With only a few months to go before Victoria lands on our television screens, fans of the ITV drama will be pleased to hear that Line of Duty star Martin Compston will be making a guest appearance in the upcoming series. The 33-year-old is set to take on the role of Dr. Robert Traill, a key campaigner in the petition to gain awareness and support for those suffering from the potato famine in Ireland during the 1840s. Show bosses have also announced that French actor Bruno Wolkowitch will also make an appearance as French King Louis Philippe, who Queen Victoria visits on her first outing to France.
Line of Duty's Martin Compston will be make a guest appearance in Victoria
The two newcomers will join leading stars Jenna Coleman and Tom Hughes, who will reprise their roles as Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Filming and production for the second instalment of Victoria kicked off earlier this year. Victoria became the new Sunday night prime-time drama last year - pulling in an average of 7.7 million viewers each week. The series was also dubbed the "next Downton Abbey", in part because it also follows the tradition of having a Christmas special.
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The second series - once again written by creator and executive producer Daisy Goodwin - will see a young Queen Victoria face the new challenge of motherhood. Picking up six weeks after the first series ended, the second instalment establishes Victoria as a working mother, learning to balance her responsibilities as both parent and Queen. However, with Prince Albert still struggling to find a role for himself, there is an inevitable power struggle between husband and wife.
Jenna Coleman will reprise her role as Queen Victoria
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Screenwriter Daisy told the Radio Times in October: "Even though she reigned in the 19th Century, Victoria is a heroine for our times. In the next series she faces the very modern dilemma of how to juggle children with her husband and her job. As Victoria will discover, it's hard to be a wife, a mother and ruler of the most powerful nation on earth!"