HDTV Ratings: May 10

Peculiar programming on TV2’s part last night led to TV3 winning the 8.30pm hour for the first time this year.

Re-running last season’s cliffhanger of Grey’s Anatomy cost the channel its traditional first place in this slot, even with its target audience, 18-39 year-olds.

The first hour drew 7.4% of this demographic, 7.7% of 18-49 year-olds, 7.8% of 25-54 year-olds and 12.2% of household shoppers with kids.

TV3’s HD opposition, NCIS: Los Angeles, won the three age demos and tied Grey’s for HHS/kids.

Grey’s did better in its second hour, beating SVU on TV3 and I Shouldn’t Be Alive on TV One.

Earlier in the evening, TV3’s HD season finale of Missing Pieces out-rated TV2’s Hell’s Kitchen in all the key demos except 18-39.

But the biggest impact of the night was Prime’s premiere of Downton Abbey, which drew 6.8% of the channel’s target audience, 25-54 year-olds.

This was Prime’s highest rating yet for a drama series and although Abbey still finished fourth, it was unusually competitive with the bigger networks’ 8.30pm drawcards.