The Winners: 16 programs with a million or more viewers. Seven’s ‘sneak peak’ of a new program called World’s Strictest Parents (which was shown between the end of the Michael Jackson special at 8.30 pm and the start of Desperate Housewives shortly after), averaged 1.875 million viewers and was the most watched program, even if it went for a little over five minutes. Of the regular programs, Seven news was tops with 1.784 million people, with MasterChef Australia next with 1.669 million. Today Tonight was 3rd with 1.632 million and Nine News was 4th with 1.358 million.

Sea Patrol won the 8.30 pm slot for Nine with 1.333 million viewers and Seven’s Michael Jackson Story averaged 1.320 million from 7.30 pm. 8th was A Current Affair on Nine with 1.309 million and Desperate Housewives was 9th for Seven at 8.30 pm with 1.226 million. Home And Away was 10th with 1.214 million and the 7 pm repeat of Two And A Half Men averaged 1.163 million. The 7.30 pm fresh ep of Men averaged 1.130 million. Ten’s Good News Week averaged 1.092 million at 8.30 pm. Ten News At Five averaged 1.083 million and Recruits on Ten at 8 pm averaged 1.073 million. Australian Story on the ABC at 8 pm averaged 1.030 million. Brothers And Sisters on Seven at 9.30 pm averaged 860,000. Missing Persons Unit at 9.30 pm, 860,000, Supernatural on Ten in the same slot, 802,000. Big Bang Theory on Nine at 8 pm, 930,000.

The Losers: Losers? Nine for airing THISafternoon in its current form. Apart from that, it was a night where viewers had a solid choice and exercised it. Top Gear fell under 500,000 for the local version on SBS last night. The 487,000 average is bordering on poor even for SBS, seeing it started off around 200,000 viewers higher. No one will be pleased with this figure.

News & CA: Seven News again won nationally and in every market. Today Tonight won everywhere bar Melbourne where it drew with ACA. Ten’s Late News/Sports Tonight averaged 445,000. The 7.30 Report averaged 705,000 viewers, Four Corners, 729,000, Media Watch, 692,000. Lateline, 353,000, Lateline Business, 194,000. 6.30 pm World News Australia on SBS, 216,000, the 9.30 pm edition, 172,000. 7 am Sunrise 378,000, 7 am Today, 318,000.

The Stats: Seven won 6 pm to midnight All People with a share of 27.2% (26.0%) from Nine and Ten on 25.3% each (24.3% and 25.7% last week respectively). The ABC was on 16.0% (17.9%) and SBS, 6.1% (6.0%). Seven won Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. Nine won Brisbane. Ten won 16 to 30 and 18 to 49s, and 25 to 54s thanks to MasterChef. Ten leads the week 27.5% to Seven on 25.8% and Nine 25.4%. In regional areas a win to WIN/NBN with 26.9% from Southern Cross (Ten) with 24.5%, Prime/7Qld with 23.6%, the ABC with 16.9% and SBS with 8.1%.

Glenn Dyer’s comments: THISafternoon should also be known as Tragic TV. If anyone in the old Nine Network (or current Seven, Ten and the ABC) had allowed THISafternoon to go to air in the manner and form it did on Monday, they would have been out the door by around 6 pm the same today. It was slack, atrocious TV with no redeeming features. Andrew Daddo continued the ‘curse of the Daddos’. Mark Ferguson looked bored and out of sorts. Katrinia Blowers looked out of her depth. The only comments from the Seven and Nine Network the sound of chortling down a phone line and the general reaction seemed to be “leave Nine alone” (it’s so bad that our programs will benefit).

If you thought that the Bold and the Beautiful on Ten at 5.30 pm was fairly ordinary TV (cheap sets etc), then you haven’t seen THISafternoon. It’s an on air example of what not to do in news. It was Sunrise on Seven from four years ago. It can only get better, hopefully. 321,000 viewers meant that it had fewer viewers than the combination of Nine’s 4.30 news last week (average 302,000) and Antiques Roadshow at 5 pm (average 405,000). Seven’s 4.30 pm News averaged 430,000 and The Bold and The Beautiful, 543,000. MASH on Seven at 5 pm averaged 584,000. Ten News At Five averaged over 1 million in the first half hour from 5pm. Finally to fit in This afternoon at 4.30 pm to 5.30 pm and then Hot Seat at 5.30 pm nationally, Nine killed off Brisbane Extra which aired at 5.30 pm up to last week (and was the only survivor of the Live At Five Extra experiments on Nine in the early 1990’s). It averaged 210,000 last week. This afternoon, 60,000. Hot Seat averaged 176,000 last night in Brisbane at 5.30 pm in place of Extra, so Nine was down viewers in that market.

So Nine’s new program had fewer viewers than last week’s 4.30 pm to 5.30 pm viewers, and Ten and Seven finished well ahead. It should also be remembered that in the past two months Nine has significantly added to its costs from 4.30 pm to 6 pm by starting the expensive Hot Seat at 5.30 pm and now an expensive news magazine program. In the Sunday Telegraph last weekend, Nine’s director of Network news, Mark Calvert (AKA Little Britain) described Sunrise as ‘inane’ and vacuous’. He also described TT host Matt White as vanilla. On the debut of THISafternoon, which is Mr Calvert’s first near prime time project (forgetting the return of a late night news at 11.30 pm), he’s be better off retreating to his glass house and keeping his kettle nice and black. The old Live At Five was so bad, that it became known at Nine as Dead at Six. That’s very apt for THISAfternoon, judging by the first up effort.

Apart from that, a fairly good night and one that Ten did OK. But when MasterChef shuffles off into the Great Food Processor, the Network will do it tougher. Winning every night will become harder. Australian Idol won’t help (viewers are getting tired of the format). But for now Ten can grin and win. Seven mined the Whacko memory for a solid performance from 7.30 pm to 8.30 pm and won the night as a result. Top Gear continues to slide on SBS. Don’t worry, I can hear the relief column in their diesels approaching from London.

TONIGHT: Packed To The Rafters makes Seven more competitive, even with NCIS and Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation and MasterChef on Ten. Homemade finishes tonight on Nine. Not many people will be interested. All Saints goes back to 9.30 pm and Ten Years Younger is eased back to 10.30 pm and ratings oblivion. Besides HomeMade, Nine has lots of Two And A half Men, plus the tennis. I watched late last night and early today and saw some of the Hewitt match out of very bleary eyes. For all his faults, Hewitt is a fighter. It was the match Nine should show this afternoon because of its tension and the way Hewitt simply stormed home and was unbeatable. It would do better than This afternoon. The ABC has Foreign Correspondent and Grand Designs as highlights. Sleep early tonight and save yourself for the tennis on Nine tomorrow night when Federer and Hewitt return to battle opponents.

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports.