'Little Dorrit', starring Matthew Macfadyen and Claire Foy, pulled in 4.2m viewers and an 18.7% share of the 8pm-9pm audience on BBC One for its dramatic conclusion.
However it was well below the 6.3m viewers who tuned in for the first episode at the end of October.
ITV1's 'James Bulger - A Mother's Story' documentary, looking at the murder of two-year-old James Bulger in February 1993, won the 9pm-10pm slot with 3.4m viewers and a 15.7% share of the audience.
The documentary examined how the police investigation and trial unfolded, featuring interviews with James's mother Denise who reflected on the impact of the murder.
It pipped the penultimate part of BBC One's supernatural drama 'Apparitions', which pulled in 3m and a 14% share in the same slot.
Last night's episode, starring Martin Shaw and Rick Warden, saw a sinister apparition of the Virgin Mary haunting a Muslim family.
BBC Two's music panel show 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks', with guest captain Omid Djalili and guests including Martin Freeman and Josh Groban, attracted 2.6m viewers and a 12.1% share of the 9pm-9.30pm audience.
It was followed by 'The Graham Norton Show', featuring an interview with Brendan Fraser and a performance by Alesha Dixon, which netted 1.9m viewers and a 9% share of the 9.30pm-10pm audience.
Five's airing of black comedy 'Bad Santa', starring Billy Bob-Thornton, drew 2m viewers and a 10.6% share of the 9pm-11pm audience.
It narrowly beat Channel 4's 'The Pregnant Man' documentary about transgender man Thomas Beatie who retained his female reproductive organs and bore a child, which attracted 1.9m viewers and a 9.1% share of the 9pm-10pm audience. Including Channel 4+1 figures it reached 2.2m viewers.
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