This is the biggest show in many, many years on any channel - surely they wouldn't dream of cutting it off.

looking at the schedule what would be the point of dropping it? its only BBC News for the rest of the night

And what would BBC News be covering? ... the ceremony.

most likely, not sure there is any other news at the moment.

Hey, hey it's the Monkeys.

What was the audience of the 1985 Snooker Final? Could the Olympics opening ceremony beat the after midnight record that set? (I know it's a record, but I'm too young too remember )

18.5 million.

Fantastic...Really enjoyed that Brilliant show. A Friday night well spent imo.

I really hope for a massive rating tomorrow and i think we are going to be very surprised. Can i change my peak of 21m to 28?

Technically we've overrun here, with a scheduled finish of 00.35. Fascinating ratings surely in the morning....

Was fantastic until the ultra naff ending, Hey Jude, Really? worst song ever, after a fantastic music experience.

Truly fantastic. Surpassed any and all expectations I could have had. Deserves historic ratings.

An absolutely incredible show, deserves a massive rating but even if doesn't reach record heights it can't take away from what was experienced tonight, a fantastic show showcasing Britain brilliantly and surely even the most cynical of viewers can't say they weren't moved by it.

Deserves spectacular ratings. However, I know a lot of people in London who were at big outdoor screens or pubs tonight - ratings will be somewhat of an underestimate I guess.

I thought the production was excellent if it did feel disjointed during the mid-section. But it was quintessentially British, and Boyle did a fantastic job. Great cauldron and great inserts. 9/10, and richly deserved. It is very much on par with Beijing and we could be expecting mega ratings tomorrow, and a massive power surge after the programme.

Nice little EastEnders Teaser right after the Olympics. Nice one BBC

'Twas Spectacular (bar the bizarre ending with Macca being wheeled out AGAIN). I'm expecting HUGE ratings.

I will watch my recorded Olympics tomorrow, was switching in and out for a while. But sorry, on BBC they just said it will be watched by an estimate of 1b, I'm sure 4 hour ago, they said 4b. Quite a massive difference.

Amazing show, I don't think there were any low points except maybe the unimaginative 'Hey Jude' finale which was a bit rubbish.

BBC1 didn't do anything to try and hang on to the audience for any longer, Weatherview stopped the momentum dead, followed by a barrage of run of the mill trailers and then handing over to BBC News which by this time is the BBC World simulcast programming. (which apparantly means they can only show static pictures of the ceremony as the BBC don't have international rights)

Will anyone actually be awake in the morning to react to the ratings, if they do come in early?!

As a Scot, I don't think I've ever felt as British as when the British team came out to Heroes. Amazing. I think I'll be watching that a few times. In terms of ratings, lateness will drag it down a bit. The cauldron being lit, which you'd have thought would be the peak audience, happened at about 12.45 by my reckoning. Hope it does really well though

There aren't even 4 billion people with access to televisions. That was definitely a typo.

It was never going to be 4 billion. That was just something the media clung to as it makes it look more impressive. The Guardian wrote about this today and basically said that figure was completely implausible.

They anticipate the opening ceremony will be close to 1b. The 4b figure has been suggested for all 4 ceremonies combined (Olympic and Paralympic opening and closing) but even that sounds too high:


http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/blog...ening-ceremony

I thought it was rubbish.

The 4 billion was in reference to the total number of people who will see some of the olympics over the 2 weeks. The 1 billion figure is purely for the Opening Ceremony.

Yeah that's what I thought. I doubt 4b even have access to a TV.

Amazing !Deserves great ratings, everything from the Industrial reveloution to Brookside