Peak TV audience of 28 million tune into the Queen’s funeral

A PEAK television audience of more than 28 million watched the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, making it one of the most-viewed broadcasts in UK history.

The figures do not include those who streamed the event live via mobile devices or watched on big screens in cinemas, pubs and other public venues.

When streaming is added to the total, it could surpass the 30.95 million who watched the Euro 2020 final. The funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997 was watched by an audience of 32.1 million.

The wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011 drew a combined audience of 26.2 million people on all channels.

A peak audience of 22.4 million watched the funeral via BBC One, BBC Two and the BBC News channel, with 5.3million opting for ITV and just under 950,000 for Sky News.

Across all channels, the average audience was 26.2 million, according to the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board. Figures released yesterday showed that about 250,000 people queued to see Her Majesty’s coffin at Westminster Hall before her funeral.