Throng

Saturday November 27, 2010

Shares:
1 Nine 25.1% (nw 31.0%)
2 Seven 23.1% (nw 31.0%)
3 ABC1 18.4% (nw 22.0%)
4 Ten 10.9% (nw 11.4%)
5 7TWO 5.6%

6 GO! 4.4%
7 SBS ONE 4.0% (nw 4.5%)
8 7mate 2.3%
9 ABC News 24 2.2% – a record, thanks to the Victorian election.
10 GEM 1.6%

11 ABC2 1.2%
12 SBS TWO 0.6%
13 ONE 0.5%
14 ABC3 0.3%

That was the last night of ratings for 2010. During non ratings – which runs until Sat Feb 5, 2011, less ratings information will be available, and may be released later than usual, but we will still keep you up to date.

Top shows for the day:
1 Nine News Saturday Nine 1,334,000 365,000 517,000 175,000 165,000 113,000
2 The Ashes: First Test – Australia V England Nine 1,064,000 280,000 343,000 199,000 106,000 137,000
3 Seven News – Sat Seven 1,024,000 235,000 303,000 201,000 133,000 151,000
4 Australia’s Funniest Home Videos Nine 960,000 262,000 366,000 135,000 103,000 94,000
5 New Tricks ABC1 872,000 337,000 0 227,000 146,000 163,000
6 Hey Hey It’s Saturday Nine 824,000 174,000 375,000 125,000 75,000 76,000
7 The Cricket Show Nine 791,000 198,000 260,000 141,000 77,000 116,000
8 M-Wall-E Seven 762,000 175,000 234,000 153,000 94,000 107,000
9 M-The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian Seven 760,000 183,000 229,000 147,000 88,000 114,000
10 ABC News-Sa ABC1 687,000 278,000 0 177,000 94,000 138,000
11 Lights, Camera, Party – Television City Celebrates Nine 647,000 145,000 301,000 104,000 46,000 50,000
12 Spooks ABC1 499,000 196,000 126,000 73,000 104,000
13 Taken Ten 471,000 129,000 128,000 97,000 56,000 61,000
14 Gardening Australia ABC1 413,000 139,000 0 128,000 86,000 60,000
15 Ten News At Five Sat Ten 407,000 78,000 132,000 62,000 49,000 86,000
16 Antiques Roadshow Nine 372,000 0 0 144,000 165,000 63,000
17 Stardust Ten 357,000 89,000 117,000 74,000 41,000 36,000
18 Weekend Sunrise – Sat Seven 307,000 68,000 103,000 76,000 34,000 26,000
19 Heartbeat-Sat Ep.2 (R) 7TWO 269,000 56,000 63,000 43,000 55,000 52,000
20 Extraordinary Animals Nine 265,000 0 0 228,000 0 37,000
21 Big, Bigger, Biggest SBS ONE 264,000 72,000 79,000 48,000 19,000 47,000
22 Sports Tonight Sat Ten 242,000 34,000 83,000 44,000 27,000 55,000
23 Heartbeat-Sat (R) 7TWO 236,000 50,000 72,000 33,000 38,000 43,000
24 New Tricks ABC1 233,000 0 233,000 0 0 0
25 The Simpsons Sat Ten 228,000 43,000 102,000 36,000 25,000 22,000
26 Victoria Votes 2010 ABC1 221,000 0 221,000 0 0 0
27 Weekend Today – Saturday Nine 218,000 69,000 82,000 45,000 15,000 7,000
28 Burglar Nine 214,000 45,000 112,000 31,000 13,000 14,000
29 The Mask Go! 206,000 50,000 63,000 36,000 30,000 26,000
30 Weekend Sunrise – Sat – Early Seven 205,000 55,000 53,000 48,000 23,000 26,000

OzTam Five city Live and As Live Preliminary Ratings Figures. Raw data sourced from TV Tonight and/or the various networks. Five Cities are Sydney (S), Brisbane (B), Melbourne (M), Adelaide (A) and Perth (P). Figures are shown in order Total, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth. Shows not aired in certain cities denoted by 0 or n/a (not aired).  Does not take into account overruns or extreme last minute programming changes. Shares are 6pm – Midnight unless otherwise stated. Network abreviated to “nw”.

