And not one of those shows gets the ratings that Big Brother gets. I very much doubt that what replaces BB for the 7 and a half hours a week will be particularly ambitious or half as successful. It is summer after all. E4 will just run US sitcom repeats in place of BBLB as they do for the rest of the year.

It's a tricky one for C4. It's still their most successful show and runs in a slot for a length of time that will be difficult to fill. I wouldn't be surprised to see quite a few sub 1 million ratings when C4 find themselves having to launch enough new series (or repeats) to fill 100 primetime summer hours. By the same point, the show is clearly on a downward spiral. It could be interesting to see how the producers react for BB10 because there is effectively no pressure now.


I think the only way that they'll renew it is if the ratings recover. While it is highly unlikely, it would be interesting to see what Channel 4 would do if BB10 averaged more than 4 million again.

Much higher than expected for Apprentice, but I can't see it rising much more until the finale with football next week and most likely tougher competition along is run.

ITV held up well with The Bill managing to clear 5m and Taggart repeats are always good for 3m in any slot which is good for ITV. Very good for Clough considering it went on till nearly midnight and this just reiterates it should have been given a better slot. Not much post NaT gets above 2m.

I expected Grand Designs to take a knock, but not by that much, though I think it was a revisit.

FIVE took a bit of a hit for Extraordinary People which was the follow up to the show which got over 3m for its first part.

Wednesday 25th March 2009
USA Overnights

8.00pm:
FOX - American Idol......................24.33m.....8.5/24.....6.7/21
CBS - Survivor Clip Show................8.15m.....2.3/6.......1.2/4
ABC - Scrubs...................................5.33m.....2.0/6.......1.9/6
CW - America's Next Top Model......2.85m.....1.4/4.......1.6/5
NBC - Chopping Block.....................2.60m.....0.9/2.......0.7/2
8.30pm:
ABC - Better Off Ted.......................4.69m.....1.8/5.......1.7/5

9.00pm:
FOX - American Idol......................26.58m.....9.8/23.....7.8/21
CBS - Criminal Minds.....................14.02m.....3.4/8.......2.3/6
ABC - Lost......................................8.82m......4.0/10.....3.8/10
NBC - Life.......................................4.32m......1.4/3.......1.2/3

10.00pm:
CBS - CSI: New York.....................12.60m.....3.0/8.......2.1/6
NBC - Law and Order......................7.25m.....2.2/6.......1.4/4
ABC - Life on Mars...........................5.67m.....2.1/6.......1.4/4

NETWORKS:
FOX - 25.60m & 9.2/23 & 7.3/21
CBS - 11.59m & 2.9/8 & 1.9/5
ABC - 6.50m & 2.7/7 & 2.3/7
NBC - 4.72m & 1.5/4 & 1.1/3
CW - 1.82m & 0.9/2 & 1.1/3

American Idol crushed everything last night. An average audience of 25.6m viewers last night marks the highest ratings for Idol since early February (Hollywood week). Last weeks performance show, aired on Tuesday, had 4 million fewer viewers. Next Top Model and Lost were down week on week.

NBC were the 6th placed network at 8pm, behind The CW and Univision. The Chopping Block is doing appallingly.

Source:
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/03/26...lost-low/15224

Is that the Australian show with Marco Pierre White in it? It's rating diabolically. I think NBC will have to axe that sometime soon.

Good rating for American Idol. Shame that Lost has fallen below 9m, but it did have tough comepetition against AI. I think it picks up a lot of DVR viewers.

Have a look at this.

BBC's Casualty to move to Wales

It's an American version of the show. And I wouldn't be surprised it it came off air next week.

In a fortnight ITV1's alternative to The Apprentice is Superhuman: World's Tallest Children. I think we can take it that, aside from the football, ITV1 aren't planning to compete much.

Just out of interest, I see you posting channel averages quite a lot (which is useful). But what are the averages for, because I can take a few interpretations of that being:

Wednesday- 9pm
Weekdays- 9pm
Daily- 9pm

Thanks

Wednesday - 9pm to 10pm.

It means that the average rating for every Wednesday 9pm-10pm slot last year on BBC1 was 5.6m (24%).

Thanks to both, I feel so thick now

I just wasn't so sure if it was a specific day or just 9pm in general.

NBC has got to dump the Chopping Block and it must be embarassing for Granada America and NBC who were probably hoping for MPW to become the next Ramsay. CBS held up well with Survivor and Criminal Minds and I don't hold much hope for BOT and ANTM was down but I expect ti will rebound next week.

NBC is in shambles and I think Universal need to get rid of Ben Silverman and Jeff Zucker with the latter responsible for the decline of NBC which was at the number 1 network throughout the eighties and nineties.

ABC
18:30 The Cook and The Chef 540,000
19:00 ABC News 1,095,000
19:30 The 7.30 Report 884,000
20:00 The New Inventors 816,000
20:30 Spicks and Specks 1,235,000
21:00 The Gruen Transfer 1,151,000
21:30 Lawrence Leung's Choose Your Own Adventure 674,000
22:00 At the Movies 460,000

Seven
17:30 Deal or No Deal 733,000
18:00 Seven News 1,441,000
18:30 Today Tonight 1,324,000
19:00 Home and Away 1,053,000
19:30 Australia Got Talent 1,322,000
20:30 Criminal Minds 1,287,000
21:30 Beyond the Darklands 1,010,000
22:30 Lost 359,000

