MasterChef suffers massive ratings drop, worst finale result in three-year history

DESPITE big bucks and big names added this year, MasterChef has recorded its worst finale ratings result in three years.

THEY poured more big bucks and big names into this year's MasterChef series than you could poke a stick blender at, but it wasn't enough to stop the show recording its worst finale ratings result in three years.

Confetti wasn't the only thing falling last night with viewer numbers plunging to 2.568 million - down 35.2 per cent from last year's final show.

Winner Kate Bracks' showdown with Michael Weldon was expected to top the 3.96 million who watched Adam Liaw take the crown in 2010 and the 3.72 million who saw Julie Goodwin win in 2009.

But the result fell well short of the mark with the evening's contest MasterChef Australia: Finale Night averaging just 2.334 million. Then Channel 10 asked viewers to sit through an entire episode of new reality show The Renovators before announcing the winner.

The DIY reality show recorded its biggest audience to date (1.269 million), but many viewers who were upset at the scheduling tactic switched over to Nine to watch The Block, which sat in third place at 1.82 million.

Criticism of this year's format - including the finale - has taken some of the gloss off the contest, which will test viewer loyalty when the program returns in 2012.

Last week's Australia’s Got Talent: The Winner Announced remains the most watched program of the year, having garnered 2.855m viewers.

Adding salt to the ratings wound, last night's three-hour MasterChef marathon event was the first time the show managed to crack two million viewers in its 14-week prime-time tenure.

In 2010 a whole 19 episodes managed to crack that benchmark.