ITV’s new Jekyll and Hyde drama provoked hundreds of complaints from audiences who were upset at the graphic content shown before the watershed.

The programme aired at 6:30pm on Sunday (25 October) and featured graphic and violent scenes including a man being burned to death and another being shot in the stomach.

On ITV’s video on-demand service the show comes with a warning stating that the content would usually be broadcast after the watershed, suggesting that the broadcaster would agree with the audience complaints of it being shown too early.

Almost 500 complaints arose following the premier with people expressing their concern over the graphic content being shown before the 9pm watershed. ITV received 280 complaints, while 212 people contacted the broadcasting regulator Ofcom to voice their disapproval.

A spokesperson for Ofcom confirmed that it “has received 212 about Jekyll and Hyde, which aired on ITV on Sunday” and added that it “will assess these complaints before deciding whether to investigate or not.”

An ITV spokesperson said it had “issued a warning before the transmission of Jekyll and Hyde advising the parents of younger children they may find some scenes scary.”

An average audience of 3.4 million watched ITV’s new programme based on the famous Robert Louis Stevenson novel which equated to 15.6 per cent share of TV viewing between 6:30pm and 7:30pm.