BBC’s Strictly special was the most watched show in the UK on Christmas Day in 2023 with 5.3 million viewers (excluding The King’s Christmas broadcast).
BBC dominated the ratings with nine out of the top ten most watched shows as audiences tuned into the BBC across the day for a range of new episodes of popular shows, with the BBC noting that figures will grow as viewers catch up on iPlayer.
BBC One was the biggest channel on the day, over double the next-biggest competitor with over 27 per cent of broadcast viewing. It saw its highest share since 2019 (Gavin & Stacey), and was also higher than any other year since 2010. BBC One was also bigger than the whole SVoD market combined on Christmas Day on TV.
Charlotte Moore, BBC’s Chief Content Officer, commented: “Bringing people together at Christmas matters to audiences and securing nine of the top ten shows demonstrates how much they value the BBC’s Christmas Day line-up. We entertained viewers in their millions on Christmas Day with a range of quality programmes you really can’t find anywhere else to wrap up an outstanding year of creative content on the BBC.”
TOP 10
| 1 | The King’s Christmas Broadcast | BBC One | 5.9 |
| 2 | Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special | BBC One | 5.3 |
| 3 | Doctor Who | BBC One | 4.7 |
| 4 | Ghosts Christmas Special | BBC One | 4.4 |
| 5 | Call the Midwife | BBC One | 4.4 |
| 6 | Michael McIntyre’s Christmas Wheel | BBC One | 4.2 |
| 7 | EastEnders | BBC One | 3.6 |
| 8 | Toy Story 4 | BBC One | 3.5 |
| 9 | The 1% Club | ITV | 3.4 |
| 10 | Tabby McTat | BBC One | 3.3 |
It was also BBC One’s strongest Christmas Eve broadcast share in a decade (since 2013).