Almost 28 million people tuned in to watch Prime Minister Boris Johnson's address to the nation yesterday, according to overnight ratings data.
The 7pm broadcast saw the PM outline possible phases for easing the current lockdown imposed by coronavirus, including measures to start re-opening schools as early as next month.
BBC One's coverage of the address brought in the highest audience, with 18.6 million (60.4%) watching, while 4.9 million (15.7%) tuned in to ITV and 1.5 million (4.7%) watched on Sky News.
Channel 4 and Channel 5 picked up audiences 810,000 (2.6%) and 390,000 (1.3%) and the BBC News Channel had 1.4 million (4.5%), all combining for a total of 27.4 million - a mammoth 88.5% share of the viewing audience.
Elsewhere, Keith Lemon's new Channel 4 series The Fantastical Factory of Curious Craft got off to a slow start with just 760,000 (3.6%) in the 8pm hour.
Neil Wilkes
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