Downton Abbey Season 3 premiered Sunday, January 6 on PBS
Downton Abbey set a PBS record on Sunday when 7.9 million viewers in the United States tuned into watch the Season 3 premiere of the popular British drama.
The ratings for the Season 3 premiere of Downton Abbey set a new primetime record for PBS with nearly 8 million viewers, four times higher than the average viewership of shows on the public broadcasting network.
Actress Shirley MacLaine made her Downton Abbey debut on Sunday as Martha Levinson, mother of Elizabeth McGovern’s Cora, Countess of Grantham, Lord Grantham’s American wife.
The 7.9 million viewers of Downton Abbey shattered the 4.2 million for the Season 2 premiere on PBS last year. Overall, Downton Abbey placed second on Sunday night among all network shows on TV.
Created by award winning British writer Julian Fellowes, Downton Abbey has quickly become one of the most popular shows in both the UK and the U.S..
In a statement issued by PBS President Paula Kerger on Monday, the network CEO expressed her delight over the success of the series in America. “I’m so pleased that audiences have returned to Downton Abbey to continue to enjoy some of the best drama on television,” said Kerger.
What did you think of the Season 3 premiere?