Robot drama is broadcaster’s biggest original drama for more than a decade

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Channel 4’s robot drama Humans began with 4 million viewers, the broadcaster’s biggest original drama for more than a decade and more than twice the number who watched BBC1’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.



Humans, adapted by a pair of Spooks writers from a Swedish TV drama, started with just over 4 million viewers, an 18% share of the audience from 9pm on Sunday, with a five-minute peak of 4.3 million.



It was up more than 200% on Channel 4’s slot average and its biggest original UK drama launch since a new TV ratings methodology was introduced in 2002.



It drew more than twice the 1.8 million (8.4%) who watched the fifth episode of BBC1’s seven-part drama Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell.



Humans review: ‘a clever, high-energy thriller, it’s sci-fi for the non sci-fi fan’ Read more

The Susanna Clarke adaptation has failed to attract the numbers in BBC1’s traditional Sunday night drama slot previously occupied this year by Poldark and A Casual Vacancy, having started with 4.5 million (20%) four weeks ago.



The Guardian described Humans, about a family employing a synthetic domestic helper, a green-eyed humanoid robot, to help with the family chores, as “sci-fi for the non sci-fi fan, sci-fi that has more than a foot in sci-fact”.



A co-production with US Mad Men and Breaking Bad broadcaster AMC, Humans stars the IT Crowd’s Katherine Parkinson, former Merlin star Colin Morgan, Gemma Chan and William Hurt.



Not many eyes on the Prized Apart



BBC1’s big new Saturday night gameshow Prized Apart began with just over 3 million viewers, bigfooted by ITV’s terrestrial premiere of The Hobbit.



The series, fronted by Big Brother presenter Emma Willis and former Radio 1 DJ Reggie Yates, combines gruelling physical challenges on location in Morocco with a studio-based general knowledge quiz.



But the quest for a returnable Saturday night entertainment hit to sit alongside Strictly Come Dancing and The Voice may last a little longer after it started with 3.1 million viewers, a 19% share, from 7pm on Saturday.



Prized Apart, described by BBC1 controller Charlotte Moore as “scarily different but in a really exciting way” and “genuinely game changing”, had the misfortune of launching against ITV’s premiere of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit.



The Martin Freeman movie drew 3.4 million viewers, a 16% share, across more than three hours from 7pm, including timeshifted channel ITV1+1.



It is too early to cast judgment on Prized Apart, just one episode into its run, and whether it will do what last year’s Tumble, another summer entertainment show on BBC1, failed to do and return for a second series.

