View Full Version : ITV axes family dramas Heartbeat and The Royal
ITV has axed 1960s drama Heartbeat, it was revealed last night.
It has not commissioned another series after the one currently in production is completed later this year.
The Royal, a spin-off series also set in rural Yorkshire, is also to be culled in a desperate drive to save money.
The Royal Today, the daytime TV spin-off, has already gone.
It comes after the broadcaster last week announced it was halving the output of The Bill to a single episode a week. insiders say they expect many more cutbacks by ITV bosses.
The success of shows like Dancing On Ice and I'm A Celebrity... are also blamed for squeezing traditional drama out of the schedules.
The Bill is slashed to one episode a week, the police drama will be screened after watershed to allow for grittier storylines
Heartbeat, which has starred actors including Nick Berry and Tricia-Penrose, has been a staple part of cosy Sunday night viewing for nearly two decades.
The series, which first aired in April 1992, used to draw 10million viewers. It now attracts between 4 and 5million, while The Royal gets 4million.
There were suggestions Heartbeat could make a comeback in a couple of years' time. But sources close to the show admit that once ITV has laid off the actors and closed the production offices, it will not return.
The insider said: 'Staff have been kept holding on another series of Heartbeat, but there has been nothing. People on the show have been told at the moment that there is no recommission.'
Another source close to the show said: 'Heartbeat has been there for years. This is a big deal. I would have to say even if ITV was not in trouble, you would have to admit this is a series that is at the tail-end of its career.'
'Its like all the things that Yorkshire TV has been founded on, they are all coming to a close.'
Other stars to have appeared in the show over the years are former Coronation Street actor Nikki Sanderson, Gwen Taylor and Bill Maynard.
ITV has denied suggestions that it is also set to scale back the number of episodes on Emmerdale.
:eek: :crying: I like watching Heartbeat or the Royal just to listen to the snippets of oldies
why do they keep doing this, all the decent drama on telly they get rid of and replace it with rubbish that there is far too much of on telly any way.
DaVeyWaVey
28-01-2009, 09:49
This is extremely sad news. I remember watching Heartbeat when I was a child. My mum and dad would always let me watch it on a Sunday night, before going to bed at 9pm for school in the morning - it was such a treat. I haven't watched it in a few years, but it was one programme heavily associated with ITV, along with The Royal. If both these shows have been axed, it shows the channel is in trouble.
Both shows were getting good ratings as well. To be honest, I could see this coming though. ITV were beginning to mess both shows up in the schedules. They were airing a couple of episodes either at 7pm or 8pm, then taking it off air, then bringing it back on for another few episodes, then taking it back off air again!
This is disgraceful. Heartbeat and The Royal may not be top notch drama in the league of Lark Rise to Candleford and Jane Austen but hey its easy watching and just perfect for a Sunday evening.
Its no surprise that they want to concentrate on money spinners like Dancing on Ice and Celebrity as they cost relatively little to make and generate huge incomes from rip off telephone voting lines.
DaVeyWaVey
28-01-2009, 10:08
Completely agree Alan. Whilst some reality shows are a guilty pleasure, I would hate for there to be more of them.. we need some drama on the box too!
How are Dancing and Celebrity pushing drama out of the schedule? Celebrity is on for three weeks a year.
It will be sad to see Heartbeat go. We always used to sit down as a family on a Sunday night and watch it. Every summer we'd have a day trip up to Goathland where they film and go on the steam trains up to the engine sheds.
ITV don't produce much quality drama as it is. Cutting The Bill to an episode a week and getting rid of two local long running dramas. What are ITV going to take off the schedules next?
We have enough reality shows on the box already. Lets have some decent drama back.
I am glad I am not the only that thinks it is a shame, at the moment I find the offer of tv viewing available on a Sunday evening shambolic apart from Heartbeat, when it is on.
I hate that there is a tonne of reality shows but I was never a fan of either of these shows so won't miss them at all... However, I do feel there should be more drama on both ITV and BBC.. I was gutted there was no new episodes of the Street last year.. ITV use to have some great dramas
can't believe they are axing Heartbeat, it's such a big part of the ITV.
British television really is going to the dogs.
:eek: heartbeat I dont watch it but I cant believe they are axing it, its like always on, on sundays!
ITV has reportedly revealed that police drama Heartbeat and its spinoff show The Royal will remain on TV screens for the next two years.
Earlier, it was reported that the broadcaster had decided not to recommission the programmes once they finished their current production run.
However, it is now thought that ITV has stockpiled enough episodes of both shows to transmit a new series of each programme this year and in 2010.
"Heartbeat and The Royal are an important part of ITV's schedule and are currently in production," said an ITV representative.
