Doctor Who anniversary episode breaks iPlayer request records

The 50th anniversary episode of Doctor Who generated a record of nearly 1.3m iPlayer requests in the 24 hours after broadcast, eclipsing the previous high of the Olympics opening ceremony.

The Day of the Doctor, which featured the return of David Tennant and Billie Piper and a special guest star appearance by John Hurt, had a consolidated audience of 12.8 million viewers, including people who recorded it and watched it in the subsequent seven days, up from its overnight rating of 10.2 million.

There were a total of 1.27m requests to watch it on the iPlayer in the 24 hours after its broadcast on 23 November, beating the previous 24 hour record of just over 1m set by BBC1's coverage of Danny Boyle's acclaimed opening ceremony of the London Olympics. The show has now had 2.9m requests on the iPlayer.

The BBC said the 75-minute birthday edition of the show starring Matt Smith in his penultimate outing as the doctor also set a record as the most tweeted about drama, with a total of 442,692 tweets, peaking with 12,939 tweets a minute during the show's opening moments.

It is the most watched drama of 2013 to date, likely only to be challenged by Christmas editions of BBC1's EastEnders and Call the Midwife, ITV's Downton Abbey and the festive edition of Doctor Who itself, which will give fans the first proper viewing of Smith's successor in the role, Peter Capaldi.

This does not include the number of people who watched it around the world, simulcast in a record 94 countries, or its cinema audience. Big screen showings of Doctor Who in 3D around the world which generated $10.2m (£6.25m) in the box office in the first three days.

The BBC's controller of drama Ben Stephenson said: "The Doctor Who 50th was a hugely ambitious event on the BBC and it's only fitting that it has taken the top spot as the highest rating drama across all channels this year. 

"It's a fantastic tribute to both Steven Moffat and the creativity of all those involved in the show throughout its history.  Next stop the regeneration at Christmas."

With its overnight audience of 10.2 million viewers, the 50th edition was the fifth most popular edition of Doctor Who since the show came back in 2005, and the biggest out of Christmas and new year specials.

To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email media@theguardian.com or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".