The repeat wasn't such a bad thing. That it was a repeat leading into a brand new drama was the utterly ridiculous part. What on earth ITV were thinking with that scheduling is anyone's guess.

Wow at the final rating for the Closing Ceremony. 24.46m is a figure we may never see again - so we should savour this moment today. Just outstanding. And it topples OFAH to become the most watched show of all time based on single showings.

Elsewhere, I notice TXF pulled in just over another 2m+ for its repeats on ITV1 and ITV2 on Sunday. I honestly think it will be up on Saturday. A sub 8m figure wouldn't be acceptable at all. CBB seems to be struggling this time around. Didn't the previous series have around 2.5m every night. The time of year is probably the reason and from this stellar cast, I'd imagine C5 were hoping for more.

Although - next Sunday it's new Millionaire on at 8pm. Chances are if that had been on last night, The Last Weekend might still have rated as low as it did.

For the slot and time of year it's a decent rating for ITV but I agree it deserved more as it was a great hour of entertainment last night. I think it might pick up a bit over the run as people realise the episodes are new. Plus it'll have an X Factor lead-out for several episodes which may help. At worst though it was a reasonable rating last night.

It's the best gameshow on TV by a mile though so deserves to do well.

Olympic aftermath or not I think some ratings have proved this week why generally speaking you don't launch shows in the middle of August.

The trouble ITV have now is viewers don't know what they're going to get on Sunday nights from ITV1. One week it might be a big entertainment show, next week the soaps, the next week a detective drama repeat, then some game shows, then some celeb fronted travel docs. As reliant as BBC1 might be on Countryfile and The Antiques Roadshow at least viewers know even if they are not on chances are something very similar which appeals to a similar audience will be on instead.

I'm not sure lead ins count for quite as much as some people think, particularly for the main slots like Sunday at 9pm.

People will decide on what they want to watch by looking in the listings rather than what was on at 8pm.

At the end of the day, an old favourite like Silent Witness versus a new unknown drama that turned out to be a bit quirky, it's obvious that the old favourite will win.

I'd agree that people aren't going to stick with a show they don't like because its lead-in was show x but they can be important for getting new shows a decent initial sampling. Its pretty clear that ITV dropped the ball on that front on Sunday night. Plus how many people just switch off of any channel when they realise its a prime time repeat and don't expect to see a new original drama following it?

No one spotted this earlier, but for the Diving, add BBC3 and BBC HD: 4.289m + 0.377m = 4.666m

Therefore, that is now the most watched multichannel programme in UK television history.

But:

- the logs on BARB for BBC Three are actually a lot different to the advertised schedules, it has ratings as 'events' rather than advertised programmes, the above is for 20:00 to 22:05
- BARB won't officially recognise it as that, because it won't bundle BBC HD and BBC Three together, BBC Three on it's own is lower that EastEnders Live Aftermath on February 19th, 2010

Based on the logs submitted, yes it is the most watched multichannel programme in UK history. Will it be recognised as such? Probably not.



(unless you bundle in BBCO2 which had 1.02m from 20:25, but let's not go there )

Is it the live shows where this is much higher, it looks low? Am sure Britain's Got More Talent was doing much better than this as well.

Even considering the heat - but as I say, does it usually start low?

BARB Top 30 Updates, w/e 12th August
Most Watched Shows of 2012 [Top 30 - Officials]
01 - 24.76m - OLYMPICS 2012: CLOSING CEREMONY (12/08/12) - BBC1/HD/3D/O1
02 - 24.57m - OLYMPICS 2012: OPENING CEREMONY (27/07/12) - BBC1/HD/3D/NC*
03 - 17.27m - EURO 2012: ENG VS ITA (24/06/12) - BBC1/HD
- 18:59 to 19:45 - 8.79m
- 19:45 to 22:25 - 20.34m
- 22:25 to 22:47 - 12.68m
04 - 15.32m - THE DIAMOND JUBILEE CONCERT (04/06/12) - BBC1/HD
05 - 14.25m - OLYMPICS 2012 (05/08/12) - BBC1/HD

06 - 12.78m - EURO 2012: ENG VS UKR (19/06/12) - ITV1/HD
- 18:59 to 19:44 - 5.92m
- 19:44 to 21:42 - 16.217m
- 21:42 to 22:11 - 9.42m
07 - 12.57m - BRITAIN'S GOT TALENT (14/04/12) - ITV1/HD
08 - 12.20m - CORONATION STREET (23/01/12) - ITV1/HD
09 - 11.99m - THE VOICE UK (14/04/12) - BBC1/HD
10 - 11.52m - WIMBLEDON 2012 (08/07/12) - BBC1/HD

11 - 11.41m - CALL THE MIDWIFE (19/02/12) - BBC1/HD
12 - 10.98m - EASTENDERS (02/01/12) - BBC1/HD
13 - 10.74m - BBC NEWS (04/06/12) - BBC1/HD
14 - 10.66m - SHERLOCK (01/01/12) - BBC1/HD
15 - 10.47m - THE DIAMOND JUBILEE THAMES PAGEANT (03/06/12) - BBC1/HD

