'Enders wins Christmas Day ratings battle

EastEnders pulled in a massive 14 million viewers last night, the largest audience the BBC soap has seen in years.

The explosive festive editions of the Walford soap saw Max and Stacey's year-long affair exposed in front of both the Slaters and Brannings, who had gathered for a family Christmas.

The first of the two episodes, which aired at 6.20pm, drew 11.6 million viewers - 53.7% of the audience – while the second airing at 8pm peaked at 13.9 million (55.3%). Each ranked in the top three programmes of the day.

ITV's Coronation Street, meanwhile, drew a respectable 8.9 million viewers at 8.30pm, equating to a 35.4% share. The episode – which saw the lid being lifted on Rosie and teacher John's affair - peaked at 9.6 million in its 60-minute slot and was ITV's top-rated programme of the day.

Emmerdale's cardigan-centric hour-long special, which transmitted at 6.50pm, attracted just 5.8 million.

> Click here to read a full roundup of the Christmas Day ratings