Viewership increased by 1,000,000 after drop in viewership on premiere night

The first live show of Strictly Come Dancing dazzled screens yesterday, with stars and professionals alike giving it their all in a series of epic performances.

But that’s not the only reason to celebrate, as viewership is also promising after an initial dip on premiere night.

Last night the likes of Chris McCausland, Tasha Ghouri, Pete Wicks, Nick Knowles, Shayne Ward and Sarah Hadland took to the dance floor with their professional partners.

Judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke were in attendance to give the contestants harsh critiques and occasional glowing reviews, with JLS star JB Gill topping the leaderboard with an impressive 31 points.

But his collaboration with Amy isn’t the only thing that gained traction on Saturday. Viewership also increased by an impressive million over the previous weekend.

As confirmed Metro.co.uk The BBC’s Strictly, which airs from 7pm to 9.30pm, was watched by an average of 6.4 million viewers last night.

The programme’s viewership peaked at 6.6 million.

Perhaps even more impressively, the show achieved a massive viewership of 49.4%.

Those numbers are sure to rise in the coming days as Strictly fans catch up and re-watch the series via BBC iPlayer.

This comes after the 2024 premiere of Strictly was watched by almost one million fewer viewers than in 2023.

An average of 5.5 million viewers watched the BBC One show on 14 September, as the programme returned amid controversy surrounding the ousted professional dancers, who were forced to deny accusations of inappropriate behaviour during training.

However, it is worth noting that these numbers have fluctuated over the years, with an increasing number of people watching the broadcast on demand, which was not included in the original numbers.

The 2022 premiere averaged 5.4 million viewers, while a pre-recorded showing of the 2021 premiere drew seven million viewers.

As for the first live performance of 2023, while it was lower than in 2022, the number of viewers per night was still higher than this year.

Last fall, 6.6 million viewers (compared to 6.8 million in 2022 and 7.9 million in 2021) watched the cast take their first steps.

The news, which will surely have delighted the class of 2024, is that there was no public vote this weekend, meaning everyone will be back dancing next weekend when the judges’ scores will be added up and a terrifying dance-off will cut one couple’s Strictly adventure short.

After the first dances, Love Island’s Tasha has emerged as the new hot favourite with bookmakers predicting she will win the glitter ball due to her impressive performances in the cha cha cha.

She and returning pro Aljaz Skorjanec each received 30 points from the jury, and Shirley told Tashi, “You’re well on your way to delivering one of the most spectacular leg kicks I’ve ever seen on a show.”

Meanwhile, Toyah Willcox is clearly struggling as she scored just 12 points for her tango dance and finished last on the leaderboard.

Alongside her in the danger zone were Towie’s Paul Merson and Pete, who scored 17 points for their American smooth and paso doble respectively.

The star of the evening, however, was undoubtedly comedian Chris, who made history as the show’s first blind participant.

Paired with Australian competitor Dianne Buswell, the beloved Scouser performed a cha cha cha to Twist And Shout, for which he received 23 points.

Judge Anton said: “It was one of the most extraordinary things I have ever seen in my entire life.”

Shirley added: “I’m in shock and very touched – wonderful.”

Viewers had already fallen in love with the TV star and were keen to heap further praise on him as Chris ignored criticism from local Mr Nasty Craig, telling him: “I’m too knackered to care, mate!”

“I’ll take you home tonight,” he added with a smile.

He wasn’t the only one to respond to criticism of the panel last night – podcaster Pete also slammed his timing.

“I’ve got no rhythm, mate!” Pete declared, leaving Strictly viewers waiting for fireworks in the coming weeks…

Strictly Come Dancing returns next Saturday at 6.15pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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