Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities Highest Rated Launch Ever

Written by :

Alistair Prescott

Published on :

10 February, 2009

With a peak audience in excess 2.8 million, UNDERBELLY: A TALE OF TWO CITIES is Australia's most successful television program launch ever, attracting an average 2.584 million across the first hour.

The second half of the two-hour premiere was just as popular with viewers, attracting a peak of 2.71 million across the 5 City Metro and averaging 2.419 million (Total People). Including regional Australia, UNDERBELLY: A TALE OF TWO CITIES scored a national peak of 3.928 million and an average of 3.494 million. UNDERBELLY: A TALE OF TWO CITIES - based on real events from 1976-1986 - tells the story of how two men ‘Aussie' Bob Trimbole (Roy Billing) and ‘Kiwi' Terry Clark (Matthew Newton) changed the face of organised crime in Australia.

UNDERBELLY: A TALE OF TWO CITIES continues Monday, February 16 at 8.30pm, as the young and naïve Allison Dine (Anna Hutchison) enters the alluring and dangerous world of Terry Clark and a cleanskin cop is shocked to discover the extent of corruption in the NSW police force. The mini-series is a prequel to the 2008 mini-series Underbelly, which was about the Melbourne gangland killings.

From the moment the first Underbelly series enthralled, stunned and impressed, the question of a second series was not IF but WHEN, writes Michael Idato of the Sydney Herald Morning News.

"Developed in a quarter of the time as the original, Underbelly: A Tale Of Two Cities is every ounce as brilliant. What is more, fraught with the usual risks that words such as "sequel" or "prequel" entail, it succeeds against the odds."

For online gamblers, the show could offer up opportunities as well, points out Payton O'Brien of Gambling911.com.

"Whether it's ratings odds or story line odds, shows of this magnitude tend to attract attention of the oddsmakers, especially those with keen business interests in Australia," she says.

The popular American cable series, The Sopranos, attracted plenty of betting opportunities even though the show was pretaped.

"The first hit of the season was always a popular bet and the producers and cast tended to do a respectable job of keeping this information under wraps," O'Brien explains.

Advertisement: Claim you $1000 free cash bonus at Golden Lounge Casino - Australian players always welcome.

Alistair Prescott, Gambling911.com

Australia

Entertainment

Television

Melbourne Cup Odds - Why It's Harder To Pick a Winner

Out of all the thousands of thoroughbred horse races run around Australia each year, the Melbourne Cup is notoriously one of the hardest races to pick a winner in.

Gambling in Australia and New Zealand in 2019

Australasia neighbours Australia and New Zealand share a common love when it comes to gambling. Australia in fact boasts the highest gambling rates in the world with more than 80% of the populace engaging in some form of gambling. Yet in terms of legality, the two nations differ slightly:

Ladbrokes – Behind in Betting and Behind in Gaming?

As noted previously, the move of Ladbrokes into the Australian sports betting market was seen by many as being too little, too late, with many of their biggest name competitors having already entered the market and having made huge investments to solidify their position among bettors.

Ladbrokes to End Live Betting in Australia – Are They Behind the Times?

Bookmaker Ladbrokes has announced that live betting through its platform will cease to be available in response to local laws – we analyse their position.