australian television information archive

Why Love My Way 4 never happened

If there has ever been one burning question that is continually asked by readers of this site it is this: Why, oh why, did Love My Way not continue into a fourth season?

"I've just finished watching series 3 in one marathon sitting and can't believe there's no more to come," says Miss Jude.

"I am an American working in Japan and I have a lot of Aussie friends who turned me on to LMW. I am shocked that they would just stop after Season 3!" -Hoeydancer

"I have just finished watching all 3 seasons of Love My Way in a 3 week period. I am absolutely hooked and very disappointed to read that there will be no more future seasons." -Georgina.

"I am so shattered there wont be a season 4, my husband & I have just got hooked on showtime" -Ang.

"Why why why no series 4? Am completely hooked and wonder why this superb series has never seen the light of day in the UK." -Lucy.

"I'm so disappointed there wont be a season 4! We have just watched all three seasons and we want more!" -Angela.

The list goes on…. TV Tonight heard your plea and went straight to the source for an explanation. Producer John Edwards, who produced the series with Claudia Karvan, was heartened by the response, and said work on a fourth series had actually begun.

"Claudia and I wanted to (do it)," he said.

"At first Claudia was just tired and we thought we had said all we had to say. And then we thought we'd have a look at doing it again, and we were trying to figure out a way that we could wrestle it onto Free to Air as well.

"The whole show was designed so that if it was successful it would go from Pay to Free to Air. Nobody was expecting it to be so successful that they wouldn't let it go to Free to Air," he said.

From 2004 to 2007 Love My Way attracted such acclaim and picked up a swag of awards that it became the darling of the Pay TV industry. As arguably the industry's first big original drama hit, there were behind the scenes manoeuvres to keep the property as a Pay exclusive. So hot was the property, it was even bumped from FOX8 to W to the top tier Showtime channel.

"Even though it's sold very well, the deals had all been structured on the wrong kind of premises," said Edwards. "We haven't made any money out of it. Everybody else has. We've made nothing out of it."

Edwards says there were some discussions with Free to Air broadcasters regarding a fourth series but they fell through.

"We were trying to make Series 4 as a way of wrestling control of it back. We got halfway down the track and then got a bit of a surprise. Basically the ABC didn't want it, which surprised us. They wanted to buy the reruns, cheaply. They had their own shows."

However, rights to the first series will become free in around six to twelve months which will mean it can be re-sold to another broadcaster. That's good news for those who want to see the show on Free to Air.

"As soon as it becomes free it will be out there and I think there will be plenty of buyers."

By David Knox November 09, 2008 tvtonight.com.au