• The Masked Singer finds Alibrandi with Pia Miranda
• The kitchen heats up on My Kitchen Rules
• Great Southern Landscapes makes its debut
Total TV Ratings, August 2
The night session of Commonwealth Games day five has topped non-news for the night, with 1,185,000 watching the action, up 3%.
On 10, the finale of Hunted wasn’t far behind. The conclusion sawfugitives Rob and Stathi do the improbable and reach the extraction point, winning a share of $100,000 each. 1,120,000 tuned in to the finale (up 34%), with the extraction drawing a crowd of 1,166,000 (up 28%).
Nine’s Beauty and the Geek saw the pairs swap lives once again. 671,000 watched as the Geeks were sent speed dating and the Beauties became trivia hosts, lifting 27%.
On the ABC, Miriam Margolyes took off on the final leg of her Australia Unmasked adventure, bringing 626,000 along with her – up 26%.
Overnight TV Ratings, August 9
Primetime News
Seven News 938,000/934,000
Nine News 863,000/880,000
ABC News 574,000
10 News First 313,000 (5:00pm)/ 213,000 (6:00pm)
SBS World News 142,000 (6:30pm) 128,000 (7:00pm)
Daily Current Affairs
A Current Affair 708,000
The Project 252,000 (6:30pm)/ 373,000 (7:00pm)
The Drum 180,000
7.30 457,000
Breakfast TV
Sunrise 235,000
Today 200,000
News Breakfast 185,000
Late News
ABC Late News 73,000
Nine News Late 250,000
Nine has won the night with a primary share of 25.8% and a network share of 33.6%. The top multichannel of the night was 7mate, with a 3.5% share.
Olivia Newton-John has dominated primetime news and current affairs shows. News broke early yesterday morning that the Australian screen and musical legend, who made an enormous contribution to global cancer research, had passed in her southern California home at age 73.
On Nine, A Current Affair looked back at its last interview with Newton-John, and interviewed her niece, Tottie Goldsmith, for 708,000 viewers. The Block introduced Rachel and Ryan to 775,000 viewers as the contestants replacing Joel and Elle. Throwing a spanner into the works, Scott Cam then announced that a massive kitchen upgrade worth $250,000 was up for grabs for the winner of the bathroom challenge.
The Hundred with Andy Lee was originally scheduled to air after The Block, but has been pushed back a week. In the slot, Nine instead aired Grease as a tribute to Olivia Newton-John, bringing 442,000 along for the ride.
536,000 settled in to start the night with Seven’s Home and Away, before My Kitchen Rules saw Steven and Frena take their turn in the kitchen. 450,000 watched on as some last-minute changes to their recipes saw the pair land at the bottom of the leaderboard so far, scoring 53/110. Afterwards, Seven also paid tribute to Olivia Newton-John by airing the 2018 biopic starring Delta Goodrem, Hopelessly Devoted to You, for 221,000.
10’s The Project (252,000 6:30pm / 373,000 7pm) interviewed Grease star Barry Pearl about his memories of Olivia Newton-John after her passing, and covered the news that FBI agents had raided Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. The Masked Singer then brought the mood back up, with 449,000 tuning in. 504,000 watched the reveal as actress and Australian Survivor champion, Pia Miranda, was revealed as the voice behind Thong. The Cheap Seats had a laugh at the week that was to round out the night, alongside 387,000 viewers.
On the ABC, 7.30 covered the fight to waive tens of thousands of Covid fines that have been issued to kids as young as 13, and looked back at the life of Olivia Newton-John for 457,000 viewers. Great Southern Landscapes then debuted, as Rachel Griffiths took 337,000 to the place where Arthur Streeton painted his 1896 masterpiece, The Purple Noon’s Transparent Might.
See More: Stepping into a picture on Great Southern Landscapes with Rachel Griffiths
The highest rating show on SBS was Who Do You Think You Are?, taking 232,000 back into Sandra Sully‘s past to learn more about her family.
