Poldark season 3 starts off with strong ratings; The Loch solid

Were the Poldark season 3 premiere ratings better or worse than expected? Judging from the newly-released figures, we’d say it’s good news.

Per Telly Mix, the first episode of the Aidan Turner drama scored in total 5.5 million viewers, which is an increase of 400,000 from its season 2 premiere. There was a lot made of it airing against Victoria on ITV this past fall, and while some of the hype around the rivalry was likely overblown, this does prove that there was a little bit in the way of smoke there in regards to the two shows sharing an audience.

One other important factor to consider is timing. Poldark is on in the summer now, which is typically a time when there are fewer viewers available just because people are off doing other things. The fact that the show performed this well here is all the more impressive. Granted, the show already was renewed for a fourth season, so this is just icing on the cake and further proof that the show should be considered as a contender for a season 5.

The next test is seeing what the retention is for next week’s new episode following what was an excellent premiere episode. (Read more about that by heading over to the link here.)

The fate of The Loch

The ITV series got off to a fairly solid start of its own, posting five million viewers. Clearly, there are enough people interested in the phenomenon known as Loch Ness to generate some more buzz and intrigue around this show. With this being a new drama and with an unproven fan following, there is a little more pressure on this show to deliver next week. If viewers didn’t like what they saw the first time around, they’ll tune out. It’s really that simple.

The real winner of the night on British TV was Antiques Roadshow, which generated 5.9 million viewers and proved further than putting antique items on television and obsessing over them can still be incredibly successful and profitable in 2017.

What did you think about the Poldark season 3 ratings, and what this could mean for the ratings the remainder of the season? Be sure to share below!

Meanwhile, click here if you want to preview what’s coming up next for Turner and the rest of the cast. (Photo: BBC.)