Series 14 is off to a great start
Looks like Strictly Come Dancing is still very much the show to beat on Saturday nights as the launch episode drew a record average of 9.3 million viewers last night (September 3) on BBC One.
The 14th series' glitzy opener beat last year's 8.7 million launch audience, and peaked at around 10.1 million (via BBC).
It also beat rival The X Factor on ITV, which managed an audience average of 8.3 million in its later time slot of 8:15pm and peaked at 9.2 million. But it's not all bad news for Simon Cowell as this week did see its audience grow following last weekend's opener, which drew a record low of 6.8 million.
Strictly's launch episode provided plenty of great moments within a brilliantly naff space-themed show and it also finally revealed those all-important pairings of celebrities with their dance partners.
This year's couples include Louise Redknapp with Kevin Clifton, Ed Balls with Katya Jones and Laura Whitmore with Giovanni Pernice - which quickly had Pernice's ex-girlfriend and former Strictly partner Georgia May Foote hitting out at tabloid reports they were paired up to set up a showmance.
Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls already looks set to be a fan fave, even though we're not entirely sure what he was doing in the final dance routine of the show.
Strictly Come Dancing's first live shows will air from September 23 and 24 on BBC One, where it will continue the age-old Saturday night tradition of going head-to-head with The X Factor.
Still, that's nothing compared to what's coming up on Sunday night television as BBC's Poldark goes up against ITV's Victoria in the ratings war tonight (September 4) and every Sunday for the next few weeks.
