JK Rowling’s Strike beats Victoria in the ratings – getting two million MORE viewers than the ITV show
CRIME drama Strike, based on the JK Rowling book series, beat period spectacular Victoria in the Sunday night ratings war.
The first episode of BBC One's new series, adapted from JK Rowling's Cormoran Strike novels, pulled in two million more viewers than its ITV timeslot rival over Bank Holiday weekend.
Both shows aired at 9.05pm but it was Strike that came out on top, as viewers tuned in to the first investigation of the series, called The Cuckoo's Calling.
The crime drama's debut episode was watched by an average of 5.5 million viewers with 6.2 million at its peak, according to .
In contrast, the first episode of Victoria's second series had an average of 3.9 million viewers with 4.2 million at its peak.
Of course, the ratings don't take account of people who may have recorded the shows to watch later, or those who use catch up services.
Many TV viewers took to Twitter before the shows aired to say they would be watching both.
Victoria scored six million viewers for its debut episode last series.
A source told The Sun's Bizarre column that the poor ratings could be down to co-stars and real life couple Jenna Coleman (Victoria) and Tom Hughes (Albert) turning down the chance to promote the series.
An insider said: “Jenna and Tom are very private about their relationship.
“Their lack of willing when it comes to promoting the show together has meant it hasn’t got the necessary publicity it has needed.”
The second series of Victoria picked up six weeks after the first series ended, with Victoria and Albert celebrating the birth of their first child and Victoria adjusting to life as a new mother.
Elsewhere, Albert continues to struggle with finding a role for himself alongside his powerful wife.
Meanwhile, Strike is based on the adult crime series written by Harry Potter author JK Rowling under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith.
The series (and novels) follow the cases undertaken by private investigator Comoran Strike (Tom Burke) and his assistant Robin Ellacott (Holliday Grainger) from their tiny shop in central London.
In The Cuckoo's Calling, Cormoran is hired by the brother of a troubled model who has fallen to her death from a balcony in an exclusive area of London.
While it's presumed by most that the model took her own life, her brother isn't sure, and seeks Cormoran's help in finding out what really happened.
JK served as an executive producer on the series but did not write the screenplays.
She has so far penned three novels in her Strike franchise - The Cuckoo's Calling, The Silkworm and Career of Evil, while a fourth novel, Lethal White, is in the works.
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