Merlin's Return?

[Tulin]

Anybody know when the UK "Merlin" returns? It's been almost a year now. I know the BBC are notorious for not wanting to advertise air dates but has anybody heard anything?

 

[Bob The Skutter]

Best guess is end of Sept/start of Oct. Digital Spy says 12th of Sept but it's not listed on the programming information for that week, not even as an unplaced show, so I doubt it.

 

[Greg Cox]

FYI: the new issue of SFX magazine (with "V" on the cover) has a nice article on the second season.

 

[wamdue]

well its on on the 12th, and not the 19th according to the BBC Press website, so maybe the 26th

 

[crookeddy]

Is it ever going to be back on NBC?

 

[barnaclelapse]

As long as it actually comes out, right?

Heh.

 

[wamdue]

well TBH the date was based on two things

1) repeats of S1 on BBC Three
2) the date given on Digital Spy, which has now been changed to "mid September"

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Is it ever going to be back on NBC?

If NBC's lineup continues to be a train wreck and assuming Merlin is a dirt-cheap buy for them, I could see it returning as summer fodder.

Here are the ratings. Crappy, but pretty stable. I think a lot depends on how cheap the show is for NBC. They could always use the ratings to hammer the price down even lower.

 

[captcalhoun]

the Mirror last week said in 2 weeks, which'd be the 12th...

*shrugs*

 

[Pindar]

It ran alongside Strictly last year and that starts on the 19th.

 

[AviTrek]

Is it ever going to be back on NBC?

If NBC's lineup continues to be a train wreck and assuming Merlin is a dirt-cheap buy for them, I could see it returning as summer fodder.

Here are the ratings. Crappy, but pretty stable. I think a lot depends on how cheap the show is for NBC. They could always use the ratings to hammer the price down even lower.

Given those ratings I have to wonder if BBCA will outbid NBC. NBC clearly could pay more, but given those ratings why should they?

 

[Greg Cox]

Is it ever going to be back on NBC?

If NBC's lineup continues to be a train wreck and assuming Merlin is a dirt-cheap buy for them, I could see it returning as summer fodder.

Here are the ratings. Crappy, but pretty stable. I think a lot depends on how cheap the show is for NBC. They could always use the ratings to hammer the price down even lower.

Given those ratings I have to wonder if BBCA will outbid NBC. NBC clearly could pay more, but given those ratings why should they?

I hope not. My cable package doesn't include BBCA.

 

[KB24]

I finally got BBC America last year, and outside of 2 am occasional airings of Absolutely Fabulous that were a pain in the ass to DVR, there hasn't been anything on the channel I like. If Merlin comes to the US again, I wonder if it would be better off on stupid Syfy-another channel I'm not thrilled with recently. There at least the NBC numbers look like Gold.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Given those ratings I have to wonder if BBCA will outbid NBC. NBC clearly could pay more, but given those ratings why should they?

There's an article in today's Washington Post that's rather on point. NBC is trying to rewrite the "rules" of television, basically. They're not looking for ratings wins. They're looking to fill the hours cheaply, fully expecting low advertiser dollars. Plugging a show like Merlin, which they're buying on the cheap, puts a quality, polished program in the schedule. They don't need great ratings for it. They don't even need good ratings for it. The show performed to expectations. Like the new Jay Leno show, Merlin is the model for NBC's future.

 

[AviTrek]

I finally got BBC America last year, and outside of 2 am occasional airings of Absolutely Fabulous that were a pain in the ass to DVR, there hasn't been anything on the channel I like. If Merlin comes to the US again, I wonder if it would be better off on stupid Syfy-another channel I'm not thrilled with recently. There at least the NBC numbers look like Gold.

BBCA has been airing Robin Hood(it return this coming Sat). It's aired in the same time slot as Merlin on BBC and has the same target audience. BBCA has also been airing Torchwood and just had their best ratings ever with Children of Earth. Finally, BBCA just took Doctor Who from SyFy. I'm sure BBCA would love to get Merlin and may even outbid SyFy for it.

Given those ratings I have to wonder if BBCA will outbid NBC. NBC clearly could pay more, but given those ratings why should they?

There's an article in today's Washington Post that's rather on point. NBC is trying to rewrite the "rules" of television, basically. They're not looking for ratings wins. They're looking to fill the hours cheaply, fully expecting low advertiser dollars. Plugging a show like Merlin, which they're buying on the cheap, puts a quality, polished program in the schedule. They don't need great ratings for it. They don't even need good ratings for it. The show performed to expectations. Like the new Jay Leno show, Merlin is the model for NBC's future.

That all makese sense as long as no one else is bidding for Merlin. If BBCA decides it wants Merlin it can bid against NBC for it. If NBC suddenly has to start increasing their license fee to keep the show from BBCA, Merlin may no longer be a cheap show for NBC. It all comes down to how many viewers both channels expect and how much advertisers will pay each channel for those viewers.

 

[KB24]

The conundrum is that more people get NBC than they do BBCA. Maybe it would have a greater audience there, but BBCA simply isn't in every American household.

 

[wamdue]

The conundrum is that more people get NBC than they do BBCA. Maybe it would have a greater audience there, but BBCA simply isn't in every American household.

so navie.

if only US shows were sold on the idea that, its better to be on a channel with more viewers, than to sell it to the highest bidder.

 

[AviTrek]

The conundrum is that more people get NBC than they do BBCA. Maybe it would have a greater audience there, but BBCA simply isn't in every American household.

so navie.

if only US shows were sold on the idea that, its better to be on a channel with more viewers, than to sell it to the highest bidder.

Shows are sold to the highest bidders. Networks can pay more based on how many people will watch the show. Excluding premium channels that have high subscription fees, the more viewers that a network has, the more it can and will spend on a show. If NBC could expect 10 million viewers it would outbid every cable channel. If it's only getting 1 million viewers then cable channels have a chance to outbid depending on how many of those viewers are expected to have the cable channel also.

Remember, Merlin isn't a new show trying for the largest audience possible anymore. It had a full season on NBC and knows what its audience is/will be.

 

[wamdue]

double post

 

[wamdue]

The conundrum is that more people get NBC than they do BBCA. Maybe it would have a greater audience there, but BBCA simply isn't in every American household.

so navie.

if only US shows were sold on the idea that, its better to be on a channel with more viewers, than to sell it to the highest bidder.

Shows are sold to the highest bidders. Networks can pay more based on how many people will watch the show. Excluding premium channels that have high subscription fees, the more viewers that a network has, the more it can and will spend on a show. If NBC could expect 10 million viewers it would outbid every cable channel. If it's only getting 1 million viewers then cable channels have a chance to outbid depending on how many of those viewers are expected to have the cable channel also.

Remember, Merlin isn't a new show trying for the largest audience possible anymore. It had a full season on NBC and knows what its audience is/will be.

again you are being navie, many US shows have been removed from large audience on freeview TV channels to air on the Sky One PayTV platform, 24, Nip/Tuck, Lost, Prison Break & House to name a few.

whilst channels like Living totally over paid for Supernatural (used to be on ITV) and probaly did the same for Medium that used to the be the BBC.