Corset Wars Kick Off On ITV and BBC
ITV’s latest big-budget period drama, Dr Zhivago, drew an average audience of 6.5 million viewers on its Sunday night debut, according to unofficial overnight figures from BARB.
The re-make of the Russian classic secured a 27.4% share of viewing for ITV1 between 9pm and 10.35pm last night. It faced strong competition from the final of BBC2’s Greatest Briton’s series and the first eviction from the Celebrity Big Brother house.
A spokesperson for ITV said: “It’s a solid audience and a good starting point for a period drama of this kind.”
Earlier this year ITV took the unprecedented step of publicly announcing its plans to schedule Dr Zhivago in the key Sunday night slot (see ITV Asks BBC To Avoid Autumn Drama Clash), in an attempt to ensure that the BBC would not schedule its big-budget adaptation of George Eliot’s Daniel Deronda at the same time.
The BBC has traditionally scheduled its high profile period dramas, such as Pride and Prejudice, on Sunday nights and has signalled its intention to hold onto this popular slot, with two historical adaptations, King Charles II and Byron, already scheduled for November 2003 (see BBC Bags Sunday Night Drama Slot).
However, the debut of Daniel Deronda last Saturday evening appears to have proved a success for the BBC. According to unofficial overnight figures, the programme drew an average audience of 5.8 million and secured a 25.4% share of viewing, making it the highest rated period drama to be shown on the BBC for 2 years.
A spokesperson for the Corporation commented: “The Saturday night slot has not been used for drama for over ten years. We are very pleased with this audience, especially when you consider its a relatively obscure novel.”
The BBC has been heavily criticised for its aggressive scheduling tactics and its increasingly populist approach to programming. At the recent MediaTel Question Time event, Jim Hytner, commercial director of ITV, attacked the BBC for losing sight of its public service remit in pursuit of ratings (see Hytner Criticises Dyke For Misuse Of The Licence Fee).
BBC: 020 8743 8000 www.bbc.co.uk ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com
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