Channel 4 in major schedule shakeup as brand new drama is moved to graveyard slot by bosses after ratings disaster
CHANNEL 4 has had a major schedule shakeup with a brand new drama moved to the graveyard slot by bosses after a ratings disaster.
The series was set to rival the BBC's Death in Paradise, with both shows following detectives who end up leaving the UK to work on a variety of cases abroad.
Get Millie Black first aired Stateside on HBO last year but was shown in the UK for the first time last week on Channel 4 at 9pm.
It was followed by another episode the next evening and viewers were delighted, with some sharing their thoughts on social media.
One fan wrote: "Just finished watching the first #GetMillieBlack from last night, an exciting start, looking forward to the rest."
Another said: "I am already liking this after the premiere. It’s off to a great start.
Channel 4 drama
"Great stuff from Tamara Lawrence, Chyna McQueen, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr and Joe Dempsie"
A third viewer wrote: "How good was #GetMillieBlack!"
And another shared: "Great first episode of #GetMillieBlack on Channel 4."
Critics also hailed the gritty crime drama as excellent viewing with The Guardian's Hannah J Davies stating that Get Millie Black is "five star TV."
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And Radio Times' Morgan Cormack remarked: "In all honesty, I think viewers will be hard pressed to find a series that comes close to what Get Millie Black manages to achieve in just five episodes."
However, although ratings for the first episode were 565,000, they dropped dramatically to 298,000 for the second.
And the show has now been pushed back from its prime slot of 9pm to 10pm for the rest of its run.
In Get Millie Black, the leading character of Millie, played by actress Tamara Lawrence, is a detective who is forced out of Scotland Yard and decides to return home to Jamaica to continue her detective work there.
As part of the Jamaican Police Force, Millie finds herself getting caught up in all different cases whilst navigating her own life.
An official synopsis for the programme reads: "Millie and her partner, Curtis, investigate missing person cases, and their lives are up-ended when one of their investigations crosses paths with another that brought Scotland Yard detective Luke Holborn to Kingston."
Speaking about taking on the role, Tamara described her character by saying: "Millie Black is irreverent, belligerent, hawk-eyed and driven by her heart for justice.
"She doesn’t mince words and is not remotely interested in being palatable.
"She toes the line between loneliness and independence. She’s a detective, a sister, a friend – but in that order.
"Work comes first, a choice she convinces herself is in everyone’s best
interest, even when she’s actually using work to avoid the things she doesn’t want to face.
"She can be stubborn and impulsive but that is what makes her great at her job."
The star also loved the chance of getting to film the show in Jamaica as she revealed how it was vital and paramount for the show's authenticity.
She said: "The landscape of Kingston was integral to the authenticity of this piece and platformed aspects of Jamaica we’ve not seen before.
"The Jamaican crew were fantastic and so kind and being around Jamaicans every day brought me a lot of joy."
Get Millie Black grapples with challenging topics through the course of the show including both homophobia and transphobia as well as the lives of LGBTQ+ people living in Jamaica.
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The series also looks into how the police can be complicit in the violence against the LGBTQ+ community.
Get Millie Black is airs on Channel 4 and all episodes are available on its streaming platform.