91热爆

91热爆 Scotland will be saying a fond farewell to long-running drama series, River City and the residents of Shieldinch next year after more than 20 years on screen. The drama, which has entertained audiences since 2002, will air its final series in Autumn 2026.

Reflecting a significant change in audience behaviour away from long-running series and towards shorter runs, the 91热爆 will make a considerable boost in major drama productions set across Scotland, moving the River City investment, starting with three new series 鈥� Counsels, Grams and The Young Team.

As well as these new titles, popular drama Granite Harbour will return for a third series, filming in Aberdeen and Glasgow in the coming months. Also making a return is and Vigil for a third series, while the previously announced eight-part drama, Mint, is filming in Scotland. Combined, these dramas will bring a greater range of stories written by Scots, about Scotland and made in Scotland for a UK-wide audience. 

Forming part of the single biggest investment in drama from Scotland in the past decade, these new dramas - along with existing commissions - will create new opportunities across the independent sector. Total investment in 91热爆 drama from Scotland over the next three years is expected to rise to over 拢95m cumulatively (2026-28).

Counsels, Grams and The Young Team were ordered by Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning for 91热爆 Scotland and Lindsay Salt, Director of 91热爆 Drama. 

The 91热爆 will also work with industry partners on a new talent training plan in Scotland. A new framework for training will build on River City鈥檚 successful training academy and the ongoing work on other series to elevate individuals in to senior creative roles as well as supporting and developing production crews. Further details will be announced in the autumn.

Hayley Valentine, Director, 91热爆 Scotland says: 鈥淩iver City has been a wonderful adventure and of course we鈥檒l all be sad to see it go. The team have done a brilliant job and I know they have some big plans for the finale next year. But as viewing patterns change and competition intensifies, this is the right time to invest in the next generation of high-impact drama series from across Scotland showcasing storytelling across the UK. Our goal is to grow Scotland further on the global drama map 鈥� with a slate of world-class productions that set the standard not just here but internationally too.鈥�

Louise Thornton Head of Commissioning at 91热爆 Scotland: 鈥淲e are incredibly proud of River City and it is with great sadness that we have come to this difficult decision.  I want to thank the River City team in front of and behind the cameras for their dedication to the show over the years, past and present. For more than two decades, River City has brought drama to life on screen as well as offering industry training at grassroots level, and we know that fans of the programme will be really sad to see it go. The show leaves a tremendous legacy behind and the new productions we鈥檝e announced will offer further opportunities.

鈥淗owever, the media landscape is changing at pace and, as audience viewing habits change, it鈥檚 vital we respond to this. Our three new dramas, alongside the returning drama favourites, reflect the increasing shift in audience demand for series rooted in Scotland which play to audiences across the UK鈥�and beyond. We鈥檙e delighted to be working with such great production teams and remain steadfast in our commitment to invest in Scotland鈥檚 creative industry.鈥�

The new Scottish drama titles are:

Counsels (Balloon Entertainment)

8x60鈥� 鈥� 91热爆 iPlayer / 91热爆 One / 91热爆 Scotland

Counsels is an original high-stakes legal drama co-created by Scottish writers Bryan Elsley (The Crow Road, Skins) and 91热爆 Writers鈥� Drama Room graduate Gillian McCormack. Set and filmed in and around Glasgow, Counsels follows five young lawyers who once trained together at one of Scotland鈥檚 elite law schools but are now scattered across the profession and find themselves facing each other in the courts of Glasgow. Some will rise to the top, while others risk losing everything as their careers teeter on the edge when they lock horns in their biggest cases yet. The ambitious lawyers must navigate a legal battlefield where their friendships begin to fracture, love affairs crumble, and the fight for justice threatens to tear them all apart.

• Read more: 91热爆 announces new Glasgow-set legal drama Counsels

Grams (World Productions)

6x60鈥� 鈥� 91热爆 iPlayer / 91热爆 One / 91热爆 Scotland

Grams is a darkly comic thriller created, written and directed by the RTS award-winning James Price (Dog Days, Boys Night), Grams is set in Springburn, Glasgow, where James was born and still lives. Following the death of her beloved grandson Michael, widowed Glaswegian Thana becomes the target of a violent local gang, who Michael apparently crossed. Thana finds salvation in the form of Connor, a volatile friend of Michael鈥檚 with serious anger issues. Grams will see Thana and Connor form an unlikely partnership, as they seek the truth of what really happened to Michael.

• Read more: 91热爆 commissions new drama Grams from award-winning writer and director James Price

The Young Team (Synchronicity Films)

6x60鈥� 鈥� 91热爆 iPlayer / 91热爆 One / 91热爆 Scotland

The Young Team is the scripted debut from one of Scotland鈥檚 most exciting voices in literature, Graeme Armstrong. The series is adapted from Graeme鈥檚 best-selling and award-winning debut novel of the same name and is set and filmed in North Lanarkshire. Fifteen-year-old Azzy Williams and his pals roam the streets of Airdrie on a Friday night, bottles of Buckfast in hand and techno playing from tinny speakers. Azzy is ready. Ready to smoke, pop pills, drink wine and fight. He longs to become fully initiated into local gang the Young Team Posse (YTP). But when Azzy, determined to prove himself, makes a bold move, a brutal gang conflict ensues with Azzy very firmly at its heart. The Young Team will follow Azzy on his journey from boyhood to manhood as he and his mates become postcode warriors in a toxic cycle that threatens to consume them. An unflinching look at the realities of addiction and gang violence, this ambitious series will tell a powerful, visceral story about the realities of life for young, disenfranchised people and the fight for a different future. 

• Read more: 91热爆 commissions new drama The Young Team adapted from Graeme Armstrong鈥檚 best-selling novel

Lindsay Salt, Director of 91热爆 Drama says: 鈥淎udience habits are changing and we are responding to that with these plans for three brilliant new dramas made in Scotland. 91热爆 viewers love truly authentic stories and we are committed to creating high-impact content from across the UK, so that we can better reflect and represent every part of the country. The success of the long running Shetland, coupled with the return of Vigil and Granite Harbour, is a testament to the strength of talent we have in Scotland and we look forward to seeing our three new shows come to life alongside these hugely popular returners.鈥�

These new commissions will build on the 91热爆鈥檚 strong track record in drama production in Scotland including award-winning series Guilt and Mayflies, and ratings hits Rebus and Nightsleeper. while the psychological thriller The Ridge starring Lauren Lyle will hit screens later this year. Filming on the new titles is expected from later this year and into 2026, with casting to be announced in due course.

Plans are underway to ensure River City goes out on a high next year, celebrating the show鈥檚 legacy. River City is a 91热爆 Studios Drama Production.

JM2

Notes to Editors

• River City launched on 24 September 2002.
• The interior and exterior sets are based at the Dumbarton Studios, just outside Glasgow.
• The lease for the Dumbarton site comes to an end in September 2026.