Channel 4 ‘spark axe fears as they halt production on a fan-favourite show after 13 years on screen’ – after money woes led to a string of series being dropped in brutal ‘bloodbath’

Channel 4’s brutal ax massacre looks set to continue as production of hit show 24 Hours In A&E has reportedly been halted.

The medical series has been a staple of the channel since 2011, but staff have reportedly been told that plans to film new episodes in the fall have been put on hold.

It follows the daily activities in the emergency department at St George’s and most recently at the Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham.

It’s just the latest in a string of shows dumped by the network in an effort to save money, which also saw some of the network’s staff laid off earlier this year.

According to an email obtained by Broadcast, The Garden, the production crew behind the show, informed staff on Wednesday that filming would not go ahead as planned.

The email reportedly stated that they ‘the channel offered all possible measures to prevent it, but I’m afraid we couldn’t avoid it’.

They added that while they were there ‘Very disappointed’ by the move, they added that they were determined to keep discussions open with Channel 4 to ‘secure its future’.

It is thought that there is a large batch of episodes that have already been filmed and are expected to air in the coming months.

A Channel 4 spokesperson said: ‘Although we are no longer filming new episodes this autumn, we have a large number of recently filmed but unaired episodes, meaning we have full behind-the-scenes access to The Queen’s Medical Center Emergency Department Nottingham.

‘Channel 4 always tries to offer a mix of new shows and well-known returns and 24 Hours in A&E remains an important part of that distinctive mix.

“We will make a decision on recommissioning at an appropriate time, once we have aired more of the episodes we have already filmed.”

MailOnline has contacted a Channel 4 representative for comment.

Channel 4 has been plagued by a series of money problems in recent months, leading to the axing of a range of fan favorite programmes.

In January it was reported that Channel 4 is undergoing a massive change after announcing it would cut almost 250 roles, representing just over 15% of its full-time staff.

This is a higher number than the 200 that industry sources are predicting, as CEO Alex Mahon is expected to announce the highest number of layoffs in the company’s history.

The channel has been forced to cancel a handful of programmes, including SAS: Who Dares Wins and Steph’s Packed Lunch, as part of efforts to cut costs.

Their headquarters on Horseferry Road in London will also be sold as they look for smaller office space in the capital.

Earlier this week it was also confirmed that Channel 4’s star-studded reality show Scared Of The Dark had been canceled after just one series.

The experimental TV show, hosted by Danny Dyer, asked a host of famous faces to live in complete darkness for a week as they were tasked with various challenges.

Former footballer Paul Gascoigne was crowned the winner of the series after living in complete darkness for eight days as he beat Love Island’s Chloe Burrows, ex-boxer Chris Eubank and comedian Chris McCausland in the competition.

Despite bringing in more than a million viewers, Channel 4 has decided not to return for a second series, according to Deadline.

Last year, the channel’s staff branded the axes a ‘massacre’ after controversial late night show Naked Attraction and groundbreaking medical documentary Rescue: Extreme Medics, based in Scotland, were canned.

The much-hyped return of reality series Four Weddings was also scrapped, although a team from an independent production company was commissioned to make it.

Staff with permanent contracts to work on the program were immediately made redundant, leaving some concerned about how they would pay their rent, in stark contrast to the channel’s boss, Alex Mahon, who will receive £1.2m in 2022 deserved.

Friday night favorite The Last Leg, one of the channel’s most popular shows hosted by Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker, has also had its 28th series length shortened to save money.

Channel 4 instructed lawyers to make deals with heads of production companies to get out of contracts for shows worth millions of pounds, meaning it has been left with expensive legal bills and exit fees.

The crisis comes after Mahon and her colleague Ian Katz fought a government plan to privatize it, saying one of their arguments was that it would fund independent production companies across the country.

A source told The Mail on Sunday that the channel thinks it is better to limit losses.

But staff accuse Katz of wasting money on expensive but little-watched programs such as reality series Rise And Fall, which reportedly cost the channel £14 million – money that could not be justified due to low ratings.

An insider said: ‘Everyone is calling it a Channel 4 massacre. At first everyone was completely shocked when Four Weddings was cancelled.

“It’s almost unheard of for a show that’s been doing really well to be shut down, but as word started to spread, other shows took a turn for the worse.

“They were told that Ian Katz had watched the entire broadcast of the channel, and they were sorry, but it had to be done because there was no money.

‘The casting team were already there to start work on Naked Attraction and were all told they were no longer needed as they were not going to make another series.

‘They tried to soften the blow for the show’s freelance crew by saying they wanted to make another series in December, but that doesn’t help now.’

Last year, both bosses Alex and Ian announced they had postponed receiving bonuses worth hundreds of thousands of pounds and scrapped a planned pay rise amid the crisis.

However, one Channel 4 employee said: ‘It’s only because I had to.’