Sherlock has benefited from one the biggest boosts in ratings ever caused by people recording a TV programme and watching it later.
The episode broadcast on January 8 had an overnight audience of just 6.0 million.
But consolidated ratings published on Monday, which include those who recorded the show and saw it later, have bumped the figure up to 9.5 million.
It is the largest increase caused by on-demand services for any programme on any channel outside Christmas and New Year.
It is also the third biggest increase of its kind ever measured.
The latest series of the BBC1 drama, which came to an end on Sunday, has had some of the lowest overnight ratings in its seven-year history.
Around 5.9 million tuned in to see the finale, which co-creator Steven Moffat hinted might be the last ever episode.
This total is likely to rise considerably when the on-demand audience is taken into account, however.
Consolidated ratings for the finale will be published next week.
Sherlock's highest ratings to date have been for the episode shown on New Year's Day 2014, when almost 13 million people discovered how Benedict Cumberbatch's title character survived an apparently fatal fall from the top of a high building.
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