Now women will be going the Full Monty on TV

Eight female celebrities will strip bare to raise awareness of women’s health in a first for Australian television.

The Real Full Monty group for Hit.TV. on Channel 7.

Seven is upping the ante in the battle for ratings as it emerges that network bosses have commissioned a one-off show that will involve eight female celebrities stripping bare to raise awareness of women’s health in a first for Australian television.

It is understood executives gave the green light to the show last week after a male version, The Real Full Monty, became a surprise hit, pulling in more than 1.7 million viewers across the country, including catch-up viewing through the week.

Network insiders said Seven bosses hoped to convince one of its female identities to sign up to The Real Full Monty: Ladies’ Night after Sam Mac, weather presenter on Seven’s Sunrise, took part in the male version.

Imported from Britain, the format follows a group of famous people as they learn to striptease, culminating in a live performance.

Starring actor Shane Jacobson, former AFL player Campbell Brown, former rugby league player Matt Cooper, radio host Brendan Jones, ironman Jett Kenny, model Kris Smith and AFL commentator Brian Taylor, The Real Full Monty attracted 1.6 million viewers last Monday night.

A spokeswoman for Seven confirmed the network would remake the show with famous Australian women. It comes after latest ratings figures revealed Seven had bounced back from a wobble last year to top the ratings in the first half of the calendar year.

Speaking at an industry event last week, Seven chief Tim Worner called for the ratings system to be overhauled to reflect the proliferation of new ways to watch TV.

As audiences fragment in the online world, commercial broadcasters are measuring them in new ways. But the main business — selling airtime to advertisers — is still based on traditional overnight ratings.

Worner said: “I think we should provide overnight shares and then once we actually know what the total audience for a show is, that’s when we should provide a number. Not before, when we’re actually providing a number that’s misleading because it’s not the total audience of the show. ”