16 - 9.29m - DANCING ON ICE (08/01/12) - ITV1/HD
17 - 9.11m - EMMERDALE (05/01/12) - ITV1/HD
18 - 8.41m - TITANIC (25/03/12) - ITV1/HD
19 - 8.31m - MRS BROWN'S BOYS (04/02/12) - BBC1/HD
20 - 8.05m - THE APPRENTICE (11/04/12) - BBC1/HD

21 - 8.00m - WILD AT HEART (08/01/12) - ITV1/HD
22 - 7.97m - ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS (01/01/12) - BBC1/HD
23 - 7.93m - SILENT WITNESS (01/04/12) - BBC1/HD
24 - 7.87m - UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS (19/02/12) - BBC1/HD
25 - 7.86m - ENDEAVOUR (02/01/12) - ITV1/HD

26 - 7.68m - A JUBILEE TRIBUTE TO THE QUEEN BY THE PRINCE OF WALES (01/06/12) - BBC1/HD
27 - 7.61m - SCOTT & BAILEY (12/03/12) - ITV1/HD
28 - 7.59m - COUNTRYFILE (05/02/12) - BBC1/HD
29 - 7.59m - THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST (26/05/12) - BBC1/HD
30 - 7.41m - ANTIQUES ROADSHOW (15/04/12) - BBC1/HD

* Opening Ceremony rating for BBC Olympics 01 is not on the BARB website, if it is over 190k, then it should be top of this list...

Most Watched Multichannel Shows of 2011 [Top 20 - Officials]
01 - 4.67m - OLYMPICS 2012 (11/08/12) - BBC3/HD
02 - 2.85m - LIVE FORD SUPER SUNDAY (05/02/12) - Sky Sports 1
03 - 2.74m - CELEBRITY JUICE (09/02/12) - ITV2
04 - 2.66m - LIVE FORD MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (30/04/12) - Sky Sports 1
05 - 2.30m - UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LIVE (24/04/12) - Sky Sports 2

06 - 2.16m - TREASURE ISLAND (01/01/12) - Sky1
07 - 1.96m - LIVE FORD FOOTBALL SPECIAL (11/02/12) - Sky Sports 1
08 - 1.96m - FAMILY GUY (20/05/12) - BBC3
09 - 1.94m - THE BIG BANG THEORY (19/04/12) - E4
10 - 1.93m - DYNAMO: MAGICIAN IMPOSSIBLE (05/07/12) - Watch

11 - 1.91m - SINBAD (08/07/12) - Sky1
12 - 1.69m - BRITAIN'S GOT MORE TALENT (12/05/12) - ITV2
13 - 1.68m - LIVE CARLING CUP FOOTBALL (25/01/12) - Sky Sports 1
14 - 1.68m - MAD DOGS (19/01/12) - Sky1
15 - 1.61m - DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (10/06/12) - E4

16 - 1.53m - TOUCH (20/03/12) - Sky1
17 - 1.53m - THE ONLY WAY IS ESSEX (29/02/12) - ITV2
17 - 1.50m - LEWIS (15/07/12) - ITV3
18 - 1.47m - FOYLE'S WAR (21/01/12) - ITV3
19 - 1.42m - STELLA (06/01/12) - Sky1
20 - 1.42m - SUN, SEX AND SUSPICIOUS PARENTS (22/02/12) - BBC3

Source: BARB. Excludes +1, Includes HD for Terrestrial Chart. Only 1 programme per 'show', i.e. only one Ford Super Sunday game. Full Euro 2012 programme averages. Three Olympic ratings only in the main chart, one Opening, one Closing and one for the highest 'Game' rating.

I know it says only 1 programme per show, and then I've included the two ceremonies, but it would be ridiculous of me to ignore one or the other, so both are included (and for easy reference in the future - I guess).

As for the multichannel, don't know whether to include BBC Olympics 02 for the diving, as it wasn't a simulcast, in fact it started 25 minutes after BBC Three began that 'block', so its not there.

Confusing.

ITV, in their wisdom, didn't start it until 15 mins later than the main show ended, which will have dented it. It does look low but that is probably why.

Last night's repeat did much better with over 900k though so it still got a decent total over the weekend.

No. As I stated earlier, the equivalent episode last series had 2.1m. Last night's had 1.9m. Considering this series lacked the extensive marketing campaign that supported the previous two series, I doubt C5 will be too broken hearted about that 200k decline. The gap between this series and the last is narrowing all the time as more results come in. And the spinoff shows are going stronger than ever, suggesting the show's viewers are highly engaged with this series and want more.

I can't believe ITV puts out new drama on a Sunday night that is over 2m below the slot average and it's C5 who are quote "struggling" with nearly 2m. It's like some posters on here invent their own standards that do not represent reality at all.

Bwahahahahaha!



The Bond films used to do really well on ITV with their umpteen showings. I think the erratic scheduling of them...and constant scheduling of them has dulled their ratings potency.

As for Red Or Black it's done.

