The return of TV hit The Great British Bake Off saw its audience rise by almost double compared with the launch of last year's series.

The BBC2 cookery contest drew an average of 5.6 million viewers for the debut of the fourth series last night - while the equivalent show in 2012 had three million.

It drew a quarter of the TV audience during its hour-long duration from 8pm and beat BBC1's Holby City and ITV's Lewis which were screened at the same time.

Viewers saw one bumbling contestant use salt instead of sugar during one of the tasks, while another created a cake which looked like a sandwich, as well as an array of kitchen injuries.

The show, starring Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, became a huge hit during last year's run. Hollywood has gone on to split from his wife after forming a close relationship with Marcela Valladolid, with whom he starred in a US version of the programme.