“DESPITE THE BACKLASH, THE NUMBERS TELL A VERY DIFFERENT STORY.” 👑📺 — MEGHAN MARKLE’S MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA EPISODE HAS JUST BROKEN A MAJOR VIEWERSHIP RECORD Meghan Markle’s guest appearance on MasterChef Australia has become one of the show’s biggest successes in recent years, drawing a record-breaking audience despite days of online controversy. The episode reportedly delivered the largest overnight Sunday audience since 2023 and the biggest streaming audience in the program’s history, while also outperforming the same episode from last year. The milestone comes as sources close to the Duchess strongly deny reports of behind-the-scenes tension, insisting she had an “incredible” experience with the cast and crew. But the impressive ratings are now shifting attention away from the headlines—and toward one question: did the controversy actually make more people tune in?

Meghan Markle’s episode on MasterChef Australia has hit a new record just as sources close to her dismissed reports of any type of drama while on set. The Duchess of Sussex appeared as a guest judge on the 18th season of the cooking show on Sunday, when contestants were challenged to transform a staple ingredient into a dish “fit for a duchess”.

She appeared alongside MasterChef Australia judges Poh Ling Yeow, Sofia Levin and Jean-Christophe Novelli. The latest episode’s rankings have been released and the results are quite telling. Sunday’s MasterChef Australia episode reached a total of 1.6million Total TV viewers.

It broke the record for the biggest overnight Sunsay audience since July 2023 and the biggest-ever overnight streaming audience, at 118,000 viewers, according to figures released by broadcaster Network 10.

It also topped the seven-day Total Viewing audience with 1.22million national viewers.

Meghan’s episode saw a 16% increase in its national Total TV audience compared with the same episode last year.

Total TV is a special metric used in Australia to measure viewing across screens and combines traditional linear broadcast television with digital broadcast video-on-demand (BVOD) viewing.

Channel Seven’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow came first with a total of 2.5million Total TV viewers and Channel Nine’s Lego Masters reached 1.7million viewers.

It comes amid negative reports involving the duchess’s appearance on set.

Recent reports claimed the Duchess was involved in a tense moment with Ms Yeow after she was announced as “royalty” at the beginning of the episode.

Meanwhile, another report by celebrity journalist Rob Shuter claimed that production insiders said Meghan’s appearance left the cast and crew “exhausted”.

They described the duchess as “one of the most demanding celebrity guests the long-running series has ever hosted”.

But sources close to the Duchess dismissed the claims and said they are “false,” telling the Daily Express that Meghan had an “incredible” time with all those involved, including the judges, contestants and crew. They stressed that there were “no issues”.

They also further dismissed the latest reports, saying that “everything was so positive”.

It is understood that Network 10 has been pleased with Meghan’s appearance.

SOURCE: EXPRESS