Voyage of the Damned

[lokheed]

So, now that Doctor Who has been back for a few years has the novelty worn off for the viewers in the UK? Um, not so much. This year's Christmas special, Voyage of the Damned, aired on Christmas day with 12.2 million viewers and a 50% share of the total television audience. That easily makes it the highest rated show since it returned, walking right past Rose which had 10.8 million viewers. In fact, the last fifteen minutes of Voyage of the Damned had 13.8 million viewers - nearly 55% of the entire television viewing audience in the UK. As a matter of fact, you have to go back 28 years to find an episode of Doctor Who with bigger viewing numbers (City of Death, which aired when ITV was on strike and BBC1 was one of only two channels broadcasting). The Christmas special also garnered an Appreciation Index figure of 86, which is a virtually unprecedented number for a show with such a massive audience. Anything over 85 is considered Excellent, and the average score for a drama is 77.

Who'da thunk that a 44 year old trashy sci-fi show could do so well?