TV Overnights: Chelsea’s Champion’s League victory brings 8.4m to ITV1
Chelsea victory bags Saturday audience for ITV1, EastEnders scored against Coronation Street on Friday, an old favourite brings a surprise audience to BBC Two and Vera ends her run on a hight note.
Friday
The weekend officially kicked off with EastEnders (BBC One) at 8pm – nothing encapsulates that Friday feeling like a 76 year old with depression. Dot Branning was bringing everyone around her down, oblivious to the fact it was the end of a long week. Fearing for her new best mate, Shirley orchestrated Operation: Get Dot Over Heather (and Dressed) with the help of Cora and Patrick. Surprisingly the episode edged past both episodes of Coronation Street, making the Walford drama the most watched show of the day. In the end, it was ray of sunshine Ian Beale that brought the glint back to Dot’s eye. 7.5 million viewers (a 34% share) watched as he suggested the obvious and Dot decided that maybe some time away from Albert Square might benefit her mental health. It could really only help.
Earlier on ITV1, life was getting a bit too complicated for Nick on Coronation Street. So, he innocently spent the night in a hotel room with his brother’s lap dancing wife and out of nowhere his girlfriend starts acting suspicious. 34% of the available audience watched as Nick slowly got to grips with the unspoken rules of a long and happy relationship. 7.5 million viewers (23,000 less than Dot’s sullen face pulled in on EastEnders) caught the first episode at 7:30pm, with 7.2 million tuning in for the second helping at 8:30pm.
With all the soaps out of the way, 9pm brought probing chat and insight from talented man who asks questions, Piers Morgan. Now that pilfering through people’s rubbish has been deemed uncouth, Piers Morgan’s Life Stories takes a different angle; instead of tearing people apart Piers now invites his chummy celeb mates on to his talk show and tells them how amazing their lives are, all the while a giant ghostly airbrushed image of celebrity’s head hovers in the background. On Friday it was Lulu’s turn on the Piers’s merry go round of memories, in which 4.5 million viewers learned that even celebrities have to struggle now and again. And sleep with Jason Orange. The penultimate episode of the current series captured a 20% audience share.
Lulu’s various trials and marriages weren’t enough to sway the majority of viewers away from Have I Got News For You over on BBC One. Kathy Burke hosted Friday’s edition of the popular current affairs quiz and was watched by 5.4 million viewers, securing the 9pm slot for BBC One.
Saturday
Bizarrely an episode of Dad’s Army, that was last broadcast in 1970, provided BBC Two with its biggest audience of the weekend. 2.4 million people watched the series four episode (which revolved around an IRA terrorist and a darts match) at 6:20pm, securing an impressive 13% audience share, considering it was going up against The Voice UK.
The big surprise of Saturday evening was that The Voice UK failed to rise from the ashes of the trashing it received last week from Britain’s Got Talent. A week previously Jesse J went head-to-head with a fluffy dog and was figuratively mauled to death, with the latest talent show on the block down 2.5 million viewers. The absence of Cowell’s latest vehicle from Saturday’s evening schedule failed to help The Voice UK out of the recent ratings slump, with only 5.6 million viewers tuning in for the 1.5 hour running time. A 27% audience share watched as Team Danny and Team Jessie put two of their acts on the chopping block and also attempted to overcome a glut of technical glitches. Four weeks previously the Dutch import netted nearly 10 million viewers for BBC One.
This was all a build up to Saturday night’s real main event; coverage of the UEFA Champions League Final was broadcast on ITV1 and Sky Sports 1. Bayern Munich faced off against Chelsea in Allianz Arena, their home stadium. Adrian Chiles presented 45 minutes of pre-match coverage on ITV1, with the whole event pulling in an average audience of 6.4 million (a 29% share). Sky Sports 1 captured a much smaller audience of 1.4 million (a 7% share) which saw the teams equalising 1-1 at full time. Roman Abramovich’s dream team proved money can buy success as the Blue’s took home the Champion League Cup through a nerve racking 4-3 result in penalties. Naturally audience interested peaked around 10pm with ITV1 hitting 8.4 million viewers and the Sky Sports 1 coverage netting 2.3 million for the penalty shoot-out.
Sunday
While the viewers may have disappeared in the last two weeks, the few that remain seem to be a dedicated bunch; 173,000 more viewers tuned in to see the The Voice UK Results than watched the big live show on Saturday. A total audience of 5.8 million viewers watched dreams being shattered in the build-up to next week’s semi-final, resulting in 26% audience share.
Vera (ITV1, 9pm) skipped straight ahead to the fourth and final episode of the current series, after last week’s instalment Sandancers was pulled at the last minute due to the Afghanistan based plotline. Last night DCI Vera Stanhope was investigating the murder of some poor soul called Niall, while at the same time battling her personal demons regarding her late father. Each episode of the current series improved in popularity each week with last night’s final bringing in 5.6 million viewers (24% share) for ITV1, easily beating BBC One’s repeat of Death in Paradise (9pm) which only managed an audience of 2.2 million.
Over in the digital abyss on BBC Three was the double-bill premier of the tenth series of Family Guy (10pm). Both episodes grabbed the highest amount of viewers yet for the anarchic comedy on the digital channel; the second helping at 10:30pm capturing 1.6 million viewers (a 9% audience 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.