Queen's Speech nation's most watched Christmas TV show

Queen's Speech nation's most watched Christmas TV show

She is the ruler of Great Britain and now her majesty is also the Queen of Christmas TV after her annual address was crowned the nation's most-watched show.

The Queen's Christmas Day message drew a combined audience of 7.6 million, across BBC1, ITV and Sky, making it the most popular programme and pipping madcap comedy Mrs Brown's Boys. 

The Queen's broadcast on BBC1 attracted 5.9 million, as well as 1.6 million on ITV and around 175,000 on Sky (excluding plus-one channels).

It beat the BBC's Mrs Brown's Boys which drew in 6.8million viewers when it aired at 3.58pm yesterday. 

The Queen's Speech also beat out competition from EastEnders and Strictly Come Dancing to become the most watched show of Christmas Day 2017.

According to TV ratings, 6.5 million tuned in for Strictly's festive episode, a decrease from 2016 when an average audience of 7.2 million watched Len Goodman's final appearance on the panel.

In contrast, EastEnder's dramatic Christmas special drew in 6.3 million viewers. 

BBC1 enjoyed six of the top 10 shows on Christmas Day, with figures expected to rise over the coming days as TV fans watch on catch-up. 

In her speech, The Queen went out of her way to welcome Meghan Markle to the Royal Family as she said she looked forward to welcoming 'new members' into the family in the New Year.

A framed photograph of the bride-to-be with Prince Harry was displayed with other family pictures as the monarch spoke, and the couple also featured in video footage aired at the end of the festive broadcast.

She will also have been talking about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's new child which is due to be born in April 2018. 

Doctor Who - featuring Jodie Whittaker's debut as the Time Lord and Peter Capaldi's finale - brought in 5.7 million viewers for BBC1.

ITV's best performing show was Coronation Street, at 4.8 million, excluding plus-one.

BBC News got 4.2 million viewers, and The Highway Rat, the adaptation of the much-loved book by Julia Donaldson and illustrator Axel Scheffler, drew in 4 million viewers on BBC1.

ITV's Emmerdale got 3.5 million viewers, while fellow ITV drama Victoria attracted 2.5 million.

Charlotte Moore, director of BBC content, said: 'Millions of people chose BBC1 on Christmas Day and came together to enjoy the top six most popular programmes from comedy, drama and entertainment.'

Channel 4 said The Great British Bake Off festive special attracted the broadcaster's biggest Christmas Day overnight audience since modern records began in 2002.

It won an average audience of 3.1 million viewers, peaking with 3.4 million, beating the previous Channel 4 record-holder Home Alone in 2016, which drew three million viewers.

Last year the festive Bake Off on BBC1, before the show moved to Channel 4, had an average of 6.3 million viewers.

The figures for this year's Christmas TV are likely to change, as they don't including catch up or on demand viewers.