Ah, the Logies, saved at the end by the golden choice of Carrie Bickmore (Ten, The Project), who then underlined the worth of that selection with the best acceptance speech for years. But she just pipped another speech earlier in the night, by Love Child’s Miranda Tapsell. She who used her first award as Most Popular New Talent to passionately appeal for greater diversity on TV — in other words, more roles for people of colour, as she so nicely put it — sending a shiver through the assorted TV executive sin the room. She also won a second award, the Graham Kennedy for Most Outstanding Newcomer. That’s why ABC TV’s Redfern Now series and telemovie are such welcome programs on TV (and Stan Grant on Sky News). These speeches made up for the night’s buffoonery by Julia Morris who forgot to mention the nominees in one category and went straight to the announcement, then stumbled and bumbled her way through an apology. She was presenting that alone and should never be allowed on stage again at an awards night without a chaperone (She needed Chris Brown in Ten’s I’m A Celebrity, Get Ge Out of Here, remember). It was a big pity we had to wait so long for Carrie Bickmore’s speech, but it was more than worth it. For once not a vacuous, ‘who, me?’ piece of faux humility and a string of people thanked as the enormity of the award sinks in. Both speeches transcended network loyalties and were the most human things (and brave) I have seen in years of watching and working in TV.

But Carrie Bickmore and Miranda Tapsell giving the Logies relevance (after all these years!) wasn’t enough. The Beast (aka My Kitchen Rules) ate the Logies with its second last episode before tonight’s grand final. There’s an irony in this. Reality TV is such a monster (and Nine’s The Block would have made a similar meal of the Logies had it been up against the awards night show) that it has eaten the very event celebrating its dominance and the dying days of TV generally. MKR’s expected success justified Seven’s cost cutting move of not sending a division of stars and other talent south, plus paying for an after party. Times are getting tighter at the Big Red Network.

MKR had more than 2.4 million viewers across the country (and over 1.6 million in the metros). That set up a solid lead in for Seven’s Sunday night, with more than 1.5 million national viewers. That made sure of Seven’s win on the night. Seven won metros and regional markets. Ten and the ABC share the honours in third and fourth in the metros (overall and the main channels), but in the regionals, the ABC was a clear winner.

Network channel share:

  1. Seven (34.8%)
  2. Nine (31.1%)
  3. Ten (15.0%)
  4. ABC (14.7%)
  5. SBS (4.3%)

Network main channels:

  1. Seven (27.1%)
  2. Nine (25.2%)
  3. ABC (10.7%)
  4. Ten (10.5%)
  5. SBS ONE (3.2%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

  1. 7mate  (4.0%)
  2. 7TWO (3.8%)
  3. GO (3.3%)
  4. Gem (2.7%)
  5. ABC 2 (2.5%)

Top 10 national programs:

  1. My Kitchen Rules (Seven) – 2.417 million
  2. Seven News — 2.235 million
  3. Nine News — 1.987 million
  4. Sunday Night (Seven) — 1.535 million
  5. Logies Arrivals (Nine) — 1.358 million
  6. Logies Awards (Nine) — 1.357 million
  7. ABC News — 1.168 million
  8. Rugby League Test Aust. v NZ (Nine) — 1.164 million
  9. Poldark (ABC) — 869,000
  10. Animals Super Senses (ABC) — 831,000

Top metro programs:

  1. My Kitchen Rules (Seven) – 1.674 million
  2. Seven News — 1.607 million
  3. Nine News — 1.348 million
  4. Sunday Night (Seven) — 1.023 million

Losers: Anyone who missed the speeches from Miranda Tapsell and Carrie Bickmore on Nine’s Logies telecast last night.Metro news and current affairs:

  1. Seven News — 1.607 million
  2. Nine News — 1.348 million
  3. Sunday Night (Seven) — 1.023 million
  4. ABC  News — 843,000
  5. Ten Eyewitness News – 408,000
  6. SBS World News — 78,000

Morning TV:

  1. Weekend Sunrise (Seven) – 357,000
  2. Insiders (ABC) — (ABC 237,000, 87,000 on News 24) 324,000
  3. Weekend Today (Nine) – 298,000
  4. Landline (ABC 1) — 260,000
  5. The Bolt Report (Ten) — 152,000
  6. Offsiders (ABC 1) — 147,000

Top five pay TV channels:

  1. Fox Footy (4.6%)
  2. Fox 8  (2.3%)
  3. Foxtel Movies Premiere (2.2%)
  4. Fox Sports 3 (2.1%)
  5. Fox Sports 5, TVHITS  (1.8%)

Top five pay TV programs:

  1. AFL: Adelaide v Port (Fox Footy) – 213,000
  2. AFL: St Kilda v Essendon (Fox Sports 3) – 154,000
  3. AFL: Melbourne Fremantle (Fox Footy) — 152,000
  4. Guardians of  The Galaxy (Foxtel Movies Premiere) – 114,000
  5. AFL: Bounce  (Fox Footy) – 99,000

*Data © OzTAM Pty Limited 2015. 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.