The Challenge Australia finale records ‘zero’ viewers in Brisbane

Network Ten had already bumped its expensive tentpole reality series to a multichannel but nothing could’ve prepared it for this embarrassment.

Network Ten has hit a disastrous new low in ratings with the finale of its latest reality show recording ‘zero’ viewers in Brisbane.

The Challenge Australia, Ten’s “all-star” show which debuted in November, was bumped to a later timeslot just one week after its lacklustre premiere, before it was ultimately moved to the network’s multichannel, 10 Shake, earlier this month.

And now the ratings for Wednesday night’s finale are in – and they’re bleak.

news.com.au understands the show received just 10,000 viewers overall, with ‘zero’ viewers in Brisbane for the final two episodes.

For context, ratings figures are rounded to the nearest thousand, so in official data, The Challenge Australia appears to have returned zero viewers in the Queensland capital, meaning between zero and 499 people watched the show.

These figures don’t take into account delayed viewing.

Ten, which instead aired an episode of British drama Crossfire on its main network at 8.30pm, was competing with major sport coverage on juggernaut Seven, which aired a live match of the Big Bash League in the timeslot to a combined 455,000 viewers, while Nine screened the FINA World Swimming Championships to 302,000 combined viewers.

The Challenge finale received dismal ratings for Ten.

Bachelor alum Kiki Morris and Ninja Warrior’s Troy Cullen took out the competition in the final episode Wednesday, each taking home a hefty $100,000 cash prize.

Ten also didn’t send out a press release after the finale aired, which is unusual for a TV finale on a major network.

Editor of leading television website TV Tonight David Knox told news.com.au the later timeslot and banishment to a multichannel didn’t help its chances in the ratings, but conceded the show didn’t “grab the public’s imagination”.

“The TV landscape is filled with a litany of ambitious reality shows that offer big concepts and big prizes but still don’t grab the public’s imagination. That leaves the network with the dilemma of where to play out their obligations,” Knox said.

“In the case of The Challenge, Ten moved it to later slots and ultimately a low-level multichannel where those who stuck with it seemed happy with the outcome.”

Knox suggested The Challenge Australia was part of a global play for Paramount+, so it served a wider purpose than local ratings. Winners Kiki and Troy will now go on to compete in a global championship against winners around the world, which will air on the streamer.

“Troy and Kiki move to The Challenge: Global Championship, which is a key to all the decisions here,” Knox added.

“Ten is part of a bigger picture where Paramount is pushing global formats, including The Challenge and The Real Love Boat. It does sort of beg the question if Ten is programming with one arm behind its back?”

Brihony Dawson hosted The Challenge on Channel 10.

It’s not uncommon for a show to net zero viewers, given networks air content 24/7, however it’s rare for a series that launched as a prime time competitor against reality shows such as Nine’s The Block.

The earlier decision to move The Challenge from 7.30pm to 8.30pm came after its audience hit a season low of just 136,000 city metro viewers in its second week on-air, down from the 257,000 viewers who tuned in to its launch episode.

Ten also began airing double episodes to burn through the season faster. This was the same fate that befell Ten’s other failed reality series, The Real Love Boat Australia, when it premiered to low ratings in October.

The Challenge, which followed a tried-and-tested international format and had been likened to Survivor, got off to a rocky start before it even aired when it was mercilessly mocked after the unveiling of the “celeb” cast in September.

Ten’s social media announcement touted the list of 22 cast members as “Australia’s most talked-about celebrities”, but it was met with some derision, given the 22 “stars” were mainly former reality TV stars.

Hosted by non-binary TV presenter Brihony Dawson, the series featured Brooke Blurton, Brittany Hockley and Ciarran Stott, to name a few.