Rove McManus has been slammed by viewers for his new show Saturday Night Rove.
Audiences criticised the Channel 10 show for airing mature content during the family-friendly timeslot, with Rove’s jibe at former Today host Karl Stefanovic raising several eyebrows.
Dubbed “crude and unfunny,” the Daily Mail confirmed that the program drew just 244,000 viewers in five capital cities and a national audience of 352,000.
WATCH: Saturday Night Rove kicks off with brutal swipe at Karl Stefanovic
With a measly 6.4 per cent primary channel share, the show paled in comparison to Nine’s multichannel 9Gem – which had a 9.4 per cent share – and ABC’s nine per cent share during the famously competitive 7:30 pm timeslot.
The Nine Network drew 750,000 metro viewers – a number that can be credited to its coverage of the Ashes.
According to the Daily Mail, 390,000 metro viewers tuned in to watch the mini-series Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None on the ABC.
Furthermore, 330,000 metro viewers reportedly preferred to watch a rerun of 1993 film Mrs Doubtfire on Channel Seven instead of Saturday Night Rove on Channel 10.
Viewers took to Twitter to voice their disapproval of Saturday Night Rove.
One user found the number of big names in the program lacking, tweeting:
“Normally love Rove’s stuff, but this isn’t working. Before the network bins it, change it up. First show should have had more big names on board to get us in.”
Others took issue with Judith Lucy’s voice-overs, which were often filled with expletives.
“Was slightly interested in watching Saturday Night Rove, then heard Judith Lucy on the show and I suddenly went deaf #Yuck” one viewer tweeted.
Despite having a tough crowd, Saturday Night Rove has still upped its average audience numbers by 23 per cent since its Pilot episode.
In related news, Rove will also be hosting Celebrity Name Game – a decision that came after Grant Denyer confirmed that he would not be hosting the show until further notice.
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