Last night’s star studded X Factor final pulled in a record 19.1 million viewers for ITV.

At it’s peak the show took 62 per cent of the TV audience, a massive rise from last year’s final which was won by Alexandra Burke achieved only 14.6 million.

The show, which featured performances by Paul McCartney and George Michael, fell slightly short of this year’s Britain’s Got Talent final, which peaked at 19.2 million back in May.

Lorraine Heggessey, CEO of talkbackTHAMES, said: “It has been exhilarating season for The X Factor and The Xtra Factor as the production team have raised the bar yet again.

“We’ve had our highest ever ratings, which is incredible for a show in its sixth series, proving that viewers appreciate the investment in the show and want programmes that become a big event.

Peter Fincham, ITV director of television, channels and online, said: “The phenomenal performance of the X Factor final caps a superb autumn for ITV and demonstrates the unique pulling power that only a channel like ITV1 has in the multichannel age. With a peak audience of almost 20 million it was an amazing night for television.”