The 31 most-watched shows in British TV history ever

Whether you come home and crash in front of yours, or you like to binge a favourite show before bed, television is one of our greatest pastimes.

But it's much more than that. TV can unite us - bringing us together in a 'we all remember where we were' moment. Over the years, these are some of the biggest programmes to be broadcast in the UK.

Because things like catch-up TV, Netflix and others mean we consume media differently now, some omissions on the list might come as a surprise, since it's harder to verify figures not from the major broadcasters.

The list is comprised of figures from the British Film Institute for anything pre-1981 and the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board for programmes post-1981. These are independently verified.