Sir Lenny Henry says 'many black dramas' axed after one series as Three Little Birds cancelled

Sir Lenny Henry has said 'many black dramas' are cancelled after just one series. He spoken after his Windrush drama, Three Little Birds, was axed despite three million people tuning in.

The 65-year-old, who was born in Dudley, announced plans to turn the second series into a book as he already had plans for each character. The comedian said it was hard to have TV shows commissioned unless there was a big name attached to the project.

Sir Lenny said investment in diverse, lesser-known talent to make them "the stars of tomorrow" was needed in the industry. Three Little Birds on ITV told the story on his parents' generation and their experience of immigration to the West Midlands in the 1950s.

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"We had the most diverse and inclusive team working on the show," he told The Guardian. "We were only just getting to know Rochelle Neil, Saffron Coomber, Yazmin Belo and Javone Prince and their stellar performances as Leah, Chantrelle, Hosanna and Aston: the audience reaction was amazing and I had some really good storylines planned for their characters."

He thanked "everyone at ITV for commissioning Three Little Birds in the first place” and said he was, "very proud of our achievement – we’ve won awards and put out real stories that speak to a lot of people."

But he continued: "But the reality is these days, the TV market is very tricky to navigate unless there are big names attached to a project. A show will often get just one shot and if it doesn’t meet broadcaster expectations – that’s it – it’s likely cancelled after one series. We sadly don’t give shows the opportunity to grow with the audience, like we did ten or 15 years ago, which probably is down to how we consume things.

"I would really like to see some longer-term investment in lesser-known and diverse talent, in order to make them the stars of tomorrow. These things take time. I plan to take the characters from Three Little Birds and create their further adventures in a book. Meanwhile, moving forward, I’ll just have to pitch TV projects starring Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Judi Dench. Wish me luck!"