GORDON Ramsay’s second big TV show on the BBC1, Future Food Stars, has flopped in the ratings.
The debut of his cookery contest was watched by a peak of just 1.9m viewers, and at one point more people were tuning in to watch a BBC2 documentary helping people to get to sleep.
It comes after his first show with corporation, gameshow Bank Balance, also rated badly last year and was pulled after just one series.
A TV insider said: “This will be a huge disappointment for Gordon who has built his fame on the back of cookery shows.
“Viewers might have understood why a gameshow format might not have suited a chef, but the fact that a foodie show hasn’t fared well will be a mystery.”
Thursday night’s first episode of FFS aired at 9pm, but just 25 minutes in and more viewers were watching science show Horizon looking at curing insomnia.
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The eight part cookery show follows a similar format to Lord Sugar’s The Apprentice, with foodie entrepreneurs completing a series of tasks with the aim of winning a £150,000 investment from Gordon.
It kicked off with the chef arriving by helicopter off the coast of Newquay, Cornwall, before diving into the sea and swimming onto the beach to meet the 12 contestants.
He then asked them to jump off a cliff to test their mettle.
Before FFS launched he said: “Watching these people handle pressure is fascinating. I took those challenges very seriously. Businesses need to be adaptable.
“I’ve failed in business before, I’ve made mistakes but I’ve been smart enough not to make the same mistakes twice.”
A spokeswoman for Gordon said: “Overall Future Food Stars was the most watched programme, and had the highest audience share, in the 9pm to 10pm timeslot. Out of all programmes shown on Thursday, it was the second most watched show by young audiences, which is incredibly important to us.”
