Doctor Who - BBC Annual Report

The Day of the Doctor was the most-watched drama on BBC Television last year, with an average of 12.8 million viewing.

The figures are confirmed in the BBC Annual Report published today, which also reveals that 3.2 million requested the 50th-anniversary episode on iPlayer.

Doctor Who is listed as one of the global highlights of the year, with the Doctor Who special being shown on TV in 98 countries, with 3D screenings in 23 countries, broadcast in 15 languages, and selling 649,138 cinema tickets in 25 countries. Following transmission, the episode went straight to the top of the iTunes US and Amazon charts, illustrating appetite for the Doctor Who brand, which has 4.3m fans on Facebook.

BBC Worldwide, the BBC's commercial arm, also reported on how well the series performs for the Corporation. The Day Of The Doctor sold more DVD copies in its first week than any previous Doctor Who title. Additionally, the returned classic Doctor Who episodes, The Enemy of the World and The Web of Fear, topped the iTunes TV chart in October. By offering fans exclusive products, such as limited edition box sets and branded apparel, the e-commerce business at BBCShop.com has increased by 30.4%.

In North America the Doctor Who 50th-anniversary episode reached almost 4.5m viewers on the day and set a record for activity related to a televised event on Tumblr, surpassing the Super Bowl and MTV VMAs. The Doctor Who Christmas special premiere was BBC America's first-ever audience over 3m.

BBC Worldwide reported that although revenue from consumer products in the US as a whole was marginally down, it outperformed the declining US DVD market. This was aided by Doctor Who 50th-anniversary programming, which also fuelled an 80.1% uplift in licensing, with total licensing revenue equating to over US$100m in retail sales. The one-day theatrical release of The Day of the Doctor delivered the equivalent of US$4.8m at the box office, making it the second-highest US box office hit on the night.

In Australia the Doctor Who 50th-anniversary broadcast reached 1.7m viewers, while the sales of Doctor Who DVDs increased by 59.6%. Live events included the Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular touring three cities, and the 50th-anniversary episode screening was seen by more than 95,000 cinema-goers in 131 cinemas. BBC Worldwide Australia launched four Doctor Who pop-up shops and an online store.

In Latin America The Day of the Doctor was seen by 24,000 people in cinemas across the region.

Overall, BBC Worldwide made a headline profit of £157.4 million.