Over 3.4 million Australians tuned in to watch new episodes of Bluey, setting new records for ABC and iview.
Bluey, the beloved Australian animated series, has once again captured the attention of the nation with the release of three new episodes – Ghostbasket, The Sign, and Surprise.
These episodes have collectively garnered an impressive viewership of 3.4 million across metro and regional areas via broadcast, with their popularity extending to 4.8 million viewers when including streaming figures on ABC iview.
The excitement began with Ghostbasket, which premiered on Sunday, 7 April, marking the first new content since June 2023. This episode alone has attracted over 6.2 million viewers, highlighting its significant appeal.
The premiere of the 28-minute special, The Sign, occurred on Sunday, 14 April and proved to be a major event. It reached a Total TV National Reach of 4.4 million and secured a substantial 54% metro TV share. Additionally, it set records on the ABC Kids channel on ABC iview with 50.3 million minutes viewed on its first day, making it the most-watched broadcast on the platform and the channel to date.
The momentum continued with the unexpected release of Surprise on the following Sunday, quickly boosting its overnight viewership to 1.5 million thanks to widespread enthusiasm and rapid sharing among fans.
The campaign, ABC’s Biggest Ever Bluey, saw extensive engagement across social media platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, reaching over 4 million Australians. On Facebook, content related to Bluey accumulated 1.3 million video views and engaged 245,000 users, while on Instagram, it achieved 1.98 million video views with 76,000 individual accounts engaging with the posts. YouTube added another dimension to the campaign, with 75,000 views on themed videos and 1.6 million views on the Bluey – Best Bits! playlist.
An innovative marketing tactic was employed by listing Bluey’s fictional home on Domain, which saw 735,000 views and over 2.8 million interactions with the listing’s photos. The campaign also featured a fictitious real estate agent, Bucky Dunstan, voiced by Rove McManus, who received over 120,000 enquiries.
Libbie Doherty, Head of ABC Children and Family, expressed her excitement over the success of the episodes:
“Just when you think Bluey can’t get any better, creator Joe Brumm and the team at Ludo have broken all records with this trio of episodes for the season finale.
The Bluey team keep doing what they do best, surprising, innovating and putting fans front and center making sure each episode is a cracker. It’s been an incredible three weeks seeing reactions unfold, the ABC is ecstatic by these results and thank Australians for continuing to love and support Bluey.”
