ITV1 gets vote of confidence in authored Clunes doc

Authored documentaries are all the rage with ITV's factual team, and given the performance of the recent Martin Clunes: a Man and his Dogs, it's easy to see why.

The two-part, 60-minute show went out at 9pm on Sunday 24 August and 31 August, picking up 5.7 million/24.7% share and 5.5 million/22.7% share respectively.

Although short of the channel's slot average to date of 6.1 million/23.7%, the show's appeal meant it was the top rated ITV1 factual show this year, edging out The Duke: Prince Philip.

Airing the Clunes film in the Sunday night slot normally reserved for the likes of ratings banker Lewis was also a vote of confidence in the genre and the channel will have high hopes for the forthcoming Greatest Cities of the World, fronted by Griff Rhys Jones.

ITV1's first stab at the authored documentary in recent times, last year's Robbie Coltrane's B-Road Britain, convinced channel execs last year that the genre was one to pursue. It grabbed 4.8 million/21.8% for its first episode on 16 August 2007 and was seen as a watershed commission.