Jamie Dornan is back leading the cast of the BBC thriller programme The Tourist, which will soon be airing its second series.

In the first series, Dornan played a man who woke up with amnesia in an Australian hospital and had to try and figure out who he was as shadowy forces go after him.

Towards the end of the first series, his character was revealed to be someone called Elliot Stanley and it is likely that he'll find out more information about his old life in series two.

The show is relocating from Australia to Ireland after Elliot and Helen (played by Danielle Macdonald receive an invitation to meet with an old friend there, but soon enough enemies from Elliot's old life come back to haunt him once more.

Speaking with the Radio Times, Dornan explained how screenwriters Jack and Harry Williams convinced him to return for another series.

He said: "My thinking was, 'Where are we going? Like, if we're doing this, where are we going?'

"Because it was a bit of an upheaval to go to Australia, and the idea of going again so soon after… I mean, these guys [co-stars Macdonald and Conor MacNeill] don't have kids, I have three kids.

"And I took them all with me, they went to school there, it was a big thing family-wise to do that. And the idea of doing that again so soon wasn't hugely appealing.

"But luckily, Jack and Harry had plans to make it something closer to home, and I probably approved those plans pretty quickly."

BBC The Tourist series 2 full cast

  • Jamie Dornan as Elliot Stanley
  • Danielle Macdonald as Helen Chambers
  • Conor MacNeill as Detective Ruairi Slater
  • Olwen Fouéré as Niamh Cassidy
  • Mark Mckenna as Fergal McDonnell
  • Francis Magee as Frank McDonnell

Bournemouth Echo: Danielle Macdonald returns as Helen Chambers from the first seriesDanielle Macdonald returns as Helen Chambers from the first series (Image: BBC/Two Brothers/Steffan Hill)

  • Greg Larsen as Ethan Krum
  • Victoria Haralabidou as Lena
  • Nessa Matthews as Orla
  • Diarmaid Murtagh as Donal
  • Eoin Duffy as Sergeant O'Brien

When will BBC's The Tourist series 2 be on TV?

The first episode of the second series of The Tourist will air at 9pm on New Year's Day (Monday, January 1) on BBC One.

The second episode will air at the same time the following day, with the third episode airing on Sunday, January 7.

After that, the remaining three episodes of the series will air on consecutive Sundays at 9pm.

Alternatively, the entire series will drop on BBC iPlayer as a boxset at 6am on New Year's Day.