TV Ratings 2023

[Rita]

IYes! I mentioned quite a few times on here on the run up to Christmas how it was strange that ITV had put both soaps on for only 30 minutes each. Eastenders pulled an absolute BLINDER in broadcasting the clip of the six back 8 or so months ago and creating intrigue in the Christmas episode. I don’t know the last time people got that excited for a single episode of a soap in quite some time. I think ITV should have took note from that but I also think my earlier point of a lot of their fans dying off is also valid.

 

[Rita]

If @lollys EE figure was including the Christmas Day episode would it not be better to compare in a month or so?

 

[lolly]

If @lollys EE figure was including the Christmas Day episode would it not be better to compare in a month or so?

Well yes, but I was working with what I had and had just posted the comparison for the week before.

Plus it also shows that even including the Christmas Day figure for EastEnders last year, it is still growing.

 

[Slave]

I knew that Coronation Street and Emmerdale were declining, but didn't appreciate it was quite as marked as your post above states - and I don't think there's any sign of it stopping yet. Being down around 10% year on year (possibly more for Emmerdale) must be really concerning in terms of ad revenue.

I suppose thinking back to how badly EastEnders was rating, ITV scheduling Emmerdale - which had much healthier figures - against it was probably an attempt to kill EastEnders off.

EastEnders has done remarkably well. But in a sense, it had to. The BBC had massively overspent on the set refurbishment, the government were breathing down their necks over the licence fee, and they were ultimately putting out a substandard product. Whether there was any real likelihood of it being axed is questionable, but certainly, the circumstances could easily have raised valid questions about its future.

Yes! I mentioned quite a few times on here on the run up to Christmas how it was strange that ITV had put both soaps on for only 30 minutes each. Eastenders pulled an absolute BLINDER in broadcasting the clip of the six back 8 or so months ago and creating intrigue in the Christmas episode. I don’t know the last time people got that excited for a single episode of a soap in quite some time. I think ITV should have took note from that but I also think my earlier point of a lot of their fans dying off is also valid.

There are lots of issues at ITV. I don't actually think Emmerdale is that bad, but scheduling against EastEnders isn't doing it any favours right now. I'm sure while both soaps have their loyal audiences who will watch live, there will be viewers who watch both. And if you're going to pick one to watch live, common sense says Emmerdale is the one you'd record to skip through the ads.

Coronation Street, however, is in dire need of some changes. The producer gets a lot of flak, and the current creative direction is questionable, but three hour-long episodes each week is a chore. And I'd probably say the same about any soap. It rates better than Emmerdale and EastEnders, but how much of that is by sheer virtue of the fact that the other two screen against each other? Coronation Street having 500,000-ish extra viewers when it has the entire timeslot to itself isn't much of an achievement...

 

[Rita]

Well yes, but I was working with what I had and had just posted the comparison for the week before.

Plus it also shows that even including the Christmas Day figure for EastEnders last year, it is still growing.

So Corrie and Emmerdale have stayed pretty static over the past 12 months where Eastenders has grown almost 10%. That is really impressive for Eastenders, but I am not overly surprised because it is MILES above the other 2 at the moment.

 

[Rita]

I suppose thinking back to how badly EastEnders was rating, ITV scheduling Emmerdale - which had much healthier figures - against it was probably an attempt to kill EastEnders off.

EastEnders has done remarkably well. But in a sense, it had to. The BBC had massively overspent on the set refurbishment, the government were breathing down their necks over the licence fee, and they were ultimately putting out a substandard product. Whether there was any real likelihood of it being axed is questionable, but certainly, the circumstances could easily have raised valid questions about its future.



There are lots of issues at ITV. I don't actually think Emmerdale is that bad, but scheduling against EastEnders isn't doing it any favours right now. I'm sure while both soaps have their loyal audiences who will watch live, there will be viewers who watch both. And if you're going to pick one to watch live, common sense says Emmerdale is the one you'd record to skip through the ads.

Coronation Street, however, is in dire need of some changes. The producer gets a lot of flak, and the current creative direction is questionable, but three hour-long episodes each week is a chore. And I'd probably say the same about any soap. It rates better than Emmerdale and EastEnders, but how much of that is by sheer virtue of the fact that the other two screen against each other? Coronation Street having 500,000-ish extra viewers when it has the entire timeslot to itself isn't much of an achievement...

