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Our Predictions for 2010 – Were We Right?

Our Predictions for 2010 – Were We Right?

The BillAt the end of last year we made a number of predictions about which shows we thought would be cancelled during 2010 – but where we right? Well in this feature we look back at our predictions to see if we were close to the mark or off the ball.

 

 

 

 

At the end of last year we made a number of predictions about which shows we thought would be cancelled during 2010 – but where we right? Well in this feature we look back at our predictions to see if we were close to the mark or off the ball.

 

 

 


The Bill

The BillIn December last year we said that the failed revamp of The Bill – to turn it into a post-watershed CSI style of show – would result in it being axed. The falling ratings and the fact the drama disappear all together from the schedules in November of 2009 made us conclude that the series was not destined to last – we were right! ITV cancelled The Bill this year with its final episode airing at the end of August. There was a campaign to Save The Bill with fans hoping that Channel Five, the BBC or Channel Four would step in and acquire it but all confirmed to ATV Today it had no such plans to do so and The Bill remained cancelled.

 

 

 


Heroes

HeroesFor the past two years we have predicted that the NBC cult series Heroes would be axed. We were wrong in 2008 when surprisingly NBC decided to give Heroes another chance and a fourth season. The producers promised they had listened to fans and were addressing there concerns in the fourth series. So in 2008 we were wrong and Heroes did indeed return but our prediction for this year was correct – NBC pulled the plug. Hardly surprising given that ratings fell below 5 million viewers during its fourth season.

 

 

 


V

VGiven all the behind-the-scenes problems experience by ABC’s re-imaged V in its run up to broadcast in late 2009 its not surprising we didn’t see it being renewed. After all changes in show-runners, cancelled publicity stunts and episodes being held back for months don’t exactly fill you with confidence over the shows future. However, we were wrong because ABC opted to renew V over Flashforward and it’ll be back for a second series next year. There is a twist though because ABC recently cut down V’s episode order from 13 episodes to 10 – so its future doesn’t seem all that secure.

 


One Life to Live

One Life to LiveFollowing CBS’s cancellation of Guiding Light and As The World Turns – both long-running but low rated soaps – fans in America turned their attention towards ABC’s low-rated serial One Life to Live. In fact there were even news stories that ABC were on the verge of cancelling it because of its poor performance. ABC denied these stories but we felt that during 2010 the soap would likely be cancelled – we were wrong. ABC has not cancelled the series and is reportedly about to upgrade production on One Life to Live to HD – a costly move and one it wouldn’t undertake if it was cancelling it.

 


Taggart

TaggartThe gritty Scottish detective drama Taggart looked to be a victim of the bitter feud between STV and ITV last year. The two warring broadcasters were taking pot-shots at each other withy STV removing several ITV dramas from its schedules and ITV warning the future of Taggart was in doubt. STV were prepared to go it alone without ITV however with digital channel Alibi but in the end Taggart was spared the axe – so we were wrong. A new series has been shown on STV in Scotland instead of Downton Abbey and will be aired on ITV next year.

 

 

 

 


Rock and Chips

 

Rock and ChipsBoy were we wrong about this prequel to Only Fools and Horses! We predicted Rock & Chips would not be a success with audiences following the demise of spin-off The Green, Green Grass. We thought the public had fallen out of love with the Only Fools and Horses franchise but seemingly we were wrong. The one-off instalment of Rock and Chips pulled in over 7 million viewers to BBC One and two more episodes have been ordered by the corporation with filming taking place now. Perhaps the fact it aired as feature length episode rather than a full series helped its ratings success.

 

 

 

 


Flashforward

 

FlashforwardWe predicted that despite the hype surrounding Flashforward – dubbing it the new Lost – it would be cancelled by ABC. The reason why? Despite its strong launch ratings for Flashforward soon began to freefall and it became clear that ABC wouldn’t renew both V and Flashforward. In the end V was the victor and Flashforward was the victim – so we were right.

 

 

 

 

 


Melrose Place

 

Melrose PlaceThere couldn’t have been many – if anyone – who thought that The CW would renew Melrose Place for a second season. Many were predicting its demise very early on in its run but The CW stuck by it and ordered more episodes for its first season in the hope ratings would improve. A revamp to make the show ‘more fun’ was also ordered but it wasn’t successful. In the end Melrose Place’s fate was sealed by its dismal ratings – another prediction we got right.

 

 

 

 

 


Marple

 

Julia McKenzie as Miss MarpleWith Geraldine McEwan stepping down from the role of Miss Marple, Agatha Christie’s other famous sleuth, and Julia McKenzie taking over we didn’t feel the series’ future was secure. Ratings for ITV’s adaptations of Agatha Christie’s Marple books have not been very high and there has also been criticisms of the episodes. Some fans are not happy with new subplots added to the stories while other Christie novels which did not feature Marple have been adapted for the series with the character added. However, we were wrong about this prediction as Marple continues on ITV as does Christie’s other famous sleuth, Poirot.

 

 

 

So overall how did we fare with our predictions? Well we were right about the axing of four shows and wrong about five shows – but considering V still has a shaky future perhaps we will be proved right in the neat future?

 

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