Nine
17:00 Antiques Roadshow (R) 479,000
18:00 Nine News 1,072,000
18:30 A Current Affair 1,111,000
19:00 Two and a Half Men (R) 1,201,000
19:30 The Farmer Wants a Wife 1,224,000
*REGIONAL VARIATION*
Northern Markets (Sydney and Brisbane)
20:30 The Mentalist 524,000
21:30 Cold Case 556,000
Southern Markets (Melbourne, Adelaide & Perth)
20:30 The Footy Show 556,000
21:30 The Footy Show (Continued) 369,000

Ten
16:30 The Bold and The Beautiful 514,000
17:00 Ten News at Five 805,000
18:00 The Simpsons (R) 642,000
18:30 Neighbours 734,000
19:00 The Biggest Loser 1,033,000
20:00 Guerrilla Gardeners 750,000
20:30 House MD 937,000
21:30 Life 803,000

SBS
20:00 Trawlermen 326,000

Nothing particularly noteworthy although it's sad that Nine are adamant on killing off The Mentalist. No idea why it aired in just two markets but there was a time when it was rating quite handsomely, then they started messing about with it. Nine are the kiss of death a lot of the time, like when Gordon Ramsay's shows really started to take off, Nine overdid it and people tuned out. They never learn.

In fact Nine used to be top rated network in Australia, but they don't come close to Seven now and given how they treat their shows I think I can see why. Even the news bulletins aren't close any more with Seven 400-500k ahead most days.

Elsewhere, Home and Away continues to suffer against The Biggest Loser. At this rate won't be long before it dips below 1m on a day other than Friday. (traditionally rates lower on Fridays)

ABC had a good night. Spicks and Specks (think Buzzcocks but with aussies) is always a strong performer.

I don't know why MPW keeps getting TV gigs when he doesn't seem to be popular. ITV's reality queen (Natalka Znak) seems to have decided that MPW is going to be a star... but it's just not working at all.

Zucker said last week that he doesn't expect NBC will ever be #1 again. Stupid thing to say, IMO. Networks have always had cycles, FOX was down before Idol, ABC slumped when Millionaire finished and didn't recover until Housewives etc. For quite a bit of the 90's, CBS was a distant third to NBC and ABC.

I'm surprised Silverman is still there. I'd have thought someone new would have been appointed to work through the pilot season. Because even if he goes now, 2009/10 is going to be another Silverman season. They're now preparing for "Who Do You Think You Are?" and "I'm A Celebrity". They could really use a hit among them and given their UK track records, it can't be entirely ruled out.

They're piloting a new sci-fi series called "Day One" that sounds like "Survivors". If it gets a series order, then either Medium or Chuck are going to get the chop. Both are average for NBC (18-49) but the fact remains that NBC's average is sh*t just now and they need to sort it.

A full list of NBC pilots can be found here:
http://www.thefutoncritic.com/devwat...genre=&studio=

I like the sound of some of them. Something like "Nurses" (starring Michelle Trachtenberg) is the kind of thing I think could do well just now. But it's hard to tell with character driven shows.

They're also keeping Got Talent in the summer. God knows why, it's their top show apart from the football. Though I suspect that they have left it so late now that they'll never make it a massive show.

Just read on a separate thread that Sky One have axed Noel's HQ.

Bit taken aback by this. About the only show I've known to rate smartly on multi-channel TV on a Saturday.

Also shocking that they are risking destroying their relationship with Noel when Christmas Presents 2 pulled in 1.6m for them last year.

I do hope he embraces the opportunity and jumps ship. Such shows could do wonders for the likes of Five/Fiver and E4.

I agree about MPW, why ITV are trying to push him as the next Ramsay is beyond me, he isn't likeable enough.

I think Zucker will get the push within the next few months and Silverman will follow shortly. To say your network will never be number 1 is stupid and the people at Universal should be considering his future there.

The strange thing is that while NBC is languishing in fourth, its sister network USA is number 1 and has been for the last few years while Sci-Fi is doing decent business though I think the name change to Syfy is a little dumb. I think if Zucker gets the boot then Bonnie Hammer, the head of NBC Cable will get his job as she turned around Sci-Fi and USA into top ten networks

Some of the pilots across the broadcasters sound promising and it will be interesting to see what gets picked up for series.

Doesn't Noel own the rights to NCP? With the head of Twofour Stuart Murphy going to Sky1, I wouldn't be surprised if his projects end up on Five as the previous controller of Sky1, Richard Woolfe is going there in April.

Some years ago didn't Noel Edmonds say he would never work for a satellite channel, or even anyone else but the BBC?

On that basis I guess Noel would now go to any channel that will have him and where the money is.

Let's hope so Jonwo. Noel's portfolio would seriously strengthen Five's lineup.

Who produces Are You Smarter?

TwoFour produce Noel's Christmas Presents, Are You Smarter and Noel's HQ.

As Richard Bacon is saying on Twitter - its was too right wing.

It was also too political and frankly too crap.

I saw clips of it on Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe and remember thinking WTF?! Particularly at one section called "bonkers Britain".

I thought there was a good show in there that just needed tweaking, ie. getting rid of Bonkers Britain (or changing it dramatically).

Some of the stories and projects on there were very good, and it would be a shame to let it go.

The ratings were rather good considering Sky1's usual Saturday performance (it was getting about 400k, I think), so they're foolish to get rid of it.

Still, could be worse. They could have commisioned Rock Rivals for another series! I think the documentary will do ok there, if not specatularly. Will be interesting to see how The Truth About... does tonight against weaker opposition as a guide.


Maybe Endemol will get in a strop with Channel 4 for pulling Big Brother and give Deal or No Deal to Five as well? Five could be the new Noel channel. For example a Saturday evening...

5.15 Deal or No Deal
6.00 Are You Smarter than a 10 Year Old?
7.00 Noel's House Party
8.00 Noel's HQ

That'd actually do better than five's current schedule.