Producer angered by ratings slump

Joe Millionaire has proved the toughest competition

Acclaimed US TV producer David E Kelley has hit out at ABC's bosses for the ratings drop of his show The Practice after it was moved to Monday night.

Courtroom drama The Practice was consistently the top-rated show in its slot across all networks when screened on a Sunday night.

Now, it can only manage fourth place in the ratings opposite Fox's new reality TV show Joe Millionaire and shows on NBC and CBS, including sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond.

As the creator of series such as Ally McBeal and LA Law, Kelley is used to success and he blamed ABC for the demise of The Practice.

Kelley is married to movie actress Michelle Pfeiffer

"They've killed it in one fell swoop," Kelley told entertainment trade paper Daily Variety.

He said he was mystified by the decision for the schedule move, adding: "I would hope (ABC) would act in their own self-interest and put it back where it was doing well."

ABC said last month it was moving the Emmy-winning series to Mondays to herald the start of two new dramas, Veritas: The Quest and Miracles.

Moving The Practice also made room for a highly-anticipated remake of the classic cop show Dragnet on a Sunday night.

No contest

This week, representatives of the network denied The Practice was moved because they wanted to pay less for recommissioning the series.

ABC said in a statement: "It is totally illogical that we would intentionally injure one of our hit shows in order to bring it back at a cheaper price."

Network officials also said they had not realised Joe Millionaire would be such a success.

Joe Millionaire features a group of young single women vying for the affections of what they believe to be a construction worker with £31m in the bank.

The show ends in three weeks. ABC did not say if it would return The Practice to Sunday night.

Despite his landmark successes, Kelley's most recent series for Fox, Girls Club, was cancelled after two episodes.