The national split was there again between more “racy” metro audiences (who helped Nine narrowly win the main channels) and the more conservative regional viewers (who supported Seven to a big win overall).

So, Nine and Seven shared the overall top position in the metros, but Nine had a narrow win in the main channels thanks to solid efforts by The Block and Nine’s 6-7.30pm news and current affairs programs. Ten was a narrow third in both metro and regional markets, ahead of the ABC, which welcomed back the best program on TV: Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell — a welcome antidote to the Team Australia rubbish and other stuff we are currently having to endure.

Big Brother and The Bachelor both weakened from previous outings, which is an encouraging sign. Criminal Minds on Seven beat Big Brother easily from 8.30pm through 10.30pm (BB ended around 10.10pm). The fresh episode of Criminal Minds at 8.30pm had 1.344 million national/868,000 metro/476,000 regional viewers. The second (repeat) episode of Criminal Minds at 9.30pm had 891,000 national/566,000 metro/325,000 regional viewers. BB could only manage 864,000 national/618,000 metro/246,000 regional viewers. Hurrah! A win for ordinary, non-tacky entertainment, even though BB dragged in mostly fickle younger viewers.

And at 7.30pm there was an even greater triumph for good taste and good TV. The combination of 7.30 — 942,000 national/667,000 metro/275,000 regional — and Mad As Hell at 8pm — with 877,000 national/643,000 metro/235,000 regional viewers — pushed Ten’s The Bachelor (with the Bachelorettes blabbing) down to fourth spot with 842,000 national/640,000 metro/202,000 regional viewers. Now Ten will say The Bach had a more attractive, younger demographic, and it did, but it also had fewer viewers than The Block on Nine in those demos which dominated the night’s demos, again.  That’s in the metros, in the regions, BB and The Bachelor were once again deserted by core viewers. It seems all those sweet, younger viewers prefer a kitchen or bathroom fitting to the warblings of The Bach roses and his birds.

And in the morning, we saw another whacking for Nine’s frumpy Today by Seven’s Sunrise — 378,000 metro viewers for Sunrise, to Today’s 282,000. And News Breakfast on ABC 1 and News 24 continue to add viewers — yesterday morning they had 149,000 metro viewers and 233,000 nationally. Memo to Malcolm Turnbull, how to ingratiate yourself even further with the TV networks: tell ABC management to kill off News Breakfast to help the struggling Today show on Nine and protect Sunrise’s recovery from the depths of defeat in early 2013. Tell the ABC, News Breakfast can be like community TV: find a life on the internet. Ha, ha, ha.

Network channel share:

  1. Nine (30.8%)
  2. Seven (30.8%)
  3. Ten (17.1%)
  4. ABC (16.5%)
  5. SBS (4.7%)

Network main channels:

  1. Nine (21.5%)
  2. Seven (20.8%)
  3. Ten (11.1%)
  4. ABC 1 (10.9%)
  5. SBS ONE (3.6%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

  1. 7TWO (6.2%)
  2. GO (5.9%)
  3. 7mate (3.8%)
  4. ABC 2 (3.5%)
  5. Gem (3.4%)

Top 10 national programs:

  1. The Block Glasshouse (Ten) — 1.762 million
  2. Nine News — 1.645 million
  3. The Force (Seven) — 1.529 million
  4. Home and Away (Seven) – 1.441 million
  5. Criminal Minds (Seven) — 1.344 million
  6. Border Security (Seven) — 1.342 million
  7. Seven News — 1.332 million
  8. A Current Affair (Nine) — 1.168 million
  9. 7 pm ABC 1 News — 1.132 million
  10. Nine News 6.30 — 1.106 million

Top metro programs:

  1. The Block Glasshouse (Ten) — 1.189 million
  2. Nine News — 1.140 million
  3. Nine News 6.30 — 1.106 million
  4. Seven News — 1.013 million

Losers: Big Brother and The Bachelor, because they are on air, in the bottom of the swamp known as “reality TV”. Thankfully fewer people than normal wanted to hear the “tell all” from The Bachelorettes ( … sounds like a 1940s swing band).Metro news and current affairs:

  1. Nine News — 1.140 million
  2. Nine News 6.30 — 1.106 million
  3. Seven News — 1.013 million
  4. A Current Affair (Nine) – 996,000
  5. Seven News/Today Tonight — 970,000
  6. 7 pm ABC 1 News  – 762,000
  7. 7.30 (ABC 1) — 667,000
  8. The Project 7pm (Ten) — 589,000
  9. Ten Eyewitness News — 588,000
  10. The Project 6.30pm (Ten) — 417,000

Morning TV:

  1. Sunrise (Seven) – 378,000
  2. Today (Nine) – 282,000
  3. News Breakfast (ABC 1,  99,000 + 50,000 on News 24) — 149,000
  4. The Morning Show (Seven) — 139,000
  5. Mornings (Nine) — 136,000
  6. Studio 1o (Ten) — 50,000

Top five pay TV channels:

  1. Fox 8  (2.7%)
  2. TV1  (2.3%)
  3. LifeStyle  (2.1%)
  4. Disney (2.0%)
  5. UKTV, Cartoon network (1.7%)

Top five pay TV programs:

  1. AFL: 360 (F Footy) – 105,000
  2. AFL: Bounce  (Fox Footy) – 81,000
  3. Modern Family (Fox8) — 74,000
  4. Paddock To Plate (LifeStyle) – 62,000
  5. Family Guy (Fox8) – 57,000

*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.) and network reports.