Last Updated on June 5, 2019 by Larious

You probably have someone in your family, like a grandparent, who likes to grumble and moan about how “young’uns these a-days” only ever stare at screens and not have quality time together. Never bother believing them. The truth is, their generation also huddled around stared blankly at a screen; the only difference is we have more freedom and variety in choosing what to stare at. You can read more about how things changed over the decades in this informational article.

How can you watch it online for free?

Luckily for everyone outside the Kingdom, if a program is free on regular television, it will typically be free online as well. Most likely, you will find it as an app, such as the iPlayer that BBC offers, or the All4 from the Channel 4.

If you subscribe to a particular TV service, such as Sky, you will likely also be able to watch their stuff for free via the corresponding application, for example, the Sky Go app. There are also specialist apps, that you can look for online, that can grant you access to channels in specific niches, like your chosen religion programs, and even some that will offer various channels from different countries in the world.

Before you opt to download any application, though, do a little digging: chances are high that you can find free streaming in-browser, too. Check out this interesting article for some more info on apps geared towards smart TVs: https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-add-apps-to-a-smart-tv-4172379.

Could you also watch paid channels?

Well, technically speaking, you would, but you would still need to pay for them just like anyone else. For example, you could consider a subscription to a service like Amazon Prime Video or Netflix. Both of these platforms offer a ton of content, including British TV programs, some more modern, some more classic. They also boast a large collection of shows and films from the USA and other countries, as well as original content.

Of course, a lot of people have no desire whatsoever to subscribe to a paid service, so they opt to get around that paywall by using means such as a PN to trick the geosegregation of content and watch films and shows from abroad. The trouble is, sometimes that will not function as well as you would like it to, but these are fixable problems. Is your BBC iPlayer VPN not working? A simple workaround can unblock it.

Would you be able to watch sports channels online for free?

You would, if they were being offered by a broadcaster whose programs are free to watch anyway. If not, then you would need to pay for them. The exact pricing and whether any payment is needed in the first place would vary with each contract regarding each individual show or channel.

The most common services that are specifically geared towards watching sports online are Sky Sport and BT Sport. Make sure to take the time and study your mobile phone contract before you decide to pay for any of these sports services though.

There are a lot of networks that will offer you bundles, and these usually turn out to be quite a steal compared to paying for individual channels. This news article has an interesting take on cable TV bundles that you might enjoy reading, by the way.

So what do you even need to watch British television online?

You will need a broadband connection of a decent quality, a device that is enabled with an internet connection, and a TV license if you decide that you want to watch things just as they are being broadcast.

A TV license is a bit of amess, but think of it in this way to make it more understandable: you need the license for watching live TV on any kind of device, or if you are using the BBC iPlayer. You do not need the license if you are using a “catch-up service” of any kind, the only exception being, again, the iPlayer.

Luckily though, to counterbalance this nuisance, the devices that you can watch your TV programs on have now expanded way beyond the realm of PC computers and laptops. Of course, there are mobile phones, for one, and not mention tablets.

We also have the smart TVs nowadays, so you get an abundance of handy related apps through that as well. Finally, do not underestimate your game consoles! The Xbox One and the PS4 are now also playing the television game, and they offer apps with some big names behind them.

So there you have it! Even with the obnoxious trend of filtering TV content by region, you can still get around the walls. Do you have your own favorite workaround? Leave us a comment down below!