The Winners: Top Gear topped the most watched list with 1.738 million people for Nine at 7.30pm. Australia’s Got Talent, which returned for Seven to 7.30pm , was second with 1.493 million viewers. Seven News was 3rd with 1.375 million and Today Tonight was next with 1.311 million. Nine News was 5th with 1.297 million and A Current Affair was next with 1.286 million. The 7pm repeat of Two and a Half Men averaged 1.204 million and NCIS was 8th for Ten at 8.30pm with 1.188 million people. Home and Away was next with 1.111 million and the 7pm ABC News averaged 1.041 million. Grey’s Anatomy averaged 1.005 million and was the last program with a million or more viewers. Bondi Rescue averaged 943,000 at 8pm, NCIS Los Angeles, 939,000 for Ten at 9.30pm (which won it the timeslot) and The Biggest Loser at 7.30pm, 870,000. Hot Seat at 5.30pm on Nine, 640,000, well in front of Deal or No Deal on Seven with 559,000.

The Losers: Private Practice, Seven, 9.30pm, 664,000. It only remains on air because it does well among young women 16 to 49 and follows on from Grey’s Anatomy which is stronger and passes on an audience. The Underbelly “encore” at 10.10pm, 356,000 for Nine. Why devalue the series by showing it again so soon after it went to air? It doesn’t need more exposure to hold an audience. It was originally due to screen after Hey Hey tonight, instead Nine has slotted in a fresh episode of The Big Bang Theory, then a repeat, then a repeat of Cold Case.

News & CA: Another weak night for Seven News and Today Tonight. Seven News won Sydney, lost Melbourne, won the rest. ACA won Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, TT won Adelaide and Perth by enough to win nationally. TT was noticeably weak on the East Coast last night. Ten News averaged 888,000, the late News/Sports Tonight, 364,000. The 7.30 Report, 807,000, Lateline, 143,000, Lateline Business, 81,000. SBS News at 6.30pm, 192,000, Insight, 191,000 at 7.30pm, the late News, 151,000. 7am Sunrise, 369,000, 7am Today, 323,000.

The Stats:

FTA: Nine won with a share of 30.3%, from Seven with 29.6%, Ten with 22.0%, the ABC with 14.3% and SBS on 3.9%. Nine won Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Seven won Adelaide and Perth. Nine leads the week on 33.3%, from Seven with 29.2%.

Main Channel: Nine won as well with 28.4%, from Seven with 27.8%, Ten on 20.2%, ABC 1 on 12.6% and SBS ONE on 3.6%. Nine won Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Seven won Adelaide and Perth. Ten was second in Adelaide and Nine third in a bit of a turn up. Nine leads the week on 30.1% from Seven on 26.4%.

Digital: GO and 7TWO tied with a share of 1.8% each, with ONE on 1.7%, ABC 2 on 1.4%, ABC 3 on 0.3% and SBS TWO on 0.2%. The six FTA digital channels had a total share of 7.2%. GO leads the week with 3.2%, from 7TWO with 2.8%.

Pay TV: Nine won with 25.7%, from Seven on 25.1%, Ten on 18.6%, Pay TV on 13.2%, the ABC on 12.1% and SBS on 3.3%. The 11 FTA channels had a total share of 86.8%, the 100 plus Pay TV channels, 13.2%.

Regional: A win to WIN/NBN with 31.8%, from Prime/7Qld on 27.6%, SC Ten on 21.2%, the ABC on 13.9% and SBS on 5.8%. WIN/NBN won the main channels with 29.8% from Prime/7Qld with 26.5%, GO won the digitals with 1.7%, from ABC 2 with 1.2% and 7TWO and ONE tied with 1.1%. WIN/NBN lead the week from Prime/7Qld, 33.2% to 27.7%.

(All shares on the basis of combined overnight All People 6pm to midnight)

Glenn Dyer’s comments: Nine won thanks to a strong 6pm to 7pm showing in Sydney and Melbourne and then Top Gear at 7.30pm to 8.40pm. Apart from that, a reasonable night for viewing. Top Gear was strong everywhere, except Adelaide, where it was very weak and well beaten by Australia’s Got Talent on Seven. In fact Nine finished third in Adelaide behind Ten last night and Ten was a very close third in Perth. But this won’t worry PBL Media’s Nine which is an east coast super regional network. WIN owns Adelaide and Perth.

Ten’s fresh episode of NCIS got crunched at 8.30pm. Odd. Sunrise did better as did Today. No golf on Ten (which didn’t bring the house down). Foreign Correspondent on the Thai Crown Prince was the sort of reporting we used to expect from Four Corners. It replaced the report on Greece, which will now hopefully be shown ASAP. The 7pm Project on Ten, 765,000, a solid night.

TONIGHT: Hey Hey returns to Nine. Be reminded why you stopped watching before it became the oddity of 2009. Spicks and Specks on the ABC. The Pacific on Seven at 8.30pm. The last of Hungry Beast on the ABC at 9pm. Inspector Rex and Carla Cametti PD on SBS at 7.30pm and 8.30pm. So You Think You Can Dance on Ten at 8pm and The Biggest Loser at 7.30pm. So it’s the 1970’s (Hey Hey), up against the 1940’s (The Pacific). Back to the future!

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports