We asked and they answered. Broadcast experts in the French-speaking market talk about the best bets on TV in Montreal. This is the second in a two-part series that examines which shows will net the most eyeballs at 8 and 9 p.m.
*N.B. Because of constant, up-to-the-minute changes to the nets’ fall lineups in Montreal, there’s much dissent among our broadcast pundits’ opinions as to which of their programming grids is the most up to date. The opinions below are based on each person’s version of the grid.
On Wednesdays at 8 p.m. the prediction is this: ‘Les poupées russes is a new show [on TVA] and I think it will win,’ says Marie-Josée Dionne of Marketel.
Plus she adds: ‘Star Academie [on TVA] is coming back. It will be on Mondays to Thursdays from 7:30 to 8 p.m. And in the first season, in the fall of 2003, there were close to three million people watching the gala show every Sunday when they sing.’
About the Wednesday at 8 p.m. slot, Line Contant of Allard Johnson says: ‘It will be Les poupées russes against L’auberge du chien noir [on R-C]. Both are dramas and this is a new timeslot for L’auberge. So it will be interesting to see which one will win.’ Her prediction? Les poupées russes.
At 9 p.m., Contant says: ‘Transformation extreme [on TVA] is up against Les Invincibles [on R-C]. I think Transformation will win because Les Invincibles is new and they still have to get their audience. People don’t have to ‘follow’ Transformation.’
Marie-Josée Dionne of Marketel disagrees. ‘Les Invincibles is a new show and I think it’s going to be good. This is the story about four guys who leave their girlfriends at the same time. They’re cute guys and I think this show will attract a lot of young people around 18-34.’
Carol Cummings of the Media Experts believes that ‘it’s a TVA/SRC split at this timeslot. Les Invincibles should do very well for [SRC] but Les poupées has a lot of loyal fans so it will be hard to take them away.’
On Thursdays at 8 p.m., Cummings says R-C’s Les missions de Patrice ‘will take the timeslot because [the host] is very popular.’ Both Contant and Dionne agree. Les missions de Patrice is the winner.
At 9 p.m. Cummings believes that TVA’s Camera Café and Hommes quarant will be very popular. However, both Contant and Dionne predict that R-C’s Match des etoiles will win. ‘People like to watch stars do different things,’ says Dionne of the show that is the francophone answer to Dancing with the Stars.
For Friday night’s lineup, Cummings is clear. With the exception of 8 p.m., ‘TVA will take the whole night.’
The 8 p.m. slot belongs to [R-C’s] Janette, according to all. ‘Janette Bertrand is an icon in Quebec,’ says Contant. ‘She’s like the Barbara Walters of the francophone world,’ adds Dionne. ‘And she hasn’t been on in a while so it should [spark] curiosity.’
And as for Friday at 9, another icon of Quebec shall reign, predict the pundits: TVA’s Claire Lamarche.
‘Claire Lamarche for sure,’ gushes Dionne. ‘She’s back this year and she always wins TV personality of the year. This is like an Oprah show.’
