The Fixer becomes unstuck

The six-part series, starring Andrew Buchan, saw an initial 5.5m (23.9%) tune in at the start but its audience slowly declined to 4.4m (19.6%) in the final 15-minutes. It was below the channel's slot average for 2007 of 5.7m (22%).

Despite the decline from the first episode, when it appealed to 6.2m (26.5%), last week the show was still top dog in the 9pm slot.

BBC1's Crimewatch on the Streets, a special edition of the long-running show, gained 4.2m (18.4%) in the same hour-long slot.

ITV1 kept ahead of the field earlier in the evening with its regular bumper helping of soaps.

Emmerdale at 7pm had 8m (35.9%) which was followed at 7.30pm with Coronation Street at 7.30pm on 10.8m (45.3%). An hour later the second outing of the soap had 10.3m (40.8%).

BBC1's EastEnders at 8pm had 10.6m (43.7%).

The second instalment of BBC1's Easter drama The Passion also had a tough time. The 30-minute episode at 8.30pm drew 3.2m (12.9%) for half an hour. It was on the level with the slot average of 3.2m (12.9%). The opening hour-long episode on Sunday (16 March) had 4.1m (14.8%) at 8pm.

Just behind BBC1 at 8.30pm was BBC2 cookery show Delia on 3.1m (12.2%). The food programme was down by 600,000 on its debut last week.

Five's motoring show Fifth Gear just fell shy of the 1m mark at 8pm with 997,000 (4%) for an hour. The channel's following Breaking into Tesco at 9pm had 1.1m (4.8%).

Channel 4 effectively opted out of the daily ratings scuffle in peaktime with a host of programmes focused around the fifth anniversary of the West's incursion in Iraq, which never made it past the 1m mark.

Iraq: the Betrayal, a Dispatches special, at 8pm had 617,000 (2.5%) followed at 9pm by the feature-length drama Battle for Haditha. The Nick Broomfield film, lasting nearly two hours, averaged 993,000 (4.8%) from 9pm.

ITV1 also marked the anniversary with Rageh Omaar: the Iraq War by Numbers at 10.35pm on 1.1m (9.2%).

All hours shares for Monday 17 March 2008: ITV1 - 21.8%, BBC1 - 21.1%, C4 - 7.7%, BBC2 - 7.5%, Five - 4.9%, multichannel - 37%.

Peaktime (6pm to 10.30pm) shares: ITV1 - 26.6%, BBC1 - 23.9%, BBC2 - 8.2%, C4 - 5.9%, Five - 2.9%, multichannel - 31.8%.

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