Crimewatch, one of the BBC's longest-running shows, is being axed after 33 years. The show, which has been credited with helping solve some of the country's most notorious crimes, is being cancelled to make way for other programmes, although its daytime sister show, Crimewatch Roadshow, will continue to air. In a statement, the BBC said: "We are incredibly proud of Crimewatch and the great work it has done over the years. This move will allow us to create room for new innovative programmes on peak time on BBC One. We believe the successful Crimewatch Roadshow format in daytime is the best fit for the brand going forward and we will increase the number of episodes to make two series a year."
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Former Crimewatch hosts Jill Dando and Nick Ross
The show was most recently hosted by Jeremy Vine and Tina Daheley; previous presenters have included Nick Ross, Kirsty Young, Fiona Bruce, Rav Wilding and Jill Dando, who was herself murdered in 1999, with her own case being featured on the programme. Famous cases that the show featured and helped solve include the murder of James Bulger, the killing of schoolgirl Sarah Payne, and the deaths of Lin and Megan Russell.
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Former host Nick Ross paid tribute to the show on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme. "I'm amazed it's gone on so long," he said. "And it's a tribute to the team they've kept it going. When it started, it was revolutionary. Up to that point, television and radio basically talked at the audience. There was no internet, very few phone-ins, this was a programme where the audience could talk back and could actually influence the end of the programme. This sort of revolutionary thing then had a huge impact on television generally and has kept going for 33 years despite all the changes in technology."