Survivors – all six series one episodes available on iTunes

All six episodes of the first series of the new Survivors are now available for digital download from the iTunes shop.

Individual episodes cost £1.89 to download, or £11.34 for all six. (To use the service, you will need to download the free iTunes client and register an iTunes account).

Survivors - available for purchase on iTunes

Last day of series stacker iPlayer option for Survivors series one

Access to all six episodes of the first series of Survivors on the BBC’s iPlayer service will cease at 9:29pm on Tuesday 30 December, when the ’series stacker’ option for the programme comes to an end.

The series one DVD will be released for sale on 26 January 2009.

(2 January update: Although all Survivors episodes have now been withdrawn from the main iPlayer, episode six is still available from the BBC Survivors mini-site until 5 January. This version is the one with in-screen sign-language).

New series DVD – new release date and special features listed

The release date for the three-disc DVD of the first series of the new Survivors (which was previously announced as 5 January) has now been confirmed as 26 January 2009.

The release is listed for pre-order on Amazon; the BBC shop, and on other online retailers. The listed price is £29.99, though several retailers are discounting this to less than £18.00 (for pre-order).

The (unconfirmed) list of ’special features’ on the release are as follows:

• Making of Survivors
• Character Profiles
• Survivors Special Effects Featurette
• Easter Egg

Pennant Roberts, original series director, rates the new Survivors

*** EXCLUSIVE *** Pennant Roberts, who directed numerous episodes of the first and second series of the original Survivors – including the classic opening episode The Fourth Horseman – shares with this blog his initial reaction to viewing the first two episodes of the remake:

“on the whole I enjoyed watching the first episode. Remakes often have a chequered history, but writer Adrian Hodges never permitted his audience to lose the plot. Terry Nation’s storyline was faithfully reproduced, even some of his actual lines recycled. The timing of the remake appears perfect. We find ourselves challenging ‘difficult times’ once more, as Gordon Brown is so fond of saying. What a relief! Things could be far, far worse for us all.

I didn’t enjoy the second episode as much, because it contained more of Terry Nation’s bish-bash-bosh philosophising, which thankfully I was able to avoid first time around. Nevertheless, I’ll be watching the new series to the bittersweet end.”

Pennant Roberts, 28 November 2008

Viewing figures down for Survivors second episode – but still solid

Viewing figures for the second episode of Survivors are reported to have been around 5.3 million (a 22% audience share) – down on the 6.5 million audience (a 26% share) for the pilot episode according to “unofficial, overnight” figures. The strong showing for the opening episode was recognised as an “excellent performance” by viewing figures service Attentional; and such a fall-off in numbers (although not welcome) is far from atypical for drama series of all kinds.

This dip still left Survivors as the most popular programme for the 21:00 slot; and saw the show hold its own against significant competition from live football on ITV.

More reviews of Survivors episodes one and two

More reviews of (one or both of) the first two episodes of Survivors have been published: Den of Geek – episode one and two site; Quiet Earth – episode one; Quiet Earth – episode two; Digital Spy – episode two; Dreamwatch – Total SciFi – episode one; Dreamwatch – Total SciFi – episode two.

Comment on episode two was also published in Guardian (25 November); and Guardian (28 November).

Episode two – preview video online

A one-minute-and-a-bit preview video for episode two has been added to the BBC Survivors web site (see screengrab below).

Episode two preview

A review of this episode will be added to the blog later this week.

TV guides promote Sunday’s first episode of Survivors

All of the main (and most of the minor) highstreet TV listings magazines (which are published today) feature promotional materials on Survivors ahead of the transmission of the first two episodes of the new series next week.

The features on offer include:

• Radio Times: ‘Fight to Survive’, (pp.20-24)
• Total TV Guide: ‘Grave new world’, (pp.4-5)
• TV & Satellite Week: ‘Survival of the fittest’, (pp.12-13)
• TV Choice: ‘Survival of the Fittest’, (pp.6-7)
• TV Easy: ‘Deadly drama!’, (p.5)
• TV Quick: ‘It’s the end of the world’, (pp.16-17)
• TV Times: ‘Life after death’, (pp.16-17)
• What’s On TV: ‘Killer Virus’, (p.15)

Total TV Guide is the only magazine to feature Survivors as its main cover photo.

Total TV Guide, 22-28 November 2008

Radio Times – Survivors features, but not as the cover shot

The new Radio Times (for week beginning 22 November) includes an illustrated feature on the new Survivors – although the programme has lost out as the main cover feature to the David Tennant-starring Einstein and Eddington drama.

Radio Times, 22 November 2008