ITV Easter schedule fails to excite viewers

by Darren Davidson, Brand Republic 10-Apr-07, 12:15

LONDON - Viewing figures for a raft of heavily promoted shows on ITV1 over the Easter break failed to excite viewers as the hot weather and a listless schedule conspired to keep viewers away.

The most disappointing performer was the commercial broadcaster's new talent search show, 'Grease is the Word'.

The show, which aims to select members of the public for the roles of Sandy and Danny for a new West End production of Grease, pulled in just over 4m viewers and a 26.1% share in its early evening slot.

'Vernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon' had similar results, pulling in 4.1m viewers and a 21% share later on in the evening.

Earlier in the afternoon, ITV's coverage of the 153rd Boat Race, which saw Cambridge claim victory over Oxford, performed reasonably well in a tough mid-afternoon time slot.

The live coverage, which was supported by heavily rotated on-screen trails, press ads and online activity, pulled in 2.5m viewers and a 26.3% share, winning its time slot.

ITV's attempt to revive boxing as a prime-time event failed to ignite the imagination of the viewing public on Saturday night.

The live event, featuring British boxers Amir Kahn and Joe Calzaghe in front of a packed Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, pulled in just 2.7m viewers and a 15.5% share in a two-hour time slot starting at 9:45pm.

On Easter Sunday, ITV1's one-off drama examining the events surrounding the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio in 2001, failed to hit the heights scaled by recent Sunday evening ITV dramas such as 'Lewis' and the Jane Austen season.

'Murder in the Outback' pulled in 3.9m viewers and an 18.2% share.

Despite paying around £100,000 in a joint deal with The Sun, ITV1's controversial interview with Faye Turney, one of the 15 Royal Navy personnel who were held hostage by Iran, failed to win its slot.

The interview with Trevor McDonald, which replaced 'Airline' in the 8pm slot, pulled in 4.3m viewers and a 18.1% share. The exclusive was beaten by 'EastEnders' on BBC One, which pulled in almost 9m viewers.