BBC Two (BBC 2) TV Guide: Listings, Schedule & What’s On BBC Two Tonight

BBC Two launched in 1964 as the BBC’s second network, and it still takes the programmes that were never built to chase ratings: quizzes that genuinely test you, documentaries assembled out of the archive. Tonight, Monday 10 August, the channel opens with an hour of live athletics from Birmingham, before the regular Monday quiz double of Only Connect and University Challenge and a Chris Packham documentary close out primetime ahead of Newsnight.

BBC Two Schedule: Monday 10 August 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete BBC Two schedule for Monday 10 August 2026, on Freeview 2.

What’s on BBC Two today — the daytime schedule

Monday’s weekday run starts with Money for Nothing at 7:15am and The Repair Shop at 8am, then BBC News takes over at 9am. The late-morning slate is the usual antiques and property run: Antiques Road Trip at 10:30am, Homes Under the Hammer at 11:15am and Bargain Hunt at 12:15pm. Afternoon quizzes follow with Richard Osman’s House of Games at 1pm and The Finish Line at 1:30pm, before Do You Know Your Place? at 2:15pm and The Farmers’ Country Showdown at 2:45pm. Spy in the Ocean airs at 3:30pm, then Vintage Antiques Roadshow at 4:30pm and Flog It! at 5:15pm carry the schedule into the early evening.

BBC Two tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the BBC Two primetime line-up for tonight, Monday 10 August 2026.

Richard Osman’s House of Games — BBC Two, 6pm

This week’s panel (series 8, episode 86) brings together Danielle Harold, Robert Webb, Chris Bisson and Katharine Merry for the usual run of general-knowledge rounds under Osman’s dry hosting style.

Bear Grylls – Wild Reckoning — BBC Two, 6:30pm

Former best friends Rhys and Niall try to mend a friendship that broke down two years ago, not long after Niall lost his older brother, as Grylls puts them through a wilderness challenge together (series 1, episode 1).

European Athletics Championships: Birmingham 2026 — BBC Two, 7pm

Live coverage from Birmingham brings the women’s shot put final alongside qualifying for the women’s 100m hurdles. It’s the first of two Birmingham 2026 slots on BBC tonight: BBC One picks up the evening session at 8pm for the blue-riband 100m final, so the scheduled finish times on both channels should be treated as approximate. Field events like the shot put don’t run to a fixed clock, which is why BBC Two has built extra room either side of the advertised hour.

Only Connect — BBC Two, 8pm

Victoria Coren Mitchell hosts (series 22, episode 5), pitting a trio of Rocky Horror devotees against a team from New Zealand on the connecting-walls format that has run since 2008.

University Challenge — BBC Two, 8:30pm

Magdalen College, Oxford take on Warwick tonight (series 26, episode 5), with a place in the next round at stake. Amol Rajan hosts, putting both teams through the starter-for-10 and bonus-question format the show has used since it began.

Evolution — BBC Two, 9pm

Chris Packham asks how the horse became so fast (series 1, episode 5). The episode looks at the evolutionary origins of animal movement and lands on one of the fastest creatures alive.

Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing — BBC Two, 10pm

This episode (series 5, episode 3) finds Paul and Bob heading north by sleeper train, bound for the Scottish Highlands and a spot of ferox trout fishing. Nessie gets a look-in too, with Bob unable to resist a detour to Loch Ness.

Newsnight, followed by Weather — BBC Two, 10:30pm

Alex Forsyth presents the day’s political and international stories, with the studio interviews that still give Newsnight its edge over the rolling news channels. Weather follows.

Shaft — BBC Two, 11:05pm

Richard Roundtree’s 1971 original sends detective John Shaft after a Harlem gangster’s kidnapped daughter. Expect very strong language and some violence, plus content of a sexual nature.

Popular shows on BBC Two

Quizzes

This is where BBC Two is hard to beat. University Challenge, Mastermind and Only Connect are properly difficult and never talk down to the viewer. QI is the odd one out: the points barely matter, it’s there for Sandi Toksvig and a panel digging up obscure facts.

Wildlife and nature

Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Winterwatch run across the year, all live and all from the BBC Natural History Unit. Springwatch (late May to June) and Autumnwatch (October) are the bigger series; Winterwatch is the shorter companion piece.

