TV Overnights: Secret Britain secures highest ratings over peak hour

BBC One’s Secret Britain managed to secure the biggest audience over the peak hour of 9pm to 10pm last night, with 5.1 million viewers and a 20.5% share.

ITV1’s U Be Dead, airing from 9pm to 11pm, was close behind with an average of just over 5 million viewers and a 22.9% share, peaking at an audience of 5.7 million.

Elsewhere, Channel 4’s Ultimate Big Brother attracted 2.3 million viewers and a 9.4% share, while BBC Two’s Grumpy Old Schooldays secured 1.5 million viewers and a 6.2%.

Close behind, Five’s film The Pursuit of Happyness (airing from 8pm to 10.20pm) managed an average audience of 1.5 million and an average share of 6.1%.

Earlier in the evening, ITV1 won the highest ratings from 7pm to 9pm, with Coronation Street (7pm to 8pm) securing 6.8 million viewers and a 29% share, and Heartbeat (8pm to 9pm) attracting 5.7 million viewers and a 22.9% share.

BBC won the highest ratings during the morning, and ITV1 took over in the afternoon with The X Factor (3pm to 4.15pm, 1.6 million viewers and 14% share) and For Your Eyes Only (4.15pm to 6.35pm, 2.5 million viewers and 16.3% share).

On Saturday night, BBC One’s Casualty won the peak slot of 9pm to 10pm, with an audience of 5.2 million and an average share of 24.1%.

This was despite competition from ITV1’s film The Bourne Ultimatum, which secured 4.3 million viewers and a 20.6% share.

Elsewhere, Channel 4’s Ultimate Big Brother attracted 1.8 million viewers and an 8.4% share, and Five’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation managed 934,000 viewers and a 4.3% share.

BBC Two’s BBC Proms 2010, airing from 9pm to 11.10pm, peaked at 860,000 viewers before settling to an average audience of 538,000 and a share of 2.6%.

Earlier in the evening, ITV1’s The X Factor won its 7.30pm to 8.45pm slot with 10.1 million viewers and a 45.8% share.

BBC One managed the highest ratings during the morning and afternoon, as usual.

On Friday evening, ITV1’s coverage of Euro 2012 Qualifier: England vs. Bulgaria won its 7.30pm to 10.10pm slot with an average audience of just over 6 million (and a peak of 7.4 million) and a 27.2% share.

BBC One provided competition with The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, airing from 8.30pm to 10pm with an audience of 3.8 million and a share of 16.4%.

Elsewhere, Channel 4’s Ultimate Big Brother (9pm to 10pm) secured 2.4 million viewers and a 10.1% share, while BBC Two’s Home Movie Roadshow attracted 1.2 million viewers and a 5.1% share,

Five’s The Mentalist managed to win 1.1 million viewers and a 4.9% share.

During the daytime, BBC One had the highest ratings throughout most of the morning, with BBC Two and ITV1 taking over in the afternoon.

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