Bradley Walsh is to leave Law & Order: UK after eight series as the show prepares to take a break from the nation’s screens.
ITV and Kudos today announced that the final episode, scheduled for Wednesday 11 June, will be the last to be transmitted for the “foreseeable future”.
Hitting UK TV screens in February 2009, the opening episode of Law & Order: UK drew in just under a million viewers, according to MediaTel Overnights data; however, the most recent series has seen audiences surpass the five million mark.
“There may well come a time when we re-visit Law & Order: UK,” said ITV’s director of drama commissioning, Steve November. “For the moment we’ll be resting the series whilst we continue to refresh our drama slate.”
ITV is set to launch a brand new drama channel on 9 June, ITV Encore, with scheduled programmes including Broadchurch, Mrs Biggs, The Ice Cream Girls, Poirot, Lucan, Whitechapel and DCI Banks.
The channel forms part of a wider four year deal with Sky and is to become ITV’s biggest partnership with a platform operator.
Commenting on the decision to cut Law & Order UK from ITV’s schedule, executive producer, Jane Featherstone said: “It’s been a privilege for Kudos to produce Law & Order: UK over the last eight series.
“Its success and huge audience appeal over all these years is a testament to the cast, crew and production team who have worked tirelessly to bring such great drama to air.”
