The BBC has pulled a film about the experiences of rioters during last summer's disturbances just hours before it was due to be broadcast after a ruling from a judge. The film, due to be broadcast on BBC2 at 9pm on Monday, was a dramatisation based on the testimony of interviews conducted for the Guardian and London School of Economics research into the disorder.

The programme, part of a two-part series, features actors who play anonymous rioters speaking about their experiences of the riots last August. The BBC said in a statement: "A court order has been made that has prevented the BBC from broadcasting the programme The Riots: In their own Words tonight. We will put it out at a later date."

The BBC did not give details about the nature of the court order, or which judge made the ruling.

The script from the programme, written by the award-winning playwright Alecky Blythe, was produced from verbatim transcripts of interviews conducted as part of the Reading the Riots study, which conducted confidential interviews with 270 rioters.

The programme was scheduled to be broadcast for several weeks and forms part of a package of current affairs journalism being prepared by the broadcaster in the runup to next month's anniversary of the riots.

In a blog posted before the film was pulled, a BBC producer on the project said that using the "important and illuminating" interviews in the drama would provide insight into "why and how the riots had happened".