Former Bill actress sad at show’s demise

 

Former The Bill actress Ali Bastian had spoken out over ITV’s cancellation of the cop-drama. The actress, who played PC Sally Armstrong until December 2009, said she was “very sad” at the drama’s demise.

 

 

 

 

Ali Bastian has spoken out over ITV’s cancellation of the long-running cop-drama, The Bill. ITV announced two weeks ago that it was axing the drama after 27 years on-air because a revamp to boost ratings had failed. The overhaul of the drama came in the summer of last year when it moved to a 9pm slot and took on a grittier approach; several cast members were axed as part of the overhaul and the show’s iconic theme tune was ditched. The Bill had been averaging over 5 million viewers per episode before the revamp but when it moved to 9pm ratings slumped to below 4 million per episode.

“I’m very sad. It’s such an institution and so many people will lose their jobs.” – Ali Bastian quoted in The Sun 

Ali Bastian played PC Sally Armstrong in the cop-drama from 2007 until December 2009. The actress quit the drama to concentrate on other projects; most notably Strictly Come Dancing on BBC One for which she was a contestant on at the time. Previous to joining the drama in 2007 the actress had played Becca Dean on Hollyoaks between 2001 and 2007.

The cancellation of The Bill has prompted fans to launch a campaign to try and save the series. A Facebook group launched to that end has so far amassed nearly 20,000 members and you can join it here >>