DMN, www.BARB.co.uk says BBC HD, News and O1 had different starting time than BBC1 for the closing ceremony. Therefore are they still allowed to be counted as simulcasts as they started 10 minutes earlier? Even for opening cermony was the same. Also BARB.co.uk says England v Italy got over 20million viewers which is huge so how is 17.3m in your list calculated?

The X Factor / Xtra Factor reruns on the Sunday are also lower than recent years.

I'm slightly puzzled in fact as to how ITV2 achieved its best All Day share for three years yesterday. It must have simply performed well right across the day as certainly from the primetime data we have there doesn't appear to be anything especially standout or out of the ordinary there.

Ah, I was going tio mention The Last Weekend ratings but I forgot. Yeah you're right - it is a very poor rating. I did watch it and it was pretty good tbh. I don't invent my own standards based on channel standards. I said yesterday TXF didn't do great - and thats speaking as a fan of the show. I watch all channels and don't have a favourite channel like several posters on here. If I like a show, I like it. Regardless of what channel its on. The fact that anyone can like everything on a certain channel is quite beyond me.

17.3m is a weighted average.

As for the simulcasts, I think I'm ignoring all rules with that. Besides, the difference between starting at 20:50 and 21:00 compared with the effect on the overall rating for HD and O1 must be negligible.

So presumably we're all feeling confident that Top 5 is locked in for the rest of the year? Barring a major national incident there doesn't seem to be anything on the horizon that's going to top 14.25 million. So I suppose that means the question is can anything top 11.5 million before the end of the year to crack the top 10? What are the obvious contenders:

The X Factor
Strictly Come Dancing
Downton Abbey

Anything else? Maybe the Doctor Who Christmas Special with nice scheduling? Or Call the Midwife at Christmas? And I suppose possibly EastEnders although that's not looking all that likely unless they plan to blow up the square on Christmas Day and it isn't used to defuse Downton again. Its gonna be interesting.

And is there a New Tricks run this Autumn? Probably not going to hit the Top 10 but it could push the Top 15. It'll also be interesting to see if Channel 4 can get any of the Paralympics into the Top 20 as well. How far will Olympics fever spread?

DMN's most watched shows of the year is fascinating. I'm looking at that figure for The Voice and wonder if it will ever get a rating that big again? Will EastEnders get 12m before the end of the year? Will any new dramas on BBC1/ITV1 do a Call The Midwife and be huge? Fascinating.

I also dispute the football ratings. BARB have gone for the match average and that's what they'll have in the end of year chart. That means that we have a top 3 made up of shows getting over 20m. And that hasn't happened since 1989 and that is with combined ratings for repeat showings. So really it's the first time since the 70s!!!

EastEnders has another Branning family Christmas planned, thats always fun. We will probably find out that Max has been having an affairs with Laurens gf (not a spoiler, storyline I made up) It should get good ratings.

Well thats...pretty brilliant...other than the Batman Shootings (leave it to Ch4) - BBC Three had a brilliant night.


Ah gotcha, ITV seem to do that a lot with their spin off shows. Strange.


Am still surprised they didn't do more with it than showing some of the worse films in the afternoons over the Olympics (on a side note, I don't consider it 'bad' but 'brilliant' but Licence to Kill has the most horrendous day time edit at the end of it).

They should have had a 'Bond Classics' season or something at least. Be bold and open with Casino Royale/QoS then mix them up from there in Just to say goodbye to the rights at least.


Not the best sign.


Its their strongest line up in primetime, that'd have given them a boost:
X Factor/Xtra Factor/TOWIE/decent Benidorm repeat rating.

I think the Strictly and X Factor finals will definitely hit the top 10 as will Downton Abbey and I'm A Celebrity. I also have a feeling the Christmas edition of Call The Midwife will hit 12m. Now if we get bad snow like we did in 2010 in the Autumn we could see some big audiences before year end.

EDIT: There will be a New Tricks series this Autumn. It starts on Bank Holiday Monday. Could it finally crack the 10m barrier this series?

Will that be enough to get it a big audience?

Only whatever there planning has been built anywhere near as well (or as long) as the affair reveal they're so clearly trying to replicate. I honestly think their best bet for a big EastEnders rating at Christmas this year is a major Christmas disaster since they just don't have any particularly interesting or compelling long term story lines currently running. Especially not now they've blown the murderer reveal in the middle of summer.

Thanks for updating this, DMN.

My take on simulcasts, and I am changing my tune slightly, is that you add up the host channel and one direct HD simulcast. Adding in the 3d coverage which was billed as "Opening ceremony in 3d", had different start and end times, and different audio and pictures to BBC1, and the separate red button channels, let alone the news channel's default audience, just gets a bit silly.

I've said my piece before on England v Italy. I think we should use the same numbers as BARB and all the rest of the media.

As for the earlier question about EE not making the Ratings Thread chart top 10, I would say that's nailed on with SCD, TXF, DA and DW's Xmas Special still to come. It's going to need >13m and only the xmas day ep could usually be expected to get that - but now its got Downton in its way.