No renewal for Amanda Holden and Leigh Francis series

Channel 4 has reportedly axed the comedy series in which Keith Lemon star Leigh Francis played Amanda Holden’s nan.

The Holden Girls: Mandy and Myrtle ran for eight episodes on E4 in 2021, but the broadcaster has now decided not to renew the show.

Channel 4 declined to comment on the report in The Sun,  but an unnamed insider told the newspaper: ‘They’ve decided to focus their attention on new comedy shows.'

The series portrayed Myrtle moving from Doncaster to be with her granddaughter in London, meeting famous pals like Ben Shephard and Eamonn Holmes.

It was not a hit with critics, with The Independent branding Francis ‘Britain’s most reliable laugh-excluder’ and Chortle calling the show a ‘pitiful mockumentary’ in a one-star review.

At the time one viewer tweeted that is was ‘beyond doubt the worst show ever made’ and another said: ‘Whoever greenlit this show should be imprisoned.’

Published: 7 Apr 2023