Equity is today calling on BBC Scotland to save Scotland’s only domestic TV soap and rethink plans to cut the hugely popular Glasgow-based show, River City.
Calling the move "short-sighted" and a "disaster for Scottish television", Equity says the move would have a disproportionately negative impact on Scottish performers - many of whom get their first TV job on River City - and the wider Scottish to production landscape. The £9 million annual budget is excellent value for money given the hours of programming produced throughout the year for a successful show pulling in a regular audience of 500,000 per episode.
BBC Scotland has today announced that Scottish homegrown soap opera River City will be decommissioned, with the final series ending in Autumn 2026. The Glasgow-based show is well-loved by Scottish audiences, enjoys strong ratings, and won ‘Best Drama’ at the RTS Scotland 2023 awards. It is the only domestic Scottish soap running on TV and outperforms other TV series by more than 2.5 times. It provides work for dozens of Scottish actors every year. River City is thriving and successful in its current format.
Sign the petition to Save River CityCommenting Paul W Fleming, Equity General Secretary, said: “This short-sighted move from BBC Scotland would be a disaster for Scottish television. River City is a well-loved staple of tv schedules. It’s a successful Scottish production which should be celebrated, not decimated.
“Axing River City would have a devastating effect on acting and production roles for Scottish talent. There is simply no equivalent to a regular soap for getting your foot in the door of this notoriously cutthroat industry, especially for the many aspiring actors from working class backgrounds. The regular opportunities and wages simply do not exist in other show formats.
“Holby City, Doctors, River City, these cuts to members’ jobs are being made without a long-term strategy from the BBC. Every penny from those productions should stay in producing scripted drama with significant casts, not funnelled into cheap reality or factual TV. The best way to do that is to keep River City running for the audiences who love it.
“BBC Scotland must rethink this move and take action to safeguard investment in domestic Scottish continuing drama.”
Equity is concerned about the impact on Glasgow’s local economy and on Scottish acting and TV production opportunities more widely if the £9 million annual investment in River City is lost. The union is asking for that money to be ringfenced for continuing drama specifically and not replaced with cheaper production content which doesn’t offer similar acting, creative and production jobs.
