#barb viewing data

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Normal People. A Test Case in a Changing Media Landscape

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Sunday 17th May 2015

CONJURING UP VIEWERS?

BBC1 began a new Sunday night drama series at 9pm, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Adapted from the successful novel by Susanna Clarke (more than 1m copies sold), the tale is set in the early years of the 19th Century, when Britain is at war with France.  Within this historical setting, a fantastical tale of magic is woven.

It might seem odd to have a fantasy drama of this kind in BBC1’s prime Sunday-night slot. The subject matter would seem to fit with the kind of dramas that Sky has been producing or airing – the Terry Pratchett adaptations Going Postal, The Colour of Magic, and Hogfather, and of Sky Atlantic’s more adult-themed Game of Thrones. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell seems to fall somewhere between these: a more adult comedy drama but without the nudity or gore. The production, by UK indie Cuba Pictures, looks beautiful, for example when the statues in York Minster are brought to life, and the period look of early 19th century England was achieved well.  Has that made it a subject that BBC1 viewers will warm too?

For the first 15 minutes, the show won its slot, but after that lost out to ITV (Total) and Home Fires. However, it attracted a younger audience than average to BBC1 in this slot, with a higher proportion of adults aged between 16 and 64, but a much lower proportion of adults 65+ (29.9% of the audience was in this age group, versus a slot average proportion of 40.4%).  It also drew a higher proportion of male viewers than the slot has averaged. This made for a decent start for the drama, which may well benefit from a large amount of PVR viewing appearing in the consolidated figures, which will appear in another week’s time.