The Traitors breaks records – becomes biggest entertainment show in 2 years
The second run of the popular reality series has shown "phenomenal" growth, according to the BBC.
Before season two of The Traitors began airing on BBC One this month, there was one question on fans' lips: how could it possibly top the drama of the first run?
Well, the reality series has well and truly delivered on that front, which has now been reflected in the viewing figures – with the BBC announcing that it has broken records to become the biggest entertainment show in two years.
According to the broadcaster, the series has shown "phenomenal growth" on BBC iPlayer in its first three weeks, more than doubling the totals for series one before the final three episodes have even aired.
Meanwhile, it added that broadcast viewing is increasing week on week, with the first episode seeing an average audience of 6.4 million viewers in the first 7 days alone, more than twice as much as the overnight figure.
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Speaking about the impressive numbers, the BBC's head of entertainment commissioning Kalpna Patel-Knight said it was a "testament to a fiendishly fresh format".
She added: "The Traitors demonstrates the success of the BBC’s on-demand iPlayer strategy.
"Launching and then growing a new Entertainment series in such a competitive market is no mean feat and with a gobsmacking final on the horizon, The Traitors is deservedly one of the hottest and most talked about programmes around.”
Meanwhile, Mike Cotton, the creative director at production company Studio Lambert said that given the success of the first run the prospect of season two had been "a daunting challenge".
Read more:
- The Traitors: 100% Faithful – Harry's winning streak and final predictions
- Hannah's Traitors Diary: Season 1 winner predicts Harry downfall after recruiting Ross
He continued: "The team were united in their ambition to elevate the existing game, whilst also creating more surprising (and sometimes murderous) twists and turns for the audience.
"Claudia [Winkleman] has once again been the most perfect host and the cast were simply brilliant, so we’re absolutely delighted that viewers have loved watching the series as much as we enjoyed making it."
The Traitors airs Wednesday to Friday on BBC One at 9pm. The Traitors season 1 is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
