How to Watch British TV in USA – Enjoy BBC Shows Anywhere in 2023

Last Updated on November 29, 2023

How to Watch BBC Shows in America – Enjoy BBC Shows Anywhere

There’s some of the best English language TV shows in the world available online from the UK’s national broadcaster the BBC. Here’s how you can access them from anywhere in the world using your internet connection and a small software app.

One of the biggest things that many of us have to get used to in the USA is the number of adverts on television. If you’ve come from the UK for instance and are used to British TV, they can come as something of a shock although many European countries actually have more adverts. Later in this article we’ll show you how to watch British TV in USA without problems.

Online TV Usually Needs Adverts but Not All !

However, first of all, you should remember that the advertising is what actually pays for US TV shows, so if the level drops it’s likely the quality of programming would to.

However for anyone who has seen the quantity of adverts rise over the last few decades it can be quite surprising.  Even BBC America, which is one of the US based cable channels which carries some of the BBC’s content has adverts which seems strange to anyone used to watching BBC One. Of course, there is advertising on the UK’s commercial TV stations like the ITV Hub and Channel 4, it’s still arguably less intrusive.

how to watch bbc shows in america

Of course, most US citizens have grown up with adverts on all their TV network so it’s likely they don’t find them as intrusive. Also bear in mind if you offered the UK model of TV – paying $200+ for a license which removed the need for them – most would probably be completely horrified. This is based on an extensive straw poll of five people I asked about British TV streaming in my office today! I found that extremely surprising as it’s a cost I’d be happy to pay. I don’t know about you, but that cut to adverts just at a crucial time in the plotline in a TV series drives me crazy ! I do get frustrated watching shows which suddenly stop for breaks several times an hour – although obviously today’s technology which allows you to record and playback helps a lot.

How to Watch British TV in USA

The number of adverts is also increasing, the approximate proportion of advertising in US TV in 1952 was about 13%, that’s about 8 minutes an hour. However research has shown that in 2020 that has now risen to something like 32% which is nearly a third of the airtime (20 minutes an hour). These figures are an average though and some popular or expensive shows will be much higher than this figure as well.

Advert Free TV Alternatives from the UK

This figure also doesn’t include the increasing use of product placement advertising where you’ll see some character waving around a soft drink or other product. This can also be very distracting when you start looking for it, although I’m assured by a Spanish friend and one in New Zealand that this practice is increasing in TV channels across the world.

If you can’t get used to the adverts of course you do have some options. The obvious one and a tactic used by many Americans is simply to not watch any of the shows live or streamed through another platform like Pluto TV. There’s also plenty of media players which have hard disks – Tivo Style and even games consoles which can record shows and streaming content. Then you can replay and skip through each advertising break without having to actually watch them. However it’s still a break and it’s still rather annoying to have to skim through the adverts even at super fast speed. You can also select your favorite shows on UK TV and buy the box sets directly although this can get expensive.

Expand Your Choice of Television Shows by Looking Online

However there’s another option to watch British TV which is particularly attractive and that’s to start looking online. Virtually every major media channel in existence broadcast lots of their shows online. You don’t have to just use a cable company, satellite or the outdated TV aerial in order to receive TV channels. If you’ve got an internet enabled TV, a laptop, or tablet or even games consoles and a decent internet connection then you’ve got the potential to watch unlimited TV programmes online and streamed to your TV screen.

You don’t even need to pay for many of them, look passed the standard subscription channels like Amazon Prime and Netflix and you’ll find many other options. There’s all you need from current affairs, documentaries, soap operas, crime drama, radio shows and even free movies available if you know where to look. Indeed many of the best dramas are co productions between different broadcasters, that Prime Original may be available somewhere else for free at the same time.

BBC iPlayer is a streaming service in the UK.

One of the best sites by far is of course the BBC iPlayer which along with the other British TV stations ITV Hub and All 4 bring you the ability to watch UK TV free of charge.

Here’s one of the BBC’s latest nature shows, critically acclaimed through the world and available on BBC iPlayer for free !


In fact it’s an option that millions already use including lots of expats and anglophiles. A great place to start for free online TV of world class quality is to check out the UK television you can find streaming online. The first channel to look at is the BBC who have probably the best streaming platform on the internet – BBC iPlayer.  It’s packed full of great British television which doesn’t have any advertisements or breaks at all. That’s not quite true, it does do a very small number of promotional clips for other BBC programmes you might like but they’re never in the middle of anything and they’re easily skipped if you like.

Some alternatives to BBC iPlayer are Hulu, Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime

What’s more the BBC is only the start and you can actually find lots of other television shows online too. Even from the United Kingdom every single one of the major broadcasters streams all their content online. The BBC is the only channel which doesn’t include advertisements but even then it’s a small price to pay for world class entertainment streamed in high definition to your TV set across the internet.

Don’t worry about any potential problems you might have heard about like needing a TV license, geo restrictions or other things to stop people outside the UK accessing these live stream goldmines – they’re no real problem for anyone.  Just read on and you’ll find out not only how to watch all the British TV you want free of charge but unlimited shows from all over the world – even for the English speaking world there’s stations from Australia, Canada, US and the UK. If you’re lucky enough to speak another language there’s even more options available too.

