Virgin Media reveals "most talked about" shows

The Hotlist service, unveiled today (11 June), has been developed to provide an “alternative insight” into viewers’ connected, digital viewing experiences.

Shows are ranked out of ten based on live, catch-up, on-demand and recorded viewing figures and social media sentiment. It is calculated using an algorithm developed by Virgin but verified by the London School of Economics. The data will be released on a monthly basis.

LSE professor of statistics Chris Skinner said: “The approach enables the strength of the audience to be measured and explored in three separate dimensions, viewing, engagement and sentiment, or for these three dimensions to be combined in a simple summary way.”

ITV’s crime drama The Ice Cream Girls is a surprise result – scoring a ranking of four out of 10 – despite receiving mixed reviews from critics, as a result of its high viewing figures and positive social media response.

The Graham Norton Show and Britain’s Got Talent shared the top spot with seven points, while the Eurovision Song Contest proved it still has its fans in the UK with a ranking out of 5.33, along with The Voice. Norton’s strong performance was attributed to the appearance of Hollywood actor Will Smith and his son Jayden, which has generated over 15m views on YouTube.

Nick Forward, director of TV at Virgin Media, said, “With TiVo, we are helping people find the very best content available whilst the rise of social media and second screens is also fuelling a whole new wave of engagement with TV through friends and social circles online. The Hotlist looks to capture that buzz and provide insight into what’s hot on TV right now.”

Almost one in four people (24%) say they now use a second screen while watching TV, according to Deloitte. Some reports suggest that nearly two thirds (62%) of viewers across the world use social media while watching TV, with 40% of those people discussing the TV they’re currently watching (Ericsson Consumer Insight).