Melbourne property anxiety triggers home town viewing spike for The Block
The Block, Channel Nine's reality property series that dates back to the 2003 property boom time, has returned to the airways at the time when many commentators see the Melbourne property market as heading south.
Little wonder the ratings in Melbourne soared as anxious Melburnians tuned into the reality show to follow the journey of how the couples and the property market are faring.
The first-night ratings – with the four cottages in derelict Cameron Street, Richmond, barely sighted – attracted an average 1.342 million viewers, making it the night’s fourth-highest rating show, after Ten juggernaut Masterchef, Seven News and Today Tonight.
But they were far keener watchers in Melbourne than Sydney, with 365,000 viewers in Sydney compared with Melbourne’s 523,000 viewers.
Sydney viewing numbers matched the 2010 launch night, but there was a 44% spike in Melbourne viewers compared with the premiere of the 2010 series, which was based around a Vaucluse Sydney apartment block.
There were 228,000 viewers in Brisbane, 124,000 in Perth and 102,000 in Adelaide.
The Melbourne viewing fillip lifted the ratings for the opening night by 17% year on year.
The 2011 opening night of The Block recorded a peak of 1.723 million viewers within the hour, with an average of 1.23 million in the first half hour and 1.41 million in the second half hour.
The first season was filmed in Bondi in 2003, with 2.2 million watching weekly – and the auction finale episode attracted 3.1 million viewers, which was the second-most watched event of 2003. Its 2003 first series coincided with the peak of the property boom along the east coast Sydney property market.
Scott Cam returned as host in the fourth series, McGrath boss John McGrath and Belle editor-in-chief Neale Whitaker as judges.
In this series, four couples are shifted into four rundown houses in Richmond. It’s a slight twist on the first three series, when it was a rundown apartment block.
The contestants are asked to hastily renovate and then sell, and they will earn the margin above the auction reserve price.
The couple whose property sells for the largest margin is declared the winner.
The 2010 Vaucluse series ended with an auction where only three of the four were sold. It took a week for the fourth flat to find it buyers. The winners of The Block 2010, John and Neisha, took home $305,000.
Julian Cress, the founding producer, has previously stressed The Block wasn't just about property – it was also about delivering a dramatic character-and-situation storyline.
In years past four couples started and finished each renovation series.
This time The Block begins with eight couples desperate to move in – but there are only four properties, so in the first week the couples are paired off and pitted against each other in a 24-hour, do-or-die room fitout challenge.
In the first episode Shannon and Aaron from WA lost to Jenna and Josh from VIC.
In upcoming episodes it’s Polly and Warwick from NSW versus Chrissy and Toby from Queensland; then Chris and Carrie from NSW tackle Tania and Rodney from country Victoria; and two sets of sisters Katrina and Amie from country NSW confront twins Laura and Emily from Victoria.
