Holby Blue axed over poor ratings

Holby City spin-off Holby Blue will not be returning for a third series, producers have confirmed.

The police drama, which starred Footballers' Wives actress Zoe Lucker, has been dropped from the BBC's schedules after it achieved poor ratings in its 8pm Thursday night time slot.

The show was beaten by ITV1 rival series The Bill - and even picked up fewer viewers than BBC2's nature programme Springwatch.

Claire Phillips, drama executive at creator Tony Jordan's production company Red Planet Pictures, told The Guardian: "Holby Blue set new standards for 8pm dramas, in terms of production values, storytelling and casting.

"We are extremely proud of the 20 hours of Holby Blue that we produced but following discussions with the BBC, the decision has been made not to make a third series."

Holby Blue began in 2007 with a short run of eight episodes, before getting a longer outing for series two.

The second series included a crossover storyline with sister show Holby City.