Seven, Nine and Ten all claim victories for winning the 2010 ratings year, but the all important overall number one goes to Seven.

Nine as a network win the primary demographics 16-39, 18-49 and 25-54 while Ten win in 16-39’s if you consider primary channels only. These figures are based on 6pm – 12 midnight for weeks 7-48 but not including Easter.

Ten wins in daytime shares over Nine and Seven at 39.2% (primary channel share) while Ten claims to win 18-49’s but that is based on Ten’s modified prime time of 6pm – 10.30pm for weeks 7-48 excluding Easter and the Commonwealth Games**.

Here are the figures*:

Network Total people:
1 Seven 28.7%
2 Nine 27.7%
3 Ten 21.1%
4 ABC 16.9%
5 SBS 5.6%

Network 16-39:
1 Nine 29.9%
2 Ten 27.5%
3 Seven 27.1%
4 ABC 10.1%
5 SBS 5.4%

Network 18-49:
1 Nine 30.2%
2 Seven 27.9%
3 Ten 25.4%
4 ABC 11.0%
5 SBS 5.5%

Network 25-54
1 Nine 29.9%
2 Seven 28.0%
3 Ten 24.1%
4 ABC 12.3%
5 SBS 5.7%

Primary Channel only*:

Primary 16-39:
1 Ten 25.7%
2 Nine 23.6%
3 Seven 23.3%
4 ABC1 7.6%
5 SBS ONE 4.9%

Primary 18-49:
1 Nine 24.4%
2 Seven 24.1%
3 Ten 23.7%
4 ABC1 8.6%
5 SBS ONE 4.9%

Primary 25-54:
1 Nine 24.6%
2 Seven 24.1%
3 Ten 22.4%
4 ABC1 9.9%
5 SBS ONE 5.0%

Overall channels shares for 2010^:
1 Seven 24.65
2 Nine 23.49
3 Ten 19.98
4 ABC1 14.55
5 SBS ONE 4.99

6 Go! 3.8
7 7Two 3.4
8 7mate 2.7***
9 GEM 1.7***
10 ABC2 1.6

11 ONE 1.4
12 SBS TWO 0.6
13 ABC3 0.5
13 ABC News 24 0.5

Top 20 Shows for 2010 in overall people (events)**:
1 Masterchef Australia Winner Announced Ten 4,029,000
2 Masterchef Australia Finale Night Ten 3,594,000
3 AFL Grand Final Presentations Seven 3,358,000
4 AFL Grand Final Collingwood Vs St Kilda Seven 2,768,000
5 2010 Melbourne Cup Carnival The Race Seven 2,707,000
6 AFL Grand Final Rematch Collingwood Vs St Kilda Seven 2,687,000
7 AFL Grand Final Rematch Presentations 2,618,000
8 State of Origin Rugby League Match 1 Nine 2,468,000
9 AFL Grand Final Post Match Seven 2,451,000
10 Underbelly The Golden Mile Ep 1 Nine 2,358,000
11 Junior Masterchef Australia Ep 1 Ten 2,293,000
12 State of Origin Rugby League Match 2 Nine 2,173,000
13 AFL On The Ground Seven 2,166,000
14 Melbourne Cup Race Presentation Seven 2,134,000
15 Underbelly The Golden Mile Ep 2 Nine 2,126,000
16 Such Is Life The Trouble Times of Ben Cousins Seven 2,125,000
17 Packed to the Rafters Seven 2,058,000
18 AFL On The Ground Rematch Seven 1,957,000
19 Junior Masterchef The Winner Announced Ten 1,950,000
20 AFL Rematch Post Match Seven 1,939,000