How to Get British TV Channels like BBC One Online in the USA

Now as mentioned virtually every large media site in the world broadcasts their streaming services over the internet. Indeed, most of the UK ones broadcast all their programmes live then archive them so you can watch them later too. Sites like the BBC iPlayer archive have literally thousands of top quality shows which you can watch online or even download to watch later. You can watch any of the shows live while they’re broadcast on any of the channels plus from the archive where most are available for twelve months too.

Can I Watch British TV in America

Here’s a quick list of the channels available from the BBC –

  • BBC One – the original and primary BBC channel
  • BBC Two – more for current affairs and sport coverage
  • BBC Three – Digital channel with light entertainment such as comedies, videos and documentaries
  • BBC Four – Serious shows and documentaries
  • CBBC – children over the age of 6
  • CBeebies – children under age of 6
  • BBC Scotland – Scottish focused channel
  • BBC Alba – Gaelic Language channel
  • BBC News – 24/7 international news channel
  • BBC Parliament – coverage of UK politics
  • S4C – Welsh language channel

However there is a catch, all these shows, all this free TV is only available to the domestic market and it’s not actually directly accessible in the USA or anywhere outside the UK. Although it should be pointed out that the same happens in reverse as US online TV stations like Hulu and HBO are not available outside the US also.

What are some BBC shows?

There are many BBC shows that have been popular for a long time. Some of these include: Doctor Who, Sherlock and Eastenders. The BBC is known to produce high-quality television programs that are adored by many.

The BBC does not target any specific type of audience, although many people think that it does try and cover too much ground. However it’s generally known for it’s news coverage, documentaries, dramas and shows for young people. Their content is spread across all their channels however some are specifically aimed at specific audiences.

The BBC regularly wins awards across their entire range though so expect high standards whatever you’re watching. There’s no such thing as late night public broadcast shows produced by amateurs on any of the BBC Channels,

All Time Favorite BBC Comedy Shows

There’s really too many to mention, but these are some of the world famous shows. At any point though you’ll find wonderful new dramas streaming all the time many just as good as some of the classics from this list.

  • Sherlock
  • Line of Duty
  • Top Gear
  • Doctor Who
  • Merlin
  • Blackadder
  • Fleabag
  • Monty Python’s Flying Circus
  • Faulty Towers
  • Luther

Using a VPN or Proxy Services to Access Streaming Platforms like the BBC

Yet there is a work around, and it’s one that millions of people all over the world use every day on their laptops and smart TV units. To watch British TV online or indeed any domestic streaming service from the USA you simply need to hide your IP address and present a UK one instead.  It’s not difficult and anyone can do it from whatever device they prefer, indeed millions enjoy the excellent streaming technology of the BBC worldwide using this exact same method.

Here’s How to Get BBC in USA – watch TV abroad including UK TV in USA 

What happens is by using a VPN or proxy server then you can effectively hide your true location and bypass this geo blocking. So when you visit the BBC website for example, it will see the IP address of the server not your real address. So as long as you ensure you click on a UK server then everything in the UK will work perfectly irrespective of where you actually are. Your location is completely hidden by your VPN providers and so you can watch whatever you like from all the British TV channels. This includes all the major channels like BBC, ITV and Channels 4 and 5 all of whom have TV streaming services which includes most of their shows online.

Free British Television Wherever You Are

Basically you get virtually all UK TV shows completely free of charge by just pretending to be in the UK. The amount of content like film and music is incredible, even if you just watch BBC iPlayer itself.  You’ll certainly have access to many, many more shows than a BBC America channel for example. All of the popular UK TV channels are available to stream live so you can pick what you want to watch. However it’s all archived too, so that latest Dr Who series for example is available for twelve months after it’s initial broadcast too, just access BBC iPlayer when you want to watch it.

A VPN service (virtual private network) is without doubt a must have tool for anyone (not just TV fans) who spends a lot of time online especially if they travel a lot. Not only does it secure your internet connection allowing you to safely access things like email, banking and payment sites when you’re using insecure Wifi at hotels, cafes and airports.

It also allows you to change your location and watch iPlayer or perhaps even sites you can usually use but you’re locked out of because you’re travelling. It’s way better value than subscribing to expensive satellite channels like Sky Go for example.

Additional Use of VPN Services

I used to get locked out of several payment portals when I worked abroad. I’d try and pay my taxes or water rates over the internet and get blocked because I was in a different country – very annoying! Of course, now I know I just need to use a VPN to change my country using their UK servers, unfortunately I didn’t know that then.

So remember, you’re not restricted to a specific country. Choose a server in a different country then you can unlock the channels there too using that VPN IP address. So for example if you pick an Irish one you can enjoy the Irish National broadcaster RTE or perhaps choose some Canadian or French channels too.

Switch Country When Needed

Remember though while you are connected to another country then US sites will start blocking you as you’ll no longer have a US IP address. So remember to disconnect or choose a US server for those.  A couple of years ago I watched the entire Premiership (UK football) season by using a VPN based in India to watch on a channel called Star TV absolutely free. I think you now have to pay for their subscription service but it’s still a fraction of what it costs in other countries. Just connect to an Indian VPN before you sign up so that you get charged Indian prices !

The possibilities are as endless as your IP addresses, but even if you only use your VPN services to watch the BBC worldwide then it will bring you some of the best TV programs available. Just fire up your connection, connect to a UK VPN server and click ‘yes’ when they ask you if you have a TV license and you’ll be enjoying the BBC with over 60 million other people. Our recommendation for a low cost, reliable VPN provider is NordVPN.

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