TV Overnights: Murderland ends on a high of 5.9 million viewers

ITV1’s latest crime series Murderland finished on a high of almost 6 million viewers during the all-important 9pm to 10pm peak hour last night.

The Robbie Coltrane drama pulled in more than 5.5 million average viewers and a 22% audience share, securing the top spot ahead of competition from BBC One’s Life and Five’s FlashForward.

The fourth episode in BBC One’s new ten-part David Attenborough nature series Life attracted a million less average viewers than its ITV1 peak-hour rival and settled on a 18.1% audience share during the 9pm to 10pm slot.

Five’s ever-popular series FlashFoward, meanwhile, came in third place with 2.7 million average viewers and a 10.8% audience share.

However, BBC Two’s new fact-based drama starring Brendan Gleeson and Iain Glen, Into the Storm, didn’t come far behind with 2.4 million average viewers and a 9.8% audience share.

The feature-length programme recalls the events of World War Two, looking at Winston Churchill’s life in power, as well as his health and marriage during the 1945 General Election.

Channel 4’s also aired a new war-time show during the peak-hour last night.  The Great Escape: The Reckoning, a documentary following the investigations into the murders of 50 Allied Airmen by the Gestapo in 1944, picked up 1.3 million average viewers and a 5.2% audience share between 9pm and 10pm.

Earlier on in the evening, ITV1’s Coronation Street beat BBC One’s Eastenders to the top soap spot with a high of more than 10.4 million viewers compared to BBC One’s 9.5 million.

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.