Is Popstar to Operastar facing axe?

Is Popstar to Operastar facing axe?
Is Popstar to Operastar facing axe?

Popstar to Operastar is reportedly going to be axed by ITV after just one series. Bosses are said to be unhappy with how the show performed in the ratings, with just 4.6 million tuning in to see Darius Campbell crowned the show's winner on Friday night. An insider told The Sun: "Ratings did pick up towards the end, but the reality is it just didn't capture the public's interest. "We thought it would be like Soapstar Superstar, which bagged seven million. But it just proved that people weren't fussed about it." It's also thought that bosses had hoped to attract much bigger names onto the show, which saw pop singers learn to perform opera songs. The source said: "Last year, there was talk of getting massive names like Kimberley Walsh from Girls Aloud as a contestant and Charlotte Church as a judge. But in the end the 'stars' were of a much lower calibre." Darius, who found fame on Pop Idol in 2002, beat singer turned actress Bernie Nolan on Friday night. Other stars who took part in the show included Coronation Street's Kym Marsh, McFly's Danny Jones, singer Jimmy Osmond and Vanessa White from The Saturdays. A decision on whether the show will get a second series is expected within weeks. A spokesman for ITV said: "In a competitive schedule, Popstar to Operastar performed well and built its audience over the series. "As the run has only just finished, no decision has yet been made on a re-commission."

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 


An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.