Cutting both soaps to 30 minute time slots would be perfect to stop Emmerdale clashing with EastEnders then. I would disagree with you regarding Emmerdale, and would think it will drop below EastEnders shortly. The past year or so I have paid very little attention to it and if I have it on it would just be for a bit of background noise. Emmerdale usurped Eastenders a few years back simply because the quality was far better on the former and Eastenders was TERRIBLE for years. Coronation Street AND Emmerdale are poorer than EastEnders at the moment but it’s all peaks and troughs. I would still say that Coronation Street would still be thought of as the UK’s main soap if you asked 100 people off the street.

 

[Slave]

Cutting both soaps to 30 minute time slots would be perfect to stop Emmerdale clashing with EastEnders then. I would disagree with you regarding Emmerdale, and would think it will drop below EastEnders shortly. The past year or so I have paid very little attention to it and if I have it on it would just be for a bit of background noise. Emmerdale usurped Eastenders a few years back simply because the quality was far better on the former and Eastenders was TERRIBLE for years. Coronation Street AND Emmerdale are poorer than EastEnders at the moment but it’s all peaks and troughs. I would still say that Coronation Street would still be thought of as the UK’s main soap if you asked 100 people off the street.

There are flaws with Emmerdale, namely the fact that about 75% of the characters are now related to the Dingles in one way or another. But overall, I still think it's more an issue of quality vs quantity than anything inherently wrong with the creative direction. Did you watch yesterday's episode? It shows that what made Emmerdale so good at its peak can still be there when it wants to be.

I don't disagree that Coronation Street is probably still the flagship UK soap, but that is, in part, what much of the problem is. I'm biased because I've never really ever considered myself a regular viewer. But I can see how little the current iteration understands its own DNA and has become a hollow shell that is often Coronation Street in name only.

EastEnders has just used six of its most prominent female characters in a well-conceived storyline (albeit one where the pay-off is yet to be determined - it could still go wrong). Compare that to Coronation Street, where Gail, Sally and Audrey are portrayed as buffoons these days. The humour has always been a bit more exaggerated and camp; even so, now it all too often comes across as lowest-common-denominator pantomime. Characters are thrust from issue-led storyline to issue-led storyline. To make savings, a lot of sets have been disassembled, so characters rarely appear in their own houses. The number of extras has also been cut, so the sense of a thriving community rarely exists anymore. You're lucky to see 5 - 6 characters in the background of the Rovers Return.

There's a lot to be done. However, if the ratings continue dropping, the impetus won't be to increase the audience; it'll be how to make the show cheaper to mitigate the reduction in advertising revenue. That's ultimately what drove Neighbours into the ground on Channel 5, and while Coronation Street isn't entirely comparable in terms of legacy or status, I don't think the challenges ITV currently face are entirely dissimilar. They're just happening on a bigger scale.

 

[Rita]

I did watch Emmerdale yesterday and it was good episode I must admit, but am not sure where they will now take it from here. Cathy will go to jail I assume?

Coronation Street has been an a lot better watch than EE in general for the majority of the past 10 years or so other than intermittent storylines which would occasionally put EE in front in terms of quality. I agree though at the moment Eastenders has leapfrogged both the ITV soaps in terms of writing and quality at this moment.

I don’t think Corrie would be able to use any of the mentioned characters above for this storyline as they are all getting on. Audrey must be in her 80’s, and Gail not all that far behind her. Coronation does miss strong female characters as all the best ones from yesteryear are now too old, have left or passed away.

ITV, like the BBC are PHENOMENAL at drama and usually their biggest ratings winners are drama series. I just think all the soaps are past it now, and although the BBC pulled out their finest China for EE this year it is simply not their biggest ratings winner now comparable to 10/20 years ago. People have moved on, habits have changed and most people simply just don’t watch soaps anymore.

 

[AGinAg (37)]

Still astonishing that the BBC wiped the floor with ITV at Christmas. I was with my family and we all defaulted to BBC1, Strictly, Dr Who and Eastenders. A true powerhouse of go to TV when in doubt. We flicked over to ITV1 but it was such phenomenal shite on offer.

I mean, I've always felt that way about ITV, but is everyone else just catching up? Maybe it's a generational thing. "No Netflix, then the BBC will do". They still have Corrie and Ant & Dec to rely on. But what else?

Also the ITVX platform is rubbish. iPlayer is leagues ahead.

