Too right. There is only so many times you want to hear the same people screaming at each other.

Celebrity Mastermind faired well. They should make it a regular replacement for The One Show during the holidays.

With the row over the crib sheets for celebrities without enough time to actually study for their specialist subjects, its days may be numbered.

Some of those phobias were so strange you felt the people needed a shake more than anything else.

That's atrocious for Around the World... but probably not too unexpected given the lack of promotion and the stupid Tuesday night scheduling.

Not looking a stellar week for BBC1 so far. Mind you, none of the other channels are exactly playing a blinder. Some mediocre ratings all round today and yesterday.


So, not that solid then!


Apart from The X Factor...


I think "row" is overstating something that filled a column inch or two on one day in the quiet news week post-Christmas and then swiftly fizzled out.

I thought you'd have liked to see Mastermind at 7pm given how successful The One Show has become in that slot?

I wonder how the Wallace & Gromit repeat of The Wrong Trousers did yesterday afternoon? (BBC1 4.30pm)

Bit low for EastEnders and Emmerdale.

Lower than expected for Michael Palin.

Poor for the phobias doc.

We lovers of big audience figures have come down to earth with a bump, after the excesses of Christmas.

Dancc - thanks for the cricket ratings. They made me chuckle!

I'm curious as to why 'EastEnders' is always defended by people quoting BBC3's figures to 'add on' if they haven't done so well. Don't get me wrong...I like EastEnders as well. But there's never a mention of ITV2's repeats of Emmerdale or Corrie (?).Are they not rated?

Because the ITV2 repeats never rate that well anyway. Corrie tends to do better on first airings but EastEnders has a bigger overall reach. Most likely due to it's younger demographic who won't always be in to watch it at 7.30pm, so will catch up at 10pm or via the iPlayer.

ITV are extremely stupid with the soap repeats on ITV2. With EastEnders on BBC Three at 10pm, why don't ITV do with ITV2 the following:

Mondays and Fridays
22:30 to 23:00 - Emmerdale
23:00 to 00:00 - Coronation Street

Tuesday and Thursday
22:30 to 23:00/23:30 - Emmerdale

Wednesday
22:30 to 23:00 - Emmerdale
23:00 to 23:30 - Coronation Street

Maybe this way the repeats would get good figures if they were on at consistent times.

Even if they were on at consistent times I very much doubt they'd be getting EE BBC Three type figures.

I can't see why the BBC One schedulers thought it would be a good idea to show the QI repeat at 10pm. They'd have been better off having the news in that slot, and QI after it.

Nothing wrong with moving the news at this time of year if you actually have something new to replace it with, but it's daft to shift it for a narrative repeat.

Tuesday 30th December 2008
BBC One
19:00 - Celebrity Mastermind - 4.5m (20.22%)
*Down 800,000 on last night
*Down 1m on Sunday night
19:30 - EastEnders - 6.17m (26.8%)
20:00 - Holby City - 5.74m (24.7%)
21:00 - Around The World in 20 Years - 4.42m (19%)
22:00 - QI Christmas Special - 3m (13.6%)
*First airing = 5.1m
*Total Viewers = 3m + 5.1m = 8.1m

BBC Two
19:45 - Top Gear Vietnam Special - 2.51m (10.8%)
21:00 - Shooting Stars: The Inside Story - 2.35m (10.1%)
22:00 - Shooting Stars - 3.23m (14.8%)

ITV1
19:00 - Emmerdale - 6.61m (29.7%)
20:00 - Britain's Weirdest Phobias - 2.19m (9.4%)
21:00 - Taggart - 4.79m (21%)

Channel 4
18:00 - The Simpsons: Bart Vs. Lisa Vs. The Third Grade - 2.11m
18:30 - Hollyoaks - 1.71m
20:00 - Country House Rescue - 2.49m (10.7%) [+1: 116,000]
21:00 - Tony Robinson and the Ghosts of Glastonbury - 1.51m (6.5%) [+1: 119,000]
22:05 - FILM: The Magdalene Sisters - 1.19m

five
20:00 - World's Strongest Man - 1.33m (5.7%)
21:00 - CSI: New York - 1.12m (4.8%)
22:00 - CSI - 915,000 (4.7%)

BBC Three
22:00 - EastEnders - 1.23m (6.2%)

E4
19:00 - Hollyoaks - 549,000 (2.4%)
21:00 - Why I Love Celebrity Big Brother - 210,000 (0.92%)

Film4
19:00 - FILM: Freaky Friday - 150,000 (~0.66%)
20:45 - Australia Film4 Special - 80,000
21:00 - FILM: Monster-in-law - 440,000

More4
21:00 - Come Dine With Me - 440,000 (1.93%)

All-Day Shares
BBC One - 18.7% (last week: 22.2%)
ITV1 - 16% (16.6%)
BBC Two - 9.9% (8.5%)
Channel 4* - 8.4% (8%)
five - 3.8% (4.5%)
Multichannel - 43.2% (40.2%)
* = Includes +1.

