ITV dramas have become cult viewing, with some of its latest releases featured in its top ten shows in October.
From Sophie Turner‘s debut on ITV in the crime drama Joan to welcoming back DI Ray with its twists and turns, ITV dramas have kept many of us hooked to our TV screens.
Last month ITV recorded thrilling drama Joan, starring Sophie Turner, was the most streamed programme with an average 2.7m viewers for each of its six episodes.
The series focuses on Sophie Turner Joan Hannington, a notorious jewel thief in 1980s London.
The series follows Joan’s transformation from a housewife and mother to a criminal mastermind.
It depicts her journey from leaving an abusive partner to becoming a major player in London’s criminal underworld.
Sitting behind it, drama DI Ray averaged 1.1m viewers per episode, a significant increase from the first season which gathered 369,000 viewers per episode last month alone.
Bend it like Beckham star Parminder Nagra reprises her role of DI Rachita Ray in the homicide team, as they attempt to uncover another web of crime and deception.
Crime drama Grace returned for a fourth season, with 215,000 average viewers for each of its four episodes in the latest series.
Grace sees John Simm return to his role as DS Roy Grace alongside Richie Campbell as DI Glenn Branson.
It wasn’t just dramas that scored high viewer ratings last month for ITV, with Big Brother also performing well.
The social experiment show returned for its second series with ITV, and had an average ITVX viewership of 401,000 per episode.
Reality titles The Only Way Is Essex and The Family Diaries also scored well with 251,000 and 200,000 respectively.
The Only Way Is Essex aired its 34th series, but has had criticism that it’s not as strong as previous scenes.
Earlier this month, former star Bobby Norris spoke out as he claimed the long-running reality show should be axed after viewing figures plummeted.
The popular personality spent nine years on the show between 2012 and 2021 – pulling in 30 times more viewers than the current series.
New figures show just 48,000 people tuned into the series final, compared to 1.5 million at its peak.
It’s raised questions whether it should be rested or retired altogether after 34 series.
Speaking to his Access All Areas co-host Ellen Coughlan on Fubar Radio, he said: “I was a little bit sad, because in my day we used to get between 1.5 million and 2 million views an episode.
“So when I saw 48,000 viewers, even though I’m not there, it’s sad. I think the legacy is kind of going so downhill now.
“Since the day I left, I’ve never watched the show, but if you can’t even pull in 50,000 viewers, I think, do you know what? Give the show the respect it deserves.
“It’s like having a dog in the corner of the kitchen that’s dragging a broken leg, like you would be kind, and you’d take him to the vet and let him go to sleep.”
