Call The Midwife crowned winner of the Christmas Day ratings battle
Strictly Come Dancing came in third position below Mrs Brown’s Boys
Call The Midwife has won the Christmas Day ratings battle for the second year in a row, with an audience of 9.6 million people tuning in.
The BBC One drama’s festive episode saw Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter) embroiled in a harrowing story line about historical child abuse.
According to the BBC, the drama beat the likes of Mrs Brown’s Boys, which claimed the second position again after last year.
The foul-mouthed matriarch was the ratings winner alongside the Queen’s Speech in overnight figures released on Boxing Day, but consolidated ratings show its final viewing figure comes in at nine million.
Its executive producer, Pippa Harris, added: “It’s so heartening to know that Call The Midwife has become such a staple of Christmas Day viewing with audiences in the UK. We are thrilled that so many fans tuned in to see another of Heidi Thomas’s incredible scripts brought to life, and look forward to them all enjoying series seven in a few weeks’ time.”
Consolidated ratings are the final viewing figure after seven days which incorporates those who watched live and those who viewed a show on catch up (+1).
There was a double dose of drama in the soaps, which saw EastEnders trump its ITV rival Coronation Street in the consolidated figures.
The BBC One soap lands in fourth position with 8.1 million, while ITV’s Corrie drew an audience of seven million.
The figures are a reversal in ratings fortunes for the soaps, with Coronation Street dropping down from last year’s consolidated rating of 8.1 million, while EastEnders has risen from 7.8 million.
A total of 7.9 million people watched as the sci-fi series gave fans a first glimpse of the new female Doctor, Jodie Whittaker.
The episode was the swansong for the 12th incarnation of the character, played by Peter Capaldi, as well as the show’s previous frontrunner, Steven Moffat.
