Stall the ball! Derry Girls the most watched episode in North in 2018

FIGURES out today reveal that the second episode of Channel 4 comedy Derry Girls was the most watched TV programme in Northern Ireland last year.

The episode had an average audience of 608,000 and a share of 70% of those watching TV at that time.

The figures by Ofcom also show that adults in Northern Ireland are more likely than those in any other UK nation to listen to the radio.

Ninety-three per cent of NI adults do so each week.

Local radio accounts for 60% of listening in the North of Ireland, much higher than counterpart stations in Scotland (41%), Wales (31%) and England (31%).

About half of homes in the North of Ireland now subscribe to TV streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon, Now TV or Disney Life, increasing from 262,000 (36%) in 2018 to 340,000 (46%) in 2019.

Netflix is the most popular, with more than 41% of homes here now signed up.

However, traditional TV still accounts for most TV time in Northern Ireland (82%) and remains the most popular place for people to keep up with the latest news.

In 2018, viewers here spent an average of three hours five minutes per day watching broadcast TV, down by 14 minutes since 2017 and over an hour less than in 2010.

The decline is even steeper among children and younger viewers in Northern Ireland.

In 2018, children aged between four and 15 watched one hour and 13 minutes of broadcast TV each day, down from almost three hours in 2010.

However, viewing to other services on the TV set, such as streaming or gaming, increased by five minutes to an average of 42 minutes per person per day in 2018.

Ofcom research shows that 82% of households in Northern Ireland currently have a fixed internet connection, 82% of NI adults now own a smartphone and 64% of households have a tablet device.

Jonathan Rose, director of Ofcom NI, said the way people watch TV is changing faster than ever before.

“In the space of seven years, streaming services have grown from nothing, to reach around half of Northern Ireland homes,” Mr Rose said.

“But traditional broadcasters, who produce brilliant Northern Ireland and UK programmes, still have a vital role to play.”

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