• TEN’s MasterChef way ahead in key demos: 2 sleeps until Nigella
• Live NRL helps Nine to week 20’s fourth primary share win
• 7TWO and 7mate propel Seven to week 20’s fourth network share win
• Hot Seat closing the network gap after 5pm, big wins major markets
Royal Wedding Week
Nine’s Today show was at “Wedding HQ” in the shadow of Windsor Castle.
Guess what? Sunrise was there too, with Sam and Kochie telling viewers this morning they were the only Australian broadcaster allowed inside the castle grounds. When they said “inside”, it looked like they were inside the outer castle walls. The Sunrise team had tea at The Ritz and Mark Beretta was trying to read the sport from a rowdy London pub.
Nine’s guests on the set at Windsor included a very busy Dickie Arbiter.
The Thursday numbers for the two commercial TV breakfast shows were:
Today 253,000 (#1 Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane)
Sunrise 228,000 (#1 Adelaide and Perth)
Seven
Home and Away finished its week with 623,000.
The channel then went into royal wedding overdrive with three Meghan and Harry pieces and then a fourth, close to midnight, on Diana.
Invitation To A Royal Wedding did 410,000 at 7.30pm.
Meghan & Harry: Royal Rebels was then on 195,000 in Sydney and Brisbane.
Other markets got The Front Bar at 8.30pm with 297,000 on Seven early and 7mate later attracting 211,000 in Melbourne, well ahead of The Footy Show on 176,000.
The not-very-anticipated drama Harry & Meghan: A Royal Romance then screened after 9.30pm to 235,000.
The late, late show was Diana: A Love Affair with 105,000 watching.
Nine
Chris Allen was reporting a story on A Current Affair about a farmer who has been having trouble giving away 12 acres worth up to $7m. The show also gave Kmart some valuable airtime about a new homewares range. After two nights just over 800,000, the Thursday episode did 790,000.
The Thursday NRL match was Penrith v Tigers with 420,000 watching across all metro markets on Nine or 9Gem – 253,000 in Sydney and 131,000 in Brisbane.
The Footy Shows had a network audience of 416,000 – 103,000 in Sydney and 176,000 in Melbourne. The NRL Show won its timeslot in Sydney and Brisbane.
TEN
The Project was down to three at the desk with Waleed Aly away. Lisa Wilkinson was again reporting from London while Ryan Reynolds spoke with Julia Vogl about Deadpool 2. The Thursday edition was on 523,000.
MasterChef featured an elimination challenge for the losing team from the midweek team clash. There were a few dud dishes to choose from, but it was Denise who was sent home. The episode did 792,000 after 791,000 a week ago.
Law & Order: SVU did 377,000 followed by another screening of the first episode of Instinct, which did 220,000 after 428,000 on launch on Wednesday night.
ABC
The repeat of the 2018 doco on the Queen ascending to the throne, The Coronation, screened at 8pm to 367,000.
An episode of QI did 236,000 followed by Wentworth on 114,000.
SBS
Great British Railway Journeys pulled the biggest audience with 267,000.
The opening of the restaurant Vietnam House was getting close on Luke Nguyen’s Food Trail with 178,000 watching.
It was episode five already of The Handmaid’s Tale, which did 243,000.
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