Eagerly awaited and years in the making, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light will trace the final four years of Cromwell's life

Dramas don’t get much more prestigious than the BBC’s Wolf Hall, which aired in 2015.

Based on Hilary Mantel’s Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name (and its sequel, Bringing Up the Bodies), it told the story of Thomas Cromwell’s rise to power in the court of King Henry VIII.

The role of Cromwell was taken by Mark Rylance, who already had a Bafta, two Olivier Awards and three Tonys to his name. He’d pick up another Bafta for Wolf Hall – and in the same year, he’d also deliver an Oscar-winning performance in the Steven Spielberg drama Bridge of Spies.

Henry VIII was played by Damian Lewis, while Anne Boleyn was portrayed by Claire Foy, a year before she took on a very different royal role as Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown.

Given the cast and source material, it’s not hard to see why the critics and award bodies were excited, but Wolf Hall also proved a hit with viewers – it was BBC2’s highest-rating drama since 2002.

As a result, expectations are high for this follow-up, which based on the final novel in Mantel’s trilogy.

Director Peter Kosminsky, who returns as director, says: “The Mirror and the Light picks up exactly where Wolf Hall ended, with the execution of Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. I’m overjoyed to be able to reunite the extraordinary cast we were lucky enough to assemble for Wolf Hall, led by the brilliant Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis, with the original creative team of Gavin Finney (DOP), Pat Campbell (Designer) and Joanna Eatwell (Costume Designer).

“We are all determined to complete what we started – and to honour the final novel written by one of the greatest literary figures of our age, Hilary Mantel.”

Kate Phillips, Lilit Lesser, Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Jonathan Pryce are also returning, while the new recruits include Harriet Walter as Lady Margaret Pole, Timothy Spall as the Duke of Norfolk and Harry Melling as Thomas Wriothesley.

Kosminsky adds: “Casting Director Robert Sterne has done a truly extraordinary job assembling the most stunning cast with which I’ve ever had the privilege to work.”

Now, we get to see the results as the story begins immediately following the execution of Anne Boleyn, as Cromwell prepares to take up his position as principal councillor to an unpredictable king.

If you ignore the fact that he’s essentially got blood on his hands after pinning some horrifying crimes on the Queen and her circle, this should be a proud moment for Cromwell.

He’s managed to rise from lowly beginnings in a Putney blacksmith’s forge to become one of England’s most formidable politicians.

He’s also just smoothed the way for Henry VIII to marry his third wife, Jane Seymour, and there are few parts of the state’s business that do not pass over his desk.

However, the higher Cromwell rises, the more enemies he makes…