Rival channels are relishing the prospect of life without MAFS

Love or hate it, the Married At First Sight juggernaut has been a ratings winner for Nine, squashing other networks’ offerings. So where will the next top show come from?

For every television network except Channel 9, life after MAFS is the sweet honeymoon they’ve been waiting for.

One thing is certain: Nine won’t dominate the ratings without Married At First Sight.

The network will roll out Lego Masters, hosted by Hamish Blake, as well as another season of Talkin’ ’Bout Your Generation.

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The Voice, with new mentor Guy Sebastian (pictured with Delta Goodrem), returns in early May and is the network’s best chance of ratings glory.

“Married At First Sight is a once-a-year blockbuster — even Nine didn’t forecast its prowess — so now they will go back to the pack,” media analyst Steve Allen said.

“Ten has a more powerful line-up coming and Seven will improve. My Kitchen Rules will win its timeslot (with MAFS having ended).”

Ten hopes the end of Married At First Sight will give it a boost after a horror start to the year.

Guy Sebastian and Delta Goodrem. Picture: Tony Gough

Nine’s relationship show smashed Sunday Night Takeaway and Dancing With The Stars, both of which end their runs in the next fortnight. Changing Rooms was another casualty.

Ten will roll out Bachelor In Paradise three nights a week as of Tuesday. The hype is already building around the awkward meeting of Richie Strahan and ex Alex Nation.

In early May, Ten will launch new seasons of MasterChef Australia and Have You Been Paying Attention? New Aussie drama Five Bedrooms and local comedy Mr Black will also screen.

“What we hope to achieve over the coming months is the success we generally have with our established favourites,” Ten content chief Beverley McGarvey said.

Seven is likely to be the biggest winner from the end of Married At First Sight. My Kitchen Rules has had about 400,000 viewers shaved off its nightly audience this year.

Seven will be hoping a good percentage of those return now as the cooking show heads towards the finals.

“Post-Married At First Sight last year, the My Kitchen Rules audience increased substantially and we feel that will happen again this year,” Seven program chief Angus Ross said.

Once My Kitchen Rules ends, Seven will have House Rules another season of Andrew Denton’s Interview as well as reality show The Super Switch.

Nine insists its new batch of shows will continue the ratings momentum of the past two months.

“The Australian Open (tennis) provided the perfect launch pad for our 2019 schedule, which has started with a bang and has seen Nine enjoy its best-ever start to a ratings year,” Nine program director Hamish Turner said.

Originally published as Rival channels are relishing the prospect of life without MAFS