Nine’s Weakest Link hosted by controversial comedian Magda Szubanski draws 423,000 viewers

Magda Szubanski returned to TV screens as host of The Weakest Link but the show just made it into the top 20.

The Weakest Link with Magda Szubanski. Picture: Nine

The return of divisive media personality Magda Szubanski to the TV screens as host of Channel 9’s Weakest Link saw it just scrape into the top 20 viewed programs on Tuesday night.

The debut of the rebooted quiz show drew 423,000 viewers across the five major capital cities in the 9pm timeslot and was half that of Nine’s Lego Masters 2021 debut last month which aired at 7.30pm and attracted 838,000 viewers.

The new season of the Celebrity Apprentice which screened before the Weakest Link drew 646,000 viewers before numbers dropped by more than 200,000 for Nine in the 9pm timeslot.

The Weakest Link’s TV schedule was derailed earlier this month after Szubanski lashed out at the Prime Minister’s wife, Jenny Morrison, causing a public-relations nightmare for Nine.

The game show was locked in for a May 4 debut with Szubanski in the hot seat until the start date was suddenly pushed out – this ended up being a three-week delay.

At the time of halting the program’s start date Nine blamed a “tight production schedule”.

Szubanksi caused an uproar last month after she used social media platform Twitter to comment on a photo posted online of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s wife Jenny, standing near her husband while he signed a condolence book for Prince Philip following the royal’s death.

She referred to the image and tweeted: “I genuinely thought this was a photoshopped Handmaid Tale’s meme. But no. It’s 21st century Aussie life.”

The Handmaid’s Tale is an American dystopian tragedy television series where married women are subservient to their husbands.

A few days later Szubanski appeared on Nine’s A Current Affair program in an interview with host Tracy Grimshaw to explain her social media comments and said they had “blown up into something I wouldn’t have anticipated.”

Szubanski also retweeted far-left activist group Mad F***** Witches post about the photo: “Good morning to everyone else to whom this feels creepy, chilling, terrifying, ominous, enraging, despairing and utterly, completely f****** depressing.”

Since the outburst Szubanksi, normally a regular Tweeter, has only made a handful of innocuous tweets.

But Nine’s program director Hamish Turner said, “We’re extremely happy with the launch of The Weakest Link which won its timeslot and lead in all the key demographics”.

“The show demonstrates our continued commitment to investing in Australian content in the prime time schedule and achieved everything we wanted,” he said.

The Weakest Link is a BBC Studios Australia and New Zealand production and Szubanksi is the quizmaster who has eight contestants who are strangers but must work together in answering questions to reach the maximum prize money during each round.

The debut of other shows this year included Seven’s Holy Moly (983,000 viewers), Nine’s Married at First Sight (964,000), Seven’s Dancing With The Stars – All Stars (744,000 viewers), Seven’s Big Brother (739,000) and Nine’s Celebrity Apprentice (682,000).