Channel 5 TV Guide: Listings, Schedule & What’s On Channel 5 Tonight

Channel 5 is the UK’s third commercial terrestrial broadcaster, free to air and funded by advertising, and it streams live and on demand through My5. Below: tonight’s full schedule, the shows the channel is built on, its channel numbers on every platform, and how to watch online.

Tonight the travel strand opens the evening again, with Croatia: Jewel of the Med taking over from Corsica at 6pm. Tom Read Wilson’s Grand Tour follows at 7pm and Alexander Armstrong in Sri Lanka takes 8pm, before the channel’s biggest launch of the week: Heat, a new four-part Australian drama starring Danny Dyer, airs its first two episodes back to back at 9pm and 10:05pm. Piers Morgan: Uncensored closes out the night at 11:05pm. Full times are in the table below.

Channel 5 Schedule: Friday 21 August 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete Channel 5 schedule for Friday 21 August 2026, on Freeview 5.

Overnight

Morning

Afternoon

Early evening

Primetime

Late night

What’s on Channel 5 today — the daytime schedule

Friday runs the channel’s standard weekday timetable. Overnight repeats give way to Milkshake! from 5:40am, carrying the channel through to just after 9am with PAW Patrol, Paddington, Peppa Pig and the rest of the strand’s usual mix, followed by a short run of PAWsome Puzzles at 9:10am. Jeremy Vine picks up the mid-morning slot at 9:15am and holds it for over two hours, followed by Storm & Alexis at 11:30am ahead of the lunchtime bulletin.

5 News at Lunchtime breaks up the schedule just before 1pm, then Matt Allwright runs the early afternoon. Stranger in My Home takes the 2:20pm hour, Castle repeats at 4pm and a short Love Nature film leads into 5 News with Dan Walker at 5pm. Croatia: Jewel of the Med closes out the daytime run at 6pm, just ahead of primetime.

Channel 5 tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the Channel 5 primetime line-up for tonight, Friday 21 August 2026.

Croatia: Jewel of the Med — Channel 5, 6pm

The travel strand moves on again, swapping Corsica for Croatia’s Adriatic coast. Tonight’s episode, the eighth of the run, heads to the island of Hvar.

Tom Read Wilson’s Grand Tour — Channel 5, 7pm

Tom Read Wilson takes in Florence and Rome in the third leg of his Italian tour, weighing up the tourist landmarks against the country’s design history.

Alexander Armstrong in Sri Lanka — Channel 5, 8pm

Alexander Armstrong continues his Sri Lankan travelogue in its second episode, trading the quiz-show desk for tea plantations and coastline.

Heat — Channel 5, 9pm and 10:05pm

Channel 5’s big new drama needs a clear introduction, because the title is doing it no favours: this is not the 1995 Michael Mann film that Film4 showed last night, but a brand new four-part Australian series with Danny Dyer heading the cast. Two expat families gather for their annual reunion as bushfires close in around them, and old grudges resurface faster than the flames can spread. The channel airs the opening two episodes back to back, 9pm and 10:05pm, effectively fast-tracking half the series in one sitting before next week’s instalments.

Piers Morgan: Uncensored — Channel 5, 11:05pm

Piers Morgan closes out the night with tonight’s edition of his nightly interview and opinion show (series 2, episode 31).

Popular shows on Channel 5

Drama

The Fortune is the channel’s newest drama, a four-part psychological thriller with Eleanor Tomlinson. The Madame Blanc Mysteries is the long-runner to track if cosy crime is more your thing: Sally Lindsay plays an antiques dealer turned amateur sleuth, with the whole thing set in the south of France.

Factual and documentary

The Yorkshire Vet has run for well over fifteen series since 2015. It follows the team at Skeldale Veterinary Centre in Thirsk, and Peter Wright has been the anchor throughout, though by now the supporting cast of vets is familiar enough that it watches more like an ensemble drama than a documentary.

Police Interceptors has aired without a break since 2008, riding along with specialist road traffic units, cameras in the cars and helicopters overhead. Motorway Cops and the other road-policing titles follow the same format.

The countryside strand is the channel’s calling card. Reuben Owen: Life in the Dales and A Yorkshire Farm rotate through the schedule across the year rather than every night, so which one is on depends on the week. Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly with Graeme Hall rounds out the animal side.

