ITV1 triumphs over rivals with 8m for The Queen

by Daniel Farey-Jones, Brand Republic 03-Sep-07, 11:20

LONDON - ITV1 had a storming ratings weekend with its terrestrial premiere of 'The Queen' on Sunday, attracting 7.9m viewers, while 'The X-Factor' reached 8.7m on Saturday night, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The audience for 'The Queen', starring Helen Mirren, represented a 36.1% share of all viewing.

It went up against the BBC One drama 'Coming Down the Mountain', starring 'Skins' actor Nicholas Hoult, as a boy frustrated with his Down's Syndrome brother; and new Channel 4 series 'Dumped', which challenges people to live on a landfill rubbish site.

BBC One earned a 19.8% share with 4.7m viewers, and Channel 4 earned a 9.8% share with 2.4m viewers. Channel 4's figures include its digital +1 channel, Channel 4 +1.

On Saturday night 'The X-Factor' earned a 43.1% share of viewing and 8.7m viewers, easily overcoming 'The Eurovision Dance Contest' on BBC One, which achieved an 18.4% share and 3.8m viewers.

On Friday, Channel 4 secured 5.3m viewers for the 'Big Brother 8' series finale, representing a 28.5% share of viewing.