Big Brother made its highly anticipated return to the U.K. on ITV with its highest ratings in nearly a decade.
2.5 million total viewers watched as 16 new housemates entered Big Brother’s brand new house to compete for the £100,000 prize. The launch attracted 540,000 on ITV2 while ITV1 saw 2 million people tune in.
The figure is the highest-rated launch for a civilian series since 2012 and was the number one show of the evening for 16-34s across all networks. The 48.7% share of 16-34 demo across ITV1 and ITV2 was the highest since 2006.
The final of Big Brother’s 19th series in 2018 attracted 1.6 million viewers while averaging just 632,000 (5.3%) for its final series. The final series launch show in 2018 had just 900,000 people tune in.
Big Brother UK airs Sunday-Friday at 9 pm on ITV2 and ITVX.
