Richard III Documentary A Hit For Channel 4

Documentary on the discovery of Richard III’s skeleton, under a car park, proved to be a hit for viewers last night.

Yesterday it was confirmed, by DNA tests, that the skeleton found beneath a car park in Leicester did indeed belong to Richard III. The last of the Plantagenet Kings ruled England for two years between 1483 and 1485 when he was defeated at the Battle of Bosworth Field by Henry Tudor who took the throne and became Henry VII.

Last night’s documentary on Channel 4, Richard III: the King in the Car Park, had 3.7 million viewers from 9pm and had a peak audience of 4.3 million viewers – a big hit for Channel 4.

Elsewhere at 9pm Stephen Poliakoff’s new BBC Two drama Dancing on the Edge launched with a decent 2.3 million viewers of which roughly 140,000 watched via the BBC HD Channel. A repeat of Outnumbered on BBC One failed to deliver big ratings with 3.6 million viewers. The repeat was followed by the series finale of Mrs Brown’s Boys which had 6.4 million viewers. On ITV meanwhile drama series Lewis attracted 6.2 million viewers.

Dancing on the Edge continues tonight on BBC Two