news articles 23 november

[Inside Australian Idol]

Fame takes it toll on Guy
By Leisha Petrys
November 23, 2003


GUY Sebastian battled depression during the six-month Australian Idol competition, even locking himself in a toilet to find some privacy.
In the middle there, I got a bit down about the lack of privacy," Guy, 22, said.

"At one stage, they followed me into the toilet, they just followed me everywhere - make-up, hair, wardrobe. I'd lock the door and say, 'Look, I just need a couple of minutes,' and they would knock on the door."

Guy says he has felt "blessed" by the whole Idol experience, but the impact of living away from home for the first time - the wrench from his parents, brothers, friends and church - was tough.

Then there was sharing a house in another city with 11 different personalities, coupled with 17-hour days spent rehearsing, making public appearances and peforming.

Sunday Herald Sun

entertainment.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4459,7952843%255E10431%255E%255Enbv,00.html

[Inside Australian Idol]

Viewers enjoy a feast of live TV
By PETER HOLMES
November 23, 2003

AUSTRALIA became a nation of couch potatoes last week as commercial television served up a smorgasbord of high-profile events including Australian Idol, the Rugby World Cup and the National IQ Test.


Guy Sebsation
Winners included the TV networks, which charged higher-than-usual rates for ad slots, and the TV rental industry, which has enjoyed a purple patch since the Melbourne Cup earlier this month.

A record 3.3 million viewers tuned into Ten's Australian Idol final on Wednesday night to see Guy Sebastian take the title.

That figure smashed the year's previous best, the auction episode of Nine's renovation show The Block, by about 300,000.

Last night's Rugby World Cup final may leapfrog Idol into first place when the figures are released today.

"We expect the final to challenge as the year's most-watched television event," Seven spokesman Simon Francis said.

The Sunday Telegraph has learnt some advertisers paid $100,000 for a 30-second spot during last night's final – three to four times the typical rate for prime-time shows.

Tracey Wained, the manager of Radio Rentals at Port Macquarie, said: "We've rented heaps of TVs – we've run out."

Other high-rating programs last week included Nine's National IQ Test, with an audience of nearly two million.


The Sunday Telegraph

[Inside Australian Idol]

Rugby final breaks ratings record
November 23, 2003 - 4:30PM

With a peak of 4.34 million viewers, Saturday night's Rugby World Cup final was the most-watched television program in Australia in three years.

The Seven Network telecast was watched by an average national audience of 4.02 million for the two-and-a-half hour broadcast, breaking the previous record for 2003 of 3.26 million, set by the Australian Idol final just days before.

Coverage of England's victory over the Wallabies on Saturday night attracted the highest television audience for any program since Seven's telecast of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

Most viewers were in Sydney, where the game won an audience share of 80.2 per cent, followed by Perth with 78.6 per cent, Brisbane at 75.4 per cent, Melbourne with 61.8 per cent and Adelaide, where 59.8 per cent of viewers tuned in.

The Cream with Roy and HG helped to cement the ratings victory for Seven, becoming the week's third most-watched television program following the Rugby World Cup final and closing ceremony.

©2003 AAP

www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/23/1069522464977.html