Gardening and lifestyle

Gardeners’ World is a Friday evening fixture from early spring to late autumn, based at Monty Don’s Longmeadow garden but ranging across guest gardens around the country.

Comedy

Live at the Apollo, QI and Inside No. 9 are the standouts. Inside No. 9 has the cult following: a self-contained anthology where each episode can be comedy, horror or thriller, written by and starring Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith.

Current affairs

Newsnight and the daytime Politics Live carry BBC Two’s political output. Newsnight was cut back and reformatted in 2024, losing its films and most of its reporting staff, and it still holds the weeknight slot.

How to watch BBC Two

Channel numbers

Here’s where to find BBC Two depending on your platform:

No subscription is needed on any of these. The regional version you get (England/Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland) is determined by your postcode. On HD-capable platforms, 102 is the HD feed and the one most viewers default to.

BBC iPlayer

BBC Two streams live and free on BBC iPlayer at bbc.co.uk/iplayer, and via the iPlayer app on smart TVs, iOS, Android, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and most streaming sticks. You need a free BBC account to watch. Most programmes stay up for 30 days after transmission, though live sport and some other content have shorter windows.

Freely

On the Freely platform, the joint free streaming service from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 for broadband-connected TVs, BBC Two is on channel 2. Local opt-out versions are available in Wales and Northern Ireland.

Do you need a TV licence?

Yes. Watching BBC Two live, or watching iPlayer content on the day of broadcast, requires a valid TV Licence. As of April 2026, a colour licence costs £180 per year. That fee is the BBC’s funding, which is why none of its channels carry adverts.

BBC Two HD and the nations

BBC Two is not a single uniform national channel. Like BBC One, it has opt-out services in the devolved nations:

• BBC Two Scotland carries Scottish news and regional programming alongside the main network schedule.
• BBC Two Wales (also referred to as BBC Wales) has its own news output and opt-out slots with Welsh-focused content.
• BBC Two Northern Ireland airs regional news and programming alongside the network schedule, and is one of two BBC Two variants available on Freely.

All regional and national variants are accessible via BBC iPlayer. If you’re watching on satellite or cable, the version you receive is tied to your registered postcode. There is no BBC Two +1 channel on any platform.

Frequently asked questions

What time is Springwatch on BBC Two?

Springwatch airs at 8pm, Monday to Thursday, in late May and June. The 2026 series ran from 25 May to 11 June with the live hub at National Trust Crom in Fermanagh. All episodes are on BBC iPlayer.

What time is Newsnight on BBC Two?

Newsnight starts at 10:30pm on weeknights and runs around 30 minutes, though the finish varies with the running order. It’s on iPlayer shortly after broadcast.

What’s on BBC Two tonight?

It’s Monday 10 August 2026. Live coverage of the European Athletics Championships: Birmingham 2026 takes the 7pm hour, with the women’s shot put final and 100m hurdles qualifying. The regular Monday quiz pairing of Only Connect and University Challenge follows from 8pm, then Evolution, Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, Newsnight and the film Shaft close out the night.

Can I watch BBC Two online for free?

Yes, on BBC iPlayer, with a free BBC account. A TV Licence is still required to watch live or to stream on the day of broadcast.

Do I need a TV Licence to watch BBC Two?

Yes, for live viewing on any platform and for iPlayer on the day of broadcast. As of April 2026, a colour licence is £180 per year.

Is BBC Two worth your Monday evening?

Monday’s case rests on the 7pm hour first. The European Athletics Championships coverage from Birmingham brings a shot put final and hurdles qualifying, and it’s scheduled tight enough against BBC One’s 8pm switch to the 100m final that both slots should be treated as approximate.

After that it’s the regular Monday pairing of Only Connect and University Challenge from 8pm, followed by Chris Packham’s look at how the horse evolved into one of the animal kingdom’s fastest runners. Gone Fishing at 10pm keeps things low-key, with Paul Whitehouse and Bob Mortimer trading Loch Ness jokes on their way to a spot of trout fishing. Newsnight takes the 10:30pm slot as usual, and Shaft closes the night with Richard Roundtree’s 1971 original, first released fifty-five years ago.

Related: What’s On TV Tonight | BBC One TV Guide | BBC iPlayer Guide | Films on TV This Week