Millions of viewers in the UK watched the broadcasts of the once-in-a-generation event, making it the most viewed broadcast of 2023 so far.
King Charles III’s highly-anticipated coronation took place on May 6 in Westminster Abbey and was broadcasted across different channels between 11:00 am to 1:00 pm BST.
A tweet by research organization Barb revealed that 18.8 million viewers in the UK watched the ceremony across 11 channels and services. Viewership peaked at 20.4 million by noon of the event.
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The BBC One experienced a peak of 13.4 million viewers. Meanwhile, the BBC Two’s accessible signed version of the coronation reached 1.7 million viewers.
ITV reached 3.3 million viewers, while Sky’s broadcast had roughly 800,000 viewers across their channels.
It’s been 70 years since the world witnessed a British royal’s coronation. Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953 was a momentous one, but due to the lack of technology at the time, it’s difficult to ascertain the exact number of people who watched the ceremony. That said, old surveys estimate that around 20 million viewers tuned in to the event.
Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in 2022 had more than 29 million views. Although this year’s coronation didn’t have the same viewership numbers, it’s still the most watched broadcast in 2023 thus far.
The royal-related broadcast that had the highest viewership was the funeral service for King Charles III’s ex-wife, Diana, in 1997. 31 million people on BBC and ITV tuned in to the broadcast that honored the late Princess of Wales.
Banner photo via Instagram @theroyalfamily.
