The broadcasting expenditure for two major royal events, King Charles' coronation and Queen Elizabeth's funeral, may have unintentionally influenced the BBC's decision to cancel Autumnwatch, according to the program's presenter Michaela Strachan.

Strachan believes that budget constraints following the hefty broadcast costs of the aforementioned royal events led to the BBC deciding to axe the popular nature program. While she agrees with the decision as the most sensible option rather than diluting budgets across multiple shows, she expresses regret over the cancellation.

Strachan spoke of the impact of the loss of the beloved nature show, particularly given the positive public response to David Attenborough's series, Wild Isles. She said, "It’s really sad," noting, "But when you think that budgets are getting smaller, the choice was either to strip the budget over all the programmes, or to strip one of the programmes – and I think that was the best decision."

Strachan emphasized the importance of retaining Springwatch at the core of the Watch series, even if it meant sacrificing Autumnwatch. She elaborated, "Of course, I’d rather we had all three, but if you’re faced with that decision... Let’s be honest. We have a cost of living crisis, people aren’t buying their TV licences, we’ve had a very expensive coronation and a very expensive Queen’s funeral, which has cost the BBC a lot of money."

Despite the disappointment, Strachan reiterated that she believed the cancellation was the "right decision," given the circumstances.

Following 17 years on the air, the BBC officially discontinued the autumn edition, attributing the decision to "challenging times financially." The broadcaster also stated it will channel more resources into Springwatch and Winterwatch.

Strachan lamented the timing of the decision, given the recent enthusiastic reception to Wild Isles. She remarked, "It does seem a shame after everyone raved about Wild Isles. You would have thought that everyone would have been really keen to learn more." Regrettably, viewers will now have fewer Watch programs to enjoy.