Informer axed by the BBC

6 April 2020

'Informer' has been cancelled after just one series.

Paddy Considine

The BBC "really wanted 'Informer' to work", but they are said to have made the "difficult decision" to stop making the espionage thriller after viewing figures were not thought to be what they had hoped.

An insider told The Sun newspaper's Bizarre TV column: "The BBC really wanted 'Informer' to work because it felt different to other dramas.

"It had a multicultural cast, was set in the gritty backdrop of London's East End and it attempted to combat stereotypes about Muslims and Islamophobia.

"But there have been several edgy BBC One shows which haven't pulled in the big audiences you would expect in 9pm slots.

"They include 'Years And Years', 'Wanderlust' and 'Noughts + Crosses', which last Thursday was watched by a peak of 1.35 million people. At one point just 940,000 tuned in."

Although the BBC is "incredibly proud" of Informer, they have confirmed it won't be returning.

They said: "To make room for new shows, we sometimes have to make difficult decisions about which dramas to recommission and unfortunately Informer won't be returning for a second series. We're incredibly proud of the show."

The 2018 programme saw actor Nabhaan Rizwan play a Pakistani youngster recruited as a counter-terrorism spy by Detective Superintendent Gabe Waters, who was portrayed by Paddy Considine.

'Informer' - which also starred Call The Midwife's Jessica Raine - was Nabhaan's first TV role, and director Jonny Campbell thought it made sense to shoot some scenes with the 23-year-old star before filming had officially started, so he could "feel like he's got something under his belt".

Jonny previously said: "It was Nabhaan's first thing. It felt like a good idea to have a decent set all ready where he had nothing to say - except look cool, or pi***d off, or just observe the area. He's never been with a camera before - so we just gave him a chance to make him feel like he's got something under his belt."