However, the spokesperson refused to comment on the future of the programmes after 2010.
Heartbeat, which is set in a rural Yorkshire village, debuted in 1992 and attracted audiences of around ten million at its peak. Spinoff show The Royal was launched in 2003, but both programmes have recently seen a decline in viewing figures.
ITV reportedly decided to axe the Sunday night dramas in a bid to save money. The popularity of reality shows including Dancing On Ice and I'm A Celebrity... has also been partly blamed for the demise of traditional drama.
Last week, the broadcaster announced that it would be scaling back production on long-running drama The Bill.
:cheer:
So its not been axed, well is but 2 more years of it :p
Residents of the Yorkshire village where Heartbeat is filmed have launched a petition to save the show.
Last month, ITV announced that the police drama and its spinoff The Royal will not be recommissioned in a bid to save money.
According to the Daily Mail, villagers in Goathland have gathered almost 10,000 signatures in their bid to make the broadcaster reconsider its decision.
Campaign leader Brian Taylor, who runs the local post office with his wife, said that the area will experience a wave of unemployment if the programme ends.
"It is the amount of publicity Heartbeat gives the whole area worldwide for tourism. Once it goes there will be a slow decline. Tourism is jobs, people coming back to the area and money coming into the local economy," he said.
"It's not just us. It's all the other little villages on the moors as well. This will hit trade along the line."
Heartbeat, which is set in the fictional Yorkshire village of Aidensfield, debuted in 1992 and attracted audiences of around ten million at its peak, although recently it has suffered a decline in viewers.
ITV has started pulling down the set of Heartbeat - dashing fans' hopes that a new series will be filmed.
David Lonsdale, who played village idiot David Stockwell in the hit show for 13years, watched in horror as his TV home on the Yorkshire set was ripped to shreds. He said: "It was gut-wrenching. It was like seeing your home violated. It was a very sad day."
Itv stopped filming in January but bosses insisted they had episodes stockpiled and could begin filming again in 2010.
But Lonsdale, 46, believes when a new series goes out in the spring, it will be the last one.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/11/23/heartbeat-stopped-for-good-as-itv-tears-down-set-115875-21843572/
:crying:
ITV has confirmed that it has decided to cancel Heartbeat.
The Guardian reports that a final series of the show will be broadcast from next month.
Heartbeat, which follows a group of police officers in 1960s Yorkshire, has been on air for 18 years.
ITV insisted that the decision had not been made for financial reasons and explained that it wants to focus more on shorter dramas broadcast over a week.
A spokesperson said: "Heartbeat has been an important part of the television landscape over the last 18 years and we are incredibly proud of what it achieved in its heyday as one of ITV1's top rated dramas. But we are overhauling our schedule to reflect the changing demands of our audience, refreshing the mix of programming we commission and broadcast.
"We will continue to maintain our significant investment in the genre, the biggest of any commercial broadcaster, but ITV1's future focus will be on new and varied drama commissions."
The final series of Heartbeat will begin on July 18.
Heartbeat Returns 18th July
PC Mason’s personal feelings compromise his professional judgement when a local woman is murdered. Dawn bites off more than she can chew with her new hot dog business.
The locals of Aidensfield are surprised when newcomer Viv Mackay announces in the pub that she is to marry businessman Dominic Bellingham. However, nobody is more surprised than Dominic; he is a married man and doesn’t appreciate Viv putting him under pressure to separate from his wife.
Later that evening Viv’s son, Scott Mackay bangs on PC Joe Mason’s door saying Viv has been murdered. Joe goes to investigate and finds Viv has been battered to death in her own kitchen. The boot prints found next to the body place simpleton George Aston top on the list of suspects. He is known to have an obsessive crush on Viv and has been following her around the village for days.
Meanwhile, Vince asks Dawn to look after his new Hot Dog van whilst he is away. Dawn recognises a good opportunity to make some money and persuades David to be her business partner in selling Hot Dogs to the fans flocking to the Ashfordly cup tie football match. Peggy is not happy about David’s decision to help Dawn; she needs him to help her shift baked potatoes at the match. Peggy uses emotional blackmail in the hope David will see sense. Dawn is angry that Peggy would stoop so low and is infuriated further when several mishaps look like a deliberate attempt to sabotage her business. Dawn plots her revenge and ruins Peggy’s chances of selling any baked potatoes. But Dawn is later forced to eat humble pie when Peggy’s innocence is proven. Peggy wants more than an apology in compensation so Dawn reluctantly watches on as Peggy and David drive off to the match in the Hog Dog van.
