Downton Abbey, Season 4 Finishes Strong on MASTERPIECE with 8.5 Million Viewers

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Downton Abbey, Season 4 Finishes Strong

on MASTERPIECE with 8.5 Million Viewers

5.4 Fast National Household Rating for February 23 Finale

ARLINGTON, VA; February 24, 2014 -- PBS and WGBH announced today that the February 23 finale of Downton Abbey, Season 4 on MASTERPIECE captured an average audience of 8.5 million viewers. (Nielsen Fast National data, 5.4 household rating.) This is an increase over the 5.2 Fast National rating and average audience of 8.2 million viewers earned for the Season 3 finale in February 2013.

The eight-week run averaged a 5.1 Fast National household rating and 8.3 million viewers (Nielsen Fast National, Live SD data).

Our Downton audience has stayed true to the end, watching the fourth season in record numbers, said PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger. We are grateful to Carnival Films and MASTERPIECE for another must-see year of dramatic twists and turns and are eagerly awaiting Season 5.

Downton Abbey executive producer Gareth Neame said: We are absolutely thrilled that US audiences have again followed Downton so loyally throughout Season 4. The series launched with record ratings and continued to perform incredibly strongly throughout the run, and for a British drama to continue to add millions of viewers is truly wonderful for us all, both behind and in front of the camera.

We are so pleased with the passionate support US audiences have shown Downton Abbey' throughout this season, said MASTERPIECE executive producer Rebecca Eaton. I know that Season 5 will meet the high expectations of the show's millions of loyal fans.

Downton Abbey, Season 4 continues to gain impressive online streaming numbers. Across all PBS online platforms in the month of January, there were more than 7.1 million streams of all content, and more than 4.4 million streams of full-length episodes.

Downton Abbey, Season 4 is available for free streaming on PBS station websites, the PBS Video Portal and PBS' apps on Xbox, Roku and Apple TV for a limited time after each national broadcast.

Final, Live 7 ratings for the season finale will be available in the coming weeks.

Downton Abbey is a co-production of Carnival Films and MASTERPIECE. Carnival Films is the UK's largest drama specialist and a division of NBCUniversal International Television Production.

About MASTERPIECE

MASTERPIECE is presented on PBS by WGBH Boston. Rebecca Eaton is Executive Producer for MASTERPIECE. Funding for the series is provided by Viking Cruises and Ralph Lauren Corporation with additional support from public television viewers and contributors to The MASTERPIECE Trust, created to help ensure the series' future.

About Carnival Films

Carnival Films is a division of NBCUniversal International Television Production and the UK's largest drama specialist, responsible for global TV sensation Downton Abbey, winner of two Golden Globes and ten Primetime Emmy Awards, and the most nominated non-US show in the history of the Emmys with a total of 39 nominations. Founded in 1978, Carnival has produced over 500 hours of popular drama including acclaimed mini-series Traffik, Dracula, Poirot, The Hollow Crown, David Hare's political thriller Page Eight, BAFTA award winning Any Human Heart, Whitechapel and Hotel Babylon. Downton Abbey is executive produced by Carnival's Managing Director, Gareth Neame. In 2011, Carnival was recognized as Best UK Production Company at the Bulldog Awards and named Best Production Company at the 2012 Broadcast Awards.

About PBS

PBS, with its over 350 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online content. Each month, PBS reaches nearly 109 million people through television and over 28 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS' broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry's most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS' premier children's TV programming and its website, pbskids.org, are parents' and teachers' most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing curiosity and love of learning in children. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the Internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.

About WGBH

WGBH Boston is America's preeminent public broadcaster and the largest producer of PBS content for TV and the Web, including Masterpiece, Antiques Roadshow, Frontline, Nova, American Experience, Arthur, Curious George, and more than a dozen other prime-time, lifestyle, and children's series. WGBH also is a leader in educational multimedia, including PBS LearningMedia, and a pioneer in technologies and services that make media accessible to the 36 million Americans who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually impaired. WGBH has been recognized with hundreds of honors: Emmys, Peabodys, duPont-Columbia Awards even two Oscars. Find more information at www.wgbh.org.

PBS

CONTACTS:

Olivia Wong, WGBH, 617-300-5349, olivia_wong@wgbh.org

Jennifer Rankin Byrne, PBS, 703-739-5487, jrbyrne@pbs.org

For images and additional up-to-date information on this and other PBS programs, visit PBS PressRoom at pbs.org/pressroom.

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