The BBC’s coverage of this year’s Glastonbury Festival achieved record viewing figures both on TV and online.
Almost 21 million people (20.9 million) watched Glastonbury TV coverage for at least three minutes, an increase of 12 percent on 2016.
Ed Sheeran’s Sunday evening set led the way with viewers, achieving a record high average audience for a Glastonbury programme of 2.9 million and a record one minute peak audience of 4.1 million viewers, beating the previous record holder Jeff Lynne’s ELO from last year’s festival (2.4 million average).
BBC Two’s 6pm programme with Barry Gibb’s Sunday teatime legends slot achieved a high average audience of 2.48 million (peak 1 minute 3.7 million); a record for the programme broadcasting the legends set.
The BBC saw 4.5 million requests for live streams on BBC iPlayer and the BBC’s Glastonbury website throughout the weekend, an increase of 84 percent compared to 2016 – with 3.5 million unique browsers to the BBC’s Glastonbury coverage online in the UK (up 23 percent on 2016).
Bob Shennan, director BBC Radio and Music says: “We’re delighted that this year’s Glastonbury festival has been enjoyed by a record number of people. BBC Music was able to bring audiences such an incredible range of genres from grime, reggae, rock and pop to memorable sets including Ed Sheeran, who made his Glastonbury debut only six years ago on the BBC Music Introducing Stage, and legendary artists Radiohead, The Foo Fighters and Barry Gibb. And all under a shining sun for a change!”