Afterlife

Series creator Stephen Volk originally conceived the show in the mid-1990s, when ITV was briefly interested in producing a homegrown supernatural series to capitalize on the UK success of The X-Files.

Volk had previously written the famous 1992 BBC One Screen One play Ghostwatch, which also dealt with the paranormal.

The project remained unmade for years until Clerkenwell Films and actress Lesley Sharp became interested; Sharp reportedly pestered ITV relentlessly, repeatedly asking when they would commission the series.

Stephen Volk wrote five of the six episodes of the first series himself, with the fifth episode instead scripted by Charlie Fletcher.

The first series' repeat run on ITV in prime time on Sunday evenings was quickly abandoned, with the repeats moved to the digital channel ITV3.

The first episode drew an overnight average of 5.7 million viewers (25% audience share), beating the nearest competition by nearly two million viewers, and the second episode rose to 6.2 million viewers with a 29% share.

In April 2007, Afterlife received three nominations at the Monte Carlo Television Festival, for Lesley Sharp (Best Actress), Andrew Lincoln (Best Actor) and producer Murray Ferguson (Best Producer).

Despite strong critical acclaim throughout its run, a drop in ratings led ITV to decide against commissioning a third series.