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Normal People has broken the previously set record to give BBC Three its best-ever week on iPlayer.
Over the initial seven-day period following its release on iPlayer on April 26, there were 16.2 million requests for Normal People, and over 21.8 million for BBC Three.
The record was previously set by the first season of Killing Eve, which Normal People has now doubled.
The 12-part series follows Connell Waldron (Paul Mescal) and Marianne Sheridan (Daisy Edgar-Jones) as they fall in and out of each other’s lives from school into university and beyond. The TV show is based on Sally Rooney’s bestselling novel of the same name.
Rooney co-wrote the BBC show with playwright Alice Birch. Lenny Abrahamson (Room) and Hettie McDonald (Howards End) each directed six episodes.
Fiona Campbell, controller of BBC Three, said in a statement: “We’re delighted that Normal People has been such a success and so many people have come to iPlayer to watch it.
“It’s a modern masterpiece which has helped in catapulting the careers of two brilliant young actors and we’re looking forward to bringing more drama to BBC Three in the future.”
Piers Wenger, controller of BBC drama, and Rose Garnett, director of BBC films, added: “Lead writers Sally and Alice, directors Lenny and Hettie, all the team at Element Pictures and of course Daisy and Paul should all be so proud of what has been achieved.”
Regarding a potential second series, Mescal and Edgar-Jones told NME that things have been deliberately left open. “Series one is the book,” Mescal said. “But we don’t know what’s on the other side.”
Normal People is available on BBC iPlayer now.
The post The ‘Normal People’ hype scores BBC Three its best-ever week on iPlayer appeared first on NME Music News, Reviews, Videos, Galleries, Tickets and Blogs | NME.COM.
