‘The Gilded Age’ return date and Season 2 trailer revealed

HBO has announced when the next season of The Gilded Age begins!

Set in New York at the end of the 19th century, the lavish period drama series is created by Downton Abbey writer Julian Fellowes.

The Gilded Age had taken a long journey to our TV screens by the time it launched in January 2022, having been originally announced back in 2018 with a launch planned for 2019 on NBC, before the show moved to HBO and was then hit by further delays due to the pandemic.

Fortunately, the show was a hit and eight brand new episodes are almost here.

Watch the official Season 2 trailer here:

The second season of The Gilded Age begins on Easter morning 1883, with the news that Bertha Russell’s (Carrie Coon) bid for a box at the Academy of Music has been rejected, the official synopsis reveals.

We’re told that “through the eight episodes of the season, we watch as Bertha challenges Mrs. Astor (Donna Murphy) and the old system and works to not only gain a foothold in Society, but to potentially take a leading role in it.

“George Russell (Morgan Spector) takes on his own battle with a growing union at his steel plant in Pittsburgh.

The synopsis continues: “In the Brook House, Marian (Louisa Jacobson) continues her journey to find her way in the world secretly teaching at a girls school while much to everyone’s surprise Ada (Cynthia Nixon) begins a new courtship.

“Of course, Agnes (Christine Baranski) approves of none of it.

“In Brooklyn, the Scott family begins to heal from a shocking discovery. And Peggy (Denée Benton) taps into her activist spirit through her work with T. Thomas Fortune (Sullivan Jones) at the NY Globe.”

When’s the release date?

Season 2 will premiere on HBO at 9/8c on Sunday 29 October in the US, where it will also be streaming on Max.

Over in the UK, the new season arrives the following day on Sky Atlantic on Monday 30 October.

The huge ensemble cast also includes Ben Ahlers, Michael Cerveris, Kelley Curran, Taissa Farmiga, Jack Gilpin, Simon Jones, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Debra Monk, Kristine Nielsen, Kelli O’Hara, Patrick Page, Harry Richardson, Taylor Richardson, Blake Ritson, Douglas Sills, Erin Wilhelmi, Nathan Lane, Audra McDonald, John Douglas Thompson, Ashlie Atkinson, Laura Benanti, Nicole Brydon Bloom, Christopher Denham, David Furr, Ward Horton, Matilda Lawler, and Robert Sean Leonard.

The Gilded Age creator Julian Fellowes had disappointing news for Downton Abbey fans last year, when he threw doubt on the likelihood of a third movie.

Despite the success of 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era, he said: “I don’t mind if it’s run its course…”

Downton Abbey: A New Era is available on DVD on Amazon.