Now for the good news: Australian TV drama is alive and well in the commercial networks (it’s always been ticking away on the ABC). Next week we see Nine’s first offerings of 2015 with the Gina Rinehart telemovie House of Hancock and the ballyhooed Gallipoli mini series (Although for me the Peter Weir movie, Gallipoli is the yardstick for this story). Last night Seven produced Winter, based on last year’s The Killing Field, starring Rebecca Gibney, Aussie TV’s go-to female star with viewer drawing power (as she proved in Packed To the Rafters for Seven). This is a very different role and she suits it to a T. Good TV. It had 1.639 million viewers, including more than 1.1 million in the metros.

Now for further good news (if you don’t like reality TV Aussie style): The Block Triple Treat is in trouble. Nine won’t pull the plug on it, the franchise is too strong, but a third night of falling ratings 1.015 million national viewers last night is barely good enough. That was down from 1.092 million the night before and 1.2 million on Monday night. The metro audience last night of 683,000, down from 802,000 on Tuesday night. As they say in the stock market, “the trend is your friend” and the trend here is down with the bottom still being searched for.

And Ten’s I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here is also on the same journey as The Block — still searching for the bottom. Another 100,000 viewers vanished last night, after a similar sized desertion on Tuesday night. “Shoot them all,” I hear Colonel McLennan bellow from Ten’s Pyrmont bunker. Celebrity had 588,000 metro viewers, down from 685,000 the night before and 755,000 on Monday night. The national audience again dipped under a million people 845,000 against 922,000 the night before. Like The Block, that’s barely enough. Of the two, The Block is in a better position because it’s got a longer track record with viewers. But this sort of “apprenticeship” effort is just too confusing. What will happen when the series proper starts?

And My Kitchen Rules — last night’s audience of 2.465 million national viewers and 1.697 million metro viewers was the highest of the first three nights of the 2015 season.

Seven won the night overall and in the demos in the metros and nationals. Nine was second, the ABC was third in the metros and regionals overall. In the main channels Ten was third in the metros and fourth in the regions. ABC was fourth in the metros and an easy third in the regions.

Network channel share:

  1. Seven (36.3%)
  2. Nine (25.0%)
  3. ABC (16.4%)
  4. Ten (16.1%)
  5. SBS (6.2%)

Network main channels:

  1. Seven (28.1%)
  2. Nine (18.6%)
  3. Ten (11.4%)
  4. ABC (11.2%)
  5. SBS ONE (4.1%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

  1. 7TWO (5.0%)
  2. GO (3.7%)
  3. 7mate (3.2%)
  4. Eleven (2.7%)
  5. Gem (2.6%)

Top 10 national programs:

  1. My Kitchen Rules (Seven) – 2.465 million
  2. Winter (Seven ) — 1.639 million
  3. Home and Away (Seven) — 1.481 million
  4. Nine News — 1.450 million
  5. Seven News — 1.299 million
  6. ABC News — 1.197 million
  7. The Block -Triple Threat (Nine) — 1.015 million
  8. Nine News 6.30 — 1.004 million
  9. A Current Affair (Nine) — 973,000
  10. 7.30 (ABC 1) — 920,000

Top metro programs:

  1. My Kitchen Rules (Seven) – 1.697 million
  2. Winter (Seven ) — 1.125 million
  3. Nine News — 1.052 million
  4. Nine News 6.30 — 1.004 million

Losers: The Block (Nine), I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here (Ten). Do we now need a “come home viewers” appeal from both networks to reunite viewers with these two fading beauties?Metro news and current affairs:

  1. Nine News — 1.052 million
  2. Nine News 6.30 — 1.004 million
  3. Seven News — 986,000
  4. Seven News/ Today Tonight — 825,000
  5. A Current Affair (Nine) – 794,000
  6. ABC News — 793,000
  7. 7.30 (ABC) — 637,000
  8. The Project 7pm (Ten) — 601,000
  9. Ten Eyewitness News — 588,000
  10. The Project 6.30pm (Ten) — 484,000

Morning TV:

  1. Sunrise (Seven) – 329,000
  2. Today (Nine) – 283,000
  3. News Breakfast (ABC 94,000 + 51,000 on News 24) — 145,000
  4. The Morning Show (Seven) — 139,000
  5. Mornings (Nine) — 101,000
  6. Studio 1o (Ten) — 65,000

Top five pay TV channels:

  1. Fox 8  (3.4%)
  2. LifeStyle  (3.0%)
  3. TVHITS  (2.4%)
  4. Arena, Disney Jr (1.8%)

Top five pay TV programs:

  1. Selling Houses Australia (LifeStyle) – 170,000
  2. The Shard: Hotel In The Sky (LifeStyle) — 93,000
  3. The Flash (Fox8) — 89,000
  4. Family Guy (Fox8) — 88,000
  5. Real Housewives Of Beverly hills (Arena) — 65,000

*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.