The United Kingdom recorded its lowest audience for a Eurovision Song Contest final in 15 years, with just over 5 million viewers watching the 2026 final last night.
An average audience of 5.2 million viewers watched the final of the 70th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest live on BBC One last night. The figure represents a drop of 1.49 million viewers compared to the equivalent show in 2025, when the contest had a viewing share of nearly 54.14%.
Based on data going back to 1999, this year is the lowest viewing figure on linear television for the United Kingdom since 5.54 million viewers watched the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, Norway. If the streaming figures for the contest on iPlayer are also low, there is the possibility this year’s contest could be the least watched Eurovision Song Contest final on record in the United Kingdom.
The viewing figures for Eurovision 2026 in the United Kingdom are:
- Semi-Final One – 1.3 million viewers
- Semi-Final Two – 1.2 million viewers
- Grand Final – 5.2 million viewers
Look Mum No Computer represented the United Kingdom at Eurovision 2026 with “Eins, Zwei, Drei”. He scored 1 point from the jury in Ukraine and finished 26th in the final.
Source: Liam Hamilton
The United Kingdom debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1957 and holds the record for the most consecutive appearances in the contest. To date, the UK has won the contest a total of five times, with their first victory coming in 1967 and their latest in 1997. The UK holds the record for the most second-place finishes in the contest, having been runner-up a total of 16 times. Since 2000 the UK has finished within the top 10 only three times, this being in 2002 with Jessica Garlick, 2009 with Jade Ewen and 2022 with Sam Ryder who finished 2nd in Turin.