Sky Sports F1 – Top 10 ratings (week ending 13th May, 2012)

This is a rather short blog, because there is no Top 10. Normally this happens due to incomplete logs, and is normally updated in the six-week amendment cycle. So, the Top 10 for this week should be uploaded by 2nd July.

We can, however, still see the weekly reach. The channel reached 2.444 million people, which is slightly up on the 2.381 million people it reached for the Chinese Grand Prix.

What I shall do is update this blog post when the six weeks come around and replace the post with a Top 10. Hopefully!

UPDATE: I wrote the above on May 21st, and now six weeks later BARB has updated with the ratings for this week. Which are as follows:

1 – 523k – Live Spanish Grand Prix (Sunday, 11:30)
2 – 353k – Live Spanish Grand Prix: Qualifying (Saturday, 12:00)
3 – 115k – Live Spanish Grand Prix: Practice 3 (Saturday, 09:45)
4 – 84k – Live Spanish Grand Prix: Practice 1 (Friday, 08:45)
5 – 68k – Live Spanish Grand Prix: Practice 2 (Friday, 12:45)
6 – 64k – Live Spanish GP2 Feature Race (Saturday, 14:35)
7 – 55k – Spanish Grand Prix Highlights (Sunday, 19:03)
8 – 52k – Spanish Grand Prix Qualifying Replay (Saturday, 17:16)
9 – 48k – Fast Track (Sunday, 10:58)
10 – 45k – Live Spanish GP3 Race 1 (Saturday, 16:15)

There is not much use in me commenting on these ratings too much given that it was nearly two months ago, apart from saying that the GP2 and GP3 races performed well on the Saturday.

Scheduling: The Monaco Grand Prix

Formula 1 heads to the glitz and glamour of Monte Carlo this upcoming weekend with the Monaco Grand Prix. Both BBC One and Sky Sports F1 will be showing the coverage live this weekend. As is the tradition in Monaco, F1 Practice is held on Thursday’s instead of Friday’s. Also, as I noted on Thursday, there is a double dose for The F1 Show this weekend due to the different schedule.

If you like your classic Formula 1 action, then I would advice that you tune in to Sky Sports F1 from 09:00 tomorrow morning for nearly 15 hours of Classic F1 from Monaco. Back to the present day, however, here is the scheduling with all the times, including Sky Sports F1’s coverage of the GP2 and GP3 Series, which has a hideously early start on Friday morning!

Wednesday 23rd May
14:00 to 14:30 – F1: Driver Press Conference (Sky Sports F1)

Thursday 24th May
08:45 to 10:50 – F1: Practice 1 (Sky Sports F1)
08:55 to 10:35 – F1: Practice 1 (BBC Red Button)
10:55 to 11:35 – GP2: Practice (Sky Sports F1)
12:45 to 15:00 – F1: Practice 2 (Sky Sports F1)
12:55 to 14:35 – F1: Practice 2 (BBC Red Button)
15:00 to 15:30 – F1: Team Press Conference (Sky Sports F1)
15:50 to 16:35 – GP2: Qualifying (Sky Sports F1)
17:00 to 18:00 – The F1 Show (Sky Sports F1)

Friday 25th May
06:35 to 07:20 – GP3: Qualifying (Sky Sports F1)
09:25 to 10:50 – GP2: Race 1 (Sky Sports F1)
11:25 to 12:15 – GP3: Race 1 (Sky Sports F1)
17:00 to 18:00 – The F1 Show (Sky Sports F1)

Saturday 26th May
09:45 to 11:10 – F1: Practice 3 (Sky Sports F1)
09:55 to 11:05 – F1: Practice 3 (BBC Red Button)
12:00 to 14:45 – F1: Qualifying (Sky Sports F1)
12:10 to 14:15 – F1: Qualifying (BBC One)
15:05 to 16:10 – GP2: Race 2 (Sky Sports F1)
16:50 to 17:45 – GP3: Race 2 (Sky Sports F1)

Sunday 27th May
11:30 to 16:15 – F1: Race (Sky Sports F1)
12:05 to 15:30 – F1: Race (BBC One)
15:30 to 16:30 – F1: Forum (BBC Red Button)
16:30 to 20:00 – Indy 500 (Sky Sports 4)

As of writing, Indy 500 is still on Sky Sports 4, so if you only have Sky’s HD package, you will not be able to view it. I shall update this post if/when that changes.

