Season finale sets a ratings high

The finale of the first season of Game of Thrones has set a series high in ratings! James Hibberd reports that the initial viewing attracted 3 million viewers. The encore added the usual 900k netting a total of 3.9 million for the night.

After a relatively average launch of 2.2 million viewers, Thrones continued to edge higher in the ratings all season. With its season finale, Thrones hit a number HBO has been targeting: 3 million viewers. Adding the show’s repeat at 11 p.m., a total of 3.9 million viewers tuned in. The show continues to average 8.3 million viewers when you include all repeats, DVR and On Demand viewing.

Guess those readers pledging they would stop watching after Episode 9′s shocking event couldn’t stay away?

And in the UK, Digital Spy reports that the episode drew 667k viewers on Sky Atlantic, to end up as the second highest episode to date (the premiere delivered 743k). The UK numbers have been up-and-down all season, so I never know what to make of them, but the good news is even the lows have been higher than just about every other Sky Atlantic show.

UPDATE: TV by the Numbers reports that the exact number of viewers for the initial airing was 3.041 million. So we legitimately crossed the 3 million mark! The show also scored a season-high 1.4 rating in the 18-49 demo. Check out their post for a handy chart of the season long ratings trend.

Winter Is Coming: A strong end to a season that saw some steady ratings growth. We didn’t quite beat Boardwalk Empire‘s season finale, but we were close. This number, plus the increasing amount of critical raves and general buzz about the show, gives me great hope for some stellar DVD sales and a strong opening number for season two. Congrats to David Benioff and D.B. Weiss for delivering a show that is resonating with viewers!

• Published on 06/21/2011 at 11:33 AM CDT
• Last updated on 06/21/2011 at 12:52 PM CDT