 

[Rita]

Still astonishing that the BBC wiped the floor with ITV at Christmas. I was with my family and we all defaulted to BBC1, Strictly, Dr Who and Eastenders. A true powerhouse of go to TV when in doubt. We flicked over to ITV1 but it was such phenomenal shite on offer.

I mean, I've always felt that way about ITV, but is everyone else just catching up? Maybe it's a generational thing. "No Netflix, then the BBC will do". They still have Corrie and Ant & Dec to rely on. But what else?

Also the ITVX platform is rubbish. iPlayer is leagues ahead.

Mostly dramas and the obvious IACGMOOH are ITV’s biggest draws. Love Island is mega successful for ITV2 and I assume CBB will do better than the civilian season of BB.

 

[Slave]

I mean, I've always felt that way about ITV, but is everyone else just catching up? Maybe it's a generational thing. "No Netflix, then the BBC will do". They still have Corrie and Ant & Dec to rely on. But what else?

It was a bit of an annus horribilis for ITV in general last year. Other than Big Brother (which didn't rate spectacularly once they started duplicating the broadcast on ITV1), it isn't just that a lot of their shows underperformed, it's that they came with a slew of bad press. This Morning almost imploded, Britain's Got Talent drew its lowest audience, I'm A Celebrity underperformed AND picked up a lot of criticism...I genuinely think they're floundering a bit now.

They're really in a bit of a bind because streaming/on-demand has killed their business model, and I'm not sure how they claw it back.

Also the ITVX platform is rubbish. iPlayer is leagues ahead.

iPlayer is one of the best streaming platforms. But I can't help but feel one of the reasons is that it's simply because there aren't adverts to negotiate. If the licence fee ended up being scrapped and the BBC became reliant on adverts, would iPlayer still be as good? I think it's the immediacy that makes it stand out as feeling so much smoother. ITVX is a pretty stable platform, far more than it used to be; it's just the fact that the interface - five adverts before anything starts and a time bar broken up by ads - makes it immediately off-putting.

 

[Rita]

It was a bit of an annus horribilis for ITV in general last year. Other than Big Brother (which didn't rate spectacularly once they started duplicating the broadcast on ITV1), it isn't just that a lot of their shows underperformed, it's that they came with a slew of bad press. This Morning almost imploded, Britain's Got Talent drew its lowest audience, I'm A Celebrity underperformed AND picked up a lot of criticism...I genuinely think they're floundering a bit now.

They're really in a bit of a bind because streaming/on-demand has killed their business model, and I'm not sure how they claw it back.

I
These shows like IACGMOOH and BGT still topped the ratings chart as the most watched shows of that week though, and with dramas like Unforgotten, Vera, The Bay, Trigger Point, I assume this Mr Bates Vs The Post Office will also easily top the ratings chart just to name a few I don’t think they are quite on their knees yet.

Watch The Apprentice viewers fall like they have been consecutively and then see if the press pick up on that.

 

[lolly]

Topping the chart with a significantly reduced audience does inevitably mean significantly reduced ad revenue though. It's a BIG problem for them.

 

[Rita]

Topping the chart with a significantly reduced audience does inevitably mean significantly reduced ad revenue though. It's a BIG problem for them.

It’s not just an ITV problem though. Ratings are falling across the board. I understand that ITV rely heavily on advertisements but if they are getting the most watched shows of the week on terrestrial tv then this becomes an issue for the companies looking to advertise as well as ITV.

 

[AGinAg (37)]

A lot of shows that became massive in the 2000s, are 20 years old and showing their age. It happened to the soaps, it's now happening to reality/ talent shows. Somehow Strictly has maintained strength. I get it, it serves pure Saturday night, but it could easily start flopping.

 

[Rita]

A lot of shows that became massive in the 2000s, are 20 years old and showing their age. It happened to the soaps, it's now happening to reality/ talent shows. Somehow Strictly has maintained strength. I get it, it serves pure Saturday night, but it could easily start flopping.

Figures are dropping though comparing it year on year. Still HUGE figures but not as big as they were. I think the final figures went down just over 500k on last years.

 

[lolly]

It’s not just an ITV problem though. Ratings are falling across the board. I understand that ITV rely heavily on advertisements but if they are getting the most watched shows of the week on terrestrial tv then this becomes an issue for the companies looking to advertise as well as ITV.

Of course it isn't just an ITV problem. But crucially it isn't a problem for their main competition.

