Bachelor in Paradise premiere is beaten by Big Brother in the ratings

After going head to head in the ratings on Wednesday night, Big Brother has still come out on top, beating the much-anticipated Bachelor in Paradise premiere. 

Channel Seven’s revamped reality show pulled in 711,000 metro viewers and came in at number seven overall and first in its time slot. 

Meanwhile Channel Ten’s Bachelor in Paradise came in at 17th place overall, scoring 507,000 metro viewers.  

While the ratings aren’t bad, these numbers mark Bachelor in Paradise’s lowest viewership yet for a premiere episode.  

The season one premiere drew in 750,000 viewers, while season two saw a drop, with just 553,000 tuning in.  

Last week, Channel Seven reshuffled its schedule so that Big Brother was in direct competition with the launch of Paradise’s third season. 

And the move appears to have worked, with the reality series winning its time slot in the 25-54 age demographic. 

Both shows target a younger demographic, but Seven did have the advantage of having been on air for several weeks, allowing them to develop a regular fan base. 

By contrast, Wednesday night’s episode was the first time Bachelor in Paradise has been on the screens for over a year.  

Meanwhile, Channel 10 is also expecting decent ratings when The Bachelor returns for its eighth season in August.

Fans are no doubt thrilled to see former Australian Survivor star Locklan ‘Locky’ Gilbert make his debut as the titular suitor.

Seven has exciting launches in the pipeline too, with the reboot of Farmer Wants a Wife returning later this month.