Ant & Dec\u2019s Saturday Night Takeaway<\/a> last night (Saturday 24th February) was a welcome one \u2013 but it has now been revealed that the new series has smashed some pretty major ITV records.<\/p>\nThe beloved entertainment show returned to our screens with a peak of 5.6 million viewers, averaging 4.9 million. This makes Saturday Night Takeaway the biggest overnight audience of the year on the channel and the biggest entertainment show on the channel this year.<\/p>\n
The pair have been at the helm of the series for the past 20 series, having hosted it on and off since 2002 and looking back on the previous series, the show has reached a staggering 52 million viewers. While that certainly sounds like a lot of people, to put it into perspective that makes up 90% of the UK population.<\/p>
Last night\u2019s live show was not only an exciting return to form for the duo with plenty of entertaining segments, the premiere episode also boasted the biggest audience giveaway in British TV history.<\/p>\n
In the heartfelt opening segment to the show, Ant and Dec were about to announce the major giveaway and cut to going round the country to find the lucky winner. But in a surprise twist, they announced that the 411-person audience was actually made up of amazing fundraisers who had been handpicked to sit in the studio audience.<\/p>\n
Each lucky audience member got a Takeaway Getaway, a holiday abroad that they can redeem at any time. You can watch the moment below.<\/p>\n