If you had to pay a license fee to the government for TV programs and a show you really enjoy suddenly appears fraudulently axed, how would you feel? This appears to be exactly what happened to Ripper Street. In the UK, television is publically funded by a license fee UK citizens pay. This is why UK shows don't contain commercials.

Ripper Street Season 1 aired in the UK on Sunday nights at 9pm were it did quite well. Season 2 was moved to Monday nights at 9pm opposite the Reality show, "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here." Many Americans left the Facebook and Twitter boards because they didn't want spoilers. I stayed and watched everything that transpired in the UK from stateside. Ripper Street was not promoted in the UK until two weeks prior to air time. When it did air,  I saw tweets from a cast and crew that were very proud of the work performed. I also saw tweets from UK fans who could not watch Ripper Street at 9pm Mondays because it interfered with work or other obligations during the week versus the original weekend time slot. Suddenly on 04-Dec-2013, Ripper Street was cancelled due to 'low ratings." Suspicions regarding money fell on the BBC as many sharp intelligent programs were suddenly being taken down by Reality TV and replaced in turn with more Reality TV.

Then there are the events that happened simultaneously stateside. The timeline of events are below:

 

- BBC America announces to the Critics Association in July 2013 that Ripper Street will air in the states 01-Dec-2013 at 10pm. It would have pitted it against the Mentalist and the Good Wife, both high rated award winning shows.

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/07/25/bbc-america-announces-orphan-black-season-2-atlantis-ripper-street-premiere-dates-more/194030/

- No promos whatsoever are aired on BBCA for Ripper Street from that point in July to Dec. The original air date of 01-Dec was not even posted on their web page except in an obscure location on their press page you had to pop into a search engine to find.

- 23-Nov-2013 was the week before the original US air date. It was also the weekend of the big Dr Who global simulcast. US fans expected promos for Ripper Street. Nothing for Ripper Street, but a promo for Orphan Black which does not air until April 2014.

- 24- Nov-2013, a sole tweet is made from BBC America saying Ripper Street will now air Feb 2014, with no definitive air date. No other mention is made. So unless you had Twitter and found that one tweet, you had no idea what was going on. The tweet is here and the reaction:

https://twitter.com/mappingtg/status/404693927690661889

- Ripper Street, a joint BBC/BBCA production, is cancelled 04-Dec-2013 before ever airing in the states.

http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2013/dec/04/ripper-street-cancelled-bbc

-BBC America finally starts putting up minor promos for Ripper Street and a teaser trailer Christmas Day 2013. But the trailer says it airs 22-Feb-2014 at 9pm while the website said 10pm.

 

- 21-Jan-2014, TV Guide (the states version of the Radio Times) tweets that BBCA just announced to them that Ripper Street will air 22-Feb-2014 at 10pm. Then they quickly correct themselves and say 9pm. Tweet is here:

 

https://twitter.com/tvguidemagazine/status/425661703682932737

 

How does the cancellation not look contrived in the beginning and negligent towards the end? The only thing Ripper Street was promoted to do was fail.

 

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