Strictly Come Dancing averaged 8.4m viewers (33.2%) between 7pm and 9.10pm – 600,000 viewers up from last week’s average of 7.8m (30.6%) and 10,000 more viewers than the highest rating show of the current series on 3 October.
It was the first week that bosses gave the show an hour’s lead in, but next week could pull an even higher figure as the dance show is only scheduled against The X Factor for 45-minutes.
Viewing numbers were dented badly by The X Factor. Between 7.45pm and 8pm an average of 9.6m (38.5%) were watching Strictly, but that tumbled to 7.9m (29.6%) by 8.10pm.
Meanwhile, The X Factor soundly whipped Strictly into line with a solid 11.6m (44.1%) watching the top 10 contestants sing on ‘big band’ week.
The show built steadily throughout, and peaked with 13.5m (51.2%) at 9pm
Largest X Factor audience this year watch Miss Frank bow out
Almost half available viewers watch show favourite Danyl Johnson survive judges' vote
The X Factor soared to new heights last night, with 13.4 million viewers watching as show favourite Danyl Johnson was forced to sing for survival.
Almost half the available audience, an average of 48%, watched the ITV1 show in the 8pm hour, according to unofficial overnight ratings.
The X Factor's audience quarter-hour peak hit 13.9 million and 49% in the 15 minutes from 8.45pm as Johnson stayed in the show, beating girl band Miss Frank in the sing-off.
ITV said that the five minutes between 8.50pm and 8.55pm equalled last week's peak of 14.8 million, a share of 51%.
