Why did the BBC cancel RD?

[SkyAndSun]

Apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere – couldn’t see anything recent.

I just read on wikipedia that RD VIII achieved the highest ratings in RD’s history – 8 million viewers. Why, if this is true, did the BBC decide not to commission a series IX? I have seen the ‘we are not interested in the audience RD attracts’ thing, but 8 million strikes me as a lot of licence fee payers, and given the BBC’s public service remit, surely there must have been some other reason.

Did Doug want to take a break to work on the movie – and when that didn’t work out he came back asking about series IX?

Thanks.

Topic

[Ian Symes]

Pretty sure that Doug didn’t want to do a ninth series at the time of VIII going out, and it wasn’t until years later that the BBC was approached. By then, the goodwill generated by the extraordinary ratings (still BBC2’s most successful comedy by miles) had faded and some arsehole or other decided they didn’t like the show and “were no longer interested in the type of audience Red Dwarf used to attract”.

[Seb Patrick]

>Did Doug want to take a break to work on the movie – and when that didn?t work out he came back asking about series IX?

I think this is pretty much the case, yeah.

[SkyAndSun]

I guess I can see how someone might resent him turning down the opportunity on series IX and returning only when the projects he was more interested in didn’t work out. And the fact that those projects didn’t work out might not have helped his case for a new series, as well. Not saying I agree with these things, but still.

[SeeYouAtThePartyRichter]

>some arsehole or other decided they didn?t like the show and ?were no longer interested in the type of audience Red Dwarf used to attract?

The same arsehole(s) that continue to commission The Apprentice, Celebrity Masterchef and Strictly Dancing with celebs stars who are not really celebrities but once appearead in a scene with Todd Carty when he joined the Bill?

There’s nothing wrong with these shows in moderation, but there really are too many now. Stop it. Please.

I can imagine Doug Naylor in a meeting with the BBC, ending the same way as Alan Partridge – SMELL MY CHEESE YOU MOTHER!

[EvoFan]

Ye, he or she really meant, “I’m no longer interested in the type of audience Red Dwarf used to attract!”

Smeg-head!

[Pete Part Three]

Ha ha.

Smeg.

[pfm]

I still think probably the general consensus was that bringing Dwarf back would be a crap idea, that it wouldn’t be any good, as opposed to the bollocks about not wanting that audience. They’re about to be proved wrong (hopefully…).

[Author]

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