Big Brother Australia's season 14 premiere on Monday night failed to attract half a million metro viewers, according to industry website TV Tonight. The launch episode drew just 487,000 viewers across the five major cities, trailing behind Nine's Lego Masters and 10's MasterChef.
The afternoon game show The Chase Australia was the most watched entertainment program of the day with 588,000 viewers. Channel Seven is hoping the show will perform better on its streaming platform 7plus.
Despite a 'fans vs favourites' gimmick featuring returning legends such as Reggie Bird, Tim Dormer and 'Farmer Dave' Graham, viewers expressed dissatisfaction on Twitter, particularly with the pre-recorded format. Big Brother included live elements during its original run on Channel 10.
One fan tweeted: 'I miss when Big Brother was filmed live!' while another added: 'Is this pre-recorded again?' Others criticised the 'fake crowd sounds' heard when housemates entered the house.
When Seven revived Big Brother in 2020, it was the first time the entire presentation was pre-recorded. Host Sonia Kruger explained on Sunrise that the pre-recorded format allows each episode to be 'crafted' and 'jam-packed from start to finish.'
