Actor upset by BBC dropping Dirk Gently

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LONDON, July 1 (UPI) -- British actor Stephen Mangan said he is "bitterly upset" about the BBC's decision to cut the drama series "Dirk Gently," in which he starred as a detective.

The series was based on Douglas Adams's novel "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" and featured Darren Boyd as Gently's sidekick Richard MacDuff.

BBC dropped the series from its lineup due to budget cuts. The show premiered in December 2010 with a pilot and continued in 2012 with three episodes.

"We've loved having Dirk on the channel but the license fee freeze means less British drama on BBC4," said a BBC spokeswoman one month ago when the decision was announced.

"In future we will focus on the best dramas from around the globe, like The Killing and Borgen, whilst BBC One and BBC Two become the main homes of original British drama."

Mangan said he hopes when the economy picks up in a few years, the show will be revived.

"You wonder whether it's just you that's bitterly upset," he said. "You put your heart and soul into it, and I wasn't the only one. A lot of people worked really hard to produce something that, by all accounts, is a triumph and then doesn't go on."