St. John’s is getting the spotlight once again as cameras roll on season two of CBC’s Son of a Critch.

CBC and Lionsgate have announced the start of production on a second instalment of the Newfoundland and Labrador-set coming-of-age comedy, which is set in the 1980s and hails from co-creators, writers and executive producers Mark Critch (This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and Tim McAuliffe (The Office).

Critch’s 2018 memoir inspired the series, which is produced by Toronto-based Project 10 Productions and Newfoundland’s Take the Shot Productions, in association with CBC and Lionsgate Television. Lionsgate handles worldwide distribution rights outside Canada.

The series is produced by Emmy-and Golden Globe-winning Andrew Barnsley (Schitt’s Creek). Other executive producers include Ben Murray and Allan Hawco.

Writers on the 13 x 30-minute season two, which was announced in February, include Critch, McAuliffe, Perry Chafe, Heidi Brander, Amanda Joy, Nadiya Chettiar, Anita Kapila, Justin Rawana, and Ashley Lannigan, who is the trainee script co-ordinator this season. Directors include Renuka Jeyapalan, Deanne Foley, John Vatcher, and Vanessa Matsui.

Jeyapalan, Chafe and Kapila also serve as co-executive producers.

The family comedy stars Critch alongside Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Malcolm McDowell, Claire Rankin, Sophia Powers and Mark Rivera. The second season will premiere on CBC and CBC Gem in winter 2023.

The 13-episode first season debuted in January and was the most-watched original Canadian comedy in the country and one of the top five most-watched comedies overall in Canada, according to a news release citing Numeris.

Son of a Critch is among several CBC comedies that launched in the last year — with others including the Peabody-winning Sort Of — and are now getting second seasons to “grow and evolve,” Sally Catto, general manager of entertainment, factual and sports at CBC, told Playback Daily during the pubcaster’s Upfront last month.

Photo credit: Derm Carberry; Caption (L-R): Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Young Mark and Mark Rivera as Ritche Perez with two new school friends.