Strictly Come Dancing beats X Factor in ratings battle again with more than 10m viewers

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(Image credit: BBC)

Strictly Come Dancing has won the ratings battle against X Factor again, peaking at nearly 11 million viewers

Strictly Come Dancing drew more than 10 million viewers last night as it continued to triumph over rival The X Factor in the ratings.

The dancing competition had a peak audience of 10.8 million and an average of 9.8 million, giving the BBC show a 45.5 per cent audience share.

The X Factor drew a peak audience of 6.9 million and an average of 5.9 million, providing ITV with a 29 per cent share.

The singing show has struggled in the ratings since it returned to screens earlier this year.

Last week an average of 5.8 million people watched the show, dropping from 6.2 million the week before.

This week’s diva theme left viewers at home confused about who was considered a diva, as contestants sang songs by Vanilla Ice, Sam Smith and Bjork, as well as Michael Jackson, Adele and Amy Winehouse.

On BBC One, Ore Oduba topped the leaderboard again but there was a heart-stopping moment when Ed Balls nearly dropped partner Katya Jones during a lift as they performed an American Smooth.

Results programmes for both shows will air on Sunday evening, with Strictly on BBC One at 7.15pm and The X Factor on ITV1 at 8pm.

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