Channel 4 TV Guide: Listings, Schedule & What’s On Channel 4 Tonight

Published: 16 September 2026

Channel 4 is the UK’s publicly owned but ad-funded broadcaster, free to watch and responsible for a fair chunk of the odder British television of the past forty years. You’ll find it at 4 on Freeview, and at 104 on Freeview HD, Sky, Virgin Media and Freesat. It streams live and on demand for free at channel4.com and through the Channel 4 app. Channel 4 News runs weeknights at 7pm; Gogglebox is the Friday 9pm fixture.

Thursday 17 September 2026 mixes factual and entertainment rather than running an all-factual night: A New Life in the Sun: Where Are They Now? opens at 6pm, followed by Channel 4 News at 7pm and Two Men on a Bike at 8pm. Taskmaster returns at 9pm with a new episode, Apocalypse takes the 10pm hour, and Gogglebox closes out the night from 11:20pm.

Channel 4 Schedule: Thursday 17 September 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete Channel 4 schedule for Thursday 17 September 2026, on Freeview 4.

Overnight

Breakfast

Morning

Afternoon

Early evening

Primetime

Late night

What’s on Channel 4 today: the daytime schedule

Thursday’s daytime runs the standard comedy-and-property formula: three King of Queens episodes and three Everybody Loves Raymond run into a four-episode Frasier block, then American Pickers takes 11:10am. Find It, Fix It, Flog It and The Great House Giveaway carry the early afternoon around the lunchtime news.

Countdown returns at 2:10pm, and A Place in the Sun, Help! We Bought a Village, Four in a Bed and Come Dine with Me fill the run into the evening news.

Channel 4 tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the Channel 4 primetime line-up for tonight, Thursday 17 September 2026.

A New Life in the Sun: Where Are They Now? — Channel 4, 6pm

A new edition catching up with expats who’ve featured on the show before, following bar owner Beth as she tries to rebuild after losing everything (series 8, episode 14).

Channel 4 News — Channel 4, 7pm

The evening bulletin, with sport and weather.

Two Men on a Bike — Channel 4, 8pm

David Baddiel and Hugh Dennis cycle through France, starting out from a seaside resort on the Atlantic coast (series 1, episode 1).

Taskmaster — Channel 4, 9pm

A new episode sees Matt Lucas take on a task built around his vertigo, Chloe Petts handling a giant syringe, and Richard Ayoade throwing a doll’s head at a gargoyle (series 22, episode 3).

Apocalypse — Channel 4, 10pm

Two groups of ordinary people try to survive in a mocked-up post-apocalyptic setting, living off limited resources (series 1, episode 1).

Gogglebox — Channel 4, 11:20pm

The sofa critics react to the week’s television (series 28, episode 2).

Popular shows on Channel 4

Comedy and entertainment

Gogglebox has been running since 2013, filming regular families and friends reacting to the week’s telly from their own sofas. When something big happens in the culture, their reactions often land harder than any think-piece. It won the BAFTA for Reality and Constructed Factual in 2014 and is still going more than a decade later.

Taskmaster moved to Channel 4 from Dave in 2020 and has run a new series most years since. Greg Davies’s mock authority and Alex Horne’s deadpan make for a double act that never feels forced. Series 21 began in April 2026 with Amy Gledhill, Armando Iannucci, Joanna Page, Joel Dommett and Kumail Nanjiani.

Factual and documentary

24 Hours in A&E films inside a working NHS hospital, originally St George’s in Tooting and later King’s College, with fixed cameras and no presenter. It trusts the patients and staff to carry it, which they do. Dispatches, running since 1987, does the investigative work few other British programmes go near; its 2023 Russell Brand investigation was made jointly with two national newspapers.

Baking, lifestyle and food

The Great British Bake Off can make an entire nation care about proving times and choux pastry. It moved from the BBC to Channel 4 in 2017 and still pulls some of the biggest entertainment audiences of the year each autumn. Bake Off: The Professionals swaps the amateurs for trained pastry chefs, and the sugar-work sculptures they produce are frankly ridiculous. Come Dine With Me just keeps going in the afternoons, held together entirely by Dave Lamb’s narration.

How to watch Channel 4 live and on demand

Channel numbers

Here’s where to find Channel 4 depending on your platform:

All of these are free-to-air, no subscription needed. Channel 4 takes no money from the TV Licence; it runs on advertising and commercial partnerships, which is why you get ad breaks on both the linear channel and the stream.

