Five to broadcast Friends spin-off Joey on Sunday nights

by Staff,, Brand Republic 13-Jan-05, 13:45

LONDON - Five is looking to broadcast 'Friends' spin-off 'Joey' on Sunday nights to take on high-profile BBC drama 'Down to Earth', starring Ricky Tomlinson, and ITV hospital drama 'The Royal'.

Five is planning to screen 'Joey' in the 8pm slot, followed by the Charlie Sheen-fronted comedy 'Two and a Half Men' at 8.30pm, which was bought by Five as part of the £10m deal with Warner Bros Television.

'Joey', to be broadcast next month, will be up against BBC One drama 'Down to Earth', which will be half way through its 10-week run, and ITV's second outing of 60s hospital drama 'The Royal'.

The BBC and ITV secure high ratings with their Sunday night dramas, usually around 8m or a 30% viewing share, although sometimes this figure exceeds 11m.

Five won the bidding war for 'Joey' last year, paying a reported £500,000 an episode. Channel 4 was given first refusal, but it said it was not prepared to pay what it considered a ludicrously high asking price. ITV1 and Sky One also expressed interest in the show.

'Joey', which sees actor Matt LeBlanc reprise his 'Friends' role as the dim-witted but big-hearted, struggling actor, became the first new US sitcom to receive a full-season order after averaging 16.4m viewers for its initial three episodes on Thursday nights, following its September 9 debut on NBC.

After 10 new episodes, however, 'Joey' appears to have settled into a less-than-impressive ratings performance with around 11m viewers or 8% of the total viewing share. By comparison, this is less than half the average 'Friends' ratings level over its 10 very successful seasons.

Five declined to comment on its scheduling follow a report in Broadcast magazine.

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