BCG TV News Count Arthur Strong to end Count Arthur Strong to end The BBC has declined to order a fourth series of Count Arthur Strong

Graham Linehan and Steve Delaney's sitcom will end after disappointing viewing figures

The series saw Delaney star as his popular and befuddled ageing former variety star character, Count Arthur

Count Arthur Strong will not return for a fourth series, it is being reported.

The BBC has decided to bring the TV sitcom, starring Steve Delaney's widely successful deluded former variety star character, to an end after its recent third series, according to the Radio Times.

Rory Kinnear co-starred as Michael, son of the Count's former double-act partner, who comes to know the ageing star whilst researching a book about his late father's career.

A spokesperson for the corporation told the magazine's website: "There are no current plans for a further series of Count Arthur Strong on the BBC. It's just sadly reached the end of the line for now. Count Arthur Strong is such a loved character amongst the fans, I'm sure he'll live on beyond the series."

The sitcom's first series was broadcast in 2013, with a second following in 2015. The third series aired in June and July 2017, attracting an average overnight audience of just 1.18 million viewers to its prime-time BBC One slot of 8:30pm on Friday nights. By contrast, repeats of Mrs. Brown's Boys airing an hour later attract around three million each week.

Based around the character Delaney has continued to play successfully on radio and stage for many years, the sitcom was co-written with Graham Linehan (Father Ted, The IT Crowd).

A family-friendly sitcom, it suffered in both its first and second series from poor scheduling: initially on the less mainstream BBC Two, and then on BBC One but in a graveyard 10:35pm slot, usually reserved for far darker and more experimental comedy programmes.

However, many fans of the Count Arthur character, and of radio sitcom Count Arthur Strong's Radio Show!, which has so far run for seven series between 2005 and 2016, criticised the TV show for featuring the character of Michael, rather than the Count, too heavily and too centrally as the protagonist of many episodes.

The complete third series of Count Arthur Strong is available now on DVD. A novelty comedy record in which the Count dueted with actor and singer Anita Harris on the song Somethin' Stupid, with a B-side of Lovely Day, was released earlier in the year. All seven Radio Show! series are also available to own.

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