{"id":349492,"date":"2026-01-03T06:41:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-03T06:41:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/349492\/"},"modified":"2026-01-03T06:41:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T06:41:08","slug":"bbc-the-night-manager-viewers-switch-off-minutes-into-series-two-following-10-year-wait-dire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/349492\/","title":{"rendered":"BBC The Night Manager viewers ‘switch off’ minutes into series two following 10-year wait: ‘Dire!’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Night Manager viewers were left divided by the second series following a 10-year gap since the original run, with some going as far as “switching off” before the end of the episode. <\/p>\n

Tom Hiddleston returned to screens as former intelligence operative Jonathan Pine in the second series of the spy thriller, which premiered on BBC One on New Year’s Day.<\/p>\n

The actor reprised his role in the six-part follow-up to the multi-award-winning thriller, which expands upon John le Carr\u00e9’s novel of the same name.<\/p>\n

Viewers saw that Mr Pine now operates under the alias Alex Goodwin, working a modest surveillance position in the capital while attempting to leave his turbulent history behind.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Tom Hiddleston returned to screens as former intelligence operative Jonathan Pine<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

BBC<\/p>\n

His quiet existence is shattered when a routine assignment brings him face-to-face with a mercenary from Richard Roper’s former operation, propelling him into a violent confrontation with a fresh adversary.<\/p>\n

This new threat comes in the form of Teddy Dos Santos, a Colombian businessman portrayed by Diego Calva, whose shadowy dealings draw Mr Pine into yet another dangerous web of arms trafficking.<\/p>\n

The investigation leads the agent to Roxana Bola\u00f1os, played by Camila Morrone, a Miami-based broker who assists him in penetrating Dos Santos’s weapons operation on Colombian soil, where he uncovers a plot involving guerrilla army training.<\/p>\n

After the lengthy wait though, many viewers were left feeling let down by the show’s return. <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Night Manager returned for a second series after 10 years<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

BBC<\/p>\n

Taking to X, one penned: “I was disappointed. The whole set up that it is another \u2018look a like\u2019 Roper character, doesn\u2019t work for me. <\/p>\n

“Also, there were too many plot holes for me. How do UK based operatives suddenly head abroad? Didn\u2019t bother with 2nd episode! Red Eye series 2 was much better.”<\/p>\n

Another complained: “Not connecting with the cast. Early days.”<\/p>\n

Another admitted to switching off, writing: “Gave it a go, gave up after 20 minutes.”<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) and Angela Burr (Olivia Colman)<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

BBC<\/p>\n

A fourth simply commented: “Dire,” as another agreed: “Didn\u2019t do it for me. Slow, tedious, no fascinating locations and clunky acting. #TheNightManager.”<\/p>\n

Someone else shared: “I was excited for series 2 of #TheNightManager last night. <\/p>\n

“Not sure if I was tired and\/or hungover but I found it really hard to follow \u2013 particularly as the previous series is now a decade old. Also, there were just so many characters.”<\/p>\n

Other viewers disagreed with the criticisms though, with some applauding the start of the new series. <\/p>\n

“Absolutely superb. I can’t believe 10 years have passed since we last saw it. @twhiddleston was magnificent, the entire cast were. So glad it is back,” one enthused.<\/p>\n

Another posted: “The first 2 episodes of the second season of #TheNightManager are good!”<\/p>\n

They continued the positive review: “I was trepidations the 2nd series wouldn’t live up to the original, but damn it, the chemistry is good! I can’t wait for the next instalment!” (sic)<\/p>\n

Episode three of The Night Manager will air on Sunday, January 11 on BBC One.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Night Manager viewers were left divided by the second series following a 10-year gap since the original…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":349493,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[243,830,96,391,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-349492","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-bbc","9":"tag-celebrity","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-tv","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=349492"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349492\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/349493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=349492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=349492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=349492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}