…is back Saturday 17th at 8pm for 90 minutes.
I thought that would mean The Whole 19 Yards will be going out at 7pm, then. But hold! Not so, the ITV schedule currently has the best of Harry Hill’s TV Burp on at seven, with “No information avaliable” between 8pm and 10:30pm. Would 9:30pm be a bit late for the family fun of TW19Y? There is also a space between 5:15pm and 6pm that remains unfilled. But that feels a bit early. And it would hilariously be up against Total Wipeout. Hmm.
Wipeout US starts June 22nd- but there’s a special 2-hour “sneak preview” episode (with 12 men and 12 women paired up as “blind dates” for 100K) June 1st. New stunts are called Overdrive, Bruise Ball and Spin Cycle. Downfall- the game show on a skyscraper- premieres the week after on the 29th.
No word on when BB US starts up yet- the thinking is around July 8th (if the Tu/Th/Su schedule holds). There are still rumblings about The Cube being picked up, but nothing solid one way or the other just yet.
Downfall is surely an endgame from Distraction writ large and the same thing over and over? Amusing the first few times, a bit dull afterwards. I am mildly intrigued.
Apparently Bruise Ball takes it’s inspiration from base ball and is played on a diamond in the old Dizzy Dummy pool.
Seems like ITV have decided once again to kill a show before its aired
Then again thinking about it it could be designed to give 19 yards a solid lead in – still weird though
I think half nine is too late for it.
It’s interesting to remember that critical darling The Cube got The X Factor as a lead in, but wasn’t rating that much more than Push the Button (Ratings Bear please check), so don’t rule out a second series of PtB just yet.
How dare you wake me up asking for figures, grr!
The Cube Vs Anton Du Dec’s Pass the Baton
The Cube – aired in late summer/early autumn
The first four shows were aired after The X Factor
22nd August (8.30pm) – 5.85 Million – won timeslot.
29th August (8.15pm) – 5.12 Million – won timeslot
5th September (8.40pm) – 5.26 Million – won timeslot
12th September (8.15pm) – 5.06 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Casualty season premiere)
The final three shows were aired before The X Factor
19th September (7.00pm) – 4.83 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Strictly Come Dancing weekend premiere)
26th September (7.00pm) – 4.81 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Strictly Come Dancing)
*3rd October (7.00pm) – 4.71 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Strictly Come Dancing).
*48 hours before the series finale, ITV recomissioned a second series.
Anton Du Dec’s Pass the Baton – aired in late winter/early spring
27th February (7.45pm) – 7.25 Million – won timeslot
6th March (8.00pm) – 6.33 Million – lost to Let’s Dance between 8pm-8.30pm, won against Who Dares Wins 8.30pm-9.00pm
13th March (8.00pm) – 5.28 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Let’s Dance & Who Dares Wins)
20th March (7.30pm) – 5.83 Million – won timeslot by 670,000 viewers against Six Nations.
27th March (8.00pm) – 5.37 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Who Dares Wins)
3rd April (7.25pm) – 3.95 Million – 2nd in timeslot (losing to Over the Rainbow and Who Dares Wins).
Amount of viewers lost compared to highest vs lowest rating.
The Cube – 1.14 Million
Pass the Baton – 3.3 Million
Amount of viewers lost compared to highest vs lowest rating.
The Cube – 1.14 Million
Pass the Baton – 3.3 Million
That is a very interesting and, dare I say, rather loaded observation so here is another:
Series averages:
The Cube – 5.09m
Push the Button – 5.67m
The series averages are close but The Cube had stronger competition towards the end of the series with Strictly airing at the same time but held up well. Also both shows were airing in two different times of the years.
Another factor is what the viewers have posted on Digital Spy. The Cube was mainly praised, even Chris Moyles kept banging on about it on his breakfast show and dared the producers to put him on the show. Where as Push the Button was the opposite.
One thing is for definite with Push the Button. Ant & Dec do physically sod all on the show, compared to Takeaway where they have to perform different things each week. This lead to one report saying Takeway makes them tired each week. You might be right they might try a second series (if ITV allows them) for 2011 but tweaking the end game.
Conclusions:
Push the Button started very well indeed (and was heavily advertised and it’s an Antan Dec show so you’d expect that) then settled down at about 5m against moderate opposition from the BBC.
The Cube started slightly less well with a brilliant lead-in but less promotion and star power, then settled at not that much lower levels even against one of the biggest shows on television (and did said show no lack of damage through the competition, thus setting up X-Factor to take a crushing victory in that year’s ratings battle).
Yes, PtB got more viewers, but which was more strategically useful for ITV? And which would get more in the same timeslot? Also, which one has become the international export ITV quite literally begged for with TCoM?
Also, which one has become the international export ITV quite literally begged for with TCoM?
Well it hasn’t really has it? It’s sold to a couple of countries (even The Colour of Money managed that), it still hasn’t sold to the US which is The Big Market.
Don’t get me wrong, I like The Cube, but I find all the talk that Philip Schofield is the second coming of Jesus Christ just a bit baffling.
And I might ban the next person who uses “Antan Dec” at The Bar, fair warning.
It’s not even an ITV show, Objective owns the format. So any country that buys the format, the money goes to Andrew O’Connor and Objective Productions not ITV.
I was a bit disheartened when I heard the reports of Takeaway coming back. It’d be a creatively bankrupt thing to do, and if they did they’d need 376.42 celebs a show at the rate they’re going (the .42 being Rusty Goff, natch).
Ah, I can see it now!
‘”Downfall” has its premiere, and is then followed by a public-service announcement about why we should not litter!
In Strictly Come Dancing With The Stars On Ice news, ITV accuses the BBC of ripping off ITV’s rip-off of a BBC show: http://www.c21media.net/resources/detail.asp?area=74&article=54952
Given the BBC can point to it’s Strictly Ice Dancing Strictly Come Dancing special, I doubt ITV have legs to stand on with this.
Given I am at home, bored and cannot stop going to the loo. Here is what Digiguide are saying this morning.
7pm – The Whole 19 Yards
8pm – Britain’s Got Talent
9.30pm – The Prisoner
Cheers Travis, I was going on the guide on the ITV site. That line-up certainly makes more sense.
Typical ITV. They mess up the scheduling for Whole 19 Yards and put it up against Doctor Who! Who in their right mind will tune over from Doctor Who to watch this?!