The second season of The Great is finally coming to Channel 4.
The historical comedy drama is returning to UK TV screens tonight (July 27) at 10pm.
Season two of the Hulu series originally premiered on STARZPLAY via Amazon Prime in December after being released in the US in November last year.
Stars Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult both returned for the second series to reprise their roles as Catherine the Great and Peter the Great.
According to the official synopsis for season two, in the latest series "Catherine finally takes the Russian throne for her own – but she will quickly learn that dethroning her husband was just the beginning,
"Catherine must now face the realities of ‘liberating’ a country that doesn’t want to be free. Her fight to bring enlightenment to Russia will mean battling her own court and those closest to her, including her own mother."
As the hilarious drama returns, here's what you need to know about whether it's really a true story and if there will be a third season.
It The Great a true story?
In its own words, The Great is an "occasionally true story".
The series is based around Catherine The Great, who ruled Russia from 1762 to 1796 and it centres around her coup and the sequence of events leading up to it.
Hulu's The Great was adapted from a 2008 play of the same name and the TV series takes some basic historical facts and embellishes the details.
The series includes characters based off of real people, including Catherine and her husband Emperor Peter III, as well as some who are purely fictional.
It's true that Catherine did marry Peter in 1745 and that they famously didn't get along. It's also true that she successfully launched a coup against him.
Executive producer Marian Macgowan explained to Town & Country how they choose which real-life historical events they include in the show.
She said: "We tend to research around specific events we know occurred and will use or not use them based on how they’ll help advance the characters or theme.”
Will there be a third season of The Great?
It's good news for fans of The Great as the third season has been confirmed and is already on its way.
Hulu announced in January 2022 that the show had been renewed for another series.
Series three will feature 10 episodes.
Unfortunately, there isn't a confirmed release date of the third season yet.
It's expected that like season one and two, the third series will premiere first in the US before becoming available in the UK on Amazon Prime and then later airing on Channel 4.
Although there's no confirmation yet, the show could be around for even more seasons two.
Before The Great premiered, Macgowan confirmed that it was designed to last for years, she told Decider: “We initially pitched six seasons. So we believe there’s sufficient material to take us through until [Catherine] is an old woman.”
