8.3 million viewers for debut episode
A new nine-part Viking series, that features a local man, achieved the top cable debut rating of the year in the US when it was aired last week. Brian McCann, from Bay Estate, who plays the role of a viking, says that he was surprised at the ratings.
Last weekend, Vikings scored 8.3 million viewers, making it the number one new cable series launch of the year among total viewers in the US and adults aged 25-54.
“I was surprised when I found out the figures,” said Brian while speaking to The Dundalk Democrat this week. “I didn’t think that it would be this big in the US.
“There was a E30 million budget for the series, so the producers had researched that there was a market for the series in the US.”
The series, set in Norway, was filmed in Wicklow and sites in Glendalough. Brian, who is a second-year creative media student in the DKIT, was amazed at the production.
“Having worked on the set, it’s amazing to see the end result,” said Brian, “Irish people would clearly know that was filmed in Glendalough, but they have done so much to transform the scene.
“It was great to see the actual set of a production and how it is all produced.
Viewers will have to wait until episode five to see the Dundalk man in action, although it will be worth the wait,
“People think they know the Vikings but the reality is more complex. We knew our audience had an appetite for this unexpected storytelling and it was a big bet that paid off,” said Nancy Dubuc, President, Entertainment and Media, A+E Networks.
Vikings will mark the first scripted series for The History Channel, and follows real-life figures such as Haraldson and Ragnar Lothbrok, who is known as a young descendant of the gods, played by Australian actor Travis Fimmel (Tarzan). As an Irish air date for the series is yet to be confirmed, anxious fans can download the episodes by going to the History Channel website.
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Thursday 23 May 2013
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