The RIBA has announced that this year’s Stirling Prize will be shown on BBC Two’s The Culture Show, after viewing figures dipped to an all time low on Channel 4 last year.
The awards ceremony will continue to be hosted by Kevin McCloud but will be shown in an earlier slot, airing from 6.30 pm on Saturday October 2 live from London’s Roundhouse.
Only 500,000 viewers tuned to watch Rogers Stirk Harbour’s Maggies Center win the Stirling Prize live on Channel 4 last October, falling from 1.2 million in 2004.
The show was broadcast between 8pm-9pm and the RIBA blamed the low viewing figures on a clash with the X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing. But the figures prompted calls from the architectural community to rethink the format of the show, which has been broadcast on national television for ten years.
RIBA president Ruth Reed described the new union between the RIBA and the BBC as “fantastic”. Mark Bell, the BBC’s commissioning editor for art, said: “As part of the BBC’s commitment to the arts we’re delighted to be shining the light on the very best in British architecture. The Culture Show, which reflects the best of the cultural landscape, is the perfect vehicle for delivering a strong live programme about architecture.”
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