Here is a breakout of the Top 25-rated UK History programs in 1H 2020.
- Read my interview notes with BBC History buyer Simon Young at Sunny Side, including his insights concerning A House Through Time
- And see my post capturing the Top 100 UK Factual in the COVID Era.
Channel 4’s VE Day in Colour
UK Broadcast Audience
History Category
Top 25, 1H 2020
Rank | Channel | Program | ‘000 | Share |
1 | BBC 2 | A House Through Time | 3,816 | 17.5 |
2 | ITV | Captain Tom’s War | 2,876 | 14.4 |
3 | BBC 2 | Back in Time for the Corner Shop | 2,600 | 12.7 |
4 | C5 | Princess Anne: The Daughter… | 2,163 | 12.0 |
5 | BBC 2 | Villages by the Sea | 2,085 | 10.7 |
6 | ITV | Our Queen at War | 2,078 | 9.2 |
7 | BBC 2 | Keeler, Profumo, Ward and Me | 2,022 | 13.7 |
8 | ITV | Return to Belsen |
2,017 | 8.3 |
9 | BBC 2 | Belsen: Our Story | 1,709 | 6.6 |
10 | BBC 2 | Little Ships – The Miracle of Dunkirk | 1,628 | 9.7 |
11 | C4 | VE Day in Colour: Britain’s Biggest Party | 1,457 | 6.4 |
12 | C5 | Portillo’s Empire Journey | 1,450 | 5.5 |
13 | C4 | Secrets of Egypt’s Valley of the Kings | 1,396 | 5.4 |
14 | C4 | Lost Pyramids of the Aztecs | 1,387 | 7.1 |
15 | C5 | The Yorkshire Steam Railway: All Aboard | 1,360 | 6.1 |
16 | C5 | King George VI: The Accidental King | 1,350 | 7.5 |
17 | C5 | Tony Robinson’s History of Britain | 1,348 | 6.8 |
18 | BBC 2 | Timewatch | 1,347 | 8.2 |
19 | C5 | VE Day: The Lost Films | 1,344 | 6.2 |
20 | C5 | Queen Mary: How She Saved the Royals | 1,327 | 7.9 |
21 | C5 | Princess Margaret: Rebel Without a Crown | 1,302 | 8 |
22 | C5 | The Royals: A Family in Crisis | 1,298 | 6.9 |
23 | C5 | Royals in Wartime | 1,295 | 5.9 |
24 | BBC 2 | Dig WW2 with Dan Snow | 1,295 | 6.9 |
25 | C5 | Royals on Tour | 1,279 | 5 |
Notes on the Data
- The ‘000 P4+’ column refers to viewers 4 years and older in thousands.
- Share refers to the program’s share of television sets in use at that time.
- The data refers to highest single episode in a series.
- The categories come from BARB, and titles are sometimes incomplete.
Comfort Food
- A friend sent this comment on Food trends during COVID and pointed to its relevance to television entertainment.
Tasting on Familiar Foods: During the outbreak, many consumers are seeking comfort and familiarity in the pantry. Thirty-seven per cent of UK consumers are revisiting dishes from their childhood in lockdown (Co-op, 2020). Traditional quick-fix packet desserts have also seen an uptick – including a 336% increase in custard powder sales (Co-op, 2020).
- On the other hand, the combined audience for the BBC and ITV programs on the Belsen concentration camp does capture the UK viewer’s interest in the toughest of subjects.
- And the “Land & Country” theme that I described in my Top 100 Takeaways is picked up here with multiple stories that showcase British heroism.
- The Royals are not making waves in the Top 100, but they are subjects of eight of the Top 25 in the History list.
More
- Don’t miss my interview notes with BBC History buyer Simon Young at Sunny Side. Includes his insights concerning A House Through Time
- Read the Top 100 UK Documentaries and Lifestyle, 1H 2020
- And the Top 25 Wildlife / Natural History programs
- And don’t miss my Sunny Side Interview on Channel 4’s strategy: What do they want? What do they pay?
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