Gentleman Jack first came on our screens over three years ago to tell the story of Anne Lister, a 19th century businesswoman, landowner and mountaineer termed by many as “the first modern lesbian”. Based on the famous diaries of the real-life Anne, the Sally Wainwright-penned drama has been a huge hit amongst audiences, especially those belonging to the LGBTQ+ community.
It’s hardly surprising then, that fans were dismayed to hear that HBO will not be renewing the show, which is a co-production between the US network and the BBC, for a third season. Having said that, all is not lost as the BBC has since stated that it is “in discussions” with Wainwright about “what’s next”, and so there may still be hope for the show’s future after all.
The surprising news of Gentleman Jack’s cancellation comes not longer after the show aired its second season which, following on from Anne’s wedding (of sorts) with Ann Walker in season 1, saw a number of obstacles arise for the couple, both in personal and business matters – and left their story far from complete.
While the season 2 finale did see Anne and Ann reconcile after a brief breakup, Captain Sutherland sign the division of the Walker estate, and Ann triumphantly lay the first stone at Lister’s Northgate casino, there were still plenty of loose ends left untied.
As fans of the show will know, Lister sunk a great deal of money into the conversion of Northgate House into a hotel and casino, not to mention her ambitious coal pursuits, despite warnings from her father Jeremy that she might leave the Listers financially bereft, and whether she’ll be able to make a decent profit remains to be seen.
As for the rest of the Listers, when we left Marian in season 2, she was blaming Anne for the collapse of her intended marriage to Mr Abbott and planning to escape to Market Weighton with their father. But could she come to her senses in another season?
There’s also the question of Anne’s former lover Mariana Lawton, who Anne paid a visit to in season 2 – with disastrous consequences for her marriage to Ann. Whether Lister’s moment of passion with Mariana will turn into a full blown affair remains to be seen, and there’s certainly scope to explore this in further seasons. Of course, those familiar with Lister’s diaries will know this isn’t the case, but the dramatic potential still remains.
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Anne and Ann stayed together until Lister’s death in 1840 and, with season 2 coming to a close in 1835 – when Ann laid the first stone at Lister’s Northgate casino – there’s still around five years of source material left to play with.
In this time, Anne and Ann embarked on another epic, almost seven-month long trip to France in 1838. And six months later, Anne insisted on another journey to Russia, though this did prove to be her final adventure; she died of a fever travelling through what is now Georgia.
Gentleman Jack doesn’t actually introduce Anne until pretty late in her life, with season 1 beginning in 1832 when Anne was already 41. Lister had already led an extremely interesting life up to this point, travelling and studying under some of the top scientists in Europe.
Of course, in some ways, it feels like Wainwright has missed a trick here by having Anne meet Ann, her soulmate, right at the beginning of the first season – and getting her happily ever after at the end of it – rather than starting with her earlier romantic experiences and wild adventures, which are constantly alluded to in the show.
But it could be interesting to see Gentleman Jack season 3 feature flashbacks from Lister’s past, or even act as a prequel to the first two seasons.
Gentleman Jack seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream in full on BBC iPlayer. Looking for something else to watch? Take a look at the rest of our Drama coverage or check out our TV Guide to find out what is on television this week.
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