Despite its cult following, a major Britishsci-fi seriesmay have its previously-confirmed return cut short. Starting his career as a poet and comedian,Craig Charles has had a number of roles on British televisionfor over three decades. Alongside appearances on popular shows such asTheBillandHolbyCity, he also provided voiceovers forRobotWarsand the UK broadcast of the Japanese game showTakeshi’s Castle.
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One of Charles' longest running roles was his portrayal of taxi driver Lloyd Mullaney on the enduring British soap operaCoronationStreet.The actor was a mainstay on the series for ten years, with his final episode airing in 2015. Another significant role for Charles was when he played himself in the 1992 BBC horror mockumentary dramaGhostwatch, an infamous program where several notable television personalities took part in a drama presented as a real, live broadcast and spooked the nation after many mistook its events for being real.
Red Dwarf Season 13 May End Up Abandoned
The Series Is Grappling With A Troubled Production
In 1988, Charles joined forces with Chris Barrie, Robert Llewellyn, and Danny John-Jules to star inRed Dwarf, a BBC sci-fi comedy created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor. The series follows the travels of the titular mining spacecraft. The main characters include Charles' sole human survivor, Lister; the holographic AI duplicate of his deceased colleague Rimmer (Barrie); sanitation droid Kryten (Llewellyn); and the highly-evolved humanoid descendant of Lister’s house cat, aptly named Cat (John-Jules). An International Emmy-winning series with a strong cult following,RedDwarfran for 12 seasonsand one television movie for over 37 years.
Despite its impressive lifespan, however, Charles suggested that the previously-announcedRed Dwarfseason 13 may not go ahead while speaking toRadioTimes. According to the actor, while the three-episode season was set to film in 2025, certain factors may force him and theRedDwarfcrew to potentially scrap their plans. While Charles couldn’t elaborate,he suggested that the potential cost of the series was holding plans back. Check out his comments below:
I’m not sure that it will come back, to be honest. I know that the deal that we had to make it this year looks like that might not be happening now.I can’t really say any more on that because I don’t know much more, butI just know that there have been lots of conversations about cost, and I think [the episodes] might be too expensive.
It’s not that we don’t want to do it, it’s a case of we’re trying to get it done… [it’s] happening in television all the time at the moment, there doesn’t seem to be that much money around.
What Red Dwarf’s Production Troubles Mean
The UK Television Industry Faces Difficult Decisions
RedDwarf’s new season could potentially be another casualty of the uncertain state of the UK film and television industry. While larger entities such as the BBC and Channel 4 are adjusting and making difficult cuts amid funding uncertainty, viewership habits pivoting to streaming, reduced advertising revenue, and rising production costs have created a scenario wherework on UK productions has slowed down, and smaller, independent companies are left struggling to stay afloat. Despite its role in global production, the industry is in a precarious position. Many hope to narrowly avoid a collapse, or rely on government intervention.
Despite the odds, however, it is clear from Charles' response that he and therest of theRed Dwarfcastand crew are still determined to find a way forward. The actor may be doubtful about the chances of episodes entering production in 2025, buthe did not rule out the episodes going ahead in a far more stable environment. As such, the voyage of theRedDwarfmay not be over just yet.
