Strictly trounces X Factor in Saturday night ratings war

The number of viewers who tuned into ITV's X Factor on Saturday night dropped as the competition entered its second week of live performances.

An average of 5.8 million people watched the show compared to 6.2 million last Saturday.

Almost double that number tuned into rival BBC One show Strictly Come Dancing, making it the most popular live competition of the two for a second week running.

An average audience of 9.8 million opted for the dance show with a peak of 10.8 million and an audience share of 46.3% when it aired at 6.30pm, compared with a peak of 6.7 million and a share of 28% for The X Factor.

Results programmes for both shows will air on Sunday evening, with Strictly on BBC One at 7.15pm and The X Factor on ITV1 at 8pm.

Saturday's X Factor performances, with a Motown theme, received a mixed response from judges and viewers.

It began with a welcome back to girl group Four of Diamonds who returned to the show after being eliminated last week.

The Strictly contestants, however, were one man down after singer Will Young made a shock departure from the programme for "personal reasons".