Top 20 shows in overall people (regular programming)^^:
1 PACKED TO THE RAFTERS Seven 2,041,000
2 MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA Ten 1,934,000
3 MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA – CHALLENGE Ten 1,857,000
4 UNDERBELLY: THE GOLDEN MILE Nine 1,740,000
5 GRUEN NATION-EV ABC 1,616,000
6 AUSTRALIA’S GOT TALENT Seven 1,615,000
7 SEVEN NEWS – SUN Seven 1,554,000
8 MIDSOMER MURDERS-SU ABC 1,497,000
9 JUNIOR MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA SUN Ten 1,496,000
10 MODERN FAMILY Ten 1,479,000
11 DOC MARTIN-EV ABC 1,476,000
12 NCIS Ten 1,461,000
13 GLEE Ten 1,448,000
14 MY KITCHEN RULES-TUE Seven 1,427,000
15 WORLD’S STRICTEST PARENTS Seven 1,420,000
16 AIR WAYS Seven 1,414,000
17 THE GRUEN TRANSFER-EV ABC 1,411,000
18 BORDER SECURITY – AUSTRALIA’S FRONT LINE Seven 1,408,000
19 TWO AND A HALF MEN Nine 1,407,000
20 NINE NEWS SUNDAY Nine 1,404,000

* Prime Time 6pm – 12 midnight, weeks 7-48 excluding Easter. Figures from Nine.
^ Sourced from Media Spy
^^ Sourced from Seven
** Sourced from Ten.
*** Shares for 7mate and GEM only from Sept 26, 2010.

All ratings figures five city metro OzTam. Week 7-49 excluding Easter unless otherwise stated,

A new “dramedy” is set to hit screens next year from Andrew Denton’s Zapruder’s Other Films.

Stephen Curry will feature in the show entitled Poppy, which is understood to be commissioned by Channel Nine.

Poppy has been described as “Packed to the Rafters meets Six Feet Under” and will be the first so-called “dramedy” from Denton’s production company.

While details are scarce, the show is believed to centre on a close-knit group of family and friends as they deal with varied events on a particular day.

Further casting details are not confirmed but it is believed that Angus Sampson and Adam Zwar are being lined up to appear.

Source: Herald Sun

When MasterChef returns for its third season next year, a couple of familiar faces are rumoured to be taking centre stage.

Word is celebrity chef Matt Moran has been promoted to a beefier role on the hit TEN series, which will help take some of the strain off current judges Gary Mehigan, Geaorge Calombaris and Matt Preston.

With a gruelling six-month filming schedule underway for the next season of MasterChef, Moran and Donna Hay will be helping shoulder the weight of mentoring the aspiring chefs through the competition.

Hay will move into a mentoring role, which is a step-up from her recurring guest judge spot last season.

FremantleMedia Australia is yet to confirm the changes to the show despite the word from insiders.

Source: News.com.au

“2010 has been a significant year for the free-to-air television sector. As Australians take to the expanding suite of free-to-air digital multi-channels in record numbers, there has never been a more important time for the commercial networks to go after demographically targeted audiences.

“A compelling schedule of local and international hits has enabled TEN to strengthen its performance across a number of important and competitive evening timeslots. Despite the introduction of more channels this year, TEN has successfully increased the weeknight audience for its primary channel between 7:00pm and 10:30pm.

“This year has been all about bolstering TEN‟s primary 3-station share in the demographics of greatest interest to advertisers. At year‟s end, we have achieved exactly what we set out to do. We are the No. 1 prime-time viewing destination for 18-49 and 16-39 year olds. We also remain unchallenged as Australia‟s leading day-time network. Not only has TEN increased its primary 3-station share in 18-49, 16-39, 25-54 and total people, but TEN remains the only primary commercial channel to have increased its audience with 25-54 and 25-39 year olds.

