Netflix is making inroads into the BBC's domination - as it was the most-watched TV service in the UK for three months last year. The success has been described as the "unseating of Britain’s most popular channel" by one industry magazine and whilst it may not have been permanent, Deadline says it "represents a possible inflection point in the battle between traditional broadcasters and U.S. streaming giants". The BBC were less impressed with the figures and responded by saying it was “meaningless” to compare the entirety of Netflix with a single channel and that its portfolio had double the number of viewers of the streamer.
However, viewing figures from BARB, the UK’s official ratings body, showed that Netflix’s audience reach overtook BBC1 in September, October, and November 2024. For those three months, Netflix’s average audience reach stood at 43.2M, compared with BBC1’s 42.3M viewers buoyed in part by releases including hit dramas like Bridgerton, Baby Reindeer and The Gentleman. In September Ted Sarandos, co-chief executive of Netflix, praised those shows as well as thriller Fool Me Once for their success on the streaming platform. He went on to describe the UK as “the birthplace of prestige television”, adding Netflix was currently producing more than 100 shows and films there. Bridgerton drew 92m views in the first six months, Baby Reindeer 88m and The Gentlemen 76m. The BBC had its own huge success at Christmas with the final episode of Gavin & Stacey.
