The Agatha Christie adaptation And Then There Were None proved a ratings hit for the BBC over the Christmas period.
The three-part drama, starring Aidan Turner, Charles Dance, Sam Neill and Miranda Richardson, averaged just under 5.5 million viewers across its three episodes.
The first instalment was the second most watched programme on Boxing Day with 6 million viewers, and while fewer tuned in to parts two and three, both attracted more than 5 million each.
Across the three days after Christmas, the only more popular shows were soaps on the BBC and ITV, news reports dominated by flooding in the north of England and an episode of Countryfile.
And Then There Were None tells the story of 10 people brought together on an island by an invitation from a mysterious host, each with a guilty secret to hide. The 1939 book, considered by many to be Christie’s greatest work, is the bestselling mystery novel of all time.
The adaptation, described by scriptwriter Sarah Phelps as a darker spin on Christie, was also a hit with reviewers after early criticism for attempting to “sex up” the story.
The drama helped the BBC dominate viewing over the Christmas period despite losing the top spot on Christmas Day to the final episode of Downton Abbey, the first time ITV has had the most watched show on the day for 15 years.
Eight of the 10 most watched shows on Christmas Day were broadcast by the BBC, and the corporation also had the top 10 most watched shows on each day of the weekend.
Other than the Downton Abbey finale, ITV’s Christmas hits were its soaps, with Coronation Street attracting 7.2 million viewers on bank holiday Monday and the same evening’s episode of Emmerdale watched by 5.8 million.
