Doctor Who’s first regeneration nets 2.2m for BBC Two
Thursday night saw the BBC’s Doctor Who anniversary celebrations properly kick off with An Adventure in Space and Time (BBC Two, 9pm) – Mark Gatiss’s love letter to a time gone by and the creation of the long running sci-fi phenomenon.
One of the last programmes to actually film in the BBC Television centre, the feature length drama was full of sly nod’s to the show’s legacy and the history of the Corporation. The touching story focused on the man who played the original Doctor, the belligerent stage actor William Hartnell – from his reluctance to front a ‘kiddies show’ up to the great despair he felt at being forcibly retied from his ‘irreplaceable’ role.
2.2 million viewers were there for the creation of the TARDIS in a dusty studio in 1963, with the tender trip back in time netting a 10% audience share. The Doctor’s very first adventure was the third most tweeted about show of the night, generating 18,799 tweets.
Time Lord or not, there are very few forces in the universe that can fight off the domineering might of watching a few z-list celebrities navel gazing as they verbally discharge drivel while (allegedly) trapped in the jungle.
Mercifully though, the fourth episode of the 13th series of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (ITV, 9pm) was only an hour long, with last night’s dignity busting duties once again tasked to camp simpleton Joey Essex.
The reality show star, who is now more hair product and spray tan than man, was again picked by the public to humiliate himself in order to secure food for the two united camps. Images of the cranium-challenged being forced to interact with underwater creatures while submerged won the day’s biggest audience, with the show netting 9.3 million viewers and a 39% share.
Elsewhere, the 9pm line up was littered with heavy-handed documentaries and news reports, just to counter-balance the jungle antics.
Channel 4’s prime time offering came in the gothic form of South London and Maudsley institution, as frightening documentary about mental health treatment, Bedlam (9pm), came to a close after four episodes.
Last night’s finale focused on a ward for the over 65s, with some psychiatric patients living perfectly normal lives until recently. 851,000 tuned in for the challenging hour of television, down from the opening episode’s 1.5 million viewers on Halloween night.
Disturbingly enough, for the second night in a row Channel 5 broadcast content dealing with the quest for an Aryan race. As you do.
Children of the Master Race (9pm) detailed the Nazis’ dabble in eugenics, which included kidnapping and secret birthing homes, with the documentary attracting 712,000 viewers.
BBC One was on hand to keep viewers from enjoying themselves too much by offering up a weighty alternative to the frothy light entertainment on ITV. Panorama at 9pm revealed details of Britain’s Secret Terror Force, an undercover squad that was tasked with combatting the IRA in the 1970s. 2.2 million viewers tuned in to hear the first-hand accounts of the clandestine activities, resulting in a 9% share.
But the terror force wasn’t the only of Britain’s secrets being uncovered last night – Britain’s Secret Drinkers: Tonight (ITV, 7:30pm) was watched by 3.3 million viewers, while Britain’s Secret Treasures (ITV, 8:30pm) managed to secure 2.7 million viewers an hour later.
Earlier on in the evening, EastEnders (BBC One, 7:30pm) was denied a weekly moment of glory by the success of Ant and Dec’s jungle joviality. It was business as usual in Walford, with a sprinkle of heartbreak, a dash of betrayal and a liberal heap of mockney aggression helping to bring in 7.3 million viewers and a 34% share.
Flanking the London soap on both sides was a double dollop of rural drama in Emmerdale (ITV, 7pm and 8pm). Thursday’s drama introduced new Vicar on the block, Harriet, who may or may not get into a complicated and messy relationship with unstable ex-Vicar Sandy (my money’s on the former).
The Yorkshire soap easily secured the day’s third and fourth biggest audience with 6.8 and 6.4 million viewers, respectively, tuning in to see the prodigal spiritual leader (let’s face it – the village really, really needs one) meet his match.
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