Daytime favourites

Milkshake! has held its spot every morning for over twenty years, surviving more than one change of ownership in the process. Jeremy Vine inherited the mid-morning slot from The Wright Stuff and has not let go of it since.

How to watch Channel 5

Channel numbers

My5 — watch online for free

Channel 5 streams live and on demand through My5 at channel5.com and the My5 app, which runs on smart TVs, phones, tablets and the usual streaming boxes. There’s no subscription, though you’ll see adverts. A free account unlocks catch-up, where most shows stay up for 30 days and a few longer as boxsets. My5 also carries the wider Paramount stable, so Comedy Central, MTV, BET and CBS titles sit alongside the Channel 5 stream.

The Channel 5 family of channels

Four sister channels run alongside the main service, all free to air on Freeview and carried on Sky and Virgin:

5Star is the entertainment sibling, heavy on reality and acquired US shows. Freeview 32, Sky 128.

5USA runs American drama, crime and procedurals. Freeview 21, Sky 141.

5Action is the home for films, action drama and motorsport. Freeview 33, Sky 150.

5Select is the odd one out, a grab-bag of factual, documentary and lifestyle that doesn’t fit the main channel’s primetime. Freeview 50, Sky 153.

All four live inside My5 too, so streamers get the whole family in one place.

Frequently asked questions

What channel number is Channel 5 on Freeview?

Channel 5 is on channel 5 on Freeview. If you have a Freeview HD receiver or an HD-capable television with a built-in Freeview HD tuner, Channel 5 HD is on channel 105. Both carry the same national broadcast.

What channel is Channel 5 on Sky?

Channel 5 is on channel 105 on Sky, which applies to Sky Q, Sky Stream and Sky Glass. As of March 2026, the SD version of Channel 5 on satellite has been removed. Channel 105 is the only place to find it on Sky, and it broadcasts in HD.

What channel is Channel 5 on Virgin Media?

Channel 5 is on channel 105 on Virgin Media. It is included as standard on all Virgin TV packages and carries advertising.

What channel is Channel 5 on Freesat?

Channel 5 is on channel 105 on Freesat. The SD version was removed in March 2026, so the channel is HD-only on satellite.

What kind of shows is Channel 5 known for?

Channel 5’s schedule is built on British factual and countryside television: The Yorkshire Vet and its Dales farming series, true-crime documentaries and daytime entertainment such as Jeremy Vine. Alongside that sits a growing slate of original British drama, and every morning opens with children’s programming under the Milkshake! banner.

What’s on Channel 5 tonight?

Friday 21 August 2026 opens primetime with Croatia: Jewel of the Med at 6pm, followed by Tom Read Wilson’s Grand Tour at 7pm and Alexander Armstrong in Sri Lanka at 8pm. The night’s main event is Heat, a new four-part Australian drama starring Danny Dyer, which airs its first two episodes back to back at 9pm and 10:05pm. Piers Morgan: Uncensored rounds off the night at 11:05pm. Full times are in the schedule table above.

Can I watch Channel 5 online for free?

Yes. Channel 5 streams live and free on My5 at channel5.com and via the My5 app. No subscription is needed, though the service carries advertising. A free account registration is required for catch-up and on-demand content.

Is Channel 5 free?

Yes. Channel 5 is a free-to-air commercial broadcaster. There is no subscription or pay-TV requirement to watch it on Freeview, Freesat, Sky or Virgin Media, and My5 online is also free. The channel is funded by advertising.

Verdict

Friday belongs to Heat. Launching a new drama with two episodes in one night is a statement of intent, and pitching a family saga about Australian bushfires under a title so recently used by a very different film is a bold move that could easily confuse anyone half paying attention. The hour beforehand is comfortable, undemanding viewing: Croatia: Jewel of the Med, Tom Read Wilson’s Grand Tour and Alexander Armstrong in Sri Lanka ask nothing of the audience beyond a passing interest in nice scenery. Piers Morgan: Uncensored closes the night in its usual spot. Anyone curious about the new drama has more reason than most Fridays to stay in and watch from the start.

Watch

Related: What’s On TV Tonight | Channel 5 Schedule | My5 Streaming Guide | Films on TV This Week