The Voice UK judges Jessie J, Danny O'Donoghue, Will.i.am and Tom Jones have failed to strike a chord with British viewers. Picture: Supplied Source: news.com.au
The Voice Australia is the biggest success story of the year. Picture: Channel Nine Source: Supplied
WHILE The Voice is this year's sure-fire Aussie TV hit -at least so far - its cousin in the UK has been branded a �22 million ($35.34m) disaster, with Kylie Minogue brought in to save it.
The Aussie superstar and Cheryl Cole are set to perform in the final two weeks in a desperate attempt to save The Voice from ratings ruin.
Despite the star talent of celebrity mentors Tom Jones, Jessie J, the Black Eyed Peas' Will.i.am and The Script frontman Danny O'Donoghue, the show is pulling in just 5.7 million viewers compared to the 11 million reached in earlier episodes.
BBC executives reportedly need an extra 3 million viewers for the final two shows to make the costly program a ?worthwhile investment?.
"There have been frantic calls and emails," a source told express.co.uk. "The BBC wanted a far edgier show."
The Aussie series, now in its seventh week, is currently the most watched on program our screens.
The new format combined with the chemistry between the coaches has made the show the number one program every night it has aired.
Viewers are said to have responded positively to the "mentorship" offered to the contestants rather than the critical commentary on rival shows like The X-Factor and Australia's Got Talent.
AGT has endured the poorest ratings in its six season history and been lambasted for its tired judging panel of Dannii Mingoue (who has fronted the show for all six seasons), Brian McFadden and Kyle Sandilands (on air for three seasons apiece).
Over in the UK, viewer numbers for The Voice dipped dramatically after the blind auditions and battle rounds, failing to hold viewer?s interest without the spinning chairs.
Audiences became more enthralled by Britain's Got Talent?s refreshed judging panel and the winning act Pudsey the dog.
The final of BGT was Britain?s most watched program of 2012 so far, with an average audience of 11.9 million people ? more than double The Voice?s 5.64 million that night.
Simon Cowell told the UK?s Radio Four the format of The Voice was a ?a rip-off? of his rival show The X-Factor.
"If you try and rip somebody off it always looks like a bad copy," Cowell said.
"[The Voice] puzzles me because it starts off by saying, 'right it's all about the voice', so my first thought is why is this not on radio? What's the point of looking at them?
"Then suddenly I'm watching it a week or two weeks ago and it's the same as X-Factor.
"They've got dancers behind them, they've got graphics, lights, same show."
In the US, Entertainmentwise reported NBC TV bosses were "banging their heads together" after the show slipped to the 20th most watched program despite the star power of Christina Aguilera, Cee-Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton.
While the show enjoyed ratings of between 16 and 17 million during its first week, the show suffered a 40 per cent audience drop by week seven. It continued to plateau around the eight to ten million mark before pulling in 11.6 million for the finale.
To put that figures in perspective, an episode of NCIS won the night with 17.8 million.
The Voice has also aired in countries such as Germany, The Netherlands, Finland, Poland, South Korea, Portugal and the Ukraine.
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