10 TV Characters Killed In Desperate Attempts To Boost Ratings
7. Maude Flanders - The Simpsons
Maude Flanders had been one of the ever-presents in The Simpsons for nearly a decade by the time her end came about. Maggie Roswell had given the character her instantly recognisable voice for every episode, but off-camera issues were beginning to make the showrunners wonder whether it was feasible keeping Ned's wife around for much longer.
Roswell was growing tired of having to fly around the country to record her lines for the show and, when her request for a raise was turned down by Fox, it was clear that her time on the show had come to an end. However, this departure just so happened to be coinciding with some pretty noticeable dips in the ratings for the show and the writers decided to break the mould and actually kill off the character for good.
Maude Flanders was killed in the season eleven episode Alone Again, Natura-Diddily after a huge bundle of T-Shirts were accidentally fired at her. Though the episode was one of the more higher-rated entries into the season, The Simpsons has increasingly become known as a show in decline, with every season released being compared unfavourably to what came immediately before it, and unable to tell that it's probably time to stop now.