BBC dealt huge blow as Christmas Day TV ratings confirmed

The BBC didn’t achieve the success of 2024.

Strictly was the only Christmas Day show to see an increase in figures (Image: PA)

BBC Faces Major Crisis as Christmas Ratings Collapse — Viewership Plummets, Flagship Shows Falter and Closures Loom

The BBC is facing one of its most worrying Christmas Day performances in years after newly confirmed ratings revealed a dramatic slump in viewership — sparking fresh fears that once-untouchable programmes could face permanent closure.

In a stark blow to the broadcaster, Strictly Come Dancing was the only BBC show to record a year-on-year increase on Christmas Day 2025, highlighting just how sharply audience numbers have fallen elsewhere across the schedule.

The figures mark a sobering contrast to Christmas 2024, when the BBC dominated the festive ratings thanks to runaway hits such as Gavin and Stacey: The Christmas Special and Wallace and Gromit, which pulled in a staggering 12.3 million and 9.4 million viewers respectively — comfortably outperforming The King’s Speech.

This year, however, the picture could not be more different.

Gavin and Stacey performed incredibly well in 2024 (Image: Getty)

The King’s Speech attracted six million viewers — identical to last year — making it the most watched programme of the day, a symbolic moment many insiders view as a warning sign rather than a victory. The fact that no BBC entertainment show managed to surpass it has raised serious questions about the broadcaster’s creative momentum.

The Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special drew 4.35 million viewers, up slightly from 4.05 million in 2024. While the increase offered a rare bright spot, it was fuelled by emotional weight, as it marked Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s final show together — a one-off moment unlikely to be repeated.

Elsewhere, the numbers paint a grim picture.

Long-running staples Call The Midwife, EastEnders, and The Weakest Link all suffered significant drops. Call The Midwife fell from 4.4 million viewers last year to just 3.4 million. EastEnders endured an especially brutal collapse, with its first Christmas episode plunging from four million to 2.8 million, and the second sinking to just 2.2 million — nearly half of last year’s audience.

The Weakest Link also slid backwards, pulling in 2.6 million viewers compared with 3.05 million the previous year, continuing a worrying downward trend.

Industry insiders say the declines reflect a deeper problem: a lack of major festive events, reduced investment in ambitious specials, and growing competition from streaming platforms — all contributing to an erosion of appointment television.

Even the BBC’s second-most watched programme of the day, The Scarecrows’ Wedding — an animated adaptation of a Julia Donaldson book — managed just 4.3 million viewers, a figure that would have ranked as mid-table only a year ago.

While the BBC can point to the fact it still secured nine of the top ten programmes on Christmas Day, critics argue that dominance means little when overall viewing levels are shrinking — and when rivals are redefining how audiences consume content.

Behind the scenes, the figures have reportedly intensified internal discussions about cost-cutting, commissioning freezes, and the future of underperforming shows, with some executives privately warning that several long-running titles may not survive another year of decline.

BBC Chief Content Officer Kate Phillips attempted to strike an optimistic tone, insisting shared viewing still matters and teasing major launches in 2026, including new series of The Traitors and The Night Manager.

But for many observers, the Christmas ratings tell a far more troubling story: a national broadcaster under pressure, losing its grip on mass audiences — and facing hard decisions that could permanently reshape the BBC’s future.