8.4m see latest 'Apprentice' fired

The Apprentice had a solid performance for BBC One last night, according to early figures.

The main show, which saw another candidate fired by Sir Alan, was seen by 8.37m (34.9%) at 9pm. Immediately afterwards, an impressive 4.07m (19%) tuned in for spinoff show The Apprentice - You're Fired on BBC Two at 10pm.

The show's nearest rival, ITV1's Midsomer Murders, averaged 3.59m (15.6%) between 8pm and 10pm.

Channel 4's Grand Designs put in 1.98m (8.2%) during the 9pm hour, while Five's Extraordinary People: Electric Human interested 1.03m (4.3%). BBC Two was last for the hour with documentary Why Poetry Matters, which drew a lowly 770k (3.2%).

Waterloo Road, starring the soon-to-depart Neil Morrissey, led the 8pm hour, attracting 4.51m (20.6%) for BBC One.

The latest episode of Channel 4's Embarrassing Bodies pulled in 2.86m (13%), while the third visit to the Chelsea Flower Show took 2.44m (11.1%). Oil Riggers placed Five last for the hour, putting in 780k (3.6%).

Overall, BBC One came top during primetime with an average share of 23.5% to ITV1's 19.6%. Channel 4 was third with 8.6% (+1: 1.1%), followed by BBC Two with 8.2% and Five's 4.2%.

Elsewhere, the latest episode of Gossip Girl performed poorly for ITV2, grabbing 196k (0.9%) at 9pm.

Ratings data supplied by Attentional