The second season of an acclaimed Apple TV+ series has been scrapped after lead star Noel Fielding was unable to complete filming.
Comedy show The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin ceased production due to a health issue faced by Fielding towards the end of the shoot.
Season two was near completion before production ground to a halt.
Apple confirmed to The Independent that, rather than push ahead with the remainder of the season, it has scrapped the show altogether, meaning everything that was filmed so far will not see the light of day.
According to initial reports from Deadline andThe Sun, the axing occurred after Fielding “failed to return to work” after production resumed following the Christmas break.
A rep for the Mighty Boosh comedy star, who also hosts The Great British Bake Off, told Deadline: “This is a private and confidential matter regarding our client’s health.
“We are saddened by the decision to cease production but we cannot make any further comment on this matter.”
Meanwhile, a source close to the show told The Times the decision to scrap the show was a last resort, stating: “It’s not a decision that was taken lightly and they wouldn’t have got to this extreme result if every possible solution hadn’t been exhausted.”
The Independent has contacted Apple and Fielding for further comment.
A rep for the Mighty Boosh comedy star, who also hosts The Great British Bake Off, told Deadline: “This is a private and confidential matter regarding our client’s health.
A source close to the show told The Times the decision to cancel the show outright was a last resort, stating: “It’s not a decision that was taken lightly and they wouldn’t have got to this extreme result if every possible solution hadn’t been exhausted.”
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Created by Claire Downes, Ian Jarvis and Stuart Lane, The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin became a low-key hit for the service after debuting in March 2024, and a follow-up season was commissioned in July.
Season two of the absurdist historical comedy, a retelling of the life of the 18th-century highwayman, was set to welcome back cast members including Hugh Bonneville, Mark Heap, Ellie White and Dolly Wells.
New episodes were set to include “a host of great British comedy talent” following season one cameos from Greg Davies, Diane Morgan and Jessica Hynes.
Speaking about the show with Vulture, Fielding revealed the writing team’s inspirations included Blackadder, The Princess Bride, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
He also said that the arrival of Our Flag Means Death, another cancelled show set in the 18th-century that bears a similar absurdist tone to Dick Turpin’s, led to concerns during the show’s prepping stage.
“We felt like we were going, ‘There aren’t really any shows like this,’ and then Our Flag Means Death came along and we were absolutely distraught,” Fielding said.
He added: “But we did watch it – we made ourselves – and we thought, ‘This is different enough.’ You have to have blinkers on when you’re making stuff.”
The first season of The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin is available to stream on Apple TV+ now.
