November 25, 2013 - 12:29 AMT
“Doctor Who” 50th anniv. special draws over 10 mln viewers to BBC One

The 50th anniversary Doctor Who special The Day Of The Doctor was simulcast across the globe on Saturday, airing in over 90 countries from the U.S. and UK to such places as Australia, Brazil, Botswana, Hong Kong, Myanmar, Nigeria, and Mexico, Deadline said.

It also played 1,500 moviehouses in the UK, the U.S., Canada, Germany, Kazakhstan, Russia, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina and elsewhere.

The 75-minute special won high praise from the press in Britain where it averaged a whopping 10.2M viewers on BBC One.

The primetime broadcast drew a 37.4% share and peaked with 10.61M viewers. It was the most watched episode of the series since Christmas Day 2010, according to overnight ratings.

The special brought to a close months of Who celebration mania that proved the 50-year-old series still has legions of fans the world over.

Of particular note in The Day Of The Doctor were appearances by Tom Baker, who played the 4th Time Lord in the 70s, and a brief glimpse of Peter Capaldi who will soon take over as the 12th Doctor. He next appears in the Doctor Who Christmas episode which will mark the exit of the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith.