The BBC is to axe long-running stand-up show Live at the Apollo as part of a series of cost cutting measures in their entertainment section. Blankety Blank and Celebrity Mastermind will also go.
The non-celebrity Mastermind presented by Clive Myrie will continue and both Celebrity Mastermind and Live at the Apollo have one more series still to broadcast.
Live at the Apollo has given a huge boost to the live stand-up industry in general and helped to launch major careers over the years. It showcased the talents of the likes of John Bishop, Michael McIntyre, Sarah Millican and Micky Flanagan who are among those who have gone on to fill arenas. Many more acts have seen their profiles and ticket sales spike after guesting on the show
In a statement the BBC said: "We are incredibly proud of all three of these much-loved shows and would like to thank everyone involved, both in front of and behind the camera, for bringing them to screen and making them such a success over many years. Unfortunately, we have to make some really tough choices in light of our funding challenges, and these savings have been identified from the Entertainment genre.
We will still continue to commission ambitious Entertainment shows and invest in distinctive UK content from a wide range of independent production companies of all sizes, as well as prioritising digital innovation that can serve fans of these shows and beyond - for example, we will shortly be announcing digital plans focused on stand-up and emerging comedy talent, ensuring we continue to support the stand-up community in a rapidly changing and increasingly competitive media landscape.
These difficult decisions form part of the BBC’s previously announced first phase of its proposals to make £500m of savings over the next three years."
BBC Content has a target of delivering a minimum of £100 million of recurring annual savings which will result in a reduction of around 100-150 hours of originated TV programmes across genres by the end of 2027/28.
Further savings across the Content division will be announced in the coming months.
