Cruise’s Top Gear loses to Sherlock in TV ratings

There was more bad news for Tom Cruise and his waning star power today, with the announcement that the Hollywood actor's appearance on the BBC2 car show Top Gear had been beaten in the ratings by a Sherlock Holmes drama.
 
The first episode of BBC1's new three-part series Sherlock - which transports Conan Doyle's master sleuth Holmes into the 21st century - drew an average of 7.05 million viewers and took a 28.5 per cent share when it aired between 9pm and 10pm on Sunday night.
 
In contrast, Top Gear only managed an average audience of 5.8 million viewers and a 22 per cent audience share in the earlier 8pm slot. This was despite the show's A-list guests - Cruise and his Knight and Day co-star Cameron Diaz - being widely publicised.
 
Sherlock meanwhile stars the British character actor Benedict Cumberbatch - best known for his portrayal of Stephen Hawking in the BBC’s award-winning 2005 drama Hawking - in the title role. Martin Freeman, the Office star, plays his sidekick John Watson.
 
As reported by The First Post last week, Cruise and Diaz's appearance on the BBC show was one of a number of measures they have undertaken to promote Knight and Day in Europe in the wake of less-than-favourable reviews and ticket sales in the US.
 
Following various personal appearances in Munich on Wednesday and London on Thursday, Cruise and Diaz were next spotted on Friday in Bordeaux, having a photo op on the Tour de France podium with yellow jersey wearer - and the eventual winner - Alberto Contador (pictured). ·