“TEN‟s strengthened position results from a targeted programming strategy which delivers the kind of inspirational and uplifting family entertainment that Australians want to watch. This year we added a raft of successful local formats with Junior MasterChef Australia, Offspring, Undercover Boss Australia and Keeping Up With The Joneses, complemented by the year‟s best international content including Modern Family, Undercover Boss (US) and The Good Wife. TEN‟s returning programs also performed strongly, with key properties such as MasterChef Australia, NCIS, Glee and The 7pm Project achieving significant year-on-year audience growth.

“TEN is now well-positioned to continue expanding its prime-time audience with the addition of two News formats between 6:00pm and 7:00pm. Just as we did 18 months ago with The 7pm Project, TEN is committed to shaking up the early prime-time schedule, offering viewers the News that they clearly want, in a format that they can‟t get anywhere else.

“The Network is in a strong position heading into 2011. TEN‟s audience has a lot to look forward to with the addition of two fresh new News programs, a string of new Australian and international family entertainment formats, and the return of all 2010‟s big hits. On the sport front, Australians can expect even more live and exclusive action on ONE. And starting early in the New Year, ELEVEN will launch as the destination for distinctly youthful programming,” Mr Mott said.

2010 – THE YEAR AT A GLANCE:

- TEN recaptures first place in 18-49 (34.1%); up 1.9% year on year

- TEN wins its 10 consecutive year in 16-39 (37.0%); up 0.5% year on year

- TEN wins the year in daytime (39.2%); TEN News at Five is the year‟s top regular daytime program

- TEN is the only primary network to grow its audience in 25-54

- During prime-time (6:00pm – 10:30pm), TEN gains in all key demographics and total people (3-station CSHR) – see page 6

- From 6:00pm – midnight, TEN gains in all key demographics and total people (3-station CSHR)

Channel Seven has claimed ratings gold for its fourth consecutive year, leading Australia’s television landscape as the 2010 ratings year culminated with an All People share of 27.6 per cent in Melbourne and 28.2 per cent nationally.

Seven’s combined network share (including channels Seven, 7TWO and 7MATE) proved television screens across Australia were dominated by Seven this year, with a winning national share of 28.7 per cent and a local share of 28.2 per cent.

Seven scored 16 of the Top 20 programs overall in Melbourne and 12 of the Top 20 programs nationally, showing more viewers than ever have switched on to Seven for quality entertainment.

Exciting new Australian-made programs such as MY KITCHEN RULES, THE PACIFIC, THE X FACTOR, MINUTE TO WIN IT, IRON CHEF AUSTRALIA, UNDER THE HAMMER and FOUR WEDDINGS joined much-loved favourites PACKED TO THE RAFTERS, AUSTRALIA’S GOT TALENT, DANCING WITH THE STARS, BEAUTY AND THE GEEK AUSTRALIA, CITY HOMICIDE, HOME & AWAY, BORDER SECURITY: AUSTRALIA’S FRONT LINE, BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS, FIND MY FAMILY, WORLD’S STRICTEST PARENTS, HIGHWAY PATROL, AIR WAYS, RSPCA ANIMAL RESCUE and DEAL OR NO DEAL to create Seven’s winning ratings formula.

For must-see, weekly appointment viewing Seven triumphed over the opposition, garnering seven of the Top 20 regular programs both nationally and in Melbourne – more than any other station. Nationally, Seven had the number one regular program of 2010 with family favorite PACKED TO THE RAFTERS (2.041 million).

In Melbourne, Seven boasted both the number one Drama – PACKED TO THE RAFTERS (611,000) – and Light Entertainment – AUSTRALIA’S GOT TALENT (504,000) – programs.

Viewers turned to Seven in 2010 whenever breaking news occurred, with SEVEN NEWS (404,000), SEVEN NEWS SATURDAY (391,000) and SEVEN NEWS SUNDAY (473,000) dominating all other news bulletins in Melbourne.

Seven Melbourne Programming and Communications Manager Graeme Hill said 2010’s ratings victory set the scene for a powerhouse year in 2011.

