Can celebrity reality shows still attract viewers?
Audrey Migot, Broadcast Account Executive at Feather Brooksbank reviews the evidence following last night’s final of Dancing on Ice.
In the same way that Big Brother set the precedent for fly-on-the-wall reality TV, the celebrity version was the show that first gave the viewer a chance to observe famous figures from popular culture in an unconventional, unscripted setting, and in so doing gave birth to a TV genre that has become a schedule staple ever since. 10 million people tuned in to watch the celebrities enter the house, ramping up to 12.3 million by the time Jack Dee was crowned winner.
The celebrity reality genre has exploded since then. In theory, the success of these shows will depend on the nature of the trials, the levels of fame (or notoriety) of the contestants, as well as their behaviour whilst taking part. The January 2004 premiere of I’m A Celebrity, which featured Katie Price and Peter Andre, drew 10 million viewers and the finale was watched by 15 million people. Likewise the antics of Jade Goody, Shilpa Shetty et al in the 2007 series of Celebrity Big Brother drew 7.3 million viewers on opening night. Unfortunately, the ritual humiliation of those taking part has failed to save the format as viewing figures for Celebrity Big Brother have declined since its inception. 4.6 million people watched the 2010 series finale compared to the 12.3 million in 2001. I’m A Celebrity on the other hand has seen consistent growth in viewers since the first episode aired in 2006 with 6.7 million viewers; the premiere episode in 2010 attracted 11 million viewers.
At the other end of the spectrum are the celebrity reality shows that do not aim to humiliate the contestants. These shows tend to follow a “performance” format, whereby the celebrities have to learn and perfect a skill. In these cases, judges who are experts (hopefully) in that particular field ultimately decide the fate of the contestants.
The success of shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, Dancing On Ice and Celebrity MasterChef comes from the opportunity for the viewer to observe celebrities engaging in an activity completely removed from what they are known for. Strictly Come Dancing doesn’t seem like TV gold on paper, which may explain the 4.6 million who tuned in for the premiere in 2004. And yet, by the time the finale was aired the same year, 9.3 million were watching. In 2010, the series premiere drew 7.5 million viewers and the finale attracted 14.3 million.
Celebrity MasterChef has followed; in September 2006, 3.5 million tuned in to watch Charlie Dimmock amongst others taking part, and a further 5.7 million tuned in when Matt Dawson won the competition in the same year. Fast-forward to 2010 and the numbers show that the show is still as popular as ever; 4.9 million viewers for the premiere and 6.5 million for the finale.
So, can celebrity reality shows still attract viewers? Love them or loathe them, a simple look at the viewing figures over time suggests that the majority of them most definitely can. However, it would appear that there has been a shift in what makes celebrity reality TV attractive to the British public. Humiliation alone doesn’t cut it anymore, viewers want to see their celebrities doing tasks or learning skills which are worthwhile. Dancing, ice-skating or tasks which will secure necessities for the rest of the group are far more entertaining than fly-on-the-wall observation of celebrities parked on sofas. A tired format + tenuous celebrity status = lack of interest.
Note: All viewing figures come from BARB. Data given for Dancing on Ice is ‘overnight audience figures’, i.e. live viewing and recorded programmes watched on the same day as the original transmission. All other data is ‘consolidated’ which as well as live viewing also includes all viewers who watched a programme on PVR, VCR or recordable DVD up to 7 days after the event.