Nuts and Bolts (TV series)

Nuts and Bolts was a weekly television drama series, set in the fictional South Wales town of Ystrad. It began airing in 1999 on HTV.[1] It ran for three years until it was cancelled in 2002.[2]

Filmed entirely on location in Merthyr Tydfil, the series made large use of exterior locations, with many interiors being recorded in a former Welsh Water depot; which became a hastily improvised television studio.[citation needed]

The first series was hailed an instant success,[citation needed] and became renowned for its accurate portrayal of valleys life (much like the BBC Wales series Belonging) and became a proving-ground for new Welsh drama talent, such as Eve Myles, Jonathan Owen, Jason May, Lawrence Llewellyn, Nathan Jones, Craig Barlow and Dean Keohane.[citation needed] The initial episode received complaints from viewers for showing content unsuitable for the early-evening timeslot in which the program was shown, which were upheld by the regulator, the ITC.[3]

The series was awarded The Royal Television Society Award for Best Regional Drama in 1999.[4] However, erratic scheduling and a lack of commitment to show the drama nationally, (except irregular, late-night showings on ITV2), led to the series being cancelled in November 2002; just one month after Nuts and Bolts finished its fourth-series run on HTV.

The series was devised and created by Lynnette Jenkins.[citation needed] The show was HTV's first soap opera for fifteen years.[5] A number of scheduling and channel changes resulted in a considerable loss of viewership, ultimately leading to its cancellation in 2002.[2]

  1. ^ HTV COMPLETES SECOND 'NUTS & BOLTS ' SERIES - UK Broadcast News | 18/08/2000
  2. ^ a b Merthyr soap Nuts & Bolts before EastEnders - Wales Online
  3. ^ "Complaints & Interventions Report for NUTS AND BOLTS". ITC. 16 September 2016.
  4. ^ "HTV COMPLETES SECOND 'NUTS & BOLTS ' SERIES". 4rfv.co.uk. Flagship Media Group Limited. 18 August 2000.
  5. ^ "HTV Wales goes into action with soap Nuts and Bolts". Broadcast. 29 January 1999.