Has Friends peaked? RTE's relentless plugging of the first episode in the new series of the US sitcom, which aired last Monday, doesn't seem to have halted the onset of Friends fatigue.

Compared with last year, viewing figures are noticeably down. This year, only 19 per cent of 15- to 34-year-olds tuned in for the first episode in the series as compared with 28 per cent last year. Media planners will be tracking the Bailey's-sponsored series, watching for further dips, but the general perception is that any programme that delivers that elusive age group in any quantity at all is still worth buying into.