'Neighbours' drops to 426k in Australia

[-Kevin-]

A recent ratings slump for Neighbours in Australia worsened last night as fewer than 450k viewers tuned in for the show.

The iconic soap's latest outing on Channel Ten interested a mere 426k, while current affairs programmes on the Seven and Nine networks both pulled in more than 1m in the same 6.30pm timeslot.

Neighbours has attracted disappointing audience numbers since returning from its Christmas break on January 11, frequently being watched by fewer than 600k people. However, last night's figure is believed to be one of the worst in the drama's history.

The show usually pulls in between 600k and 900k viewers, with figures reaching the higher end of the scale in Australia's winter months. However, last July it was temporarily boosted thanks to the success of Masterchef on Ten and started edging closer to the 1m mark.

Source : Digitalspy - http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neig...alia-leave.html

I really can't say I am surprised , I used to watch Neighbours during the Timmins era but towards the end of that era the show has been in quite bad shape to be honest. I don't like the pointless teen plots which are very frequent , I feel it revolves a lot around the teens more than anything else. I think it needs some 20+ characters like those they introduced a couple of years ago in bulk (Frazer,Rosie,Pepper,Will)

It would be a shame to see Neighbours end like this after such a long time but I think Neighbours is past its sell by date to be honest and should bow out gracefully instead of watch it be driven further and further into thr ground.

Home & Away performs so much better in the ratings which I am thankful for , its just unfortunate Neighbours has gone this way.

[alexx]

I've said this before in previous posts, but I really think Neighbours needs to have a good revamp - storylines, sets, scripts, characters. I can see Neighbours becoming popular again in Australia but only if they make changes - if they continue the way they are doing, it will most probably stay the same in terms of ratings and worsen as the years go by. The problem they have Imo is that the UK audience are happy with the way it is at the moment and dont seem to like Neighbours evolving very much, I remember when they went HD and on the forums there were countless complaints about the 'filmic look' and they wanted it to remain shot on video tape - and the UK soaps have pretty much looked the same forever, so I can understand where they are coming from, but Australian's will just be put off and wont tune in if it looks dated.

The format too hasn't moved on for years and years - back in the earlier 90's when the format of the 80's wasn't working, they upped the anti, changed the credits and started using orchestral pieces of underscore again to coincide with the new dark storylines such as Fiona watching Jim die, Pam and Doug's marriage problems, Todd's death, the Waterhole explosion, Helen being 'kidnapped', Brad/Beth/Lauren love triangle, Julie finding out she was the result of a rape, Gaby's baby being abducted, Julie's break down and apparent 'suicide'/death and the audiences both in the UK and Australian returned and it rated brilliantly. And they actually used the words rape, sex etc And then in the later 90's, particularly 1997, they made the show all about family's again and introduced comedy back into the show, with Madge and Harold returning, however they also tackled serious and dramatic storylines resulting in one of the best cliff hangers of the 90's, when Ben's car exploded at the races and Anne and Billy's relationship...etc which is probably closer to how the show is these days but you cant even really compare that to Zeke and Sonny's relationship problems and Kate getting into dance school or not taking up every episode of the week.

I am being a bit unfair there because obviously that was last year and 2010 so far, Imo has been much better in terms of how the characters are all being used and how they have balanced screen time out again, also Andrew seems like a good edition to the cast. The format is supposed to be moving on this year too, so it looks promising.

[emmasi]

I hate that ratings are so important. I know it's a practical matter and one that the network can't help but pay attention to, but I think that Neighbours is perfect the way it is. I'd be so sad for it to get messed up or canceled because it's not mainstream enough. I like that it's quirky.

[DinerLandlord]

Doesn't surprise me at all that people are switching off in their droves, the show is so poor at the moment. Why should advertisers fork over money to a show that nobody is watching? The producers need to act fast to save Neighbours. There is way too much of a focus on the teens and their ridiculous storylines. The never-ending Deb saga was one of the worst storylines ever.

[summerbay10]

Let's hope for good...