 

[Rita]

Of course it isn't just an ITV problem. But crucially it isn't a problem for their main competition.

No of course it’s not. That is what we pay the tv license for. To line fat cats pockets, and support an institution that turned a blind eye to paedophiles.

 

[lolly]

An Ofcom report earlier this year stated that the average time spent watching broadcast TV fell from 2 hours 59 minutes per week in 2021 to 2 hours 38 in 2022. That's a huge drop for one year. Obviously some of that will still be people watching BBC and ITV etc on iPlayer and ITVX, but some of it will be people lost to Netflix, Prime etc. In the same time proportion of people watching traditional TV fell from 83% to 79%.

 

[Slave]

Topping the chart with a significantly reduced audience does inevitably mean significantly reduced ad revenue though. It's a BIG problem for them.

Exactly. It's not entirely dissimilar to the charts in the mid-'00s when singles were selling 20,000 copies to reach #1. Yes, your song might be top of the chart, but the numbers are so low that the format isn't profitable.

I don't think anyone's saying ITV don't have big shows - but a lot of them are limited-run series' and it's the day-to-day where ITV is feeling the pinch, hence the cost-saving measure with Coronation Street. I'm not necessarily saying they were wrong to lean so heavily on soaps - they're a commercial broadcaster, so they are inevitably going to do more of what sells. But as the appeal wears off, it's not entirely clear what will come in to replace it.

Watch The Apprentice viewers fall like they have been consecutively and then see if the press pick up on that.

I'm pretty sure The Apprentice ratings will be compared year-on-year. The difference is that it's never hit the same heights as shows like IACGMOOH or BGT. The average ratings for the 2023 series were 2.3 million down on the peak (8.8 million) in 2011. That's not bad going, really, considering there hasn't been a vintage series for quite some time.

It’s not just an ITV problem though. Ratings are falling across the board. I understand that ITV rely heavily on advertisements but if they are getting the most watched shows of the week on terrestrial tv then this becomes an issue for the companies looking to advertise as well as ITV.

In some respects, the current situation conversely works out well for some advertisers in some situations because commercial broadcasters - and particularly ITV as the biggest one - won't be able to sell advertising space at the same cost as they used to. There may be companies now that can afford a primetime advertising spot, where previously it would have been well outside their budget. However, the more worrying trend for all commercial broadcasters is that a lot of companies aren't just reducing their spend on live TV advertising - they're turning away from it altogether.

 

[Rita]

Exactly. It's not entirely dissimilar to the charts in the mid-'00s when singles were selling 20,000 copies to reach #1. Yes, your song might be top of the chart, but the numbers are so low that the format isn't profitable.

I don't think anyone's saying ITV don't have big shows - but a lot of them are limited-run series' and it's the day-to-day where ITV is feeling the pinch, hence the cost-saving measure with Coronation Street. I'm not necessarily saying they were wrong to lean so heavily on soaps - they're a commercial broadcaster, so they are inevitably going to do more of what sells. But as the appeal wears off, it's not entirely clear what will come in to replace it.



I'm pretty sure The Apprentice ratings will be compared year-on-year. The difference is that it's never hit the same heights as shows like IACGMOOH or BGT. The average ratings for the 2023 series were 2.3 million down on the peak (8.8 million) in 2011. That's not bad going, really, considering there hasn't been a vintage series for quite some time.



In some respects, the current situation conversely works out well for some advertisers in some situations because commercial broadcasters - and particularly ITV as the biggest one - won't be able to sell advertising space at the same cost as they used to. There may be companies now that can afford a primetime advertising spot, where previously it would have been well outside their budget. However, the more worrying trend for all commercial broadcasters is that a lot of companies aren't just reducing their spend on live TV advertising - they're turning away from it altogether.

All tv channels run in the same trajectory. They have a hit show and they rinse it to death, people lose interest and inevitably viewing figures fall. Do ITV not do well afternoon quiz time? If not why do they show hours of endless quizzes? As I have said a few times ITV seem to be putting a lot of money in to drama series now and this seems to be their bread and butter when it’s coming to big viewing figures.

The Apprentice had a consolidated audience in 2011 of 10.2 million. So it has dropped some margin, and was one of the BBC’s biggest rated shows but the press won’t pick up on it because it’s BBC and they are all in CAHOOTS.