Scott Mackay is distraught at his mother’s death and finds comfort in talking to Joe, whose own mother was murdered years before. Joe takes him to stay with Nurse Carol Cassidy whilst they continue their investigations. DS Rachel Dawson goes to talk to Scott about the murder and Scott says he remembers Viv returning to the house with Dominic Bellingham, his mother’s lover.
Dominic is brought into the station and when questioned, his story doesn’t add up with Scott’s. Dominic remains adamant Scott saw him leave Viv’s house and shouldn’t be trusted if he says otherwise - Scott has always had a grudge against him because of his affair with Viv.
As Peggy and David set up at the football cup tie, PC Don Wetherby pays Dawn a visit. It turns out Vince stole the Hot Dog van. When a police car arrives at the football ground, Peggy and David assume they are in trouble because they don’t have a license to sell Hot Dogs. They decide to make a quick getaway, but are closely followed by Don in his Panda car. Dawn and Bernie join in the chase, as does Vince who arrives home just in time to see what is going on. Peggy and David eventually give up the chase on a rural hillside road. Vince has a lot of explaining to do but is interrupted when David’s bad judgment causes the van to crash…
George Aston is eventually tracked down by the police to a farm on the moors. He is brought in for questioning and implicated by a ring belonging to Viv found on his person. He claims he found it and took it to her but it was too late, she was already dead. The evidence against George gives DS Rachel Dawson no choice but to arrest him for the murder. However, Scott helps clear George’s name by telling Joe that he definitely didn’t see Dominic Bellingham leave the house, consequently placing him at the murder scene.
Dominic becomes the new prime suspect in the murder case, and he doesn’t have a strong alibi. A conviction against Dominic looks certain when Scott leads Joe to a possible murder weapon, a golf club belonging to Dominic found in the river next to Viv’s house.
Despite the evidence against Bellingham, Carol is concerned that Joe’s judgment is being clouded by his emotional attachment to Scott. Scott is constantly agitated and he makes her feel uneasy. Back at her house, Carol makes an important discovery linking Scott to the murder. Carol finds herself trapped in the house alone with him, her life in grave danger. Will Joe arrive in time to prevent another murder?
Heartbeat Spoiler 25th July 2010
Romance is on the cards for Dawn Bellamy and the new barman at the Aidenfield Arms, Billy Garrett. When they first meet there is an obvious attraction between the young pair. Billy is good-looking and charming and happy-go-lucky Dawn is more than willing to be swept of her feet…and onto the back of his motorbike. Billy and Dawn share a blissful first kiss, but as their relationship develops Dawn discovers Billy is deeply tormented by the passing of his mother, who died of cancer three months earlier. His troubled past and sudden angry outbursts begin to make Dawn feel uneasy as she realises there is more to Billy’s arrival in Aidensfield than meets the eye.
Following several incidents of sabotage against local farmer Harry Brown, PC Joe Mason opens an investigation to unearth the culprit. It appears Harry Brown has made a number of enemies among the other farmers for his dodgy farming practises and they want to force him out. As the situation worsens, Harry Brown‘s wife Rose ends up in hospital when their family Land Rover fails to stop and crashes on a country road. Joe and Sergeant George Miller gather the farmers together to settle the dispute. The angry farmers call for Harry Brown’s eviction, but no one is willing to own up to tempering with the Land Rover’s breaks.
Meanwhile, David and Peggy are hired by Ronnie Smethers to inventory the house of recently deceased old woman. Despite Ronnie’s orders, Peggy is keen to make a few bob on the side from anything of value they find tucked away. When they arrive in the house it is cluttered with junk and David begins to fear the house is haunted after hearing some unexplained bumps in the attic. Peggy agrees to investigate the mysterious sounds and discovers an unexpected surprise…
The campaign against Harry Brown continues to have deadly consequences when an act of arson at Harry’s farm puts his life in danger. As the fire rages in the farm’s outhouse, it is newcomer Billy Garrett who is on the scene in time to rescue Harry from the flames. Joe has growing concerns that these latest incidents are more personal than a simple dispute between farmers. His suspicions lead him to believe the very man who saved Harry’s life is holding onto a darker secret involving both men, and Harry could still be in danger. Harry does not realise Billy is any danger towards him and goes to the Aidensfield Arms to thank him for saving his life. When he arrives, Billy refuses to see him but Harry insists and enters his room. Billy reacts badly and threatens him with Harry’s very own shotgun. Joe arrives at the pub and upon hearing the commotion races up the stairs towards Billy’s room, but will he be able to stop him before anyone is killed…
TV beauty Nikki Sanderson has told how the Heartbeat cast burst into tears when filming for the final episode ended.
Nikki, 26, who played Dawn Bellamy in the show for 18 months, said: "It was a really sad time for everyone.
