Channel 4’s hit show, The Gathering, has been cancelled after just one season. The popular drama, which comes from the producers of Line of Duty and Vigil, was set in Liverpool and followed the shocking assault of an elite teenage gymnast at a rave.
Eva Morgan starred as Kelly, while The Responder’s Warren Brown played her father, Paul, in the show, which explored the “sex lives, loyalties and rivalries” of a group of teens. Boiling Point’s Vinette Robinson also appeared in the drama, alongside Sadie Soverall (Saltburn), Richard Coyle (Then You Run), Sonny Walker (The Responder) and Ryan Quarmby (The Last Kingdom).
While the show was “absolutely huge on streaming“, according to Channel 4 content boss Ian Katz, the linear viewing was “quite small”.
“One of the tricky things for us with it is we are trying to get this balance as we transition from being a broadcaster with a streaming platform to being a streaming platform of riding two horses. We need to try and keep linear audiences served while we’re trying to grow streaming. [The Gathering] did brilliantly on streaming but was quite small on linear,” Ian said at a Broadcasting Press Guild lunch in London (via Deadline).
It’s safe to say fans are disappointed with the news, with one person writing on social media: “@Channel4 Axing #TheGathering really??” while another was pleased they didn’t invest their time in the show for it to be cancelled after one season: “So glad I didn’t watch #TheGathering back in Summer as seems Ch4 has only gone and axed it after one season. Thinking of all of you that got invested in yet another series, plot and characters just for it to be cancelled immediately after – happens too often.”
Penned by acclaimed novelist Helen Walsh, The Gathering followed a group of disparate teens and their parents, each with a motive for attacking talented gymnast and free-runner Kelly.
© James Stack / Channel 4 / World ProductionsThe synopsis continues: “Each episode privileges a different character’s lens to give insight into the respective worlds of these teenagers and their families and allows the viewer to speculate who committed the crime.
“A series that leans into the controversial and the provocative, The Gathering examines the intertwined sex lives, loyalties and rivalries of a group of teens. And asks how they can negotiate their sense of identity and freedom in the face of surveillance parenting.”
Speaking to HELLO! ahead of the show’s premiere earlier this year, actress Eva revealed she spent weeks training for the physical scenes and had help from two stunt doubles.
© James Stack / Channel 4 / World Productions“We did a few weeks training in a parkour and gymnastics gym in Liverpool called Airborne Academy. It was fun and I never thought I would be doing that,” explained the actress. “I’ve gained a lot of respect for both these sports because it’s a lot harder than it looks.”
© James Stack / Channel 4 / World ProductionsEva admitted that she was keen to do as many of her own stunts as possible. “I was quite eager to make it look realistic and do as much as I can,” she said, adding: “Probably a bit too much. I was asking to do certain things that maybe I shouldn’t but it was all safe.”
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