BBC Scotland has announced that long-running drama series, River City will come to an end next year after more than 20 years on screen.
The drama, which has aired since 2002, will show its final series in Autumn 2026.
River City was set in the fictional town of Shieldinch and shot on a purpose built set in Dumbarton.
The BBC says that closing the long riunning drama is due to “a significant change in audience behaviour away from long-running series and towards shorter runs.” Three new Scottish dramas have been announced from Balloon Entertainment, World Productions and Synchronicity Films.
Hayley Valentine, Director, BBC Scotland says: “River City has been a wonderful adventure and of course we’ll all be sad to see it go. The team have done a brilliant job and I know they have some big plans for the finale next year. But as viewing patterns change and competition intensifies, this is the right time to invest in the next generation of high-impact drama series from across Scotland showcasing storytelling across the UK. Our goal is to grow Scotland further on the global drama map – with a slate of world-class productions that set the standard not just here but internationally too.”
Louise Thornton Head of Commissioning at BBC Scotland: “We are incredibly proud of River City and it is with great sadness that we have come to this difficult decision. I want to thank the River City team in front of and behind the cameras for their dedication to the show over the years, past and present. For more than two decades, River City has brought drama to life on screen as well as offering industry training at grassroots level, and we know that fans of the programme will be really sad to see it go. The show leaves a tremendous legacy behind and the new productions we’ve announced will offer further opportunities.
“However, the media landscape is changing at pace and, as audience viewing habits change, it’s vital we respond to this. Our three new dramas, alongside the returning drama favourites, reflect the increasing shift in audience demand for series rooted in Scotland which play to audiences across the UK…and beyond. We’re delighted to be working with such great production teams and remain steadfast in our commitment to invest in Scotland’s creative industry.”
In response, Directors UK CEO Andy Harrower, said: “This is going to be a killer blow to our members based in Scotland, for whom the last couple of years have been really challenging in terms of having enough work to sustain a living. The BBC has indicated that the money saved will be reallocated to other Scottish production. This must happen, and it must translate into work opportunities for Scottish talent. We will hold the BBC to account on this.”
The BBC has said that it will make a “considerable boost in major drama productions set across Scotland”, using the River City investment to start three new series – Counsels, Grams and The Young Team. Along with the new titles, Granite Harbour will return for a third series, filming in Aberdeen and Glasgow in the coming months. Shetland will return for its tenth series and Vigil for a third series, along with previously announced eight-part drama, Mint. “Combined, these dramas will bring a greater range of stories written by Scots, about Scotland and made in Scotland for a UK-wide audience.”
The BBC has said that total investment in BBC drama from Scotland over the next three years “is expected to rise to over £95m cumulatively (2026-28).”
Counsels, Grams and The Young Team were ordered by Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning for BBC Scotland and Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama.
The BBC said it will also “work with industry partners on a new talent training plan in Scotland. A new framework for training will build on River City’ssuccessful training academy and the ongoing work on other series to elevate individuals in to senior creative roles as well as supporting and developing production crews.”
The new Scottish drama titles are:
COUNSELS (Balloon Entertainment)
8×60’ – BBC iPlayer / BBC One / BBC Scotland
Counsels is an original high-stakes legal drama co-created by Scottish writers Bryan Elsley (The Crow Road, Skins) and BBC Writers’ Drama Room graduate Gillian McCormack. Set and filmed in and around Glasgow, Counsels follows five young lawyers who once trained together at one of Scotland’s elite law schools but are now scattered across the profession and find themselves facing each other in the courts of Glasgow. Some will rise to the top, while others risk losing everything as their careers teeter on the edge when they lock horns in their biggest cases yet. The ambitious lawyers must navigate a legal battlefield where their friendships begin to fracture, love affairs crumble, and the fight for justice threatens to tear them all apart.
GRAMS (World Productions)
6×60’ – BBC iPlayer / BBC One / BBC Scotland
Grams is a darkly comic thriller created, written and directed by the RTS award-winning James Price (Dog Days, Boys Night), Grams is set in Springburn, Glasgow, where James was born and still lives. Following the death of her beloved grandson Michael, widowed Glaswegian Thana becomes the target of a violent local gang, who Michael apparently crossed. Thana finds salvation in the form of Connor, a volatile friend of Michael’s with serious anger issues. Grams will see Thana and Connor form an unlikely partnership, as they seek the truth of what really happened to Michael.
THE YOUNG TEAM (Synchronicity Films)
6×60’ – BBC iPlayer / BBC Three/BBC Scotland
The Young Team is the scripted debut from one of Scotland’s most exciting voices in literature, Graeme Armstrong. The series is adapted from Graeme’s best-selling and award-winning debut novel of the same name and is set and filmed in North Lanarkshire. Fifteen-year-old Azzy Williams and his pals roam the streets of Airdrie on a Friday night, bottles of Buckfast in hand and techno playing from tinny speakers. Azzy is ready. Ready to smoke, pop pills, drink wine and fight. He longs to become fully initiated into local gang the Young Team Posse (YTP). But when Azzy, determined to prove himself, makes a bold move, a brutal gang conflict ensues with Azzy very firmly at its heart. The Young Team will follow Azzy on his journey from boyhood to manhood as he and his mates become postcode warriors in a toxic cycle that threatens to consume them. An unflinching look at the realities of addiction and gang violence, this ambitious series will tell a powerful, visceral story about the realities of life for young, disenfranchised people and the fight for a different future.
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama says: “Audience habits are changing and we are responding to that with these plans for three brilliant new dramas made in Scotland. BBC viewers love truly authentic stories and we are committed to creating high-impact content from across the UK, so that we can better reflect and represent every part of the country. The success of the long running Shetland, coupled with the return of Vigil and Granite Harbour, is a testament to the strength of talent we have in Scotland and we look forward to seeing our three new shows come to life alongside these hugely popular returners.”
Jon Creamer
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