Merlin is a British television drama series that began in 2008. It is very loosely based on the Arthurian legends of the mythical wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur, but differs significantly from traditional versions of the myth. Produced by independent production company Shine Limited for BBC One, the programme was designed to run in the same Saturday evening family drama slot as other UK series such as Doctor Who and Robin Hood. The second series began airing on 19 September 2009. On The Paul O'Grady Show, Colin Morgan announced the third series will be made. The BBC confirmed this in a press release on 3 December 2009.