“We’ve been incredibly proud of our schedule this year and, in particular, our concentrated effort on producing high-quality, locally-made programming for viewers to enjoy.”

“Next year, we’re going to build upon 2010’s successful platform with an arsenal of highly-anticipated, must-see programs – WINNERS AND LOSERS, THE AMAZING RACE AUSTRALIA, CONVICTION KITCHEN and the second season of MY KITCHEN RULES – to name just a few – for a dynamic, blockbuster schedule.”

GEM’s new Monday night lineup presents two Australian firsts, with Rizzoli and Isles followed by Southland, from Monday, November 29.

In Rizzoli and Isles (at 9.30pm) detective Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) and medical examiner Dr Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander), complete opposites and good friends, solve crimes and bust some of Boston’s most notorious criminals. With a quirky yet supportive relationship and the smarts to decipher some of the toughest cases in town, they make a dynamic duo.

The series also stars Jordan Bridges (Mona Lisa Smile), Lee Thompson Young (FlashForward), Bruce McGill (Law Abiding Citizen) and Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos). It is based on two crime novels from international best-selling author Tess Gerritsen, The Surgeon and The Apprentice.

Following Rizzoli and Isles at 10.30pm is the Australian premiere of Southland, a raw and authentic look at a police gang unit in Los Angeles. From the beaches of Malibu to the streets of East Los Angeles, Southland is a fast-moving drama that takes viewers inside the lives of cops, criminals, victims and their families.

Michael Cudlitz (A River Runs Through It) plays John Cooper, a seasoned LA cop assigned to train rookie Ben Sherman (Benjamin McKenzie, The O.C.). Cooper’s honest, no-nonsense approach to the job leaves Sherman questioning whether or not he has what it takes to become a police officer. 

Cudlitz and McKenzie are joined by cast members Regina King, who plays Detective Lydia Adams. She lives with and is the primary carer for her mother. Her partner, Detective Russell Clarke (Tom Everett Scott), is an unhappily married father of three. Michael McGrady plays Detective Daniel Salinger who oversees fellow detectives Nate Moretta (Kevin Alejandro) and Sammy Bryant (Shawn Hatosy). Arija Bareikis plays patrol officer Chickie Brown, a single mother who dreams of being the first woman accepted into SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics squad).

The Monday night summer line up on GEM is really hotting up with these brand-new Australian premiere series.

Rizzoli and Isles: Monday, November 29, at 9.30pm on GEM

Southland: Monday, November 29, at 10.30pm on GEM

Talk of new Underbelly series

There is talk of a new Underbelly series for 2011 being set in Sydney during the 1920s, a time when crooks armed themselves with razors as opposed to handguns. The buzz is around a new season of the Channel Nine series featuring gangs of razor-wielding crooks who operated in the Darlinghurst/Kings Cross area during a time when pistol licensing laws made it easier for crims to choose blades over bullets.

Writer accuses MTV of stealing Jersey Shore concept

A television writer has accused MTV of stealing his idea for reality shore Jersey Shore from a 2006 pitch he called Guidos: The Reality Series. Christopher Gambale is claiming that MTV used his idea of portraying stereotypical Italians without credit, but MTV is hitting back by saying that his idea was not original.

Uni offers course on The Wire

A Baltimore university has begun offering a course based on critically acclaimed drama series The Wire. The John Hopkins University has launched the class which uses the show as a base to explore issues affecting US cities including drug use and crime with guest lecturers including the show’s creator David Simon.

Ugly Betty actor claims God was involved in murder

The former Ugly Betty actor who killed his mother last week with a samurai sword has insisted he was “doing the work of God”. Michael L. Brea has claimed that voices in his head ordered him to attack his mum after a “demon” took her soul.

Daryl, any news from the boys upstairs if we are back in 2011 yet?

Afraid not, Ossie.

The last Hey Hey it’s Saturday airs Sat Nov 27, 7.30pm – 11 years since it was originally axed in 1999.

