The Fried Chicken Shop serves up its last mystery bucket
The Fried Chicken Shop (Channel 4, 9pm), we hardly knew ye. After three mind-blowing weeks of staged and stilted conversation in Clapham’s very own social petri dish, last night the purveyor of chicken-like substances slammed its shutters to the viewing public.
The grand finale – on par with Breaking Bad‘s sophistically tailored swansong – saw people from all walks of life (but of similarly limited vocabulary) wax lyrical about women’s fashion, the government and the proverbial glue that holds British society together – fried chicken…allegedly.
Just over 1 million viewers watched in agonising anticipation as the last bit of gripping drama played out. An audience share of 5% tuned in and realised that any person – no matter their background or upbringing – is capable of hamming it up in front of a camera.
The real life excitement didn’t stop there – at the same time the BBC was offering up two reality shows simultaneously. Much like Channel 4’s greasy option, viewers were given the chance to live out tedious jobs before going to bed and cracking on with their own.
Motorway Cops (9pm) went out on BBC One and followed the guardians of the highway as they did their jobs in a satisfactory manner. 2.7 million viewers (a 12% share) watched as tickets were handed out, disasters were averted and Jamie Theakston’s lush tones calmed everybody right down.
Meanwhile on BBC Two, the professionals on The Midwives were tending to a little damage control of their own. The penultimate episode of the second series popped into the University Hospital of Wales and focused on the mothers-to-be who required some additional care.
Subtitled It’s Complicated (surely two words to send a shiver of terror down any pregnant woman’s spine), last night’s slice of in utero action captured an audience of 1.4 million viewers and a 6% share.
Surprisingly, in the end it was ITV that saved prime time viewers from the overabundance of ‘reality’ programming on offer as everyone’s favourite squashed bottom masquerading as a regional GP continued his successful run.
The sixth series of Doc Martin (9pm) may have been a long time coming but that did nothing to deter patient fans of twee Cornish life from returning in droves.
A persistent 7.4 million viewers watched as ‘quirky’ village nutter Mrs Tishell (she previously stole the Doc’s newborn child – ho ho!) returned from purgatory outside the fictional village to get another peak at her sexual fixation – Doc Martin himself. The crowd pleasing shenanigans captured the biggest audience in the 9pm slot and an audience share of 32%.
Not only did Martin Clunes’ hopeless face give viewers a break from reality programming, but also stopped the soaps claiming the top four spots of the day.
Emmerdale (ITV) was first up at 7pm and once again showed enough tenacity to push troubled Cockney panto EastEnders (BBC One, 8pm) out of the way. The rural soap, which has been moving away from Beckindale and more towards The Sopranos territory, was watched by 7.2 million viewers and a 36% share.
Despite the fact that EastEnders had a bloody and beaten David Wicks on offer it only managed to secure 7 million viewers and a 30% share. Both soaps were actually beaten by Doc Martin at 9pm which grabbed the day’s third biggest audience.
Which means that double Coronation Street (7:30pm) simply cannot be beaten. Time and time again a double whammy of cobbled drama has proven practically impenetrable. 8.6 million viewers watched as David Platt had one of those rare meta moments and realised that life on a claustrophobic street full of dodgy characters and precarious happenings mightn’t be the wisest place to raise a family.
An hour later, Nick tried to reveal all of David’s dark secrets as he attempted to speak from his hospital bed. The typically soapish set up resulted in the day’s second biggest hit with 8.4 million viewers and a 35% share.
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.