Third go for popular local show

Turns out Go Girls does not need its blond bombshell Anna Hutchison to keep rating or survive - the show has just been commissioned for a third series.

The TV2 comedy-drama was not immediately loved by critics when the first season screened last year. But now it would seem the North Shore crew is becoming part of the national psyche - much like the other South Pacific Pictures suburban hit, Outrageous Fortune.

Go Girls has seen huge audience growth this second season.

The head of TV One and TV2, Jeff Latch says it has consistently dominated its Thursday night time slot.

Last week it was the eighth most popular show in the 18-39 age bracket and ninth among those aged 18-54.

In the current season, the tight Go Girls foursome (three girls plus narrator Kevin, played by Jay Ryan) had had a shake-up with the departure of Amy (Hutchison).

Meanwhile, her old flame Brad (Matt Whelan) as well as her school buddy Olivia (Esther Stephens) have taken her place as core characters.

According to ratings figures supplied by TVNZ, the audience has responded positively to the change. The first five episodes averaged an audience of 342,580 viewers aged 5-plus, and the following two episodes averaged 408,100 viewers in the same bracket.

Go Girls also consistently features in the top 10 shows viewed via tvnz.co.nz

The show has won $6,702,000 in funding from NZ On Air for a further 13 episodes to screen in 2011.

A spokesperson for South Pacific Pictures says an American version of the series is still ticking along in the development stage.