Fans have claimed there’s a simple explanation for Celebrity Big Brother‘s lacklustre launch show ratings.
The celebrity reality show launched its 24th series on Monday (April 7th), with the likes of JoJo Siwa, Chesney Hawkes, Patsy Palmer, Chris Hughes, and Mickey Rourke entering the famous house.
The series is the second to air on ITV since the broadcaster gained the rights to the format after it was previously aired on Channel 4 and later Channel 5.
But the series has not gotten off to the start it would have hoped for after it was reported that just 1.8million people tuned in to watch the launch show on Monday – the lowest ratings for a launch show the series has ever received.
According to Super TV on X, the low ratings were still a million more than the launch show ratings of the civilian version of the reality show – which airs on ITV2 – but they’re much lower than you might expect. When the show returned on ITV for the first time in 2024, six years after it last aired on Channel 5, 2.8million people tuned in, peaking at 3.2million across all devices.
But fans of the show have pointed out a simple reason for the low numbers this year. They said that Celebrity Big Brother tends to have a younger audience, many of whom will watch the show on ITVX, ITV’s online streaming platform.
The number given by Super TV only counts those who watched through the actual ITV channel on their TVs, so the figure is expected to increase once ITVX views – including those who watch catch-up instead of live viewing – are added.
One fan said: “Let’s everyone remember that #CBBUK skews to a younger demographic that is more likely to watch on ITVX, which isn’t counted in this number. It’s not the disaster some people paint it out to be.”
Another added: “This is SO disappointing and shocking to me. This lineup is FIRE!! But I was watching live on ITVX, as were others I know. Plus, there are still catchup ratings to come, so hopefully, this will increase a lot.”
A third also said they hoped the numbers would increase as the series goes on, while someone else pointed out that although the 1.8million might seem low, it did still bring in the most viewers during the 9pm slot, beating BBC1 which pulled in 1.4million with the first episode of new drama series Reunion.
The opening episode of Celebrity Big Brother saw 13 contestants welcomed into the house by hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best. The series is slated to run for 19 days and will consist of 17 episodes airing six nights a week.
This year’s contestants are TV and radio presenter Angellica Bell, singer Chesney Hawkes, Love Island star Chris Hughes, former Olympic athlete Daley Thompson, drag queen Danny Beard, actress Donna Preston, The Only Way Is Essex star Ella Wise, Coronation Street actor Jack P. Shepherd, singer and dancer JoJo Siwa, former Tory politician Michael Fabricant, actor Mickey Rourke, EastEnders legend Patsy Palmer, and TV presenter Trisha Goddard.
Celebrity Big Brother airs Monday to Friday at 9pm and Sundays at 10pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
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