Victoria beats Poldark in Sunday evening ratings battle

The results of last night’s ratings battle have arrived… and it’s a surprising win for ITV’s Victoria.

Onlookers have speculated on whether Victoria (ITV, 9pm, Sundays) or Poldark (BBC One, 9pm, Sundays) would attract the most viewers ever since Victoria‘s broadcast was announced to clash with the Aidan Turner-fronted period drama.

The final result was extremely close. 5.3 million tuned in to watch Jenna Coleman’s Queen Victoria be turned down by first love Lord Melbourne (Rufus Sewell), while 5.1 million watched the aftermath of Ross Poldark’s arrest on BBC One instead.

In August, Poldark star Eleanor Tomlinson, who plays Demelza in the popular series, admitted she was “worried” about the competition. Speaking at an advance screening of the second series premiere she said: “I’m worried by it – I’m fiercely competitive!”

Meanwhile Aidan Turner had no such concerns. He said: “It makes a good story in the papers that we’re pitched against each other – but it really doesn’t feel like that at all.

“You can watch Victoria live and then catch us on iPlayer – or vice versa. It’s just a different way of doing it now. I don’t think [scheduling] means what it used to mean a few years ago.

“People who want to watch your show will watch your show – that’s kind of the way it is these days.”