Jon the Potter will be disappointed. The BBC has confirmed that it has axed The Great Pottery Throw Down, despite the fact that the last year it had some of BBC2’s highest viewing figures. Over three million people watched the second series, apparently, and it fuelled a massive demand for pottery classes from viewers who wanted to give the craft a go.
Jon has been running workshops at Eastnor Pottery for adult beginners almost every weekend since the show first aired, to keep up with demand. I’ve certainly noticed that almost everyone who’s attended a workshop at the same time as me has been a massive fan of the series. Last time I was there, a few weeks back, Jon mentioned that enquiries were just beginning to get less crazy, and that another series would be very timely to stoke up the levels of interest again.
The series is made by the same people who made The Great British Bake Off, which had a major falling-out with The Beeb when it transferred to Channel 4. The cancellation of Throw Down looks remarkably like revenge.
