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BBC Confirms Waterloo Road Is Making A Return For A Brand New Series

BBC Confirms Waterloo Road Is Making A Return For A Brand New Series

The hit school drama set in Greater Manchester last aired in 2015.

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers

Waterloo Road is returning to our screens, it has been announced.

The hit drama last aired in 2015 and centres on the lives of students and teachers at Waterloo Road school in Greater Manchester.

According to the BBC, the series' return was inspired in part by the coronavirus pandemic and its effect on education in the UK over the past year, which has raised awareness for many around the challenges faced by staff and pupils.

Speaking about hen announcement, Piers Wenger, the Director of BBC Drama, said: "Waterloo Road is the perfect lens through which to explore post-Covid Britain, from the perspective of those who have arguably been affected most: young people in education.

BBC

"We are thrilled to be returning to this brilliant format - its thrills and spills, unmissable characters and high drama - at a time when audiences across Britain need it most - and to be collaborating with the brilliant Cameron Roach and Wall To Wall on its return."

Cameron Roach, the executive producer, added: "I'm really thrilled to be working with the BBC and Wall To Wall, in re-igniting the iconic brand of Waterloo Road.

"The vital and urgent stories that are playing out in schools across the UK provide incredible and emotionally powerful themes, that we're excited to bring to a new generation of fans.

BBC

"Waterloo Road will continue its reputation for kickstarting, supporting and enabling careers both in front of and behind the camera, in a truly inclusive way, from our base in Greater Manchester."

This comes after Ofcom announced that it was giving the green light to the return of BBC Three to our television screens.

The channel was axed back in 2016, with the BBC moving it online after deciding that younger viewers no longer watched traditional forms of media and television.

However, with the channel enjoying incredible successes over the past few years, including the likes of Fleabag and Killing Eve, the argument has been strongly made that there is, in fact, a place for it on our TV screens.

BBC

And in the wake of the pandemic, which saw BBC Three's adaptation of Normal People become the most-watched and most talked-about series in the country, the corporation has made moves to bring the channel back.

Ofcom has now thrown its support behind the proposals.

In a ruling shared on 16 September, the regulator wrote: "Our job is to ensure that any change the BBC wishes to make to its publicly funded TV, radio and online services does not give it an unfair advantage over rival broadcasters.

"Having conducted a detailed analysis of the BBC's proposal, we have provisionally concluded that the public value of BBC Three returning as a broadcast channel justifies the limited adverse market impact."

In its ruling, Ofcom also confirmed that while the decision will now go through a period of consultation, BBC Three would indeed be given a prominent spot in listings.

The public consultation is open from now until 14 October.

Featured Image Credit: BBC

Topics: Drama, Entertainment, BBC, UK Entertainment, Greater Manchester