TV Ratings: Ashes To Ashes & Doctor Who (BBC1)

Two big UK shows returned over the Easter weekend, but how did they fare in the ratings? Well, Ashes To Ashes managed 5.5m, which isn't too bad given its new Friday night timeslot (it was the most watched show that evening), but considering series 1 and 2 both opened to 7m, that's a fair old slip through no fault of its own. Considering the fact this year's its last, have 2 million viewers really lost their appetite for answers? Why did the BBC move it from Mondays, anyway? Anyway, 5.5m is still a good figure for a Friday, and perhaps fans who were out will be catching up on iPlayer or VoD this week.

On Saturday, there was the hyped return of Doctor Who, with Matt Smith debuting as the Time Lord and Steven Moffat in creative control. The first episode managed a decent 7.7m, and response was also very positive from audiences, fans and critics. It feels like the show will avoid a post-Tennant slump in popularity. Doctor Who's always been bigger than its individual stars. The current Doctor always feels better than the last, too. Well, unless it's Colin Baker.

Of course, 7.7m is still the show's lowest-rated opener since Tennant's debut in series 2, which launched with 8m. But, perhaps with word-of-mouth spreading (indeed, lots of people who never liked Who have commented to me that they'll be watching this series now, based on "Eleventh Hour"), maybe series 5 will build on what's a very solid start.