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Viewers desert island reality show
This is LondonUpdated 11:39am on 13 Mar 2007
Viewing figures for the BBC1 reality show Castaway have plummeted.
The BBC has marooned 13 contestants on Great Barrier Island in New Zealand for the comeback show.
Seven years ago, in the original series, Castaways were sent to the Scottish Outer Hebrides for 12 months.
This time, the series is scheduled to broadcast on BBC1 and BBC3 for three months.
Contestants include an aspiring Conservative Party MP, a lap dancer and a recovering drug addict.
For the debut show on Friday, when the Castaways were introduced to viewers, an average of 4.1 million and a peak of 4.4 million viewers tuned in.
Last night, an average of 2.9 million and a peak of 3.3 million watched the second BBC1 show in the series, which featured a birthday party, a swim with dolphins and the decision to send one contestant to an isolation beach.
The BBC hopes to send a viewer to the island to join the Castaways later in the series. A BBC spokeswoman said: "The series got off to a good start. It's early days for the programme.
"There are some good characters there that we hope viewers will enjoy getting to know over the coming weeks."
