Underbelly 'The Golden Mile', set down under in Kings Cross, Sydney, lured in an audience of over two million Australians.
Media Man and Gambling911 have embedded themselves in the action, and report from the battlefield
Underbelly has triggered Australia's 2010's official TV ratings war, and sent websites and ratings "off the chart".
So intense is the heat, Kings Cross king of the jungle, John Ibrahin (played by Firass Dirani) elected to skip for Dubai in the 24 hour period before the show aired, as NSW police braced for action of another kind (real action in the mean streets).
With a slow start to the year as a result of Channel 9's coverage of the Winter Olympics throwing regular programming into chaos, Australian television viewers are only now being delivered some headline quality programs including Underbelly: The Golden Mile, MasterChef, and a revamped Hey Hey It's Saturday (on tonight - 'Big Wednesday').
Headlining actors Emma Booth, Dieter Brummer and new kid on the block, Firass Dirani, Sunday night's first episode of Underbelly: The Golden Mile was viewed by an average of 2.24 million Aussies and in South Australia - Adelaide (Australia's murder capital by reputation) attracted an audience of 201,478. The second episode which immediately followed averaged 2.07 million viewers nationally and in Adelaide was watched by 195,200 people.
The TV ratings result makes the season 3 debut 2010's highest-rating TV event at time of publication, but the first two episodes of Underbelly: The Golden Mile failed to attract the franchise's biggest audiences with last year's season two debut Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities attracting more than 2.5 million viewers.
Nine Network chief executive David Gyngell yesterday said he was pleased with the audience numbers.
"It was a great result for Underbelly, we are very happy and appreciative of everyone who was involved in this series," Mr Gyngell said.
The Ganglands mini TV series, is set in 'The Cross, faces some tough customer competition...
Network 10 is set to debut season two of ratings MasterChef next week, and tonight Channel 7's Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks-directed war series 'The Pacific' will go up against the second of half of Nine's 'Hey Hey'.
Readers, keep dodging bullets as the TV, Internet and Star City Casino - Crown Casino 'wars' continue at Atomic Bomb levels. As Roddy Piper from 'The Live' fame says, "You don't throw stones at a man holding a machine gun", something both casino entrepreneurs, Underbelly casting and talent, and media and political commentators are well aware of.
Australian Prime Minster Kevin Rudd and Senator Stephen Conroy (Communications Minster aka 'Minister Of Silly Lists') are understood have to attempted to ban Underbelly 3, but needless to say, they failed miserably in their efforts. Opposition leader, Tony "The Bruiser" Abbott is said to be a casual fan of the show (but not a fan of real life violence, despite being a former boxing champion). We might catch a ride up to 'The Cross' tonight in search of an illegal gambling den party, one a of a number said to be springing up, as censorship and bible bashers ramp up their goodie two shoe efforts, things going underground as a result! Cheers from a peaceful Bondi Beach, Australia's second 'Golden Mile' (for smart operators). Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi, Aussie Oi, Aussie Oi, Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi.
*Greg Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media Man http://www.mediamanint.com is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company. Gaming and igaming is just one of a bakers dozen of industry verticals covered
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