Ofcom has ruled that UK broadcasting rules were broken by ITV, when it aired gory drama 'Jekyll And Hyde' at 6.30pm on a Sunday. The broadcasting regulator received 504 complaints after the series’ debut episode in October, with ITV also being contacted by almost 400 viewers.

Charlie Higson'Jekyll And Hyde' creator Charlie Higson.

“We found this programme broke our rules requiring children to be protected from unsuitable material by appropriate scheduling,” Ofcom concluded. “The cumulative effect of violent and frightening scenes made this programme – the first in the series – unsuitable for children when scheduled to start at 6.30pm on a Sunday, and without a clear warning before it started.”

More: ITV Drama 'Jekyll And Hyde' Axed After One Series Following Complaints

The drama’s debut episode featured violent scenes including a man being bludgeoned to death within the first minute, someone being set on fire and another being shot in the stomach. Eventually ITV moved the series to 7pm, but as the weeks progressed it suffered from falling ratings.

Commenting on the ruling an ITV spokesperson said, “ITV notes that Ofcom said this was a ‘finely balanced’ decision on their part, and that the programme was suitable for pre-watershed transmission, but not suitable for 18.30. We have taken this decision on board for future programming.”

Earlier this month writer Charlie Higson announced that the show had not been renewed for a second series. ‘Sad day today as ITV announce they don’t want any more #JekyllandHyde It was a grand adventure while it lasted,’ he tweeted. ‘We had some great stories lined up for series 2…Thanks for all the messages of support I’m moving on to other things.’

More: Too Gory For Teatime? ITV's 'Jekyll And Hyde' Draws 500 Complaints

At the time of the axing an ITV spokesperson told the Express: “'Jekyll and Hyde’ ‘is an ambitious series that we are proud of. While there are no plans for a second series, we would like to thank the production team and the writer Charlie Higson for delivering a series of great originality.”