Time for the final update to our list of the most-watched telly of the 2000s.

It’s a kind of a ritual, I suppose, that began here on Off The Telly back in 2006. Each January, come the publication of the previous year’s ratings, we assembled a new top 50, noting who was up, who was down and how many of our predictions from 12 months ago failed to come true. Which, invariably, was almost all of them.

And so it proves, perhaps fittingly, one last time. My forecast for the TV big-hitters of 2009 turned out to be almost completely wrong: “Doctor Who will be in there, probably when David Tennant regenerates (assuming he does it before 1st January 2010). A soap might be there. If Andy Murray gets to the Wimbledon final, that might squeeze in. Otherwise: talent shows. Especially if Brucie decides to quit Strictly Come Dancing.”

I was right about the talent shows. Here’s the list, with the 2009 entries in bold:

1) Only Fools and Horses (25 December 2001) – 21.4m
2) Euro 2004: Portugal v England (BBC1, 24 June 2004) – 20.7m
3) EastEnders (5 April 2001) – 20.1m
4) Coronation Street (24 February 2003) – 19.4m
5) Coronation Street (3 January 2000) – 19.0m
6) Britain’s Got Talent (ITV1, 30 May 2009) – 18.3m
7) Euro 2004: France v England (ITV1, 21 June 2004) – 17.8m
8) EastEnders (29 September 2003) – 16.7m
9) EastEnders (5 March 2001) – 16.6m
10) Only Fools and Horses (25 December 2002) – 16.3m
10) EastEnders (2 January 2001) – 16.3m
10) Coronation Street (16 February 2004) – 16.3m
10) The X Factor (13 December 2009) – 16.3m
14) Coronation Street (1 January 2001) – 16.2m
15) Coronation Street (3 January 2001) – 16.1m
15) Who Wants to be a Millionaire?: Tonight Special (21 April 2003) – 16.1m
15) Wallace and Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death (25 December 2008) – 16.1m
18) EastEnders (25 December 2002) – 16m
19) Who Wants to be a Millionaire? (19 January 2000) – 15.8m
20) Coronation Street (13 January 2003) – 15.6m
21) Only Fools and Horses (25 December 2003) – 15.5m
21) Coronation Street (11 March 2001) – 15.5m
23) Michael Jackson Tonight Special (3 February 2003) – 15.3m
24) Heartbeat (6 February 2000) – 15.2m
24) EastEnders (28 December 2000) – 15.2m
26) I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (9 February 2004) – 15m
27) Euro 2000 Portugal v England (ITV1, 12 June 2000) – 14.9m
28) Coronation Street (5 January 2001) – 14.8m
28) EastEnders (5 January 2004) – 14.8m
30) A Touch of Frost (14 January 2001) – 14.7m
31) Euro 2000 England v Romania (BBC1, 20 June 2000) – 14.6m
32) World Cup 2006: Sweden v England (ITV1, 20 June 2006) – 14.4m
33) Coronation Street (21 February 2005) – 14.4m
33) EastEnders (25 December 2007) – 14.4m
35) EastEnders (18 February 2005) – 14.3m
36) World Cup Match of the Day Live (BBC1, 25 June 2006) – 14.25m
37) The X Factor: Results (13 December 2008) – 14.06m
38) Who Wants to be a Millionaire? (1 May 2000) – 13.9m
38) Britain’s Got Talent Final: Result (31 May 2008) – 13.9m
40) Heartbeat (21 January 2001) – 13.8m
41) Inspector Morse (15 November 2000) – 13.6m
42) Emmerdale (22 March 2000) – 13.3m
43) Pop Idol (9 February 2002) – 13.3m
43) Doctor Who (25 December 2007) – 13.3m
45) Rugby World Cup Final (20 October 2007, ITV1) – 13.1m
45) Coronation Street (15 January 2007) – 13.1m
45) The Vicar of Dibley (1 January 2007) – 13.1m
45) Doctor Who (25 December 2008) – 13.1m
49) A Touch of Frost (22 February 2004) – 13m
49) Coronation Street (18 January 2008) – 13m

Just two new entries, four down on last year. The shows that got knocked off the list were the 2008 Strictly Come Dancing final, the last ever episode of One Foot In The Grave and an edition of Heartbeat from 12 January 2003 (these last two were tied in 50th place).

The third most-watched programme of 2009 was the Doctor Who Christmas special, which attracted 12.04m viewers: not quite enough to make it a top 50 festive hat-trick for Russell T Davies.

This final chart means 2001 takes first place for the most number of programmes (10) followed by 2000 (nine), then 2003 tied with 2004 (six each), 2007 and 2008 (five apiece), 2002 (three) and finally 2005, 2006 and 2009 (two).

Not a bad decade, all told, in terms of nation-uniting, mass-appealing television. A memorable 10 years to have both watched and written about.

Only Fools and Horses ends up the most viewed programme of the 1990s and 2000s (but not the 1980s; that honour goes to Live and Let Die). It somehow seems unlikely the forthcoming “prequel” will make it three in a row for John Sullivan.

Lastly, here’s the full top 20 for 2009. All the talent shows appear once, represented by their respective results programmes. The presence of numbers 10 and 19 might have something to do with falling on the day when Britain was “snowed in”. Note also, at number six, “flop show” Strictly Come Dancing.

1) Britain’s Got Talent (30/05/09, ITV1) 18.29m
2) The X Factor (13/12/09, ITV1) 16.28m
3) Doctor Who (25/12/09, BBC1) 12.04m
4) The Royle Family (25/12/09, BBC1) 11.92m
5) EastEnders (25/12/09, BBC1) 11.67m
6) Strictly Come Dancing (19/12/09, BBC1) 11.54m
7) Coronation Street (02/02/09, ITV1) 11.46m
8) Dancing On Ice (22/03/09, ITV1) 11.31m
9) I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here (21/11/09, ITV1) 10.86m
10) I Dreamed A Dream: The Susan Boyle Story (13/12/09, ITV1) 10.79m
11) Children In Need (20/11/09, BBC1) 10.31m
12) Doc Martin (08/11/09, ITV1) 10.28m
13) Gavin and Stacey (25/12/09, BBC1) 10.18m
14) The Gruffalo (25/12/09, BBC1) 10.08m
15) Jonathan Creek (01/01/09, BBC1) 9.91m
16) Comic Relief (13/03/09, BBC1) 9.84m
17) The Apprentice (03/06/09, BBC1) 9.76m
18) The Royal Variety Performance (16/12/09, ITV1) 9.56m
19) Whitechapel (02/02/09, ITV1) 9.26m
20) Kilimanjaro: The Big Red Nose Climb (12/03/09, BBC1) 9.20m

And that’s your lot.