The channel enjoyed its highest ever level of popularity during the festive period, becoming the sixth most watched channel in Ireland for the season.

According to new figures compiled by AGB Nielsen Media Research, and seen by the Sunday Tribune, TG4 had a 5.2% share of viewing for the period between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day.

Christmas Day proved particularly strong with a 6.4% viewing share for TG4. The station's most popular programme on the day was the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, starring Gene Wilder, with a 9.5% viewing share.

"Our success this year has not been a flash in the pan but the result of a consistent and carefully planned coordinated scheduling, branding, marketing and publicity strategy, " said director general of TG4, Pol O Gallchoir. "These official figures show that TG4 can attract an even larger audience if given adequate resources."

The recent Christmas viewing boom rounded off the station's most successful year to date with the station now attracting almost five times more viewers than it did in its early days.

"With 80% of homes in Ireland able to receive multichannel reception, the external pressure on Irish channels is immense, " said Dave Moore of TG4's audience research department.

"This makes TG4's achievement of steadily growing its share each year all the more remarkable."

TG4's coverage of live sport has long been the backbone of the station's popularity, and GAA Beo accounted for half of its top 20 programmes for 2005. Last year, the station added live coverage of Eircom League soccer, Wimbledon, and the Tour de France to its existing coverage of GAA and horse racing. However, Moore also cited Paisean Faisean, Nip/Tuck, The OC, The Underdogs, Cula4, Ros na Run and Hector san Afraic as programmes that had helped the station's growth in 2005.