7.6 Million Adults Tune In To Prime Suspect Farewell

The final ever Prime Suspect, starring Helen Mirren as the alcoholic DSI Jane Tennison, lured an average of 7.6 million adults to ITV1 last night, taking a 36.5% viewing share between 9pm and 11pm.

Prior to the long-running police drama, the final episode in the series of Heartbeat spin-off The Royal also proved a hit for ITV1. The programme was watched by an average of 6.7 million adults, indicating a 30% audience share.

The F1 Brazilian Grand Prix Live, Michael Schumacher’s career finale, gave the broadcaster a 25% viewing share between 5pm and 8pm, with 4.6 million adults on average tuning in to the action.

The dramatisation of Jean Rhys’s novel Wide Sargasso Sea, which focuses on the life of the first wife of Jane Eyre‘s Mr Rochester, took 2.3 million adult viewers before the News and 2.1 million after the News (around a 10% viewing share) during Prime Suspect.

Channel 4’s best performing programme of the evening came in the shape of fantasy adventure film The League Of Extraordinary Gentleman, starring Sean Connery. The movie took an 11% viewing share, being seen by 2.6 million adults on average.

Meanwhile on BBC Three, Doctor Who spin-off, Torchwood, broke all records for drama programming on a digital channel. The first episode was watched by 2.4 million viewers (a 12.7% viewing share) and the second episode took 2.3 million (13.8%).

These figures have only previously been beaten on the digital platform by football programming, with a match between Manchester United and Arsenal pulling in 2.7 million in 2004 on Sky Sports. A World Cup qualifying match in 2003 between England and Turkey, also on Sky Sports, picked up 2.4 million.

ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com BBC: 020 8743 8000 www.bbc.co.uk Channel 4: 020 7396 4444 www.channel4.com