Return to comedy to combat ratings slump

The broadcaster hopes to return to its glory days of Cheers and Friends by scheduling a strong US import at the centre of the night.

The American hit Ugly Betty, about a geeky girl in the world of high fashion that also co-stars Extras’ Ashley Jensen, will be airing on a Friday night from January in a bid to turn around the ratings slump.

Channel 4 last week recorded just a 3.9 per audience share between 7pm and 10.30pm – said to be its worst Friday night performance since Christmas 1998.

Most of the blame falls on the reality gameshow Unanimous, co-presented by Patrick McGuinness, in which contestants are isolated in an underground bunker and try to win £1million. It was seen by just 800,000 people in its peak 9pm to 10pm slot

Although the Simpsons and Jimmy Carr’s panel game 8 Out Of Ten Cats performed reasonably well, with six per cent of the audience, the figure is still down on Channel 4’s average of 9.9 per cent.

Channel 4 director of television, Kevin Lygo, admitted they were missing the influence of a big American show on Friday nights.

‘We want to get Friday back to its best,’ he told Media Week. ‘In its heyday, with Friends and Sex and the City, it was appointment to view and you could put your own stuff around it.

‘We have really felt the lack of a first-rate US comedy, but we have got one now.’

Other comedy and entertainment shows lined up for Friday nights include new series of Peep Show and The IT Crowd, plus The Friday Night Project, Balls of Steel and the Charlotte Church Show.

Channel 4 is expected to shunt Unanimous to an unpromising 8pm slot against EastEnders from November 24.

Published: 8 Nov 2006