Aussie soap out of the race
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
Major news today from the UK with BBC1 dropping Aussie-made soap Out of the Blue after just six episodes. That’s nearly as bad as Canal Road.
The remainder of the 130×30′ run will air on BBC2 in a 13.00 slot from May 19.
Last week there was much hype over the strong debut for the series but ratings tumbled from 1.2 million for its April 28 debut to just 655,000 a week later.
“Out of the Blue is a bold and original commission for BBC daytime with its compelling mix of human drama and its intriguing murder mystery set in a stunning location,” a BBC spokesman said. “The afternoon slot on BBC One, which the series had been in, is very competitive and by moving the show to BBC Two, we hope it will find a stronger home.”
The future for the TEN Network must surely mean it is now off the table too? TV Tonight hears it was slated for a 6pm lead-in to Neighbours, the show it was made to replace in the UK. TEN would still get local quota points by running it (and frankly they need those), but now it is likely everyone will be re-thinking their position.
Disappointingly it will be replaced in the UK by the old Dick Van Dyke series Diagnosis Murder.
Start the timeclock on how long it takes local media to pick up this story, guys.
Source: C21, Digital Spy
One Response
This soap was well-intentioned and well-produced but the concept had a fatal flaw from the outset. You simply cannot come to like the characters, which is essential, when you are told that each and every one of them could be a murderer.