The Bear Season 3: Has a new series of the hit television programme been confirmed and how to watch - everything we know

The Bear has been a huge hit with television viewers and critics alike.

Thiose who have reached the end of a starry second season of restaurant drama The Bear have been left with one big question: when's the next season?

The Bear follows the culinary and personal travails of top chef Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto, played by Jeremy Allen White, who returns home to Chicago to run his family's Italian beef sandwich shop, after the suicide of his older brother.

Season 2 saw Carmy and his group of friends, family and employees work to open a new restaurants and featured a number of notable guest stars, including Molly Gordon as Carmy’s love interest Claire, Jamie Lee Curtis as Carmy’s mother Donna, Jon Bernthal as Mikey, Sarah Paulson as Cousin Michelle, John Mulaney as Stevie, Bob Odenkirk as Uncle Lee, Will Poulter as Luca, Olivia Colman as Chef Terry, and Gillian Jacobs as Richie’s ex-wife Tiff.

And it ended on a number of cliffhangers, leaving viewers desperate to see what happens next.

Who makes The Bear?

The Bear is made by production company FX and the brains behind the series is creator, executive producer, writer and co-showrunner Christopher Storer.

Has The Bear been a success?

The Bear is one of the most successful television series of recent years, earning a perfect 100 per cent rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.

It has also been nominated for an impressive 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, including a nod for Outstanding Comedy Series.

Will there be a third season of The Bear?

While there has been no official confirmation of a third season, showrunner Christopher Storer gave the game away while talking to Esquire about season two, saying: “It was also great having Ayo [Edebiri] on set with me that week - she’s going to direct a few episodes next year so she was an important set of fresh eyes.”

Season 2 was confirmed a few weeks after the full first season had been released, so expect an announcement soon.

When will the third season of The Bear be released?

As filming has yet to start on season three it seems unlikely it will be released any earlier than the second half of 2024.

What can we expect from season three of The Bear?

Lionel Boyce, who plays budding pastry chef Marcus Brooks, has spoken about a potential third season to Deadline.

He said: "I would like to see Marcus go through anything as long as we get a Season 3. I feel the same way as I did after Season 1, where it finished and I was like, ‘I truly don’t know where the show’s gonna go. All the writers do such a great job of arcing out specific stories for each character, so I’m excited to see where they’ll take it.”

He added: "I think the thing to me that is interesting to explore is just like continuing the journey of aspiring for greatness. It’s just a story of passion…for me, I would love to explore that. This season was, to me, very much him just discovering there’s a path to greatness and seeing what it takes to get there. So I would like to see like him get one step closer to it and see what comes with that — the good and the bad.”

How to watch The Bear in the UK

Both series of The Bear are available to stream on Disney+. You can sign up to the service for £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year here.