BBC America’s ‘Doctor Who’ Season 9 Premiere Breaks Records With Double-Digit Growth Across All Key Demographics..
New York – September 21, 2015 – BBC AMERICA’s Doctor Who rang in season 9 with a bang, delivering double digit growth from season 8 across all key demos in live plus same day ratings. The premiere episode ranks as Doctor Who’s biggest season premiere ever in the Adult 18-49 demo, which nearly doubled the season 8 average. The season debut also saw increased social engagement versus last season’s premiere, and reigned as the most social drama of the night and week leading into the premiere.
“Doctor Who is unlike anything else on television, a storied franchise that is as fresh and contemporary as ever, with brilliant writing and superb performances,” said Sarah Barnett, President of BBC AMERICA. “We couldn’t be more thrilled that new and returning Doctor Who fans tuned into the live premiere in record numbers and we look forward to bringing more of the Doctor to this passionate audience.”
Live + Same Day Ratings Highlights*:
The premiere telecast delivered 2 million total viewers and 1.1 million Adults 18-49. Among A18-49, Doctor Whopropelled BBC AMERICA to #3 in its timeslot, out-delivering the big 4 broadcast networks and ranking only behind college football on ESPN and the finale of Sábado Gigante on Univision.
In the A18-49 demo, Doctor Who is now one of just 14 dramas on TV this season to show any growth from its prior season premiere (out of 100+ returning dramas).
The A18-49 audience ranks as Doctor Who’s biggest season premiere ever on BBC AMERICA, nearly doubling the S8 average (+95%). In the demo, episode 901 ranks among the top 10 returning cable drama premieres this season, beating Homeland, Suits and The Strain, among others.
All tracked demos showed increases from the season 8 average with the most significant increases seen among the younger demos, most notably P12-24 (+186%) and P18-34 (+161%).
The episode reigned as the #1 most social drama of the night based on ListenFirst’s Digital Audience Ratings for Television. It was the #1 TV brand on Tumblr, the #1 drama on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and the #2 drama on Instagram, following The Walking Dead. It was also the #1 most social drama of the week.
Episode 901 garnered larger social engagement than the most recent season premieres of Scandal, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, True Detective, Outlander, Glee, and The Flash, among others.
In the newest season of Doctor Who, the Doctor and Clara embark on reckless adventures in all of space and time. In Peter Capaldi’s second season at the helm of the TARDIS, the series sees the Doctor and Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) going on a journey that takes them to deadly alien planets, creepy underwater bases, Viking villages, a global Zygon uprising, and through hidden alien dens, to the very end of time itself.
Meeting monsters old and new, the Doctor will come face to face with Missy (Michelle Gomez), a city of Daleks, deadly mercenaries called the Mire, terrifying ghosts and more.
Previously announced and taking up a guest role in the new season will be Maisie Williams, having already achieved global success for her role as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones. Michelle Gomez (Missy) returns to plague the Doctor and Clara in the season opener, and UNIT are back with Jemma Redgrave (Kate Stewart) and Ingrid Oliver (Osgood) returning following their popular entrance last season. Also confirmed as guest cast in the new season are Reece Shearsmith, Rebecca Front, Rufus Hound, Paul Kaye, Elaine Tan, Neet Mohan, Bethany Black, Paul Courtenay Hyu, Joivan Wade and Sophie Stone.
The new season has been written by lead writer Steven Moffat, Toby Whithouse, Jamie Mathieson, Peter Harness, Mark Gatiss, and new writers to Doctor Who – Sarah Dollard and Catherine Tregenna; directed by Hettie Macdonald, Daniel O’Hara, Ed Bazalgette, Daniel Nettheim, Justin Molotnikov, Rachel Talalay; and produced by Tracie Simpson, Derek Ritchie, Nikki Wilson and Peter Bennett. Doctor Who is a BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC One, co-produced with BBC AMERICA.
*Source:
TV: Nielsen, Live+SD, Doctor Who Ep 901 (BBCA), 9/19/15: 9:00-10:05p, P2+/A18-49 (000).
Double-digit growth = S9 premiere (9/19/15) vs S8 average (8/23/14-11/8/14).
Returning drama ranks = 2014/15 STD (9/22/14-9/19/15).
Timeslot rank = 9/19/15: 9:00-10:05p time period, BBCA vs all Nielsen-measured networks.