TV Viewing Round-Up: August 2012

Last month there was a lot about the Olympics… and it’s more of the same for August.

The top programmes chart is unsurprisingly dominated by the various sporting events from Stratford and beyond, with the top spot going to the Olympics 2012: Closing Ceremony.

24.5 million viewers saw an assortment of great and not so great musical acts performing/butchering songs from the past 50 years of British chart music.

The next most-watched programme was the Sunday evening session on 5 August, which featured the men’s 100 meters final. Usain Bolt’s 9.63 second winning run helped BBC One to gain an average audience of 14.3 million for the duration of the three hour programme (with a reported peak of over 20 million for the actual race).

Super Saturday, which saw Britain win an impressive three Olympic track gold medals in the space of 45 minutes, saw 12.4 million viewers watch the crowning glory for Jessica Ennis, Greg Rutherford and Mo Farrah.

There was also a sizeable audience for the previous day’s coverage of Ennis in the first day of heptathlon action, with 9.4 million watching her 200 meters heat.

Usain Bolt’s second gold medal winning performance in 200 meters final was part of a Thursday night line-up on 9 August that pulled in just under 9.4 million sporting fans.

Andy Murray’s demolition of seven-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer was seen by 7.8 million viewers, while Mo Farrah’s 5000 meters final victory pulled in 9.2 million; British Omnium success in the Velodrome attracted 8.7 million and the women’s 100 meters freestyle swimming final had 7.6 million viewers.

Even Channel 4 managed to bask in the feel good factor around London 2012, with their coverage of the Paralympics kicking off with a bumper audience.

The Paralympics 2012: Opening Ceremony was watched by impressive average audience of 7.8 million, helping the UK’s second biggest commercial channel to one of its biggest ratings in a decade.

Away from the Olympics there were only two programmes that didn’t have any related ratings boost due to the event in East London. The return of the former rating juggernaut The X Factor kicked off the latest series with 9.6 million viewers for ITV1, down from 12.2 million who tuned in for last year’s opening show. Elsewhere, the returning New Tricks managed to hold the attention of 8.5 million crime show fans.

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