Ludwig is easily one of our favourite new series of 2024, and series 1 ends on quite the cliffhanger - so will there be a series 2, and what can we expect from it?

The new cryptic comedy drama stars David Mitchell as puzzle setter John 'Ludwig' Taylor, who assumes his twin brother's identity in a desperate bid to track him down after he goes missing.

Over six episodes, viewers see accidental detective John attempt to crack the biggest puzzle of his life - finding his missing brother...

So will Ludwig fans get a series 2? Read on for news of its return, as well as our series 1 ending explained...

***Warning: spoilers from Ludwig series 1 ahead***

Will there be a series 2 of Ludwig on BBC One and BBC iPlayer?

The BBC has confirmed there will be a series 2 of Ludwig, with show creator Mark Brotherhood saying: "We’ve all been blown away by the reaction to Ludwig and I’m thrilled we get to come back with a whole new set of puzzles for him to solve in his unique way."

Lead actor David Mitchell chimed in: "I’m delighted that John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor has failed to escape the clutches of the Cambridge police and will have to continue to face up to the city’s alarming conundrum-based crime wave.”

He also explained the riddle behind James' cypher, saying: "Even over the whole first series, that's not all solved, which is why we hope for more."

Our Ludwig review described the BBC One comedy series as "a brilliantly bonkers twist on a very popular format - the murder mystery". The Guardian said "Mitchell is as brilliant as ever at playing the part he was born to play", while the Radio Times called it "a real treat".

Ludwig ending explained: How did series 1 end?

Ludwig concerned the disappearance of James Taylor, a detective in the Cambridge Police. Viewers will know that he left a trial of breadcrumbs to explain his vanishing to his bewildered wife and son.

Anna Maxwell Martin portrays James' wife Lucy Betts-Taylor. She drags James' identical twin brother out of his solitary existence in a bid to help find his brother.

To cut a long story short, puzzle-setter John reluctantly steps in to pose as his twin brother James in the hope of finding answers... All while having to deal with actual real life murders as an accidental detective...

Each episode saw John crack another clue as to his twin's whereabouts. But the end of the first season left a number of unanswered questions still to be resolved...

Ludwig series 1 ending explained: Who killed Holly Pinder?

At the end of episode 5, police IT technician Holly Pinder called Lucy out of the blue - requesting a meet up to share information.

Viewers saw Lucy head to Holly's place, hoping to find answers to her husband James' whereabouts.

However, episode 6 began with a dead Holly bleeding out on her kitchen floor, and what looked like Lucy holding the bloody knife that killed her.

All evidence pointed to Lucy, the motive being James' alleged affair with Holly (see below). DI Russell confronted John in an official police interview, asking whether he had ever been sexually involved with Holly. Of course, John couldn't answer...

John finally revealed the truth to Russell. He explained that he wasn't James, and therefore couldn't know for certain whether James and Holly had had an affair.

Of course, Lucy did NOT kill Holly. John quickly deduced who the real killer was - Adam, someone Holly had employed for her 'real job'. We discovered that Holly sold police secrets, and blackmailed those she had information about.

Adam killed Holly when he realised she was cheating him out of the 50/50 split of profits they'd agreed on.

Did James Taylor and Holly have an affair?

John - and viewers - were shocked when Holly told John they'd enjoyed a frisson at the Christmas party (thinking he was James or so we thought).

A baffled John was left wondering if his twin James had cheated on his wife Lucy. But, no, she hadn't.

In fact, Holly - despite being techie and not police - was the only person in the building who suspected John was not James. Whispering about their so-called kiss was a test.

When Holly contacted Lucy, she was planning to blackmail her with the knowledge that John wasn't James.

Ludwig series 1: Who was Roger Sinclair?

Roger Sinclair was a former journalist, blogger and conspiracy theorist. Holly Pinder had sold secrets to Roger.

We know Sinclair died in mysterious circumstances, and James had been first on the scene. He believed his death had been a professional hit. However, a specialist team was then brought in and James and his partner Matt were taken off the case.

When James later discovered that the crime scene report had been changed to look like a robbery, he flagged it up.

Then the contents of Sinclair's house also went 'missing'. Shortly after, Matt left his job and went into hiding, and James disappeared...

What happened to James Taylor?

At the end of Ludwig series 1, John's twin James is still missing... But we have more of an idea why.

In the closing minutes of Ludwig series 1, John received a voicemail from his twin brother James. James explained that he'd left partly because he was unhappy in his marriage.

He told John he was like their father, who had abandoned them when they were children. He had simply left Lucy and their son Henry, having no idea that John would then take his place and try to solve the mystery.

However John realised the truth of the call - that James was actually lying. He was instead leaving him a message. He had called himself the bowerbird - leading them to a book of birds which unlocked his cipher.

John, Lucy and Harry were led to a storage unit - where all of Sinclair's boxes has been stored away. John realised that Sinclair's conspiracy theories may have had some truth to them - and probably led to his murder.

Meanwhile, James watched on from afar...

Ludwig ending explained: Did John get found out in Ludwig?

John Taylor did get found out at the end of Ludwig series 1. He confessed all after Lucy was wrongfully arrested for the murder of Holly Pinder.

However, when the truth came out, it was hard to fault John's motives. After all, he'd single-handedly solved at least six crimes for the Cambridgeshire Police!

At the end of Ludwig series 1, John joins the force as an official consultant, meaning he no longer has to hide his identity.

John decided to stay put in Cambridge, to help Lucy and Henry work through Sinclair's research...

Ludwig series 2 plot

No further details have been confirmed, but a possible series 2 would follow John in his new role as the consultant for the Cambridgeshire Police.

It would also concentrate on John's continued efforts to find his brother James, and uncover the truth behind Roger Sinclair's death. Undoubtedly, there is a bent copper lurking somewhere in the drama, too.

However, the heart of the show centres around John, and his sister-in-law Lucy. Are we the only ones who detected the possibility of romance between Lucy and John? Or at least a rare friendship for the isolated loner...

Ludwig is available to stream in full now on BBC iPlayer.