List of most-watched television episodes

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The following is a list of most-watched television episodes, organized by country and based on various criteria.

Contents 1 United Kingdom 1.1 Most watched episodes 1.2 One-off events 1.3 Most watched movies 2 United States 2.1 Top 10 Network Telecasts of All Time 2.2 Most watched finales

United Kingdom

Most watched episodes

(by total number of viewers, [1])

1. EastEnders Christmas special, 30.15 million (1986, BBC1)
2. Coronation Street, Alan Bradley killed by tram, 26.93 million (1989, ITV)
3. Only Fools and Horses Christmas special, 24.35 million (1996, BBC1)
4. EastEnders Christmas special, 24.30 million (1992, BBC)
5. Royal Variety Performance 24.20 million (1965, ITV)
6. To the Manor Born 21.00 million (1981, BBC1)

One-off events

(by total number of viewers, [2])

1. 1966 World Cup Final, 32.30 million (1966, BBC/ITV)
2. Funeral of Princess Diana, 32.10 million (1997, BBC1/ITV)
3. British Royal Family documentary, 30.69 million (1969, BBC1/ITV)
4. Apollo 13 splashdown, 28.60 million (1970, BBC1/ITV)
5. FA Cup replay: Chelsea vs. Leeds, 28.49 million (1970, BBC1/ITV)

Most watched movies

(by total number of viewers, [3]; dates are when the movies aired, not necessarily when they were produced.)

1. Live and Let Die, 23.50 million (1980, ITV)
2. Jaws, 23.25 million (1981, ITV)
3. The Spy Who Loved Me 22.90 million (1982, ITV)
4. Diamonds Are Forever 22.15 million (1981, ITV)
5. Crocodile Dundee 21.75 million (1989, ITV)

United States

Sources: BBC, Reuters, Nielsen Media Research

Some sources, such as PBS [4] and the official website of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization [5], describe the heavily-promoted made-for-television production of Cinderella, broadcast once on CBS in 1957, as the most-watched television show. According to those sources, it garnered 107 million viewers, more than the M*A*S*H finale cited in most lists. Based on Census Bureau mid-year population estimates [6], Cinderella would have had to attract an audience representing 62.2% of the U.S. population (171.9 million), compared with the 45.3% that M*A*S*H attracted (of 233.8 million).

Top 10 Network Telecasts of All Time

(ranked by "Household Rating", homes could include many viewers; source: Nielsen Media Research)

1. M*A*S*H finale, 50.15 million homes, 60.2% of households (February 28, 1983)
2. Dallas, "A House Divided," commonly known as "Who Shot J.R.?" 41.47 million, 53.3% (March 21, 1980)
3. Roots finale, 36.38 million, 51.1% (January 30, 1977)
4. Super Bowl XVI (San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinnati Bengals), 40.02 million, 49.1% (January 24, 1982)
5. Super Bowl XVII (Washington Redskins vs. Miami Dolphins), 40.48 million, 48.6% (January 30, 1983)
6. XVII Winter Olympics (Nancy Kerrigan-Tonya Harding) Day 2, 45.69 million, 48.5% (February 24, 1994)
7. Super Bowl XX (Chicago Bears vs. New England Patriots), 41.49 million, 48.3% (January 26, 1986)
8. Gone with the Wind telecast (part 1), 33.96 million, 47.7% (November 7, 1976)
9. Gone with the Wind telecast (part 2), 33.75 million, 47.4% (November 8, 1976)
10. Super Bowl XII (Dallas Cowboys vs. Denver Broncos), 34.41 million, 47.2% (January 15, 1978)

Most watched finales

(by total viewers; source: Reuters)

1. M*A*S*H, 105.9 million viewers (1983)
2. Cheers, 80.4 million, (1993)
3. Seinfeld, 76.3 million (1998)
4. Friends, 52.5 million (2004)
5. The Cosby Show, 44.0 million (1992)
6. Everybody Loves Raymond, 33.0 million (2005)

The most-watched finale is not necessarily a show's most-watched episode. Friends, for example, had 52.9 million viewers for a 1996 episode that followed Super Bowl XXX.