‘Jon & Kate Plus 8’ divorce episode draws record ratings

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Breaking up may be hard to do, but it sure helps reel in viewers.

Monday night’s highly promoted episode of “Jon & Kate Plus 8,” in which the embattled couple announced their separation (and later divorce), lifted the show’s sinking ratings. The episode drew an impressive 10.6 million viewers and was the highest-rated “Jon & Kate Plus 8” episode ever among all key demographics, beating all other season premieres and finales.

The episode — stuffed with excess filler in the form of crooked playhouses -- featured an epic (though not entirely surprising) announcement about the status of their relationship.

Now that the looming question surrounding their 10-year marriage has been answered, another question remains: Will fans continue to tune in now that the couple have decided to call it quits? We’ll have to wait to see … especially since TLC announced the hit reality show is taking a production break after news of their divorce Monday. New episodes are expected to resume Aug. 3.

Six new episodes of the 40-episode season have aired to hot-and-cold ratings. May’s premiere episode drew nearly 10 million viewers but has since plunged to as low as 2.9 million viewers -- still a strong showing when compared to its previous four seasons.

-- Yvonne Villarreal