Daily Telegraph stated that the series is "One of the biggest television drama hits of recent years" and that it was "Almost embarrassingly gripping", while The Guardian said that it is a "Jewel in the Crown of prime time ITV" and that "Network executives must be thankful they have a rare, if unexpected success in Bad Girls." They also said that it is "Less cosy than other dramas ... no sick animals or people are healed." The Guardian also mentioned of an early storyline, in particular, featuring the relationship between Wing-governor Helen Stewart and prisoner Nikki Wade was "praised for its treatment of a homosexual relationship in a responsible way". DVD Monthly reviewed the series and cited that "Bad Girls is a brilliant drama about life in a ladies prison. It's gritty, well written and fully merits the phrase 'hard hitting'" and that it "Makes compulsive viewing and does so with a level of intelligence and honesty". In a review for New York magazine, John Leonard gave the series a positive review, commenting that "although Bad Girls probably wouldn’t have lasted eight seasons on ITV in Great Britain had it appealed only to lesbians, the prison drama’s strong same-sex story lines were doubtless what got the attention of Logo". He went on to say that "don’t imagine you are tuning in to The L Word behind bars. Bad Girls is much better than that—it has a rough Oz edge and some of the feminist wit of Jonathan Demme’s Caged Heat". The first three series of Bad Girls were the most successful. After the first three series, the show slightly declined in quality for the fourth and fifth series. Nonetheless, the show continued to earn high viewing figures. Series Six of Bad Girls was considered the most successful series after the first three series as it performed somewhat better than the previous two. The seventh series mostly saw viewing figures drop; although the Series Seven finale, the Christmas special, did perform very well. Series Eight had a further drop in viewing figures, and was the last series before cancellation. Awards and nominations Bad Girls has been nominated for several awards, most notably at the National Television Awards, where it had received a total of nine nominations, winning twice; in 2000 and again in 2001, receiving the award for Most Popular Drama Series, during the point where the series was at its