TV Overnights: Weekend ratings round up
Friday
This week’s Piers Morgan’s Life Stories featuring double Olympic gold medalist Dame Kelly Holmes couldn’t compete with BBC One’s Friday night comedy line up.
ITV1’s celebrity confessional chat show, which saw the former army sergeant recall keys points in her life, could only muster 2.3 million viewers. BBC One’s comedy double, broadcast during the same hour-long 9pm slot, saw 3.3 million viewers watching Will Mellor’s In With The Flynns, with Brenda O’Carroll’s Mrs Brown Boys pulling in 4.7 million.
Most watched programme of Friday night was predictably Eastenders, with saw the soon to departing Syed resulting to fraud pay off his debts. Just over 7 million viewer tuned in to the usual fun goings on down Albert Square.
Elsewhere in soapland the residents of Weatherfield and Hotten proved to be marginally less entertaining than their Walford counterparts. The two editions of Coronation Street were seen by 6.7 and 6.1 million viewers, whilst Emmerdale garnered 5.5 million soap fans.
Saturday
Saturday night saw The X Factor prove to be the single shining light for ITV1 in the primetime ratings battle. Just under 8 million viewers tuned in the see which of this year’s contestants made it through to the all important boot camp stage.
Over on BBC One the penultimate episode of the current Doctor Who series, which saw the mysterious appearance of black cubes across the planet, proved to be popular with viewers. The episode titled ‘The Power of Three’ and featuring the return of U.N.I.T to the timelord’s universe attracted 5.5 million viewers.
Clashing with the adventures of Gallifrey’s most famous citizen was the under performing Red or Black. This week featuring appearances by rugby union stars Sam Warburton and Manu Tuilagi, with 3.5 million viewers tuning in for the first of two Saturday night shows fronted by Ant and Dec.
Sunday
Sunday was a much better night for the main commercial broadcaster, with the strong performances from The Chase: Celebrity Special, the second boot camp edition of The X Factor and Downton Abbey.
The Bradley Walsh fronted game show was seen by 4.3 million viewers, over in Simon Cowell-land a fraction under 9 million saw the final cull before the crucial visits to the respective judge’s house. Finally the second episode of the Emmy winning Downton Abbey, pulled in 8.1 million viewers for ITV1.
Andrew Marr’s History of the World kicked off it run with 3.3 million watching BBC One during the 9pm hour slot, later on the same channel highlights of an emotional day’s play at Anfield saw 2.7 million tune into Match of the Day 2.
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.