TV since 1981

Events in this year Top 10 programmes 283 reported channels
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2000s
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1990s
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1980s
1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1982 1981

2022

January
8.7m people start the new year by watching BBC1’s The Tourist on January 1st, while 8.2m catch the channel’s Death in Paradise on January 7th. Later in the month, 8.9m tune in to another drama, ITV’s Trigger Point, on January 23rd.
February
6.1m people watch the opening episode of BBC1’s This Is Going To Hurt on February 8th.
March
5.5m people watch the start of The Ipcress Files on ITV on March 6th, while the following day 6.9m tune in for Our House on the same channel.
April
Barb Briefing: The 360° Audience View gives Barb clients fresh insight into how viewers are watching linear television and streaming services.

8.7m people watch the first episode of ITV’s The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe on April 17th.
May
The latest Barb / IPA TouchPoints integrated data become available, based on the 2021 IPA Touch Points release.

9.3m people gather round to watch Ukraine win Eurovision – with the UK placed second – on BBC1 on May 14th.
June
Marking the occasion of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, 13.1m people tune in to watch the Platinum Party at the Palace on BBC1 on June 4th.
July
Barb Briefing: Making Sense of Big Data gives Barb clients some revealing insights into what UK viewers are doing today, deriving from our unique dovetailing of panel and big data.

4m people watch the last ever episode of Channel 5’s Neighbours on July 29th.

11.2 million people watch the English Lionesses’ victory in the Euro 2022 Final on July 31st on BBC1.
August
2.2m people watch the first episode of Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon on Sky Atlantic on August 22nd.
September

Barb launches an industry consultation on extending our reporting to include all television and television-like content on video-sharing platforms.

The average audience for the Queen’s funeral service at Westminster Abbey on September 19th is 26.5m across more than 50 channels.
October

Barb issues an invitation to tender for a panel expansion recruitment contract.

Netflix signs up to Barb’s definitive, trusted measurement of what people across the UK are watching. Barb is the first industry-owned audience currency in the world that Netflix has joined.
November
Barb makes its reporting of Netflix viewing widely available on November 2nd 2022.

Barb issues an invitation to tender for a contract to run its content ID system from January 2025.

8.1m people watch the finale of Channel 4’s The Great British Bake-Off on November 15th, while 11.9m people watch the final of another competition show, ITV’s I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, on November 27th.
December
16.1m people watch England’s defeat to France in the quarter-finals of the World Cup on ITV on December 10th, while 12.4m watch Argentina clinch victory in the final on BBC1 and ITV on December 18th.

6.7m people watch Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery in the seven days since it launches on Netflix on December 23rd, making it the most-watched SVOD title of the year.