A popular BAFTA and Emmy-winning Channel 4 show is making a comeback as a ‘new version’ of the original programme, 10 years after it first appeared on screen.
Educating Yorkshire sees a camera crew return to Thornhill Community Academy to provide an insight into the lives of staff and students, ten years after the documentary originally aired.
Millions of Britons tuned in every week to catch up on the highs and lows of secondary school in Dewsbury.
The most famous example is the video in which viewers were moved to tears as they watched Musharaf, an 11th grader, miraculously overcome his stutter with the help of his inspiring English teacher, Mr. Burton.
Now Thornhill is opening its doors again, despite much change over the past decade, both for the school and for the country.
Educating Yorkshire returns to cinemas with a ‘reinterpreted’ version of the iconic documentary, 10 years after it first hit screens (pictured Mr Burton)
Every week millions of Britons tuned in to keep up to date with the highs and lows of Thornhill Community Academy
In the reboot, Mr. Burton remains involved with the series, but he has taken a step forward and is now in charge of Thornhill. In his first role, he was the headmaster.
According to Channel 4, the programme will cover everything from rising teenage anxiety, to exam and friendship pressure, a national school attendance crisis and the impact of mobile phones and social media.
A description of the new series says that staff will guide the students, and their storylines will intertwine. The result is a series that paints a bigger picture: how to grow up, survive and thrive in today’s Britain.
The series has been created by Twofour for Channel 4’s Alisa Pomeroy and Rita Daniels and will be filmed in 2024/2025. It is due to air late next year.
The return of Educating Yorkshire is part of the broadcaster’s Fast Forward strategy to accelerate Channel 4’s transformation into a public service streamer.
As filming begins, the working title of the reboot has been revealed: Educating Yorkshire 2025.
Principal Burton said: ‘I am delighted to welcome Twofour back to our school in the coming months.
‘The national challenges facing the profession are well publicised and at Thornhill I am really proud of how our staff and students work together to thrive in them. Our values - ‘work hard and be kind’ – are at the heart of everything we do; I have no doubt that viewers will see these come to life in our brilliant community.’
The most famous was the tears that came to viewers’ eyes as they watched Musharaf, an 11th grader, miraculously overcome his stuttering with the help of his inspiring English teacher, Mr. Burton.
Rita Daniels, Commissioning Editor, added: ‘It is vital for Channel 4 to tell the complex story of young people in Britain in 2025, and what better way to do that than through this iconic, much-loved school.
“It will be fantastic to see Mr Burton take charge and I look forward to seeing him take full control of the reins.”
‘A lot has changed for British teenagers since we were last at Thornhill Academy. It will be fascinating to see how practices have developed and adapted in the face of the increasing impact of social media, the Covid epidemic and the enormous pressure to deliver good results.’
The announcement of the new show follows a long list of Channel 4 shows that have been axed due to cost-cutting.
It was recently announced that Banged Up will not be returning to television, despite initial rumours of a second season and even talks of signing Nigel Farage to join the show.
The series was so impressive that it was even nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Reality, but the series lost to Netflix’s Squid Game.
However, a second series of the project will never happen, as the program was brutally terminated as yet another in a series of budget cuts.
The channel has cancelled a number of programmes this year and announced in January that it plans to lay off hundreds of employees.
The broadcaster is also leaving its London headquarters, the Horseferry Road office where Channel 4 has been based since 1994, and moving to new offices elsewhere in London.
Despite initial rumours that a second series is in the works and even talks to rope in Nigel Farage for the show, Banged Up will not be returning to TV screens
Danny Dyer’s popular show Scared of the Dark has also been cancelled after just one season, despite its huge success
The broadcaster has recently been forced to cancel a number of programmes, including SAS: Who Dares Wins and Steph’s Packed Lunch (pictured), as part of efforts to cut costs
In June, the closure of five channels was announced: The Box’s music channels: 4Music, The Box, Kiss, Magic and Kerrang!
The broadcaster has recently had to cancel a number of programmes, including SAS: Who Dares Wins and Steph’s Packed Lunch, as part of a bid to cut costs.
Danny Dyer’s popular series Scared of the Dark was also cancelled after just one season, despite its enormous success.
In the experimental TV show, all kinds of famous faces had to live in complete darkness for a week, while carrying out all kinds of tasks.
Former footballer Paul Gascoigne was crowned the winner of the series after living in complete darkness for eight days, beating Love Island’s Chloe Burrows, former boxer Chris Eubank and comedian Chris McCausland in the competition.
Despite attracting over a million viewers, Channel 4 has decided not to return for a second season, according to Deadline.
From September, fewer episodes of Hollyoaks will also be broadcast on Channel 4.
The soap, which is broadcast via streaming, E4 and YouTube, will go from five to three episodes per week.
The broadcaster said it was making the change because it was “the optimal pattern to keep home audiences engaged and attract new viewers in a highly saturated content market”, based on data from Channel 4.
Meanwhile, Channel 4’s Hollyoaks will also air fewer episodes per week from September (Malique Thompson Dwyer and Jennifer Metcalfe pictured in 2021 soap)
