Ratings Boost for Graham Norton

Three’s Graham Norton Show topped 2% of viewers aged 25-54 for the first time in its new 7.30 Thursday slot against weaker competition on TVNZ 2.

It also would have been helped by the allure of baby-boomer favourites Dame Judi Dench and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Previously the veteran talk show was being hammered by TVNZ 2’s Travel Guides Australia, the season final of which drew a stonking 107,670 viewers in the key commercial demo on November 9.

But replacing TGA with The Voice Australia struck a discordant note with TVNZ 2 viewers: Thursday’s season premiere drew just 46,935 adults, losing the channel nearly 61,000 viewers week-on week.

This allowed The Graham Norton Show to improve from 23,155 adults to 41,256 while TVNZ 1’s BBQ hour Cooks on Fire cranked up its 25-54 tally from 45,212 to 57,946.

TVNZ 1’s RFDS: Royal Flying Doctors Service also won the 8.30 hour (45,660), air miles ahead of TVNZ 2’s Emergency on Sunny Beach (26,662) and Three’s Ivan Aristguieta: Happy Papi (14,939).

TVNZ 1’s peak-demo share was 26.87, TVNZ 2’s 16.33 and Three’s 12.74; the next highest was Bravo’s 7.22.

Three’s Wednesday peak-demo share was slightly higher despite Newshub Live at 6pm averaging a shockingly low 36,285 adults — a quarter of 1 News’ 148,185 — and even being out-rated by 9.30 stablemate Newshub Late (42,485 viewers).

Paddy Gower Has Issues finished third at 7.30, with 32,100 adults vs 50,985 for TVNZ 1’s Worst House on the Street and 48,250 for TVNZ 2’s Taskmaster UK.

Taskmaster Australia (48,159) pipped TVNZ 1’s Location Location Location Australia (46,450) at 8.30 while Three’s Married at First Sight UK averaged just 30,574.

TVNZ 1’s peak-demo share was 29.10, TVNZ 2’s 16.30 and Three’s 13.19; the next highest was Duke’s 6.17.

On Tuesday, Patrick Gower: On the Royals (57,066 viewers) improved markedly on the previous week’s My Mum Your Dad (32,524) but was no match for its TVNZ competition.

TVNZ 1’s Grand Designs NZ (88,911) was neck-and-neck with TVNZ 2’s My Kitchen Rules NZ (87,871). But the season premiere of Grand Designs: The Street (50,550) lost to TVNZ 2’s NCIS: Hawai’i (62,345) while MAFS UK scored 38,795.

The Street was down more than 7000 adults on the previous week’s Moving Houses Special — which helped NCIS to pick up an extra 4000 adults week-on-week.

TVNZ 1’s peak-demo share was 33.07, TVNZ 2’s 22.02 and Three’s 16.96.