A 3 hour edited "highlights" of a "slow TV" video (with sound) from a camera mounted on the front of a locomotive brings in over 400,000 viewers on an Australian TV channel. The locomotive pulled "The Ghan" passenger train from Adelaide across the continent on a South to North run ending in Darwin 54 hours later. The video was shown without ad breaks.
This was followed up yesterday (Sunday) with a longer 17 hour version that ran from 02:30 to 19:30, again without ad breaks. This showed only the daylight segments of the trip although some viewers did ring in to complain about the missing night scenes. There are reports of many people who watched the entire 17 hours and one family who arranged their lounge room like a first class carriage on the train complete with dining car for meals.
I am a train buff and have travelled on "The Ghan" (the real trip not the reality TV trip), but I think that this probably says something - but exactly what I am not sure.
Some of the comments that came in on talk-back radio the next day were interesting.
"A video of grass growing would have been faster and more interesting" - obviously not a train fan.
"What about the Indian-Pacific next" - obviously a dedicated train fan because that trip takes 65 hours
"We have had a slow TV show like this for decades - its called 'Test Cricket'" - for those who don't know a Test Cricket game (between countries) can go for 7 hours a day for 5 days and, IMHO, is probably the most boring thing ever shown on TV.
This was followed up yesterday (Sunday) with a longer 17 hour version that ran from 02:30 to 19:30, again without ad breaks. This showed only the daylight segments of the trip although some viewers did ring in to complain about the missing night scenes. There are reports of many people who watched the entire 17 hours and one family who arranged their lounge room like a first class carriage on the train complete with dining car for meals.
I am a train buff and have travelled on "The Ghan" (the real trip not the reality TV trip), but I think that this probably says something - but exactly what I am not sure.
Some of the comments that came in on talk-back radio the next day were interesting.
"A video of grass growing would have been faster and more interesting" - obviously not a train fan.
"What about the Indian-Pacific next" - obviously a dedicated train fan because that trip takes 65 hours
"We have had a slow TV show like this for decades - its called 'Test Cricket'" - for those who don't know a Test Cricket game (between countries) can go for 7 hours a day for 5 days and, IMHO, is probably the most boring thing ever shown on TV.