Downton Abbey hits highest ratings for series but Strictly stays on top.

Downton Abbey's last episode before its Christmas special soared to a ratings high for the series, but Strictly Come Dancing continued to waltz all over the competition.

The ITV drama, which featured a suicide attempt and a wedding, drew an overnight average of 8.9 million on Sunday when viewers watching on ITV +1 were included. The share of the total TV audience was 39.1%.

The figure excluding ITV +1 was 8.45 million.

Downton secured its highest audience since November 10 2013, when it averaged 10 million and a 40.6% share.

The multi-award-winning series, which has captivated the nation since 2010, will return for its grand finale at Christmas.

Despite the Crawleys and their servants going out on a high, BBC One's ballroom show, which aired its results show at 7.15pm, reigned supreme on Sunday.

An average of 10.4 million viewers watched as the show said goodbye to BBC Breakfast's Carol Kirkwood, who became the sixth celebrity voted out of the series.


Press Association.
Full story at Yahoo News.