Third series (2005)
The third series of Australian Idol debuted on July 26, 2005. It was won by Kate DeAraugo. The first of three semi-finals was held on August 16, 2005 with three of the Final 12 contenders announced the following night on August 17, 2005. The replacement judge to Dicko was 2Day FM radio host Kyle Sandilands.
The second semi-final of the series was held on August 21, 2005 and the third on August 28, 2005.
Although averaging around the 1.5 million viewer mark, ratings are down on the latest series compared to the first two, which regulary drew more than 2.5 million viewers during the latter half of the competition. This is a serious situation for Ten, which airs three Australian Idol shows every week, and has forced them to give away free commercial airtime to program sponsors expecting higher ratings. Commentators have theorise over the reasons why this has occured, ranging from the viewing public being tired of the format to Sandilands replacing the popular Dickson. Controversy also surrounded Australian Idol: Live Verdict show running up to fifteen minutes overtime.
For the first time in Australian Idol history there were 13 finalists. This came about during the Wildcard Verdict show on September 5, 2005. The judges initally choose James Kannis and Emily Williams to go through to the final. This left one spot which was chosen by the Australian public. Out of the remaining contestants the two that received the highest votes were Dan Spillane and Roxane Lebrasse. With only 1% between them, Dan was announced as the final member of the Top 12. This meant Roxane had missed out yet again. The judges decided however that Roxane was too good to be left out of the Top 12 so they made it a Top 13. That catch was that two contestants were eliminated in the first round of the finals.
Finalists including dates of elimination
Season 3 (2005)
Kate DeAraugo Winner
Emily Williams 21 November
Lee Harding 14 November
Dan England 7 November
Daniel Spillane 31 October
Anne Robertson 24 October
James Kannis 17 October
Milly Edwards 10 October
Roxane Lebrasse 3 October
Laura Gissara 26 September
Natalie Zahra 19 September
Chris Luder 12 September
Tarni Stephens 12 September
