VIEWING FIGURES:

In order to learn how large my audience had the potential to be, I examined the
BARB (Broadcasters Audience Research Board) ratings for pre-existing shows.
This enabled me to examine the general reception to productions which contain
the key components of The Adventures of Pigeuo and Bryan. Additionally, I
decided that it would give me a stronger insight into what makes them so
popular, and utilise these characteristics in my own work.
In the week 28th March to 3rd of April, The Walking Dead attained 1.59 million
viewers
on
Monday.
Its
late showing
time, coupled
with the clear
theme
of
Zombies and
the apocalypse, suggests that its content would not be suitable for display at an
earlier point in the evening. A comparison between this and my piece was noted
in the focus group as there a number of overlapping themes, primarily in
regarding the dystopian setting and annihilation of humanity. The fact that it
triumphs over Football and Geordie Shore implies that audiences would prefer to
use watch programs which provide total escapism from reality; perhaps they do
not desire any inclination of the world which they reside in, preferring an
alternate state of affairs. Likewise, it demonstrates that contemporary, fantasy
drama is increasingly popular over those in a recognisable context; NCIS, for
example, was only in 13th place with 0.92 million viewers. The Big Bang Theory
reaching 2.58 million audience members could be indicative of the fact that a
light-hearted and quirky variation of modern life is preferable to death,
destruction and a lack of hope. As well as this, it is more accessible and does not
require the viewer to be in their late teens; it can be used socially in the sense
that a group can watch it together and not be forced to put their full attention on
the story. As such, I will be ensuring that my piece is not so solemn that it seeks
to destroy the viewers positive mood, but instead strikes a balance with comedy
to create an oddly disturbing and darkly funny product.

The Simpsons, on the other hand, had a total of 1.11 million viewers on the
Friday of the same week at 6:00 pm. Whilst not in the horror genre, it is a form of
animation and does use the style of humanistic humour and often obscure
scenarios which I wish to incorporate into my piece. This lower figure, however,
could be attributed to how these are not new episodes, but re-runs.

Consequently, the audience is likely to have seen the episodes before, causing
them to change the channel in favour of something new. It could be the lovable
characters that help maintain such a loyal fan base, something that I wish to
replicate in my own work. As it aired on Channel 4, we can deduce that it could
have had higher figures should it have not been on a channel renowned for its
documentaries and serious content. On Sky One, for instance, the number of
people tuned in could have been greater as it is has a wider array of scheduling
throughout the day. For my film, I will attempt to feature as equally likeable
In the week 14th to 20th March, on Channel 5, The X-Files attained a viewership of
2.52 million at its 9:00 pm showing. Featuring paranormal themes and a strong
duo
of

protagonists, there are several similarities between this and my own work. One
of the contributing factors to its popularity is the nostalgia it evokes; many will
remember watching the original series in the 1990s and are sharing this
experience with their own children etc. As well as this, it has remained innovative
and fresh, meaning there is little repetition in terms of the main and sub story
arcs-I will be trying my hardest to replicate this as there is no better way to
retain interest than to mingle long-term plots/relationships with shorter tales on a
near episodic basis. Another reason for its continual acceptance is how it is able
to combine the paranormal with reality in such a plausible way; by having Scully
and Mulder be FBI Agents investigating the unknown, credibility is suddenly
given to something that many could otherwise disregard. Unlike The Walking
Dead, conclusions are met and new/recurring characters and incidences are
introduced. In turn, the public is kept wanting to know more about these
elements and how they correspond with the larger narrative. I want to utilise this
in my own recording in how the apocalyptic world I have created becomes
plausible through the actions and statements of the characters.
Featuring a talking dog with an intellectually advanced baby as his best friend,
Family Guy likely bears the most resemblance to my cast, but has comparatively
low ratings to the rest of this document with 0.76 million viewers. This could be

due to cartoons/animation being a niche genre; whilst not shunned, many

perceive them as being childish and not as meaningful as a show containing
physical actors. Like with The Simpsons, there is a chance that this is a re-run
and people
have seen
it
before.
We
must
not
disregard
that this is
still
a
considerable number; of all the channels and programs available, a significant
portion still decided to watch this one show. As such, we can infer that it is the
humorous antics and satirical content continue to resonate with the fans,
something I wish to replicate in my own project. Essentially, in order to attain
such a large audience, I will need to balance the horror with parodies of popculture and current issues, just like Family Guy.
This will ensure that I am not bombarding the
audience with gore and supernatural entities when
they are anticipating slightly more comedic
elements. Equally, as ITV now has a contract to
play the episodes, there is the potential for it to
obtain higher viewer figures due to it being
terrestrial television; this channel is available
on
Freesat and Freeview, not just Sky.
Observing these ratings has given me a
good insight into how I will generate
interest in The Adventures of Pigeuo
and Bryan. Primarily, I will
not adopt a sombre tone at the expense
of creating a vaguely
upbeat atmosphere; whilst we do enjoy
aas
dramatic
and tense programming, we do also appreciate a sense of joy and silliness. In a
market where countless shows are trying to be Breaking Bad or House of Cards,
there is room for an addition which does not take itself too seriously.
Furthermore, I shall not make the characters, or the apocalypse, completely
unbelievable. Like with The X-Files, the situations will be somewhat relatable in
how standard organisations and individuals are implicated in the disaster of the
fallout. Moreover, the cast will be memorable and likeable; if the audience can
recall who the pro/antagonists are and develop feelings about them, they will be
more inclined to care about their fate. Likewise, I will release the project on a
platform that is accessible and multi-dimensional in how it has catch-up
services and multiple ways of tuning in. The current contender for my pieces
distribution is Fox due to its large reach, respected schedule/content and ondemand app. The Adventures of would also slot in well alongside current
programs like American Dad! and the like. I will also investigate crossovers as
these can prove to be beneficial to ratings; as with the aforementioned The
Simpsons and Family Guy, combining the two worlds can work wonders for the
number of people who tune in. The episode, which acted as the latters season
opener, saw a 74% increase over the previous year, with 8.4 million tuning in, in

the United States1. As such, it could prove interesting and successful to recreate
this by animating several of the key characters from The Walking Dead and
putting them into an instalment-long scenario with Pigeuo and Bryan. This would
encourage fans of the former to migrate to my project for its duration to see just
how their favourite show is working in coalition with mine.

1 http://mashable.com/2014/09/29/family-guy-simpsons-crossoverratings/#wxgTbUvCS5qG