The cancellation of TV series can stem from many things, from decreasing viewership to poor critical reception to its latest plot developments, but some can simply be axed due to reasons outside of a production’s control.
Unfortunately, for fans of Apple TV+'s The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin, season 2 has been the latest in such entertainment casualties.
Although the comedic retelling of the adventures of 18th-century highwayman Dick Turpin was a quiet hit with its first season, the whole show has been scrapped during the filming of its second due to absence of its key star.
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Noel Fielding — playing the role of the titular Turpin along with being known for his time in The Mighty Boosh, co-hosting The Great British Bake Off, and roles like Richmond in the IT Crowd — is said to have suffered from an illness. As a result, the 51-year-old actor “failed to come to work”, as first reported by The Sun.
Although filming of The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin had already been underway from the autumn, Fielding was unable to return to production as it resumed after the Christmas holidays.
When talking to The Independent, Apple confirmed that rather than merely pause production until the lead actor was able to come back, the whole show has been scrapped completely.
Even though season 2’s production was already three-quarters of the way completed, this means that all of the episodes that have already been shot will never be released on the Apple streaming service.
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In terms of specifics, all of the fellow cast, creatives, and crew members weren’t told anything else along with the unfortunate news except that it was due to “the illness of a key cast member”.
When speaking to The Sun, a TV insider revealed more on the frustrations that everyone on the production is feeling.
They said: “They were understandably bewildered and infuriated by the bombshell because the shoe show required millions of pounds, months of planning and hours of work”.
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“It now effectively means that they are all out of work and looking for new jobs, but they still haven’t had a full explanation”, they further stated.
“Naturally, the rumour mill is in overtime as to what has happened with Noel, but it must have been very serious to axe the whole show”.
However, when a source spoke to The Times, they effectively explained that all other options had been explored. They said: “It’s not a decision that was taken lightly and they wouldn’t have got to this extreme result if every possible solution hadn’t been exhausted.”
The specifics of Noel Fielding’s illness that upended the continuation of Dick Turpin are still yet to be revealed. All that was known about the actor’s status at The Sun’s time of writing on 15 January, was that he had left the country and was somewhere in France.
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However, the now-former star of Dick Turpin is still due to return to co-hosting The Great British Bake Off in the spring with Alison Hammond for its 16th season. If any more detail around Fielding’s extenuating circumstances is to be revealed, it will hopefully be then.