long been a huge admirer of Sir David Suchet’s work and have watched every episode of Poirot several times, so it was a dream come true for me when he agreed to appear in the Ludwig Christmas Special,’ he said. ‘He was an absolute joy to work and spend time with (funny, interesting and generous) and his performance in the programme is wonderful.’
Who is making the Ludwig Christmas special?
According to the BBC Media Centre, the Christmas episode is written by Mark Brotherhood and directed by Chris Foggin. Foggin is also currently directing series three of Ludwig, so the Christmas special sits squarely within the show’s ongoing creative continuity rather than being handed to an outside team.
The production credits tell a similar story of consistent partnership. Ludwig is a Big Talk Studios production in association with That Mitchell And Webb Company, made in co-production with BritBox and ZDF, for the BBC. That collaborative model has underpinned the show since its first series, and the Christmas special continues under the same arrangement.
There is one piece of news for viewers outside the UK, too. TV Insider reports that Ludwig season two will premiere on BritBox on 13 October, giving international audiences a confirmed date to circle.
Where things stand with series two and beyond
Ludwig’s second series debuted last month to strong ratings and has continued on BBC One on Thursdays until 24 September. The first three episodes of series two are already available on iPlayer, with the remaining three dropping on 10 September. Series one is streaming on iPlayer now.
Dipo Ola, who plays DI Russell Carter, recently teased what is coming in the back half of series two when speaking to Radio Times. ‘I think things kick into gear from episode four in a way that, even though it’s only been a season and a half, seems kind of uncharacteristic for the show, which I think is really really cool, because things really take up a head of steam,’ he said. He also confirmed that series three is in the pipeline and that filming is set to begin shortly.
As for the Ludwig Christmas special itself, no airdate has been announced yet. Given that director Chris Foggin moves straight from this episode into series three, the production schedule appears busy well into the foreseeable future.
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