 

[Rita]

I see on the overnight figures last night that Mr Bates vs The Post Office was watched by 3.6 million live viewers and The Tourist at BBC was watched by 2.2 million viewers. I understand this May all change when platform viewing and catch up etc is added but what paltry figures for both.

 

[lolly]

I suppose thinking back to how badly EastEnders was rating, ITV scheduling Emmerdale - which had much healthier figures - against it was probably an attempt to kill EastEnders off.

EastEnders has done remarkably well. But in a sense, it had to. The BBC had massively overspent on the set refurbishment, the government were breathing down their necks over the licence fee, and they were ultimately putting out a substandard product. Whether there was any real likelihood of it being axed is questionable, but certainly, the circumstances could easily have raised valid questions about its future.



There are lots of issues at ITV. I don't actually think Emmerdale is that bad, but scheduling against EastEnders isn't doing it any favours right now. I'm sure while both soaps have their loyal audiences who will watch live, there will be viewers who watch both. And if you're going to pick one to watch live, common sense says Emmerdale is the one you'd record to skip through the ads.

Coronation Street, however, is in dire need of some changes. The producer gets a lot of flak, and the current creative direction is questionable, but three hour-long episodes each week is a chore. And I'd probably say the same about any soap. It rates better than Emmerdale and EastEnders, but how much of that is by sheer virtue of the fact that the other two screen against each other? Coronation Street having 500,000-ish extra viewers when it has the entire timeslot to itself isn't much of an achievement...

Coronation Street has usually done a fair bit better than 500,000ish extra viewers - for over two thirds of last year the gap was over a million, very occasionally around 1.5m.

I do think looking at the gap between Coronation Street and EastEnders is a good thing to notice going forwards though, particularly once Christmas viewing is out of the way. Significantly, of the 14 weeks last year when EastEnders closed the gap to less than a million on Coronation Street, it didn't happen at all until mid June - so then happened pretty much half the weeks after that.

I do think ITV were being quite aggressive scheduling Emmerdale against EastEnders initially in an attempt to weaken it, but clearly it hasn't worked - obviously that's in large part due to EastEnders getting a lot better, but also because by doing so, ITV helped drive people to iPlayer.

So I do think ITV would be best placed to try and move Emmerdale away from EastEnders now, as I think Emmerdale would benefit more from it. EastEnders fans are used to finding it on iPlayer now - they have been messed around more than fans of the other two in terms of scheduling and have got used to searching for it.

I suspect like Rita that EastEnders will overcome Emmerdale pretty soon - possibly even in the chart next week, although I'm more interested in whether it holds into January so if it maintains its momentum.

 

[lolly]

The Apprentice certainly did have its viewing figures commented on last year.

And The Mail and The Express love a reason to attack the BBC for pretty much any reason, viewing figures included.

 

[Rita]

The Apprentice certainly did have its viewing figures commented on last year.

And The Mail and The Express love a reason to attack the BBC for pretty much any reason, viewing figures included.

I didn’t catch that. Has it started then? How did the first episode do this year?

 

[Rita]

It’s The Traitors I am interested in. I am expecting a lot better viewing figures than last year.

 

[lolly]

I didn’t catch that. Has it started then? How did the first episode do this year?

Sorry - edited. I meant last year, not last week.

 

[lolly]

I don't think the start date for the new series has been announced yet, but people are speculating it will be once The Traitors has finished.

 

[lolly]

I see on the overnight figures last night that Mr Bates vs The Post Office was watched by 3.6 million live viewers and The Tourist at BBC was watched by 2.2 million viewers. I understand this May all change when platform viewing and catch up etc is added but what paltry figures for both.

It's all about how you present it



It really has got great word of mouth though - and seemingly is making far more people aware of the story. I was aware of it, but ignorantly thought it was resolved.

 

[Kala]

I guess I am a prime example of why television ratings are falling. I don’t really watch much tv anymore. Live, hardly ever, and apart from a few shows like Two Doors Down, I don’t even watch much on catch up. I do watch some Drag Race stuff on Wow Presents but I would rather read a book, or listen to a podcast or audiobook, or play some music than scroll through the TV looking for something to watch.

I absolutely HATE having the TV on in the background. Am I just getting old or is just that my tastes are changing?

 

[Slave]

All tv channels run in the same trajectory. They have a hit show and they rinse it to death, people lose interest and inevitably viewing figures fall. Do ITV not do well afternoon quiz time? If not why do they show hours of endless quizzes? As I have said a few times ITV seem to be putting a lot of money in to drama series now and this seems to be their bread and butter when it’s coming to big viewing figures.

