The Stage

MPs protest in Commons at axing of World Service soap

Published Tuesday 24 January 2006 at 13:00 by Liz Thomas

Frank Dobson, Joan Ruddock, Peter Bottomley and Gregory Campbell are among 22 MPs voicing their concern over the cancellation of BBC World Service medical drama Westway.

The twice-weekly soap, which boasted more than 150 million listeners worldwide, was dropped after eight years to make way for more news and current affairs programming. Labour MP Ann Keen tabled an early day motion in objection to the move and has garnered support from across the political parties.

A spokesperson for Keen said: “Putting down an EDM allows MPs to express concern over issues. The cutting of Westway from the World Service schedules was one that MPs felt should be noted as it was popular drama at its best, represented the UK and took up important issues in countries where difficult matters are not discussed.”

She added that it was a great pity that the BBC had cut the soap and it needed to be brought to the attention of parliament as a lesson for the future. The plans to remove the popular long-running series from schedules were first revealed in The Stage last March. At the time, production staff and radio drama fans were keen to save the show, which in 2001 won an award from the UK’s Commission For Racial Equality but the programme drew to a close in October.

One source said: “BBC management will be embarrassed that MPs have defended radio drama and pointed out that they can’t cut programmes like this, while at the same time the director-general [Mark Thompson] is saying that popular drama with real issues needs to be defended. The MPs and unions have pointed out that this does not add up.”

From the beginning of this year, weekday programming on BBC World Service will concentrate on factual shows but is featuring more arts and drama at the weekend. Repeats of early episodes of Westway can be heard on digital radio station BBC7.