Glenn Dyer’s TV Ratings

Kerthunk – that’s the sound of the Seven Network’s ascendant ratings star falling to earth last night as the new series of House Rules followed last year’s series and tanked, especially in metro markets. It did better (in relative terms) in regionals. In fact it was also the sound of jaws around Seven’s Sydney bunker dropping this morning as the OzTAM data appeared in their computers around 8.30 to 9 am. From the highs of My Kitchen Rules (even if the final underwhelmed, again) House Rules slid down the greasy pole and looks destined to be flattened when it runs up against the returning Masterchef Australia on Ten and Nine’s The Voice, from Sunday night.

Nine won the metros last night with the finale and follow up to its voyeur program, Married At First Sight, and the follow up who survived, who fell by the wayside. Like Seven Year Itch the night before on Seven, both are TV ratings spakfilla of the most exploitative kind. Nine’s success didn’t do much except raise spirits at the home of the 60 Minutes child kidnapping gang. Married At First Sight wasn’t enough to win the regionals where Seven was again very dominant.

Nine still trails Seven this week by 10 percentage points. While next week will be a very different story, Nine will not be able to close the gap to Seven in this year’s ratings battles because Masterchef will battle The Voice and split much of the audience each night they are on. But House Rules will be badly squeezed, going on last night’s effort. There was just no buzz about and host Johanna Griggs tried very hard in the opening minutes to tell us how exciting and draining it will be. But not for most viewers, except in the regions.

The follow up episode of Married At First Sight had 1.608 million national viewers and the finale bit had 1.481 million. House Rules’ launch episode had 1.167 million viewers — a weak 718,000 in the metros and a solid 450,000 in the regions. Like Home and Away, House Rules looks like being held up by more appreciative viewers in the regions.

The top 5 programs in the regions last night were: Home and Away with 502,000 people; Married At First Sight – Follow Up, 498,000; The Chase Australia 5.30pm, 458,000; House Rules – Launch, 450,000, and Married At First Sight finale, 433,000.

Sunrise scored a narrow in metro breakfast over Today, 331,000 to 328,000, and won nationally.

Network channel share:

1. Nine (29.3%)
2. Seven (28.7%)
3. Ten (16.9%)
4. ABC (16.9%)
5. SBS (8.2%)

Network main channels:

1. Nine (22.5%)
2. Seven (20.8%)
3. ABC (12.2%)
4. Ten (10.4%)
5. SBS ONE (5.5%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

1. 7TWO (3.9%)
2. 7mate (3.3%)
3. ABC 2, GO (2.9%)
4. Gem (2.7%)

Top 10 national programs:

1. Married At First Sight Follow Up (Nine) — 1.608 million
2. Married At First Sight Finale (Nine) — 1.481 million
3. Seven News — 1.411 million
4. Nine News — 1.394 million
5. Home and Away (Seven) — 1.278 million
6. ABC News — 1.183 million
7. House Rules – Launch (Seven) — 1.167 million
8. Seven News/ Today Tonight — 1.098 million
9. The Chase Australia 5.30pm (Seven) — 1.097 million
10. A Current Affair (Nine) — 1.059 million

Top metro programs:

1. Married At First Sight Follow Up (Nine) — 1.110 million
2. Seven News — 1.103 million
3. Seven News/ Today Tonight — 1.062 million
4. Married At First Sight Finale (Nine) — 1.048 million
5. Nine News — 1.031 million

Losers: House Rules – an action replay of the start to the 2015 series. Thank fully regional viewers stopped it from emulating Nine’s flop, Reno Rumble. Viewers definitely don’t have a taste for renovation style programs now – something to do with the cooling of the property boom? It doesn’t look good for Nine’s stalwart, The Block.

Metro news and current affairs:

1. Seven News — 1.103 million
2. Seven News/ Today Tonight — 1.062 million
3. Nine News — 1.031 million
4. Nine News (6.30pm) — 963,000
5. A Current Affair (Nine) – 898,000
6. ABC News – 830,000
7. 7.30 (ABC) — 642,000
8. The Project 7pm (Ten) — 553,000
9. Ten Eyewitness News — 473,000
10. The Project 6.30pm (Ten) — 418,000

Morning TV:

1. Sunrise (Seven) – 331,000
2. Today (Nine) – 328,000
3. The Morning Show (Seven) — 181,000
4. Today Extra (Nine) — 154,000
5. News Breakfast (ABC,  100,000 + 47,000 on News 24) — 147,000
6. Studio 10 (Ten) — 80,000

Top five pay TV channels:

1. LifeStyle  (3.3%)
2. TVHITS  (2.2%)
3. Fox 8  (1.8%)
4. UKTV,(1.7%)
5.  111Hits (1.4%)

Top five pay TV programs:

1. Gogglebox Australia(LifeStyle) — 187,000
2. Selling Houses Australia (LifeStyle) — 166,000
3. AFL: 360 (Fox Footy) – 95,000
4. The Simpsons (Fox8) – 69,000
5. Real Housewives of Beverley Hills (Arena) – 67,000

*Data © OzTAM Pty Limited 2016. The data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of OzTAM. (All shares on the basis of combined overnight 6pm to midnight all people.) and network reports.