| R.B.3
2 A V I E W J U N E 2 0 0 6 |
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IM 448199 |
=SUMMING UP=
May - June 2006
| A note on scoring:
Perennial weekly non-current affairs programming is not exempt from scoring, simply as a way to let Popworld in the charts. There's no contest between Ivan's selections and other telly, and he can rate repeats of programmes he's seen before without having to watch them again (the grey entries), though he can't rate a repeat of a programme he rated the week before, and he can only rate repeats on digital-only channels if he recommends them. Below a bar at the bottom of each chart is a list of programmes that Ivan has taped during the run of the experiment, but hasn't watched yet. As he gets round to looking at them, they will be processed into the scores of their broadcast week. Ivan scores the best programmes as "Keepers & Classics" (3pts), "Jolly Good" (2pts) and "Pretty Good" (1pt), with a running total of each per week. Anything considered "Missable" or lower is not scored. The results are divided into TV, Radio and Film, with the red figure being the sum. Ivan also calculates the best performing channels of the week. TV channels have a deliberate points advantage. B = BBC, R = BBC Radio, C = Channel, I = ITV. |
=SCORECARD=
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1 8 19 |
1 6 18 |
7 6 23 |
4 4 17 |
5 10 26 |
B4, 14 I3, 13 R5, 09 C5, 09 B3, 09 B2, 07 R4, 06 I1, 05 E4, 03 I2, 03 R3, 02 M4, 02 I4, 01 C4, 01 |
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C5, 03 B2, 03 B1, 03 R4, 01 B3, 01 E4, 01 - - - - - |
B1, 03 E4, 02 I3, 02 B3, 02 B2, 02 R4, 01 I4, 01 C5, 01 - - - |
R5, 03 I3, 03 R3, 02 C5, 02 R4, 01 I2, 01 M4, 01 C4, 01 I1, 01 B2, 01 B4, 01 |
R5, 03 B3, 03 I1, 02 B1, 02 R4, 01 C5, 01 B4, 01 - - - - |
I3, 04 B3, 03 R5, 03 R4, 02 B4, 02 C5, 02 I1, 02 I2, 02 B2, 01 M4, 01 - |
| This year we're just doing five-week
runs, aiming to catch the change-overs of programming that occur at the
half-way point between major festivals. We've had some success in that
regard, with a few series ending and beginning. TV averaged a very consistent
10pts
per week, which is the same as the March run, but down a frightening 8pts
on last year. Radio is double last year, though, on
4.
Film scored 7, which is about right. The overall
average of 21pts was three down on this time
last year, continuing a trend we established in the March run.
There has been some good TV in this run. In fact every week I cheated to squeeze it all in. The highlights were the Silent Cinema season on B4, the World Cup, and the staples that are House and Doctor Who. The B2/4 Modernism programming was also helpful. Fortunately for radio, this run coincided with the return of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, augmented by the less reliable but better than a programme with Punt & Dennis Armando Ianucci's Charm Offensive. But it was the football coverage on R5 that generated most of the points for radio. As ever, there were some familiar faces in the film collection: why only this week, there's Clockwise, Casino Royale and Total Recall. But we've had some more interesting stuff; not least the Silent season. We can't complain too much, given that. Here then is this run's standings,
channel by channel:
The biggest changes are to B1 and B4: the latter has dropped half of its tally from March, though is still in second place. For the first two weeks, B4 did very well, thanks to the Silent Cinema and Modernism seasons. The slump came after they'd finished, in what has been a fairly fallow period. No-doubt something will come along soon to reinvigorate the channel. Not least The Avengers. And had I watched those silent films on the video it might've helped. At least B4 is in the same place as it was last year, albeit a few points down. As for B1, it has benefitted chiefly from Doctor Who, and the World Cup hasn't hindered it any. It's worth noting that this time last year, B1 did almost as well, albeit coming 4th in the overall tally. B2, B4 and C5 have slipped behind it this time round. Three channels have increased their points tally by 8 since March. B3's is down to two weeks of Pulp Fiction as much as anything else, and R5 is only up there because the World Cup allows it to qualify for entry. The only significant riser therefore is I3. And while some of that was choice of film programming, it mostly reflects the channel's role as a Granada Gold station. The arrival of Tales of the Unexpected is the most exciting thing to have hit I3 since Hammer House of Horror. It is only one step away from Armchair Theatre. B2 and C4 were the big fallers in March. B2 seems to have stabilised but is still dramatically down on last year -- more so than any other channel. Have B4 and B3 finally driven the stake through its heart? It just seems not to have had much of interest, beyond the Cruikshank fest that began this run. Still, that was more than C4 managed to give us. In fairness, C4 is in the middle of Big Brother, and has at least made an effort with Transmission. But it's still slipped to the bottom of the chart, and it's a very comprehensive chart; everything charting bar the multi-channel tat. I'd say that was reason enough for C4 to worry, and take a long hard look at itself. It's increasingly indistinguishable from Five, with the exception that C5 has House. The biggest concern from this month's run has to be that we're down on last year. But a stricter analysis, comparing weeks like for like, rather than last year's whole 10 week run, gives a closer tally of 22pts for last year (the May end of last year's run was high scoring; this time we just did June). So maybe there's not much wrong. The telly is ticking along, having recovered from the post-Christmas lull. We need to watch those Channel 4 ratings, but otherwise it's a clean bill of health. Thanks for reading. Next check-up is in August. I'll see you then. |