Primetime Shares
BBC One - 20.9% (last week: 21.5%)
ITV1 - 19.1% (20.4%)
BBC Two - 10.3% (11.3%)
Channel 4 - 6.9% (6.3%)
five - 4.8% (5.7%)
Multichannel - 38% (34.8%)

Source: C4 Sales, DS, MG

I can see the logic in giving QI a chance to hook more first-time BBC1 viewers before the new series starts next week. It will start its BBC1 run proper having been exposed to 8m BBC1 viewers now instead of 5m.

But yes, the News would have done better business for BBC1 at 10pm last night.

Fridays have become quite a competive night with new shows or series from all the terrestrials from next week. I expect Trial and Retribution will similar business to WITB and QI to around the same ratings it got for the Christmas Special and NCIS will do around 2-3m for Five though with the huge success it's having in the US, I wouldn't be surprise if it breaks 3m in the UK.

I am surprised myself that Taggart remains constant with usually 4.5-5.5m whatever the slot. With so many repeat dramas on ITV lately, it's amazing Taggart viewers keep up with the slot changes and the repeats. I agree in one slot every week without one offs it could pull in 5 million+ reguarly.

Got a bit bored, so.....

2009 Preview
Next year, I think's going to be interest in a lot of different ways in my view.

Soaps
I'm expecting EastEnders and Coronation Street to stabilise a bit in 2009, with both hovering around the 9 to 10m mark. I wouldn't, however, rule out any of the two breaking above that should a major storyline come along. EastEnders, for me, will continue to be damaged by Emmerdale in 2009 with the clashes - either ITV shorten Emmerdale or BBC move EastEnders, as it is damaging both sets of ratings. I said last week after the atrocious Christmas Ratings for Emmerdale that I expect them to go in the same direction as Brookside, but Monday's rating was very solid (nearly 8m), so if they can keep that when not clashing with EastEnders, that would be good. The key point will be when The One Show returns and whether that dents Emmerdale.

Dramas
BBC clean sweep here. ITV dramas have been severly damaged this year, with most pulling in lower ratings than BBC - not because of the quality of them, but just because of the timeslot and stuff. BBC have done several good dramas this year, and although I haven't seen many, they have done good work in the ratings. ITV's problem isn't hyping the dramas they do that OK, but OVER-hyping it is stupid and can have potentional bad-side effects. Britannia High seen that.

Reality/Talent Search shows
Expect these to be the big winners this year. Both The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing improved on last year massively, and it'll be interesting to see whether they can continue the upsurge in 2009. It'll be interesting if Dancing on Ice and Britain's Got Talent follow suit - in the latter's case, could it break 15m? While those seem safe from extinction (and I'm a Celebrity after a solid year), Big Brother is on the edge of a mountain, and this year's ratings could decide it's future. I expect the show to deliver solidly for Channel 4 - but I do feel they have made a stupid decision (for CBB) in axing the Live Feed as this may take the "hardcore" fans away from the show.

Sport
After a fantastic 2008 with the Olympics in Beijing and the football Euro 2008 (despite no England), the sporting world soldiers on. Britain delievered in both the Olympics and Formula One. In the latter's case, it also finds itself a new home with the rights going to the BBC next year. Ratings wise, it'll be interesting to see whether Hamilton as champion (plus a channel change) will bring the figures up out of the normal 3m range it usually sees for European races. The Football League also jumps ship to the BBC, with ITV giving up the rights. Here, the scheduling will be interesting... will it be on a Sunday morning, or will it be dumped to BBC Three?!! Of course, apart from that there's Wimbledon and The Open to keep sports fans intrigued. Can Andy Murray win Wimbledon to become the most watched moment of 2009? We can only hope.

Happy New Year! Let's hope for more great ratings in 2009!

Happy New Year all.

For me 2009 is a crunch year for both Emmerdale and Big Brother, with the latter's test coming tomorrow with CBB's Launch Night.

Emmerdale made a recovery in the final week on 2008, with decent Monday's figures. It needs to hold up against The One Show when it returns - will it manage it? I think so.

