Uncomfortable EastEnders leads a solid night for BBC One
After Monday night’s deluge of prime time crime and murder, Tuesday night saw the 9pm audience won over by a spot of BBC One-provided old fashioned goodwill.
The latest grand gesture in the twenty-fifth series of DIY SOS: The Big Build (9pm) saw selfless presenter Nick Knowles and his team of energetic dozers descend upon Basildon in Essex to help out a needy family in need of a neatly packaged 60 minute gesture of generosity.
An audience of 4 million viewers tuned in to see a community come together to nab that crucial emotional climax, netting a 19% share.
On BBC Two, Professor Brian Cox was sticking his head all the way up into the cosmos again to gently ponder man’s place in the universe, via his usually sleepy pitter-patter tones, on Human Universe (9pm). 1.9 million viewers tuned in to see Cox visit beautifully exotic locations on the back of the licence fee payer, with his lyrical musing about extra-terrestrial life netting a 9% share.
At the same time on Channel 4 it was time for a good sneer as the broadcaster took a look at the privileged old-money lot as they worried themselves silly about finding the help in order to keep up appearances.
You Can’t Get the Staff (9pm) was much in the vein of Posh Pawn, a documentary that stretched the term to the very legal definition, and provided a deluge of constructed situations for viewers to balk at.
1.4 million viewers tuned in to see Lord and Lady Toffington et al interview staff for gardening and shield-polishing positions, netting a 7% share.
On Channel 5, the 14th series of mega American franchise CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (9pm) continued with a fresh proposition for fans.
Not content with two long-running spin offs (both of which had shorter lives that the original, which still lives on with a mostly new cast), last night brought the penultimate episode of the current run and tried desperately to get viewers addicted to the murky world of the dark web.
A little over 1 million viewers and a 5% share tuned in to see Patricia Arquette’s new character appear to set up yet another new venture (CSI: Cyber – a whole show dedicated to CSI‘s most hammy ‘tech’ moments) and join Ted Danson’s team in a shameless plug ‘backdoor’ pilot.
Most of ITV’s evening was taken up with Live UEFA Champions League (7:30pm) action as Chelsea faced off against Slovenian team NK Maribor. An average audience of 3.1 million watched the entire 2.5 hours of coverage as home team Chelsea won in a stunning 6-0 victory, resulting in a 15% share.
At 8pm Holby City (BBC One) brought in 4.5 million viewers while The BBC Children in Need Sewing Bee (BBC Two) was watched by 2 million viewers and a 10% share. At the same time, Channel 4 secured 1.6 million viewers and a 7% share with Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners.
Earlier on in the precarious land of soap, Emmerdale (ITV) kicked things off at 7pm with 6 million viewers and a 30% share tuning in to the aftermath of the latest violent stunt.
But it was EastEnders‘ time to shine on BBC One, with the soap taking the day’s biggest audience. 7:30pm saw 7 million viewers catch up with the latest events as Linda Carter was forced to share some drinks with her secret attacker Deano, resulting in a 33% 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. Overnight data supplied by TRP are based on 15 minute slot averages. This may differ from tape checked figures, which are based on a programme’s actual start and end time.
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