The BBC’s big-budget reality TV programme, which it believed would attract a large number of viewers, has scarcely made an impression on social media or in weekend ratings.
The Beeb revived Survivor 20 years after it last broadcast on ITV, with man of the moment Joel Domett at the helm.
The reality series, which features 18 people competing in a series of tasks on a deserted island in an exotic location before voting each other off one by one, allegedly cost £30,000,000 but hasn’t received the momentum the broadcaster was likely hoping.
However, with the final this weekend, in which one person will win £100,000, people who have been devoted to Survivor are perplexed as to why it hasn’t achieved the same level of success as The Traitors or Squid Game: The Challenge on Netflix.
Survivor received 2.6 million viewers in its debut weekend, despite airing after Strictly Come Dancing.
The next day, David Attenborough’s Planet Earth III was bumped from its Sunday 8pm schedule to make room for the second episode of Survivor, which drew 2.3 million viewers – fewer than a repeat of Antiques Roadshow on BBC2.
It’s since been missing from the Barb weekly top 50 shows, according to viewership.
One fan blamed the BBC. @AMB_Review wrote on X, formerly Twitter: ‘Slowly catching up with #Survivor and I have to say it’s a bit of a gem that’s been given poor scheduling by the BBC.
‘Could have captured the buzz The Traitors had if it mirrored its transmission schedule.
‘Feels like it’s being forgotten but deserves to have more hype.’
Others claim that Survivor improves dramatically after the first few episodes, prompting others to stick with it.
@CptAlex23 added: ‘I’m hearing that but I’m completely hooked. You need to invest in the first few slow episodes while learning names and whatnot but these latest episodes are absolutely electric.’
On Reddit, user tabstis explained: ‘The numbers have been okay, but not as high as the BBC were probably hoping. I’d say high enough to prompt at least a second season with reduced budget on BBC Three – they’ve only got themselves to blame with the poor/generic marketing and the outright weak casting for those who have been watching the season.’
Following its debut, a TV source stated that Survivor had turned the BBC into a nightmare.
‘It’s crazy. BBC One had a winning Saturday and Sunday night schedule that would have seen it safely through to Christmas – and the panicking bosses just ripped it up to make room for a show that cost so much of licence payers’ money that they could not afford for it to flop,’ they told MailOnline.
‘It is terrible news for the BBC, it is an absolute disaster. It cost a fortune and it is just not appealing to the masses – conversations are now taking place as to what can be done to turn things around, quickly.’
Going into the finals, just five candidates remain: Hannah, Matthew, Christopher, Lailani, and Pegleg, who will compete for £100,000, which will be chosen by the people they ruthlessly removed.
Survivor concludes Saturday and Sunday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