The soaps as a whole will be interesting this year. If Coronation Street still has a schedule of double episodes on Monday and Friday come next Christmas I'll eat my hat. I also wonder whether 2009 will also be the year where EastEnders is placed in on Wednesday's as well - especially with the football moving on ITV1 leaving a tempter to BBC1 to produce competition.

As for Drama's - nothing is more key then ITV1's new programmes this year. After the disastrous revamp of 2008, more is required from the new one's out this year. I expect the crime dramas and Demons to do reasonably well - but am concerned for them outside that. I think The Bill may be placed in the 8pm slot on Tuesday from May to make way for football.

For BBC1, the same old stuff is working fine. I wonder how tempted they are to make Waterloo Road into an all round programme though, like Holby City and Casualty. The school year often covers that kind of time frame, and the holiday weeks could explore individuals more. I wouldn't be surprised to see them also trying for another police drama like Holby Blue.

For comedy - I think Mock the Week will move from BBC2 to BBC1, which'll be risky considering the content at times, but should be rewarding. That and Have I Got News For You can work in tandem, covering the panel show angle for most of the year. The biggest issue is the sitcom position, which Coronation Street has dominated on Friday's now. I can see them possibly airing at 8.30pm on Wednesday's: especially if EastEnders is broadcast on that night too.

ITV1 have had a reasonable year by their standards with Benidorm being a sleeper hit to join Harry Hill's TV Burp. You've Been Framed has also done well. I don't think they'll explore the sitcom route anymore - indeed, I think comedy's will be very much ignored for most of the year bar the three mentioned and possibly It'll Be Alright on the Night.

Reality TV - Astoundingly the RTV fight starts tomorrow with Celebrity Big Brother's launch night. This'll be make or break for BB as a franchise, and I think the Laucnh will need at least 6m viewers to be seen as sustainable. BB10 could be the last.

BBC1 have a new show coming up for Eurovision, but ITV1 have challenged it with a reasonable Saturday night schedule. I think this'll bring in around 5m viewers a show, but not startling figures, and the winner will be nothing short of a disaster.

Considering Dancing On Ice managed 5m+ against EastEnders on Christmas Day it appears the popularity is still there. I can't see it hitting the heights of 2008 for some reason - indeed, I think last year could've been the peak for RTV shows in general, and 2009 will result in a plateau of ratings: not terrible but not as strong as last year. I think DoI, The X Factor and Britain's Got Talent will keep the same basic format, but ITV1 must be tempted to pull the live shows across consectutive weekend's to maximise impact. I can see that happening.

Strictly Come Dancing, for me, will be where the most change takes place. I'll be surprised if both Bruce and Tess remain as hosts, and if the judging panel remains the same. I think the show will have a revamp this year, but it may not necessarily be a good thing. I can see the show causing problems for BBC1 for a little time to come.

EDIT: Ach damn, forgot Sport!

I can see the F1 gaining around 1m extra being on BBC1, especially with the Australia race becoming a night race IIRC, so it'll be aired at a more suitable time for the European audience. I think it'll average around 4/4.5m a race for the majority of the season.

I believe the England football matches will rate better for ITV1 as time goes on. People just have to get used to the new format. Setanta is going to have issues if rating's remain the same, however, for their England matches and I can see them selling their rights either back to the FA or to Sky due to public pressure.

The Championship'll probably be aired Sunday morning's after the MOTD repeat for next season. It'll get standard ratings, nothing spectacular. Match of the Day will also keep a consistent audience IMO. Much more interesting is the FA Cup, now on ITV1. The last time the broadcaster bought the rights the figures dropped. Going for the Saturday teatime kick off that BBC used should boost them though, especially with a good opening match in Preston v Liverpool (with the Gerrard saga ongoing) and relatively weak opposition.

The Boat Race, and Grand National will be as consistent as ever, with the former returning to BBC1 after a break with ITV1. I don't understand why BBC scrapped the 'Grandstand' umbrella for Saturday afternoon's, though, so am wondering whether we may see a return for it.

As for the Cricket - expect a skyrocket for the repeats on Five with it being Ashes year once again.

Excellent couple of posts above from Fudd and D.M.N, very interesting to read both your thoughts for the coming year. Anyone else have anything to add- perhaps GeorgeS/rzt?

Happy new year everyone; all the best for 2009. I am sure this thread is going to go from strength to strength this year if those first few posts are anything to go by

I agree about the points about Big Brother, 2009 will decide the shows future.
CBB is going to be interesting, with its rumoured best line-up ever, poor weather and no real competition i'm expecting the launch to do well and hopefully set the series up to perform solidly for C4. I have said this for a few months now, a great CBB6 will improve ratings for the summer series and keep the show going. The shows future rests on Friday night.
I expect BBC1 to dominate in all most areas over the early part of the year looking at ITV1's line-up. I think major changes will happen over the summer to the soap scheduling to accommodate Wednesday night football and I just hope ITV see sense and put Corrie back on a Sunday.
Saturday will be interesting, ITV need Demons to pick up a great audience and the same for BBC1 and the Eurovision show. The next 2 months of Saturday ratings could all depend on what the news shows get this Saturday.

