Bodyguard & Killing Eve Top BBC iPlayer Ratings As Terror Drama Becomes BBCs Most Popular Online Show Ever
British terror thriller Bodyguard capped off a fantastic year by becoming the biggest show of the ye..
British terror thriller Bodyguard capped off a fantastic year by becoming the biggest show of the year on the BBCs digital catch-up service iPlayer.
The Richard Madden-fronted drama, which was produced by ITV-owned World Productions, smashed records with its first episode scoring 10.5M requests, making it the most popular episode ever on the iPlayer.
Every episode of the show, which was written by Jed Mercurio, made it into the digital platforms top ten episodes of the year. The drama, which tells the fictional story of David Budd (Madden), a heroic but volatile war veteran now working as a Specialist Protection Officer protecting Keely Hawes Home Secretary Julia Montague, also became iPlayers biggest box-set ever with over 41M requests. It airs on Netflix globally.
The other big digital hit for the British public broadcaster was Killing Eve. The first episode of Phoebe Waller-Bridges BBC America spy thriller was requested 8.9M times, making it the second biggest episode of the year with two other episodes making the top ten.
BBC Director of Content Charlotte Moore said, “These figures show that the BBC iPlayer remains the first choice for thrilling dramas, big sporting moments and the very best natural history and factual programmes. This years figures are the best yet and show that the BBC iPlayer is going from strength to strength. With Les Misérables, The Greatest Dancer and a new series of Fleabag coming up in the new year there will be more great programmes for audiences to enjoy in 2019.”
