S4C Renews Slew of Welsh Dramas

Welsh-language public broadcaster S4C has renewed several dramas for 2025/2026, including Y Golau: Dŵr (Still Waters).

A new second season of Y Golau: Dŵr (Still Waters) will be set in the fictional village of Llanemlyn and feature an ensemble cast including Sian Reese-Williams, Mark Lewis-Jones and Robert Glenister. Season one was led by Joanna Scanlan, Alexandra Roach and Iwan Rheon.

Season one of Y Golau: Dŵr (Still Waters) premiered on S4C in May 2022, with an English-language version airing on Channel 4. The second season will be produced in partnership with Triongl/APC and Channel 4.

S4C has also ordered five new episodes of the dark comedy drama Anfamol (Unmotherly), created and written by Rhiannon Boyle. The series centers on the continuing sagas and life lessons of its Ani, a feminist lawyer, sister, aunt, daughter and mother battling the raw realities of motherhood in today’s world. Bethan Ellis-Owen stars in the lead role. The new episodes will go into production soon with BBC Studios.

The heist drama Dal y Mellt, the first Welsh-language drama to be shown on Netflix, has been renewed by S4C for a second season. Gwion Morris Jones will return as the show’s main character, alongside many more returning cast members and new stars such as Matthew Gravelle (Broadchurch) and Mark Lewis-Jones (The Way, Men Up, Keeping Faith). The next installment of the series is being produced by Vox Pictures and will air in 2025.

Dal y Mellt, acquired by Netflix under the English title Rough Cut, is based on the thriller novels from Iwan ‘Iwcs’ Roberts. Season two will be adapted from his latest work, Dal Arni (Hold On), the sequel to Dal y Mellt (Catch the Lightning).

S4C has also ordered more of Bariau, the bilingual drama set in a men’s prison with stories based on the testimonies of real prisoners and prison officers. The second season, like the first, will be shot at Studio Aria in Llangefni on a two-story set comprised of 24 cells. Filming is set to begin soon, with Rondo Media producing with the support of Creative Wales.

S4C’s Stad, the sequel to Tipyn o Stad, which concluded n2008 after seven seasons, will return with a second season in 2025. Revolving around the adventures of the Gurkha family and their neighbors in the Maes Menai housing estate, the series stars Lowri Palfrey, Siôn Eifion, Gwenno Fôn, Begw Rowlands, Gwenno Hodgkins, Wyn Bowen Harris and Elen Gwynne. It is produced by Cwmni Da and Triongl.

“We are thrilled that the success of our recent original dramas on S4C mean that we can satisfy the audience by offering the next exciting chapter of their favourite series,” said Gwenllian Gravelle, head of scripted at S4C. “This is not the case for many broadcasters in the industry unfortunately. We recognize the success of these dramas and the appetite for more and are glad and proud to be able to deliver.”

S4C is also releasing two brand-new dramas this autumn and winter. Cleddau (The One That Got Away), starring Elen Rhys and Richard Harrington, is set to begin airing on October 13, while Ar y Ffin (Mudtown), starring Erin Richards and Tom Cullen, is set to start broadcasting on December 29.