"We finished filming it last year.
"As soon as we wrapped up the final scene everyone burst into tears.
"It will be sad to see it going as it has been such a huge part of people's lives."
Ex-Corrie star Nikki said she believed the show was so popular because it was light-hearted.
She added: "It is a family show and really easy to watch.
"People love the 1960s outfits as well. It was great to go back to the 60s and experience them in my own way."
Nikki is joining the national tour of stage show The Vagina Monologues from Tuesday alongside ex-Emmerdale actress Roxanne Pallet.
She said: "I am really looking forward to it!"
The Sun
tammyy2j
15-09-2010, 11:10
I watched the last episode of Heartbeat and was in tears that they killed off Oscar :(
I watched the last episode of Heartbeat and was in tears that they killed off Oscar :(
He hasnt actually died yet but as the series has been binned then we will never know. This series was great easy watching on a Sunday evening and the music was great too.
ITV to show the last 8 episodes of the Royal
The Royal
Episode: 4 of 12
Sunday, 5 June 2011, 7:00PM - 8:00PM
Drama
Production house: ITV Studios
Press contacts: Natasha Bayford
[email protected]
Picture contacts: Patrick Smith
[email protected]
Viewer enquiries:
[email protected]
Set against the colourful tapestry of the swinging sixties, The Royal returns with nine brand new episodes.
Regular cast members Robert Daws, Amy Robbins, Linda Armstrong, Michelle Hardwick, Glynis Barber, Gareth Hale and Wendy Craig return to their roles, alongside some new and exciting characters that will no doubt bring their fair share of conflict and jeopardy to St Aidan's Royal Free Hospital.
Episode 4:
The series opens with Mr Middleditch (Ian Carmichael) who has come in to St Aidan's hospital, accompanied by his wife, for a routine operation. Noticing that Mrs Middleditch (Susan Hampshire) looks unwell, the hospital decides to give her a blood transfusion. Distracted by the attentions of a rich divorced playboy, who has promised to marry her, Susie Dixon (Sarah Beck Mather) administers the wrong blood, which later results in serious consequences for both her and the patient. Dr Weatherill (Amy Robbins) manages to save Mrs Middleditch’s life, although it’s touch and go for a time.
Dr Ormerod (Robert Daws) is called out by the coastguard to rescue a grieving widow who has got into difficulty on her yacht. Dr Ormerod uncovers some family secrets and persuades his patient that she does have a future to look forward to.
A rag and bone man is collecting some scrap from Jack (Gareth Hale) and Alun (Andy Wear) but is trampled by his horse and admitted to the Royal for surgery. Jack and Alun are left to look after the horse, with comic consequences…
Episode 5
Faye Clarke (Lauren Drummond), the new student nurse arrives. An extremely timid, jumpy young girl, it’s her first time away from home. She’s faced with a trying first day when a beautiful young model collapses after taking magic mushrooms and dies. But Matron (Wendy Craig) can see she has potential.
Motorcycle stunt rider, Jimmy (James Daffern) charms Lizzie (Michelle Hardwick) when he falls off his bike and injures his wrist. Jimmy tells Dr Ormerod (Robert Daws) he has a hereditary medical condition – polycystic kidneys. He knows he hasn’t got long on this earth so he wants to live fast, die young. But tests reveal an altogether different diagnosis. But before Dr Ormerod can give him the good news, Jimmy takes Lizzie for a ride on the Wall of Death. He crashes the bike – has he used up all his nine lives?
Episode: 6 of 12
A patient with cancer dies unexpectedly after a visit from Dr Ormerod (Robert Daws), and the grieving family point the finger at him. Dr Omerod is arrested on suspicion of murder – how will he prove his innocence?
Dr Ralph Ellis (Neil McDermott) holds a clinic at the local prison and is concerned about the mental health of one of his patients. When a full scale riot breaks out, Ralph’s trapped. Will he escape unscathed?
Jack (Gareth Hale) and Alun (Andy Wear) play a series of practical jokes on Faye. Faye’s upset but gets her own back when Jack needs a tetanus shot – this is her chance to overcome her fear of needles.
So thats it then. The Royal has ended with what was presumably meant to be a cliffhanger ending to make us look forward to a new series. Of course there wont be one because ITV prefer to spend their money on things like X Factor and Im a Zedlebrity Get me more money. The Royal was good easy viewing for a Sunday evening with a bunch of decent actors. Instead they prefer to throw millions at already overpaid so called celebs just to try to win a ratings war with the Beeb.
Now we will never know if
Dr. Omerod lives or dies
Sister Bridget renounces her vows of chastity
Dr. Rose actually lights his pipe
Alan gets a woman
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