Live events from the coronation to Eurovision dominate most-watched TV of 2023
2023 was the fourth year in a row that a live event topped the ratings chart.
Live spectacle dominated the UK’s most-watched TV programmes of 2023, from the King’s coronation to Sir Elton John’s last ever live show, new figures reveal.
The Eurovision Song Contest and the Coronation Concert also pulled in millions of viewers, though there is also room in the top 10 for old favourites such as I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! and Strictly Come Dancing.
A hat-trick of live events take the top spots in the chart, with the King’s coronation at number one, the New Year’s Eve fireworks in second place and the Coronation Concert third, according to official ratings.
An average of 12.04 million people watched BBC One’s coverage of the main events of the coronation from 10.20am to 1pm on Saturday May 6, including the arrivals at Westminster Abbey and the full service – the biggest audience of the year for any broadcast on a single channel.
The Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle on May 7 was almost as popular, with an average audience of 11.38 million on BBC One enjoying performances from the likes of Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Take That, while 11.42 million watched the channel’s coverage of the fireworks on New Year’s Eve.
Happy Valley, also shown on BBC One, is fourth in the chart, making it the most-watched drama of 2023 as well as one of the highest-rated dramas of the past 10 years.
Some 11.08 million people saw the tense concluding episode in February, in which Sarah Lancashire’s West Yorkshire police sergeant Catherine Cawood had one last showdown with murderer, sex offender and escaped convict Tommy Lee Royce, played by James Norton.
The figures have been compiled by the PA news agency from official ratings data published by the research organisation Barb.
They are consolidated ratings, meaning they include people who recorded and watched a programme up to seven days later – the industry standard for measuring TV audiences.
They also include people who watched on tablets, PCs and smartphones.
Two of the most high-profile annual events in the musical calendar make it into the top 10.
The Eurovision Song Contest, shown on BBC One in May, is in sixth place with 10.24 million viewers – its biggest UK TV audience since 1995, perhaps reflecting the novelty of the competition taking place in this country for the first time in a quarter of a century, with the city of Liverpool stepping in as host for war-torn Ukraine.
Sir Elton John’s set at the Glastonbury Festival in June, also broadcast on BBC One, which the singer described as his last ever UK show, is in eighth place with an average of 8.37 million viewers.
The remainder of the top 10 is made up of some of the UK’s best-known hit shows: ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in fifth place, with 10.24 million watching the launch of the latest series in November; BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing in seventh place, pulling in 10.06 million for its grand final in December; long-running crime drama Death In Paradise, also on BBC One, in ninth place, with 7.85 million for an episode in January; and Channel 4’s The Great British Bake Off in 10th position, with ratings of 7.84 million for the series launch in September.
The prevalence of live events in the top 10 – fully half of the chart – suggests there is still a huge interest in watching one-off, historic occasions in real time, even in an age of multi-channel entertainment and on-demand streaming.
2023 was the fourth year in a row that a live event topped the most-watched list.
2022 saw the Queen’s funeral in the number one spot, in 2021 it was the Men’s European Football Championship, and in 2020 an announcement by former prime minister Boris Johnson about the first Covid-19 lockdown.
Sitting just outside the 2023 top 10 is the Christmas Day episode of the long-running period drama Call The Midwife (7.66 million viewers); the first episodes of the natural history series Planet Earth III (7.62 million) and Wild Isles (7.61 million); the special episode of Doctor Who broadcast on November 25, two days after the show’s 60th anniversary, in which David Tennant returned to the title role (7.61 million); and an episode of the latest series of The Apprentice (7.59 million).
All these programmes were broadcast on BBC One, meaning the channel was responsible for 13 of the year’s top 15 largest TV audiences on a single channel.
The data also shows that Call The Midwife had the highest official ratings for a programme shown on Christmas Day.
Its consolidated audience of 7.66 million was ahead of all other single-channel TV ratings for December 25, including the festive Doctor Who special (BBC One, 7.49 million), the King’s Christmas Broadcast (BBC One, 6.75 million), the final episode of the sitcom Ghosts (BBC One, 6.62 million) and Strictly Come Dancing (BBC One, 6.60 million).
Responding to the figures, Call The Midwife creator Heidi Thomas said: “We just wish we could throw our arms around our fabulous fans and give them all a massive hug.
“We never take their loyalty for granted, and it is wonderful to know they are still joining us in such numbers every Christmas, even after all these years.”
The biggest single-channel TV audience for a sporting event in 2023 was for the final of the Women’s World Cup in August, which saw 7.37 million tune in for BBC One’s full coverage of England’s 1-0 defeat by Spain.
Here are the top 10 most-watched broadcasts of 2023, based on official ratings published by Barb.
Only the highest-rated instance of each programme is included.
1. The Coronation of King Charles III & Queen Camilla (BBC One, May 6): 12.04 million
2. New Year’s Eve Fireworks (BBC One, Dec 31): 11.42 million
3. The Coronation Concert (BBC One, May 7): 11.38 million
4. Happy Valley (BBC One, February 5): 11.08 million
5. I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! (ITV, November 19): 10.24 million*
6. The Eurovision Song Contest final (BBC One, May 13): 10.24 million*
7. Strictly Come Dancing (BBC One, Dec 16): 10.06 million
8. Sir Elton John at Glastonbury (BBC One, June 25): 8.37 million
9. Death In Paradise (BBC One, January 13): 7.85 million
10. The Great British Bake Off (Channel 4, September 26): 7.84 million
*The exact figure for I’m A Celebrity is 10,242,000, while Eurovision is 10,237,000
