Turns out TV and prison have one thing in common: no one likes solitary.

For the suburban women 35-55 who make up Wentworth’s heartland, each episode is best enjoyed with a group.

A clear pattern emerged mapping social tagging with viewing data. If just one or two fans waited to binge it stifled the excitement of the entire group as they waited for them to catch up.

We couldn’t afford to lose a single fan. Watching Wentworth demanded company, and we found the perfect companion inside Wentworth prison.

Working with Foxtel we created an entirely new character within the plot.

Our character was an anonymous ‘prison rat’ who could smuggle out secrets, prison gossip and exclusive content. She would become a conduit, confidant and co-conspirator for every scene – and you’d only get the goss if you watched live.

We launched with leaked footage of the prison governor refusing to comment on the Rat’s existence. Fan group activity increased 300% and as theories became increasingly deranged we launched the Messenger experience.

Every interaction was high-stakes, as the Rat frantically tried to respond to fan questions between cell searches. This was more than a chatbot. She was a new character with eyes and ears inside your favourite show: smuggling footage only an insider could take and trusting you with her life.

Before each episode cryptic messages would appear. During each episode she shared reactions to what was happening on the screen – creating an entirely new way to watch TV.

As guards began their nightly cell search she’d go dark and our companion programme ‘The Interrogation Room’ would start streaming on Facebook. After every episode the show’s stars debated the Rat’s identity and added fuel to the fire.

Our new character changed the way fans watched TV. Wentworth took the No.1 spot every single week it was on air.

Our Messenger innovation set a new standard for the platform with over 2.2M interactions. That’s real fans talking directly to the rat every week. For context, the average episode of the previous season attracted close to 100,000 viewers.

Through our character we compelled fans to watch live – and they did so every week in record numbers. We retained 79% of viewers between each episode, surpassing our previous season figures despite 50% less budget.

The average fan spent 1hr 9mins talking to the rat: the equivalent of an entire new episode engaging with our new character. 95% of those fans talked to the Rat throughout the entire season.

Our innovative use of media has created a new strategy for promoting broadcast in the era of on-demand.