Commonwealth Games: Opening Ceremony peaks at 9.3 million
With the recent balmy weather keeping people away from their living rooms, last night saw the nation’s viewers once again crowd around their TVs, easily slipping back in to that World Cup-shaped groove on the sofa.
After being abandoned for the last few weeks, the Commonwealth Games: Opening Ceremony gave people the excuse to escape the long sunny evenings and once again return to gawp at their telly box while coming over all patriotic.
Kicking off at 8pm on BBC One, the coverage brought Gary Lineker’s reassuring face back to prime time, with the eccentric ceremony providing something for everybody.
Wednesday’s biggest audience tuned in to see an overabundance of garish tartan, an inflatable Loch Ness monster, oversized tea cakes, a life-sized Susan Boyle and more John Barrowman than anyone could ever wish for.
7.6 million viewers watched as the energetic entertainer defied 42 of the 53 Commonwealth countries where homosexuality is a crime by planting one on an equally enthusiastic dancer.
The whole heartfelt, but super kitsch, three hour and 45 minute affair divided many armchair pundits on Twitter, with the audience peaking around the 9:30pm mark with 9.3 million viewers.
Deciding to put her skydiving days behind her, the Queen instead arrived by the more traditional method of her trusty automobile, with her appearance helping secure an impressive 41% share.
Despite all the hoopla over on BBC One, ITV still managed to hold its head above water with All Star Mr & Mrs pulling in 2.7 million at 8pm. The relationship quiz show, which is full of famous faces (her off Loose Women and… some others) and their other halves, netted a 15% share.
There was a complete change of tone afterwards with Inside Death Row with Trevor McDonald (9pm). The repeat from January 2013 saw the veteran broadcaster go all the way to ‘Murica to chat with doomed criminals, netting 1.6 million viewers and a 7% share.
Over on Channel 4, Dawn O’Porter’s latest effort to stay relevant to her target market, This Old Thing: The Vintage Clothes Show (8pm), saw viewers fall slightly from last week to 621,000 and a 3% share.
Also affected was the usually impenetrable One Born Every Minute at 9pm. The latest maternity ward drama only managed to bring in 1.1 million viewers and a 5% share, down slightly from its usual average audience of 1.5 million.
At the same time BBC Two continued its journey down the proverbial rabbit hole in the second episode of The Fifteen Billion Pound Railway (9pm). This week’s adventure in mind-blowing engineering focused on the Crossrail project’s huge challenge to construct and enlarge existing Victorian tunnels under the river Thames.
Down by a whole 1 million viewers from last week’s opening episode, yesterday’s 60 minutes of underground drilling still brought in BBC Two’s biggest audience of the day with 1.5 million viewers and a 7% share.
Despite the BBC owning the evening, ITV scored its own success by securing the earlier teatime soap slot with Emmerdale dealing with the aftermath of the soap’s latest disastrous wedding at 7pm.
4.9 million viewers tuned in to see simple minded mechanic Dan Spencer learning that a successful wedding day really shouldn’t end up with most of the wedding party in a police cell. The latest slice of rural heartbreak brought in a 31% share.
Straight up afterwards, Coronation Street (ITV, 7:30pm) took Wednesday’s silver medal, as Gail continued to parade her restorative justice buddy, Michael, around like a new pet.
Yesterday’s action even went as far as showing the long suffering street resident hug Les Dennis’ petty thief character, with 5.8 million viewers and a 34% share tuning in.
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Overnight data is available each morning in mediatel.co.uk’s TV Database, with all BARB registered subscribers able to view reports for terrestrial networks and key multi-channel stations. Overnight data supplied by TRP are based on 15 minute slot averages. This may differ from tape checked figures, which are based on a programme’s actual start and end time.
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