Five’s new CSI starts on a high

Channel Five kicked-started the ninth series of CSI:Crime Scene Investigation with almost 4 million peak viewers last night.

More than 3.8 million average viewers tuned in to see the first of 24 episodes of the ever-popular US crime drama, securing Five with a significantly larger audience share than its rival channels – ITV1, Channel 4 and BBC Two.

BBC One was the only channel to pull in higher ratings during the 9pm to 10pm peak slot – a repeat of New Tricks, starring Alun Armstrong and Amanda Redman, attracted 4.6 million average viewers and a 19.9% audience share.

At the same time, Channel 4’s Celebrity Big Brother picked up 2.9 million average viewers, while ITV1’s one-off documentary, Extreme Slimmers, pulled in 2.4 million.

BBC Two’s Nicholas Crane’s Britannia – The Great Elizabethan Journey also managed to bank more than 2 million viewers, with an average of 2.1 and a 9.3% audience share.

Earlier on in the evening, ITV1’s new Trinny & Susannah Meet Their Match series failed to impress, pulling in just 2.3 million average viewers compared with BBC Two’s 2.9 million average viewers and BBC One’s 6.2 million between 8pm and 9pm.

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.

Five: 020 7550 5555 www.five.tv ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com BBC: 020 8743 8000 www.bbc.co.uk Channel Four: 020 7396 4444 www.channel4.com