Open golf proves a hit for BBC One

BBC One drew a good crowd with more than four hours' coverage of the golf Open yesterday.

The tournament attracted 3.3m (24.9%) between 2.30pm and 7.10pm, with a peak of 4.7m (28%) watching Padraig Harrington secure his victory in the 15 minutes from 6.15pm.

ITV1 was the victor during primetime last night, though, registering an audience of 6.6m (28%) for Midsomer Murders over two hours from 8pm.

BBC Two came second in the 8pm hour thanks to Top Gear, which was seen by 6.1m (25.7%), leaving BBC One drama George Gently in third place with 4.2m (17.6%).

Channel 4 documentary The Seven Wonders of the Muslim World drew 804,000 (3.6%) from 7.30pm to 9pm, after which the audience picked up to 3m (12.5%) for an hour of Big Brother highlights.

A repeat of Hitler's Secret Bunkers left Five languishing on 471,000 (2%) in the 8pm hour.