The BBC has confirmed it is reducing the amount of episodes of Casualty following the end of its latest series.
The most recent outing of the long-running medical drama concluded last Saturday.
Now on a break, Casualty will return later this year but the BBC say they’ve taken the decision to “slightly reduce” the number of episodes.
The broadcaster put the decision down to what it called “super inflation in drama production” with seven fewer episodes a year.
“This is not the first time the show has taken a break due to the busy autumn schedule,” a BBC spokesperson told The Sun. “Our priority is always delivering quality over hours and due to super inflation in drama production we’ve taken the decision to slightly reduce the number of episodes per year in order to maintain the quality.
“We’ve received no complaints from cast and crew, and it will be back on air later this year.”
Casualty airs Saturday nights on BBC One. You can catch up on past episodes of the latest series now online via BBC iPlayer here.
Set in the fictional Holby City Hospital, Casualty was first broadcast on BBC One in 1986 and has become the longest-running medical drama in the world.
Spin-off series Holby City launched in 1999 before ending last summer after more than 20 years on air.
“This tough decision reflects the BBC’s commitment to make more programmes across the UK and to better reflect, represent and serve all parts of the country,” the show said at the time.