Channel 4 streaming service

Channel 4 streams live and on demand for free at channel4.com and through the Channel 4 app, which runs on smart TVs, iOS, Android, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and most major streaming sticks. You need a free account to watch; registration takes a couple of minutes. Alongside the live feed there’s the full on-demand library, box sets, and some series that never appear on linear TV. Most programmes stay up for at least 30 days after broadcast. The service used to be called All 4 before Channel 4 folded it under its own name in 2023.

The Channel 4 family of channels

Channel 4 runs a group of free-to-air digital channels alongside the main service.

E4 is the entertainment and comedy channel aimed at younger viewers. It’s the linear home of Hollyoaks, which airs Monday to Wednesday at 7pm on E4, with the omnibus appearing on Channel 4 overnight on Tuesdays. E4 also carries American imports including The Big Bang Theory and Friends. It’s on Freeview 28, Sky 140 and Virgin Media 144.

More4 is where the factual and lifestyle back catalogue goes to live a second life: property, true crime, acquired documentary series, and a great many daytime repeats. More4 is on Freeview 18, Sky 144 and Virgin Media 148.

Film4 is the free movie channel, and a genuinely good one: mainstream Hollywood in the evenings, world and independent cinema later on, no subscription anywhere in it. Film4 is on Freeview 15, Sky 313 and Virgin Media 428.

4seven replays the past week of Channel 4 and its sister channels at different times of day, for anyone who’d rather not use the app. It’s on Freeview 47 and Sky 149.

Frequently asked questions

What channel number is Channel 4 on Freeview?

Channel 4 is on channel 4 on Freeview. If you have a Freeview HD receiver or a TV with a built-in Freeview HD tuner, Channel 4 HD is on channel 104. Both carry the same programmes.

What channel is Channel 4 on Sky?

Channel 4 is on channel 104 on Sky, which covers Sky Q, Sky Stream and Sky Glass. Channel 4 HD is the default feed at 104.

What channel is Channel 4 on Virgin Media?

Channel 4 is on channel 104 on Virgin Media.

What channel is Channel 4 on Freesat?

Channel 4 is on channel 104 on Freesat. If you’re in Wales you may find S4C at 104 on some tuners; check your regional listing accordingly.

What time is Channel 4 News on?

Channel 4 News is on Monday to Friday at 7pm, running until 7:55pm. It’s produced by ITN and streams free on channel4.com and the Channel 4 app alongside the linear broadcast. Weekend bulletins are shorter and earlier, typically around 6:30-6:35pm and roughly twenty-five minutes long.

What time is Gogglebox on Channel 4?

Gogglebox’s home slot is Fridays at 9pm on Channel 4, with episodes available on the Channel 4 streaming service shortly after broadcast. The Celebrity Gogglebox spin-off turns up in other slots through the week, including some Monday nights, with a different line-up of famous faces reacting to the same shows.

What’s on Channel 4 tonight?

Thursday 17 September 2026 mixes factual and entertainment. A New Life in the Sun: Where Are They Now? opens at 6pm, Channel 4 News follows at 7pm, then Two Men on a Bike at 8pm and a new Taskmaster at 9pm. Apocalypse takes the 10pm slot, and Gogglebox closes the night from 11:20pm.

Can I watch Channel 4 online for free?

Yes. Channel 4 streams live and on demand for free at channel4.com and through the Channel 4 app. A free account is required to watch. The service is available on smart TVs, phones, tablets, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and most streaming sticks. Channel 4 is ad-supported, so adverts are included in the stream.

Does Channel 4 have a streaming service?

Yes. It’s the same free service covered above at channel4.com and via the Channel 4 app, previously known as All 4 before Channel 4 dropped the separate branding in 2023.

Verdict

Taskmaster at 9pm is the pick of tonight’s line-up, with A New Life in the Sun and Two Men on a Bike setting a lighter tone earlier in the evening. Apocalypse and Gogglebox close out the night either side of 10pm and 11:20pm.

Daytime runs the usual comedy-and-property formula: King of Queens and Everybody Loves Raymond around a four-episode Frasier block, then Countdown and Four in a Bed carrying the afternoon. Nothing here needs planning around.

Watch

Related: What’s On TV Tonight | Channel 4 Schedule | BBC One TV Guide | Films on TV This Week