Anneka twice? No, say Channel 5 as they rule out second series following disastrous viewing figures

The big money reboot of 1990s favourite Challenge Anneka is facing the axe after getting a kicking from viewers.

Sources claim Channel 5 has now ditched plans for a second series – nearly 30 years after the original BBC 1 show came to an end – following disastrous viewing figures.

The show, featuring Anneka Rice battling to complete community projects, proved so unpopular that the final two episodes have already been shunted out of their primetime slot on Saturday evenings.

The run of four episodes, which sources claim had ‘cost a fortune’ to produce, had been unveiled to much fanfare, and was initially viewed as a success as the first drew in 1.25 million viewers. 

However, that fell below 500,000 for the second, being significantly trounced by the ITV shows Saturday Night Takeaway and Starstruck.

While Channel 5 claims no decision has been taken about the future of Ms Rice’s show, an insider said: ‘It is so expensive to make and it needed a good return. Now Channel 5 does not want to run the risk of commissioning another series, given how quickly the ratings fell off the first.

‘They just cannot see a way to make it worthwhile.’

Two weeks ago Ms Rice, 64, was left red-faced after learning that Channel 5 had taken the show’s final two episodes off its schedule.

The news prompted her to post a picture of her sound technician on Twitter alongside a caption reading: ‘Hey Dave, we’ve got 24 hours to find a new home.’

She added: ‘We always knew we were on a ‘floating schedule’ and might be bumped off at any moment. We will keep you posted. The projects are all up and running and I salute our army of volunteers who made this possible.’

It was reported last week that the third episode, which sees Ms Rice’s team turning a barren plot at the headquarters of the charity Age UK into a giant ‘memory village’ for dementia patients, will now be screened on May 15 – a Monday – to coincide with the Alzheimer’s Society’s Dementia Action Week.

Last month The Mail on Sunday reported that sources on the Challenge Anneka set claimed that Ms Rice was often ‘terse and abrasive’, which had upset younger behind-the-scenes staff.