And for the first time, I want your opinion. Which channel will you be watching for the Grand Prix weekend? I think I shall stick with Sky Sports, as I did for Spain, although that depends somewhat on the pundits. If Sky have Damon Hill only, then I may be forced in turning over to BBC, but if they have Johnny Herbert alongside Hill, or no Hill at all, then I will probably stick with Sky Sports F1.

Of course, there’s also an interesting point about location, with space tight, will both BBC and Sky be located on a boat somewhere, or will Sky go for a ‘high up’ studio like ITV did in their latter days? We shall see.

Comments, as always, welcome.

New 30 minute programme on Sky Sports F1 from next Friday

A new 30-minute programme has appeared on the Sky Sports F1 schedules beginning next Friday. The programme, entitled In The Name Of Good begins next Friday at 10:55, in the gap between the two feeder series’ races at Monaco.

Although there is no EPG description yet for the programme next Friday, it does say that it features Mark Webber. If I had to guess, I think this may turn out to be similar to the Legends series, except looking back at a current drivers’ career in Formula 1.

As always though, it’s good to see new programming making it’s way onto the schedule. I’ll keep an eye on it, and post an update here when the EPG updates with a proper description.

UPDATE at 16:10: The description is as follows: “A chance to follow Australian F1 driver Mark Webber during the Swiss Mark Webber Tasmania Challenge.” – so it seems I was a bit off the mark above! Apparently this is part of a series focussing on all sportsmen, and Webber happens to just be featured in this particular one.

Double dose of The F1 Show next weekend

Due to practice being held on Thursday’s around the streets of Monte Carlo, Sky Sports will be airing two editions of The F1 Show live, the broadcaster has confirmed. The first edition will air next Thursday live at 17:00, with the second edition in it’s usual Friday slot live at 17:00.

I shall publish a full Monaco Grand Prix weekend schedule, support races, BBC TV and Sky TV next Monday, on this very blog!

News Articles – Spanish Grand Prix

Normally after a race weekend, some of the news articles tend to go under the radar, so I thought I would sum up what BBC Sport and Sky Sports have put up on their respective websites in terms of opinion pieces.

On the BBC website, both Andrew Benson and Gary Anderson have written pieces looking at Pastor Maldonaldo’s victory at last Sunday’s race, those pieces can be found here and here. Benson has also put up a separate blog looking at Michael Schumacher’s performance so far this season, which is located here. Jake Humphrey’s blog focusses on the fire that engulfed the Barcelona pitlane after Sunday’s Grand Prix. And there is also Mark Webber’s weekly column on the website as he looks back on the weekend, both in Formula 1 and the final day of the Premier League season. Finally on the BBC side of things, 5 Live’s Jennie Gow has written a blog, which can be found here.

Over on Sky Sports’ Formula 1 website, there are opinion pieces from Martin Brundle and commentary director Mark Hughes. There are also pieces from Sky Sports’ website team consisting of Pete Gill and Mike Wise. Gill’s blog, located here, looks at the Spanish Grand Prix weekend as a whole, while Wise continues his race weekend day-by-day diary, with his Spanish edition online here. Finally, the website has a ‘Talking Heads‘ piece looking at whether Qualifying needs to be changed, the article raising the prospect of Qualifying tyres being brought back to Formula 1.

That’s all on both websites, but I hope it helps having all the opinion pieces in one place! Comments, as always, are welcome.