TV Overnights: Cheryl Cole’s performance boosts X Factor audience to 13m
Cheryl Cole gave an extra boost to ITV1’s already popular weekend line-up with a performance on Sunday night’s X Factor results show and a emotional interview with Piers Morgan on Saturday evening.
The X Factor judge and Girls Aloud member, who often dominates the headlines with stories of her personal life as well as professional life, agreed to appear on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories series to set the record straight about the breakdown of her relationship with footballer Ashley Cole and her recent battle to recover from malaria.
More than 7.2 million peak viewers tuned in to watch the hour-long interview, which was scheduled after Saturday night’s X Factor performance show.
The X Factor, meanwhile, attracted a peak audience of more than 12.4 million viewers and a 44.1% average audience share between 7.45pm and 10pm on Saturday.
On Sunday, a higher 13 million peak viewers tuned in to see Cole perform her new single on the programme’s latest results show, which saw Louis’ John Adeleye leave the competition after failing to win the judges’ vote.
ITV1 also held on to the highest ratings post-X Factor on Sunday evening with the fifth episode of the channel’s popular period drama Dowton Abbey. The hour-long programme beat BBC One’s Single Father to the top spot with 9.1 million peak viewers and a 31.6% average audience share.
BBC One had more luck with the daytime and early-evening television schedule. The channel secured the highest ratings almost continuously on Saturday until The X Factor started at 7.45pm.
However, it was BBC One’s X Factor rival show Strictly Come Dancing that pulled in the highest audience of the day for the BBC with a peak of 10.6 million viewers and a 40% average share between 6pm and 7.45pm.
On Sunday, BBC One’s Formula 1 coverage of the Korean Grand Prix also proved popular among viewers, picking up over 2.4 million peak viewers. Although, Strictly‘s results show banked BBC One’s highest ratings with 9.8 million peak viewers and a 35.5% share between 7.30pm and 8pm.
BBC One also did well with Friday evening’s line up. Eastenders pulled in an impressive 8.9 million peak viewers and a 37% average audience share between 8pm and 8.30pm, before New Tricks picked up 7.1 million viewers and a 30.5% share between 9pm and 10pm.
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.