Nine’s win in metro markets on a night that promised a lot, but didn’t quite deliver. In the regions, Seven was a big winner both overall and the main channels.

There were two surprise scratchings on MasterChef Australia on Ten, with one contestant found to be permanently lame by the veterinary stewards, and out he went. The stewards took a second out of the race, sorry, the  contest last night, because of a hip injury. She has to face elimination tonight, which is unfair, but then so is much of this year’s series. Fancy occupational health and safety setting the rules in a “reality TV show”. Sound a bit like the producers and Ten were making sure there was no worker’s comp liability. Next, will the judges have to give the contestants three warnings before they are ejected? MasterChef averaged 1.089 million national/ 800,000 metro/ 289,000 regional viewers, which wasn’t good.

The Years That Made Us received an appropriately harsh judgement from viewers of ABC1 from 9.30pm — 530,000 national/ 380,000 metro/ 150,000 regional viewers. It was interesting (sounds like a curse, which it is), but in the end it was disappointing. If it had been better, the ABC would have plonked it into its prime timeslot for factual programs — 7.30pm Sundays. If you had happened on Compass on ABC1 at 6.30pm (a tougher timeslot), you would have found a much more interesting program on philanthropy — entertaining, informative, thought-provoking and tough-minded and far more interesting than the later offering, Compass had 685,000 national/ 422,000 metro/ 263,000 regional viewers and topped the 9.30pm offering in the eyes of viewers. It would have made the billionaires in the Ten boardroom  squirm!

A Place To Call Home on Seven (1.869 million national/ 1.196 million metro/ 673,000 regional) won the battle of the family drama soaps, with Nine’s about top end House Husbands second (1.508 million national/ 1.028 million/ 480,000 regional) and the second episdoe of The ABC’s excellent The Time of Our Lives third (1.146 million national/803,000 metro/ 343,000 regional viewers). It added viewers from its debut last week.

Last week: In the battle of the green and gold, soccer won: the Australia Iraq match on SBS ONE and Fox Sports had a total of 2.115 million viewers (1.546 and 549,000). the first Australia v Lions Rugby Union on Ten and Fox Sports on Saturday night had 1.685 million — 1.288 million on Ten and 397,000 on Fox Sports. Soccer by 430,000 viewers — pretty comprehensive.

Network channel share:

  1. Nine (30.8%)
  2. Seven (29.7%)
  3. Ten (20.1%)
  4. ABC  (15.1%)
  5. SBS (4.2%)

Network main channels:

  1. Nine (25.0%)
  2. 7Mate (22.7%)
  3. Ten (12.5%)
  4. ABC1 (12.1%)
  5. SBS2 ONE (3.5%)

Top digital channels: 

  1. Eleven (4.2%)
  2. GO  (3.8%)
  3. 7mate, ONE (3.5%)
  4. 7TWO (3.4%)

Top 10 national programs:

  1. The Block (Nine) — 2.326 million
  2. 60 Minutes (Nine) — 2.291 million
  3. Nine News — 2.220 million
  4. Seven News  – 2.165 million
  5. Sunday Night (Seven) — 2.059 million
  6. Highway Patrol (Seven) — 1.921 million
  7. A Place To Call Home (Seven) — 1.869 million
  8. Border Security (Seven) — 1.666 million
  9. House Husbands (Nine) — 1.508 million
  10. Grand Designs (ABC1) — 1.363 million

Top metro programs:

  1. The Block (Nine) — 1.653 million
  2. 60 Minutes (Nine) — 1.557 million
  3. Nine News — 1.517 million
  4. Seven News — 1.421 million
  5. Sunday Night (Seven) — 1.278 million
  6. Highway Patrol (Seven) — 1.261 million
  7. A Place To Call Home (Seven-) — 1.196 million
  8. Border Security (Seven) — 1.079 million
  9. House Husbands (Nine) — 1.028 million

Losers:  Viewers who expected The Years That Made Us to be better than it was. MasterChef Australia: besides the veterinary issues, the producers badly used the legendary Italian Antonio Carluccio. He was used as a prop when he should have been taking a Masterclass in Italian cuisine! 

Metro news and current affairs:

  1. 60 Minutes (Nine) — 1.557 million
  2.  Nine News — 1.517 million
  3.  Seven News — 1.421 million
  4.  Sunday Night (Seven) — 1.278 million
  5. ABC1 News — 756,000
  6. Ten News — 512,000
  7. SBS ONE News — 217,000
  8. The Observer Effect (SBS ONE) — 153,000

Metro morning TV:

  1. Weekend Sunrise (Seven) – 356,000
  2. Weekend Today (Nine) – 318,000
  3. Insiders (ABC1) — 259,000 + 48,000 on News 24
  4. Financial Review Sunday (Nine) — 225,000
  5. Landline (ABC1) — 221,000
  6. The Bolt Report (Ten) — 180,000
  7. Offsiders (ABC1) — 176,000
  8. Inside Business (ABC1) — 159,000
  9. Meet The Press repeat (Ten) — 147,000
  10. The Bolt Report repeat (Ten) — 118,00
  11. Meet The Press  (Ten) — 102,000

Top five pay TV channels:

  1. Fox Footy  (3.4%0
  2. Foxtel Movie premiere (2.8%)
  3. Fox Sports 3 (2.4%)
  4. TV1 (2.3%)
  5. Fox 8 (1.9%)

Top five pay TV programs:

  1. AFL: Brisbane v Geelong (Fox Footy) — 230,000
  2. AFL: Fremantle v North Melbourne (Fox Sports 3) — 173,000
  3. AFL After The Bounce  (Fox Footy) – 149,000
  4. The Bourne Legacy (Foxtel movie premiere) – 127,000
  5. Modern Family  (Fox 8) – 66,000

*Data © OzTAM Pty Limited 2013. 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.) Plus network reports.