Golden Globes 2019 had the lowest TV audience in years (but it's not all bad)

Other major awards ceremonies have also suffered lower ratings in recent years

The 76th annual Golden Globes attracted its lowest ratings in three years, according to NBC, but it's unlikely that TV executives will be too devastated by the news.

As pointed out by CNN, all of the major awards shows have lost viewers over the past few years – to a far greater degree. In 2018, the Academy Awards audience dropped by 19 per cent from the previous year, the Grammys were down 24 per cent, Emmys down 10, the CMAs down 29 per cent, and the America Music Awards dropped by 28 per cent.

However, the Golden Globes ceremony hosted by Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh went up among adults aged 18-49, and its telecast scored a 5.2 rating – up 4 per cent from 2018.

The ceremony was relatively free from politics compared to the year before, where the #MeToo and Time's Up campaigns featured heavily, and included several surprises.

Bohemian Rhapsody won the award for Best Motion Picture when it was widely believed that Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's film A Star is Born was a dead cert.

British actor Ben Whishaw beat out favourite Henry Winkler to win Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited series or Motion Picture Made for Television, for his role as Norman Scott in A Very English Scandal.

Glenn Close looked highly surprised to win the award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, as she was nominated along with Lady Gaga, Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy and Rosamund Pike.

See all of our Golden Globes 2019 coverage here.