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EastEnders' explosive Christmas episode helps break BBC iPlayer record

The dramatic Six tale finally came to a head on Christmas Day.

Jack Branning (SCOTT MASLEN);Stacey Slater (LACEY TURNER);Nish Panesar (NAVIN CHOWDHRY);Suki Kaur Panesar (BALVINDER SOPAL);Dean Wicks (MATT DI ANGELO);Linda Carter (KELLIE BRIGHT);Phil Mitchell (STEVE MCFADDEN);Sharon Watts (LETITIA DEAN);Keanu Taylor (DANNY WALTERS);Denise Fox (DIANE PARISH);Ravi Gulari (AARON THIARA);Kathy Beale (GILLIAN TAYLFORTH);Rocky (BRIAN CONLEY)

BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron/Matt Burlem

Published: Thursday, 4 January 2024 at 12:26 pm

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The truly explosive EastEnders Christmas special was the most popular episode on BBC iPlayer over the festive fortnight, after bringing in 2.96 million streams.

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The dramatic reveal of who the murderer among The Six was and the untimely demise of a Walford male helped BBC iPlayer break a new record.

Amid The Six storyline, EastEnders was the top title on iPlayer for the festive fortnight, with 26.28 million streams, followed by Vigil (10.96m) and Doctor Who from 2005 onwards (10.01m).

EastEnders was the number one episode streamed over the Christmas period, with Vigil season 2 episode 6 in second place with 2.19 million streams and Rick Astley Rocks New Year's Eve - Part 1 in third place with 2.02 million streams.

Letitia Dean as Sharon Watts, Gillian Taylforth as Kathy Cotton, and Kellie Bright as Linda Carter looking at the floor at the feet of the Queen Vic stairs in EastEnders.

Letitia Dean as Sharon Watts, Gillian Taylforth as Kathy Cotton, and Kellie Bright as Linda Carter in EastEnders. BBC

The Doctor Who Christmas special, The Church on Ruby Road, was the fifth most watched series throughout the festive period, and it received 1.79 million streams.

The episode saw Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor as he met his new companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).

Dan McGolpin, Director of BBC iPlayer and Channels says: "It's wonderful to see that viewers came to BBC iPlayer in record numbers over the festive period.

"Nowhere else would they have found the same range of high-quality British programming to keep them gripped, make them laugh or to provide companionship and news at that special time.

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"And with a whole host of compelling drama, comedy, factual programming, entertainment and sport landing on iPlayer in 2024, viewers can look forward to a great year ahead."

The EastEnders Christmas special saw multiple secrets spill out into the Square, including Keanu's involvement in Albie's kidnapping being revealed to Sharon, Eve being alive and, of course, the reveal of the 10-month long The Six storyline.

It was revealed that Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) was the killer as she murdered Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) in a bid to protect Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean).

The six Walford matriarchs all covered up the murder, and so far, they have gone undetected.

Read more:

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and from 6am on BBC iPlayer.

Visit our dedicated EastEnders page for all the latest news, interviews and spoilers. If you're looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide.

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Authors

Black and white cut-out portrait headshot of Katelyn Mensah, smiling against a lime green background.

Katelyn MensahSenior Entertainment Writer

Katelyn Mensah is the Senior Entertainment Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.

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