Meg Tilly, centre in blue, plays the part of Lorna Corbett on the set in Toronto of Bomb Girls.Deborah Baic/The Globe and Mail
Global Television has cancelled the popular series Bomb Girls and will use a two-hour special next winter to wrap up plot lines in the Second World War drama about the women in a Canadian munitions factory.
The network buried the cancellation in a Monday press release announcing the 2014 special, but made this further statement Tuesday: "Concluding the serial format was a very difficult decision as Global recognizes the wonderful talent, writing and production associated with Bomb Girls. While the show had a loyal core following, unfortunately the numbers were not where we needed them to be to continue for a third season."
The show, which followed the struggles of working women on the home front and covered such issues as sexual harassment and abortion, made a strong second season debut in January with more than 1.1 million viewers, but then disappeared off the ratings charts. The show stars Meg Tilly as the factory's tough matron, a performance for which she won the best actress prize at the Canadian Screen Awards in March.
Bomb Girls producers expressed sorrow Tuesday that their unusual historical drama would have to fold: "Together we told stories that were proudly Canadian, that illuminated fascinating aspects of our history and celebrated the astonishing women and men who fought so hard for our freedom," they said in a statement released by Muse Entertainment Enterprises.