Julie Goodwin wins first Australian MasterChef title.

www.masterchef.com.au

MORE than 3.7 million viewers watched Julie Goodwin be crowned the winner of MasterChef Australia, making it the most watched TV non-sporting event since ratings began.

An average national audience of 3.745 million watched the winner's announcement, while 3.31 million tuned into the whole two hour finale on the Ten Network on Sunday.

It was an even bigger audience than had been predicted.

The previous non-sport record was held by the Australian Idol verdict in 2004, which scored 3.3 million viewers.

The most watched item on television is the 2005 Australian Open men's final when Marat Safin defeated Lleyton Hewitt, which had just over four million viewers.

Nine's 60 Minutes featuring British backpacker Jamie Neale, who spent 12 days lost in the Blue Mountains, was no match with under a million viewers.

Sunday night's MasterChef finale saw Goodwin go head-to-head with co-cook Poh Ling Yeow, a 35-year-old artist from Adelaide.

A celebrity MasterChef will air from October, while a second series of the amateur cooking show will start in April next year.

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Julie wins Aussie MasterChef title

View more photos from the finale at www.masterchef.com.au