ITV’s 7 Up series to end in 2026 after 62 years with final film 70 Up

Key facts

• The Up series began in 1964 with 7 Up, following ten boys and four girls in England.
• The final installment, 70 Up, will air on ITV in 2026.
• Michael Apted directed the series from 7 Plus Seven until his death in 2021 at age 79.
• Asif Kpadia has been assigned directorial duties for 70 Up.
• 42 Up was the only film in the series broadcast on BBC One; all others aired on ITV.
• Participants include Tony, Neil, Sue, Peter, Andrew, Suzy, and the late Lynn and Nick.

A 62-year social experiment reaches its final chapter

The ITV documentary series that has followed the lives of 14 British children from age seven into their seventies will end in 2026 with its 10th installment, 70 Up. The series, which began in 1964 with 7 Up, has tracked ten boys and four girls from England every seven years, creating an unparalleled longitudinal portrait of ordinary lives. For ITV, the decision to conclude the series turns a long-running factual project into a definitive ending rather than another seven-year return. Jo Clinton-Davis, ITV’s controller of factual and commissioner of 70 Up, said: “The 7 Up story is much more than a TV documentary, it’s a document of our times.” The final film carries added weight as the first installment without Michael Apted, who directed the series from 7 Plus Seven onward and died at age 79 in 2021. Paul Almond directed the original 7 Up, and Asif Kpadia has taken over directorial duties for 70 Up.

The participants: from childhood dreams to later-life realities

The final film will reunite many of the original participants, allowing viewers to see how their lives have unfolded. Tony, once the “cheeky chap” who wanted to be a jockey, became a London cab driver and will appear in 70 Up. Neil, who dreamed of being an astronaut, is also back. Sue will talk about marrying Glenn and her decades working at Queen Mary University of London, while Peter has more music news to share. Andrew, the prep school boy who famously read the Financial Times, returns alongside KC John, who wanted a powerful career. Suzy, the young ballerina who hated her private school, is also part of the final film. The series will remember fondly the late Lynn, part of the trio of friends, and include an interview with the late Nick, the farmer’s son who fulfilled his dream to become a nuclear physicist. Charles, who left the programme at 21, remains part of the broader story of who stayed and who left.

Production history and broadcast shifts

Granada Television has produced the Up series for ITV since its inception. All films except 42 Up have aired on ITV; 42 Up was broadcast on BBC One. The series has returned to the same people every seven years, tracking them from childhood into later life. Michael Apted’s death in 2021 left the final film without the director who shaped most of its identity. Asif Kpadia’s assignment as director for 70 Up marks a new chapter, but the film remains rooted in the same documentary tradition that has made the series a touchstone of British television.

A clean ending after decades of scheduling

For ITV, 70 Up represents a clean ending rather than another seven-year pause. The broadcaster has turned one of its most durable factual brands into a final record of what happened to the original participants. After 62 years, the 2026 broadcast will serve as a conclusion, not a reunion. The series has been a fixture of British television, returning every seven years to check in on the same group of people. With 70 Up, that cycle ends, providing a definitive coda to a project that has documented the passage of time and the divergence of childhood dreams from adult realities.

What comes next: the legacy of the Up series

The Up series has been widely studied and praised for its unique longitudinal approach. It has inspired similar projects around the world and has been the subject of academic analysis. The final film will likely prompt reflection on the nature of documentary filmmaking and the ethical considerations of following subjects over a lifetime. For viewers, 70 Up offers a chance to see the full arc of lives that began in 1964. The series has shown how class, opportunity, and personal choices shape outcomes, and the final installment will bring that story to a close.

The bottom line

• 70 Up will air on ITV in 2026, ending the Up series after 62 years and 10 installments.
• The series began in 1964 with 7 Up, following 14 seven-year-old children from England.
• Michael Apted directed most of the series; he died in 2021, and Asif Kpadia directs the final film.
• Participants include Tony, Neil, Sue, Peter, Andrew, Suzy, and the late Lynn and Nick.
• 42 Up was the only film broadcast on BBC One; all others aired on ITV.
• The final film is a definitive conclusion, not a pause, providing a complete record of the participants' lives.