The idea of bringing Hey Hey back was originally sparked by a Facebook group of fans. In 2009, the two one off specials scored huge audience figures in excess of two million which promted the Nine network to commission the show for 20 episodes in 2010.

Hey Hey It’s Saturday for 2010 premiered on April 14 – a Wednesday. The first show did well, over 1.2 million tuned in. The second one was down, and as the weeks went by, it settled into average figures of around 800,000 viewers.

Opinions were many and varied about the Hey Hey revival – but mostly favoured that the format had had its day and was now out of date. Apart from references to Facebook and Twitter, you could easily have been mistaken for thinking you were watching Hey Hey as it was back in the 90’s.

The segments were the same – Plucka Duck, Red faces, Funny Photos, etc. The cartoonist was there. Sound effects were the same. The set very similar. Daryl still talked and talked. The show always finished late.

I for one enjoyed Hey Hey in the 80’s and 90’s, and enjoyed the reunion specials in 2009 – but honestly – that is where it should have been left. A few reunion specials every now and then would draw the numbers. But the weekly show in 2010 was just way too much of the same every week – and did not fit well into Wednesday night viewing. The few I watched I had recorded and ended up watching on the weekend. Outside of Melbourne, numbers were very soft to say the least.

Some will blame putting Hey Hey against Masterchef which was on the same time most of the Wednesday nights as a reason why Hey Hey could not rate well on Wednesday night. But, if Hey Hey had stood the test of time, and people liked what was on offer, the numbers would have come. Masterchef was on six nights a week, Hey Hey just the one.

Even though the last seven episodes moved back to where it should be – on Saturday night – the figures have remained low. Yes, fewer people watch TV on Saturday nights, and there are so many options on the digital channels, but considering the cost of each hour of Hey Hey to make, it’s a bad deal for Nine.

So what now? Hey Hey will almost certainly not be back in 2011 unless for a one off special. It would probably be better to hold off on any specials until 2012 or later in any case, as a special in 2011 will be too soon after the 20 shows we just had in 2010.

If Daryl Somers really wants to get back into putting variety onto TV – and I do agree we should have more variety shows – then how about coming up with a new idea? What about a condensed contemporary version of Hey Hey? It’d have to be called something else though and contain new segments. A one hour show – perhaps presented like a cross between Rove Live, Hey Hey and a late night US talk show like Letterman or Leno might work – once a week on a Saturday night. Just a thought.

It may also be time for Daryl Somers to retire gracefully knowing he has done the best he could to keep Hey Hey alive into another decade. Afterall – it did start in the 70’s. Not too many shows around that have that sort of history.

Finally Two and a Half Men being at 7pm weeknights gets a rest – but not until Dec 21.

UPDATED:

From Monday Dec 20 (not 13th as planned), The Middle will replace Two and a Half Men at 7pm weeknights.

The week of Dec 12-18, the Ashes is played in Perth meaning cricket for all but WA will eat into Prime Time, finishing as late as 8.30pm in eastern daylight saving states. The third test from the WACA starts on Thursday December 16. All states will break form the cricket for their local 6pm news, but there will be no A Current Affair on these nights.

New CSI: NY returns from Wednesday December 8 at 9.30pm, after new Cold Case. CSI: NY takes off from season 5 episode 22.

The Middle remains in place for 8pm Monday Dec 13, after an epsiode of Two and a Half Men. The Big Bang Theroy remains at 7.30pm Tue Dec 14, before Top Gear follows at 8pm. The third last episode of Survivor Nicaragua plays at 9.30 Tue Dec 14, which would therefore place the final on Tue Dec 28.

 Warnie remains at 8.30pm Thur Dec 16, straight after the cricket for eastern daylight saving sates. In QLD, with the one hour time difference, the cricket finishes at 7.30pm. 8.00pm in SA. At this stage, the gaps between the local cricket finishing times and 8.30pm programming are TBA’s.