Graham Norton's reality television experiment, "The Neighbourhood," has been cancelled by ITV after only one season due to poor viewership and critical reception. ITV executives have indicated a strategic shift back to established reality programming.
Joe Mace, ITV's Entertainment Commissioning Editor, acknowledged that the network had "learned lessons" from the show's performance, describing it as an experiment that did not yield the expected results. Speaking at the Edinburgh TV festival, Mace explained that while the concept of creating a neighborhood where families were judged resonated, ITV's audience primarily engages with "fast turnaround, live reality TV." He cited "Love Island" and "Big Brother" as examples of formats that align with viewer expectations.
"There's a lot of great post-produced reality TV out there, and that's perhaps not the lane ITV should be in. That's our ambition now," Mace stated, indicating a preference for formats that do not heavily rely on pre-produced elements.
An ITV spokesperson confirmed the decision, stating, "We're really proud of The Neighbourhood – it was big, bold and ambitious – and we'd like to thank everyone in front of and behind the camera for all of their hard work and dedication in launching the series. Unfortunately, it won't be returning for a new series currently."
Despite a significant marketing campaign and a prime launch slot, "The Neighbourhood" struggled to attract viewers. The show debuted with 1.2 million viewers, but this number dropped to 500,000 by the third episode. In response to the declining ratings, ITV moved the remaining episodes to its streaming platform, ITVX, and shifted the broadcast slot on ITV1 from 9 p.m. to 10:45 p.m., after the evening news. Repeats of "Long Lost Family" and "Beat The Chasers" were scheduled to air in the original 9 p.m. slot on Thursdays and Fridays, respectively.
"The Neighbourhood" marked Norton's first foray into reality television hosting. The series featured real-life households competing in a series of games with a £250,000 prize for the winning family. The show was filmed at Darwin Lake Holiday Park in Matlock, Derbyshire. Insiders suggested that the series performed better on the streaming service ITVX compared to its terrestrial broadcast.
Viewers expressed their dissatisfaction with the show on social media, with comments ranging from "drivel TV" to "the biggest load of rubbish." Ed Daggett, Development Executive at Lifted Entertainment, the production company behind the series, had previously expressed ambitions for "The Neighbourhood" to rival the success of BBC's "The Traitors."