Adelaide radio ratings for March 2022: ABC breakfast team scores a debut win as Ali Clarke’s new show on Mix struggles
The first radio ratings of the year delivered a big shock, with once all-conquering brekkie host and Mix 102.3 star recruit Ali Clarke losing a lot of listeners. See the results.
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The much-anticipated return of Ali Clarke to Mix 102.3 has yet to reap any rewards for the FM station, as the new-look ABC continues to dominate Adelaide’s breakfast radio ratings.
Young duo Stacey Lee and Nikolai Beilharz, who took over from Clarke at Aunty in January, have enjoyed a perfect start to the ratings year, picking up 1.4 share points to finish with 18.8, and a clear win in the breakfast timeslot.
Hot on their heels are FIVEaa’s David Penberthy and Will Goodings, who secured the biggest increase in listeners in breakfast, up 2.5 to 15.1 share points.
But it was a disappointing first survey for Mix’s revamped Ali Clarke Breakfast Show, which also features AFLW star Erin Phillips and Irish comedian Eddie Bannon.
Clarke dominated the ratings at ABC last year but her new show dropped to fifth place overall with 8.1 share points, down 0.9.
The Mix team also lagged behind Triple M’s Mark Ricciuto, Chris Dittmar and Laura O’Callaghan (9.8), and Nova’s Ben Harvey and Liam Stapleton, who climbed into fourth with 8.8.
Cruise 1323 is up into sixth spot, jumping ahead of SAFM’s trio of Andrew ‘Cosi’ Costello, Rebecca Morse and Anthony ‘Lehmo’ Lehmann, who dropped 0.9 points to 7.1 and seventh in breakfast.
ABC retained its title as Adelaide’s most popular station overall with 12.4 share points, ahead of Mix (11.2), Cruise (10.6) and FIVEaa (10.1).
Clarke left ABC on a high at the end of last year, easily winning the coveted timeslot in 2021’s final survey with 17.4 share points.
FIVEaa pair Penberthy and Goodings finished second with 12.6 points, just ahead of Triple M’s Ricciuto, Dittmar and O’Callaghan in third place.
Then-Mix duo Mark Soderstrom and Erin Phillips were in fourth spot with 9.0 after a dip of 0.4.
The final survey also saw Mix lose its long-held title of Adelaide’s favourite station to the ABC, dropping 0.6 share points to end up with 10.9, while Aunty finished with 12.2.
Less than two weeks later, Channel 7 sports presenter Soderstrom announced he had made the “tough decision” to quit Mix after eight years.
By the end of January, Adelaide radio’s worst-kept secret was finally unveiled, with Clarke returning to the FM station to host breakfast with a fellow new recruit, Bannon, and sports superstar Phillips.
Clarke first hosted Mix’s top-rating breakfast show with Kym Dillon and Chris Dzelde in the noughties before they defected to Triple M.
Taking over from Clarke in the ABC Adelaide hot seat are rising radio stars Lee and Beilharz.
Lee, who has previously worked for Sky News and Channel 7, is regarded as one of the ABC’s best political journalists.
SA-born Beilharz has worked for the ABC in Queensland and Victoria.
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