November 13, 2019 2.30 pm This story is over 52 months old

ITV scraps Rob Lowe Lincolnshire cop drama Wild Bill after one season

Bill’s time in Boston was short
In ITV's Wild Bill Rob Lowe plays Bill Hixon, Chief Constable of the fictional East Lincolnshire Police force in Boston. Photo: ITV

Boston-centred British cop drama Wild Bill has been dropped after just one season by ITV producers, who said they were ‘hugely grateful’ for the warm welcome they received whilst filming in the county.

The programme, which starred Hollywood actor Rob Lowe as the Chief Constable of the fictional East Lincolnshire Police force, failed to arrest its intended audience.

It averaged 3.7 million viewers and was not picked up by any big players in the US, despite Hulu and Netflix rumours.

Double Bill: Rob Lowe as US cop Bill Hixon and Lincolnshire Police’s Chief Constable Bill Skelly. Photo: Steve Smailes for Lincolnshire Reporter

The show was produced by 42, MultiStory Media and Anonymous Content.

It centred around Lowe’s character Bill Hixon, an American cop brought in from Miami with his 14-year-old daughter.

Excitement swelled when TV crews arrived in the market town of Boston in November last year.

Local people, businesses and even officials from Lincolnshire’s real police force visited the set to see how the country was being portrayed.

Local people and stallholders were even roped into some of the filming.

When the programme aired for the first time, reactions locally were mixed. Some were taken aback by the cast’s bizarre Yorkshire-like accents.

Even Lincolnshire Police couldn’t resist pointing out some criminal inaccuracies:

Police debunk wild truths in Wild Bill

An ITV spokesperson said: “We are immensely proud of Wild Bill and loved working with Rob Lowe and the production teams at 42, MultiStory Media and Anonymous Content. However, Wild Bill sadly won’t be returning for a second instalment.

“We are hugely grateful for the warm welcome we received whilst filming in Boston, Lincolnshire.”