A drama filmed in Bolton which gripped the nation has become one of the most-watched drama series of the past 10 years.

Bolton town centre was showcased to millions in January as Sarah Lancashire, who plays Sgt Catherine Cawood, was seen in town for episode two of the third and final series.

Several Bolton businesses in the town centre were featured including Amico Café, Scoopalicious, and The Vaults.

The official ratings show this year’s series finale had a TV audience of an astonishing 11.1 million.

The BBC’s Chief Content Officer, Charlotte Moore says: “Happy Valley is the ultimate event TV, Sally Wainwright’s emotional rollercoaster has gripped the nation and grown week on week across the start of 2023.”

The Bolton News:

Critics hailed Happy Valley’s concluding episode as “electrifying” and “Bafta-winning”, which saw Sarah Lancashire’s West Yorkshire police sergeant Catherine Cawood have one last showdown with murderer, sex offender and escaped convict Tommy Lee Royce, played by James Norton.

The official ratings for the finale, which broadcast on BBC One on February 5, have been published by the audience research organisation Barb.

They are consolidated ratings, meaning they include people who recorded and watched the programme up to seven days later – the industry standard for measuring TV audiences.

Only four other series since 2013 have achieved higher ratings, including police thrillers Line of Duty and Bodyguard.

Line of Duty star Adrian Dunbar was also spotted filming on Lever Street, Bolton in January.

The final episode of Line of Duty, broadcast in May 2021, had a TV audience of 15.8 million – the biggest audience for a drama series this century, according to analysis by PA news agency.

Bolton has rapidly become the Hollywood of the North, filming numerous hit shows such as ITV drama, Nolly, The Full Monty, Brassic, Bodies, Red Rose, and more.

The Bolton News:

The three other drama series from the past 10 years to rank higher than Happy Valley in TV ratings are the BBC’s Bodyguard (15.2 million in September 2018) and Sherlock (12.7 million in January 2014), along with ITV’s Broadchurch (11.6 million in April 2017).

Very few series in recent years have come close to matching the huge audiences of Line of Duty and Bodyguard.

Although this chart is led by Line of Duty and Bodyguard, the next entries are all ITV series from the start of the century: Heartbeat (an episode in 2000 watched by 15.2 million), A Touch of Frost (2001, 14.7 million) and Inspector Morse (2000, 13.7 million).

In a chart of the most-watched drama series of the 21st century so far, Happy Valley sits in 16th place.

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