King Charles's Christmas Message Dominates TV Ratings with 5.9 Million Viewers

King Charles's Christmas speech topped UK TV ratings with 5.9 million viewers, while the BBC secured nine of the top ten most-watched shows on Christmas Day, according to initial ratings.

Among the hit shows, "Strictly Come Dancing" took second place with an audience of 5.3 million, as Jamie Borthwick and Nancy Xu won the special. "Doctor Who" followed in third with 4.7 million viewers witnessing Ncuti Gatwa's debut as the titular character.

King Charles's address highlighted pressing global conflicts and echoed the principle of treating others with kindness. Though popular, both the King's speech and "Strictly" saw fewer viewers compared to the previous year.

The BBC lineup included highly-rated programmes like the "Ghosts" finale and "Call the Midwife," each drawing 4.4 million viewers, as well as "Michael McIntyre's Christmas Wheel" and the "EastEnders" reveal with 4.2 and 3.6 million viewers respectively. Family favorites "Toy Story 4" and "Tabby McTat" also attracted substantial audiences on BBC One.

ITV's "The 1% Club Christmas Special" stood out with 3.4 million viewers, but its soaps "Coronation Street" and "Emmerdale" did not break into the top ten, drawing 2.6 and 1.9 million viewers respectively.