It was the public broadcaster’s first foray into ‘slow TV’ and divided viewers online.
But, like it or not, The Ghan is coming back for one more ride, with SBS airing the full 17-hour train ride over the weekend.
The taxpayer-funded network will show the full journey from Adelaide to Darwin, starting at 2.40am on Sunday and ending at 8.30pm that night.
The Ghan is back! SBS production dubbed ‘TV’s most boring show’ returns to screens to air 17 hour TRAIN RIDE
Bringing in 436,000 metro viewers, The Ghan was SBS’s highest rating show in the past 12 months, the Guardian Australia reported.
Unlike the three hour special which aired last Sunday, the uncondensed version will include intermittent commercial breaks.
The long version of the 2979 kilometre journey will only omit night time travel to avoid showing a black screen.
Sleeper hit: Bringing in 436,000 metro viewers, The Ghan was SBS’ highest rating show in the past 12 months
‘Kim Kardashian take note’: Fans of the show took to Twitter to welcome the news That The Ghan would be pulling into station for one more ride
Plans locked in: ‘Well, that’s my weekend sorted,’ another wrote
Fans of the show took to Twitter to welcome the news That The Ghan would be pulling into station for one more ride.
‘This just keeps getting better. 17 hours! @KimKardashian take not. Reality tv has a new queen, and her name is #TheGhan,’ one enthusiastic viewer tweeted.
‘Well, that’s my weekend sorted,’ another wrote, with another viewer adding in agreement: ‘Anyway. Watching #theGhan again.’
But others questioned whether airing a 17 hour train ride was necessary.
‘Anyway. Watching #theGhan again’: Another person signed up for the train ride
‘Ain’t nobody got time for that!’ But others questioned whether airing a 17 hour train ride was necessary
One person tweeted: ‘I was surprised that I liked the 3hrs of #TheGhan on Sunday night… but 17 hours of it? Ain’t nobody got time for that!’
Last Sunday night, the three-hour special highlighting the famous Australian train journey from Adelaide to Darwin was broadcast with no commercial breaks.
The show divided viewers, with some taking to social media to criticise the show as ‘boring’ and like ‘watching paint dry’.
‘Boring, boring, boring’: SBS’s ‘slow TV’ experiment The Ghan has divided viewers, with some taking to social media to criticise the show as ‘boring’ and like ‘watching paint dry’
The special program marks SBS’s first foray into ‘slow TV’: hours-long coverage of an everyday event with minimal talking intended to relax the viewer.
While the format may be popular in Scandinavian countries, The Ghan left viewers divided on social media.
Some viewers praised the show for being ‘relaxing’ and having fantastic cinematography, but others were less taken with the concept.
That’s different! The program marks SBS’ first foray into ‘slow TV’: hours-long coverage of an everyday event with minimal talking meant to relax the viewer
Not happy! One viewer said the show turned them off taking the trip, explaining: ‘Extremely disappointed, boring, boring, boring. We were contemplating going… but not now!’
‘Like watching paint dry. Was thinking of taking the trip till I watched this,’ one viewer wrote on Facebook.
‘I watched it and was almost numbed into sleep,’ another person commented. ‘I hope this was not funded by government/taxpayer.’
‘Absolute rubbish. I switched off after about 15 minutes,’ wrote another viewer.
‘So slow and monotonous. I was really looking forward to watching it as 1) I love trains and train shows. 2.)I am contemplating a trip on the train sometime.’
‘It was almost perfect!’ Meanwhile, other viewers praised the unique show, saying they were taken aback by how much they enjoyed it
Experiment: While the ‘slow TV’ format is popular in Scandinavian countries, The Ghan left viewers divided on social media
One person said the show had turned them off taking the trip.
They wrote: ‘Extremely disappointed, boring, boring, boring. We were contemplating going on The Ghan but not now !’
Meanwhile, other viewers praised the unique show, saying they were taken aback by how much they enjoyed it.
‘Just think, not one pseudo celebrity, no renovation, no ruling kitchens, not a chef in sight, no politicians… it was almost perfect,’ wrote a Facebook user.
‘Numbed into sleep’: One person remarked that it had almost lulled them into sleep
Respectable ratings: Despite the divided social media reaction, The Ghan was Sunday night’s 12th highest rated show with 436,000 metro viewers
‘There were yawn moments but that’s with every show. Loved it.’
Another tweeted: ‘@SBS Congratulations on exquisite work on #TheGhan Amazing planning, research, education, footage and riveting tele!’
Despite the divided social media reaction, The Ghan was Sunday night’s 12th highest rated show with 436,000 metro viewers.
Praise: One supporter tweeted: ‘@SBS Congratulations on exquisite work on #TheGhan Amazing planning, research, education, footage and riveting tele!’