I wanted to detonate a bit of an explosion

LYNN RUSK CHATS WITH ERIN DOHERTY, MALACHI KIRBY AND CREATOR STEVEN KNIGHT ABOUT SERIES TWO OF A THOUSAND BLOWS, SET IN THE BRUTAL EAST END OF LONDON

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He adds: “For season two, I wanted to detonate a bit of an explosion and pull everybody apart. A year has passed, and what a year it’s been, because so much has changed.

“When you've got actors of the calibre we have, like Stephen, the difference between how we first see him in season one and how he appears at the start of season two is huge.

“That's the fun of it: putting characters through that, pulling them apart, and then seeing them come back together.”

Although the events of seasons one and two are set a year apart, both were filmed consecutively.

“It's an act of faith on Disney's part,” Steven explains. “Most often, a second series isn’t commissioned until the first has aired and the response is known.

“But they trusted it was going to work and their trust paid off.”

Erin, 33, fresh off her Emmy win for Adolescence, was thrilled to remain with her character Mary for another series.

“It's so rare that you genuinely don’t want to let go of a character, because you love every character you play and feel like you're fighting their fight,” says the Sussex-born actress.