In a surprising twist in the television ratings battle, the US procedural drama The Rookie clinched a rare timeslot victory on Tuesday night. The Nathan Fillion-led cop show, airing at 9 PM, capitalized on its strong lead-in from My Kitchen Rules (MKR), while Nine’s The Block audience was fragmented across different programs in separate markets. Meanwhile, Anne Edmonds’ game show experienced a decline in its second week on Network 10.
Despite the win for The Rookie, The Block maintained its dominance in the entertainment category, drawing an impressive 1.25 million viewers in the national TV audience. This was ahead of My Kitchen Rules with 934,000 viewers, 7:30 with 783,000, Foreign Correspondent with 482,000, and Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Gen with 384,000.
Prime Time Ratings Breakdown
Later in the evening, The Rookie led the ratings with 441,000 viewers, followed closely by The Cheap Seats with 429,000, Paramedics with 386,000, and Take 5 with Zan Rowe with 290,000. Seven Network emerged as the overall winner for the night.
Seven News topped the charts with 1.37 million viewers, followed by Home & Away with 913,000 and The Chase with 614,000.
On the other hand, Nine News was narrowly beaten with 1.35 million viewers, although A Current Affair and Tipping Point performed well, attracting 1.14 million and 792,000 viewers respectively. Footy Classified and Nine News Late managed to draw 200,000 viewers each in their respective markets.
Public Broadcasting and Network 10 Performance
ABC News held steady with 893,000 viewers, while its lineup of Hard Quiz (360,000), Freddie Mercury: The Final Act (227,000), and Spicks & Specks (130,000) followed. Network 10’s news segment drew 323,000 viewers, with Deal or No Deal and 10 News+ attracting 289,000 and 151,000 viewers, respectively. FBI: Most Wanted rounded out their evening with 100,000 viewers.
SBS’s offerings included SBS World News (199,000 / 143,000), Insight (161,000), Dateline (148,000), Great British Railway Journeys (140,000), and Mastermind (108,000).
Morning Show Ratings
The morning show ratings revealed Sunrise leading with 437,000 viewers, followed by Today with 312,000, and News Breakfast with 251,000.
Implications and Industry Insights
The success of The Rookie highlights the importance of strategic programming and strong lead-ins in capturing audience attention. Industry experts suggest that the fragmentation of The Block audience across different markets may have contributed to its inability to maintain a consistent lead throughout the night. Additionally, the dip in viewership for Anne Edmonds’ game show on Network 10 signals the challenges faced by new programming in establishing a foothold in a competitive landscape.
Looking ahead, networks are likely to continue experimenting with their lineups and leveraging popular lead-ins to boost ratings. The ongoing battle for viewership underscores the dynamic nature of television programming and the ever-evolving preferences of audiences.