Best line up ever? Not sure about that.

I think it should have launched on NYD TBH. The fact NYD is a public holiday and nobody really does much apart from recover should pull in big audiences across the board. It could also benefit from the EE double bill inheritence it would get after 8.30. EE should bring in 10m, they appeal to similar audiences and people seeking light relief from Jonathan Creek could also find themselves on C4.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I think its quite a good line up.

Ulrika for example is more famous in the UK, I would say, than anyone in the last celebrity series and one of the most famous ever. Something which is shown by the fact she is being paid more than anyone else ever has. I really think the only person more famous from the past 3 series was probably Michael Barrymore.

And they have some great characters. Tommy Sheriden is going to be gold. Anyone in Scotland knows what Tommy is like.

Tommy and Ulrika in a house together for up to 3 weeks is good enough on its own for me.

As with any Big Brother the real test of course is the series itself - they could have Michael Jackson and Britney Spears, but if they dont speak and sleep all day its still going to be crap.

Launch nights are very hard to predict - Fridays always seem to be lower than any other night, but its just after New Year and not so many people might be out. The promotion has been piss-poor as usual, but the press seem to have covered it more than I thought they would. The competition is probably the best (for BB) its ever been. Just two years ago they were up against a BBC1 reality show, followed a few days later by an ITV1 reality show. Now not a thing to take that audience.

I'm hoping it will be somewhere around about the audience for the BB9 launch, but who knows what will happen.

One thing is for sure though - if launch night tanks...



Quick thought... can anyone think of any other series which have managed to be axed and revived twice within a decade? I can only think of News at Ten.

Happy New Year to all! (and apologies if this post makes no sense - I've been on the champaigne! )

I agree with others that its maeke or break for Big Brother this year. Reality TV as a format is slowly dying away and some poor performances from both celeb and regular BB would be a big old nail in its coffin. That said, the resurgance of I'm a Celeb surprised many this year - so I'm not sure, but I think thats much more "feel good" TV than BB. Its the light hearted stuff which seems to have excelled since the credit crunch began.

ITV's year is going to depend on their new slate of dramas. They've got their regular talent show, sport and soap hits, but they need some drama successes. What they don't want is another batch of Rock Rivals, Harley Street, Brittania High style flops. The crime dramas, at least, look much more steady for the coming year. The BBC have the advantage of many successful returning dramas which secure them wins in the prime 9pm slot.

The soaps should be another interesting thing to keep an eye on. I'd not considered the lack of 'One Show' opposition to the recent Emmerdale success this week, but it makes a lot of sense now I look at it. Its definately been a big factor in its decline - though I don't expect the situation to change much this year - I think both will hold steady. Corrie needs to arrest what is looking like a fairly severe decline from last year. It was above 10m regularly in overnights through the first few months of 2008, so that'll be a big test as we head into 09. EastEnders has had a relatively good year, but really could do with eliminating the clash episode which dents its averages so much.

Much will depend on the inevitable shuffling of the soaps which I guess we'll see happening once the Champions League is over in May. I'm still no closer to working out how everythings going to fit. Every soap schedule I think of for ITV would leave The Bill with few suitable slots. I guess ITV will make their move, then the BBC will respond as it sees best. I can definately see Holby moving to Wednesdays to clash with the football as it does relatively successfully on Tuesdays at present.

As for sport, I agree the F1 should pick up some more viewers with Hamilton as world champion and the huge promotion and coverage the BBC will undoubtably afford it. The BBC's entire media network of TV, Radio and Online really excels in covering the big events and has benefitted the FA Cup and Six Nations in the past in terms of viewing figures. ITV's strategy of focussing on football is probably a sensible one from a commercial point of view and the England matches in particular, will provide them with a few big marquee nights of brilliant ratings.

Overall, in terms of the BBC / ITV battle that we spend so much time covering, this could be a really interesting year. We'll see whether ITV will continue to look towards the big "event TV" of major events, or can stage a comeback at BBC One which is dominant in average day-to-day terms. I suspect, we'll be seeing a continuation of the former.

What a long post to start 2009 with Here's to another year of healthy ratings discussion and debate.

Happty New Year all. {Peace & Love & Ratings Bliss to all!