Industry
Media Studies: Eduqas GCSE, topic 4.6.5
Industry
The Sweeney originally aired at 9PM on ITV.
Airtime
- The Sweeney aired at 9PM, just at the start of the watershed.
- This airtime accounted for the scenes of violence and other mature themes that became iconic for The Sweeney.
- Since The Sweeney aired, there has been a relaxation on what is considered to be mature content.
- This is shown in Luther, which is much more mature despite being aired at the same time.
Television network
- The Sweeney was originally aired on ITV.
- At the time, ITV was the only independent TV channel, meaning it was funded solely by adverts.
- ITV was unlike the PSB model of the BBC.
Budget
- The Sweeney had a high production budget of approximately £250,000 per episode.
- When adjusted for inflation, this is approximately £2 million.
- The high budget is reflected in the action sequences and expensive props.
- This allowed for The Sweeney to be a convincing piece of realistic crime drama.
Test yourself on Industry
What represents the high budget in The Sweeney?
Which television network originally aired The Sweeney?