I'm not actually sure how BBC vs. ITV fare during the daytime. BBC Breakfast rates higher than Good Morning Britain, but then I suspect This Morning rates higher than whatever is on the BBC.

ITV load the schedules with quizzes because they're comparatively cheap to make, and advertising space doesn't sell for much during daytime. There's an interesting breakdown here if you're so interested. But basically, a national 30-second ad spot during This Morning would cost just over £5,000. The same spot during Emmerdale would cost just over £26,000.

 

[lolly]

When I read that figure of that the average viewing of broadcast TV being less than three hours a week, I thought it was really low until I considered our viewing habits. Mr L watches LOADS of TV. I'd estimate over 25 hours a week. But pretty much NONE of it is live. We watched the New Year show live, and he commented then that the last thing he watched live was probably Eurovision.

I do have a lot of TV on in the background because that's the shows he's watching. I probably only watch about a quarter with him. If I want to read properly or listen to something else, I'll go upstairs.

At the moment he's watching Killing Sherlock and I'm just sitting here being mildly irritated by Lucy Worsley.

 

[Slave]

I think the immediate availability of nearly everything has fostered some bad habits as far as my viewing goes. I see so much stuff advertised - Mr Bates vs. The Post Office being the latest one - and think, "I don't have time to watch it now, but it's on ITVX, so I'll download it when I get the chance". Almost invariably, I either never bother, or it ends up being downloaded and then deleted six months later.

Despite having access to more content than ever before, I've probably never watched less.

 

[Rita]

It's all about how you present it



It really has got great word of mouth though - and seemingly is making far more people aware of the story. I was aware of it, but ignorantly thought it was resolved.

The first episode was really rather good. I was going to binge it all but couldn’t find it on ITVX so will now watch all episodes live.

 

[Rita]

I think I watch both ITV and BBC equally as much but I record more on ITV and start watching around 15 minutes later to miss the ad breaks. This isn’t a new thing though? I have been doing this since sky had a record function. I never really watch anything online, and rarely watch either iplayer or ITVX.

 

[lolly]

I think the immediate availability of nearly everything has fostered some bad habits as far as my viewing goes. I see so much stuff advertised - Mr Bates vs. The Post Office being the latest one - and think, "I don't have time to watch it now, but it's on ITVX, so I'll download it when I get the chance". Almost invariably, I either never bother, or it ends up being downloaded and then deleted six months later.

Despite having access to more content than ever before, I've probably never watched less.

I think I watch pretty much as much as I ever did, but I'm also more conscious of missing more, in as much as there is just SO MUCH CHOICE, so how can anyone possibly watch everything they want to?

And as I've said before, when I have that choice, I often then get overwhelmed and slightly anxious about what to watch. Last night Mr L went to bed early, and faced with having all that choice to myself, I downloaded a few random episodes of French & Saunders and Victoria Wood As Seen On TV from Sky, rather look for something new on Disney or Prime.

 

[lolly]

The first episode was really rather good. I was going to binge it all but couldn’t find it on ITVX so will now watch all episodes live.

If I was ITV, I'd certainly be heralding that it beat The Tourist by over 50%, considering that was the BBC's most successful drama of 2022.

I suspect that The Tourist will pick up massively on catch up and may have overcome that gap reasonably easily, except that I think that Mr Bates has such good word of mouth and human interest that it will also go on to do well on ITVX on catch up.

Hopefully Nolly will pull in the viewers as well, so I think it's quite likely that ITV will have good audiences when figures are released, even if they aren't coming from the soaps.

 

[lolly]

@Slave, does digitalspy track the viewing figures for Hollyoaks? How is that doing, if so?

 

[AGinAg (37)]

@Slave, does digitalspy track the viewing figures for Hollyoaks? How is that doing, if so?

Don't wanna be mean, because those lovely hunks (except Tony) have provided so much monthly joy, but I heard minus numbers

 

[Slave]

@A Lolly Dolly Christmas I haven't seen the ratings for Hollyoaks on DS - they're not included in the main soap ratings thread, although I suspect that's largely because it's impossible to tell these days.

It's still routinely in the weekly top ten of E4 shows, with ratings hovering around 400,000. Unless it's doing outstanding numbers on the Channel 4 app, I can't possibly see how it continues for much longer, though.