Red Dwarf special is Dave's highest-rated show in seven years

These new figures reflect "total consumption" of the episode across 24 days and make it both the highest-rated show on the network during lockdown and the highest-rated broadcast on Dave in seven years.

UKTV is also claiming a 55 per cent increase in its audience of 16-34 year-olds from the pre-lockdown period (measuring 17th February to 15th March) to post-lockdown (16th March to 4th May) – with weekly reach up 22 per cent and daily reach up 37.8 per cent.

A greater number of younger viewers are also accessing more UK TV content on demand, with vintage episodes of Casualty, EastEnders, The Bill and Birds of a Feather helping to spark a 16 per cent increase in 16-34s using the platform and a 27 per cent increase in views to the service overall.

Dave is yet to announce if Red Dwarf will return for another special or series, though series writer/director Doug Naylor has confirmed that he still has ideas for "lots of different stories".

"I love the format of the film-length [episode] and would love to do more," Naylor told the Two Geeks, Two Beers podcast.

"[I’ve got] lots of different stories… but until they actually go 'Yes, OK' you don’t narrow it down. It depends on the budget, it depends who we can get to be in it."
Red Dwarf: The Promised Land is available to watch on UKTV Play – you can also pre-order the DVD now on Amazon. Check out what else is on with our TV Guide