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

Dave is UKTV’s comedy and entertainment channel, and almost everything it broadcasts belongs to somebody else. The exception is Red Dwarf, which Dave revived in 2009 with the original cast and has been trading on ever since. UKTV became a wholly owned subsidiary of BBC Studios in 2021 and renamed the channel U&Dave in July 2024, when it pushed the whole portfolio under a single “U” brand. Nobody calls it that. Tonight, Saturday 8 August 2026, it’s a sitcom evening rather than the usual panel-show run: the first three Gavin and Stacey episodes from 7pm, two series two QI editions at 9pm and 9:40pm, and three Not Going Out episodes carrying the night to close. Channel numbers are further down the page.

Dave Schedule: Saturday 8 August 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete Dave schedule for Saturday 8 August 2026, on Freeview 19.

What’s on Dave today

Friday daytime on Dave runs on Top Gear and travel documentary repeats, and closes with a Rick Stein double. Two episodes of Rick Stein’s Cornwall run back to back at 5pm and 5:30pm, the first returning to his family home at Trevose Head where he fished with his father, the second visiting a family making Gouda in Britain and tracing the sea shanty back to Mevagissey. The evening schedule takes over at 6pm.

Dave tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the Dave primetime line-up for tonight, Saturday 8 August 2026.

Gavin and Stacey — Dave, 7pm, 7:40pm and 8:20pm

The first three episodes of series one, in order. The 8:20pm one is the pick: the engagement is announced, both families descend on Billericay, and none of them are ready for what lands.

QI — Dave, 9pm and 9:40pm

Two from series two, back when Stephen Fry was hosting. “Biscuits” has Alan Davies, Arthur Smith, Dara Ó Briain and Rich Hall on biscuits, ballet and baboons; “Bees” follows with Jo Brand and Fred Macaulay.

Not Going Out — Dave, 10:20pm, 11pm and 11:40pm

Three series eight episodes to close. “Hot Tub” at 10:20pm puts Lee and Toby in trouble with Emma Bunton and Susie Dent over a game that gets away from them.

What kind of shows are on Dave

Panel shows and comedy institutions

This is the channel’s whole personality. Would I Lie to You?, QI, 8 Out of 10 Cats, Mock the Week when it’s in rotation: two decades of British panel comedy, nearly all of it bought in from the BBC and Channel 4 rather than commissioned here. What Dave adds is the scheduling. Episodes come in blocks you can drop into at any point and leave whenever you like, which is a different way of watching television and, on a weeknight, not the worst one.

Sitcoms: archive and revivals

Red Dwarf is the one thing Dave can properly call its own. The channel brought it back in 2009, a decade after the BBC finished with it, and got Chris Barrie, Craig Charles, Danny John-Jules and Robert Llewellyn all to return. Not Going Out is the other long runner, still in production after more than fifteen years.

Factual entertainment and documentaries

A thinner strand of observational and scripted-reality shows fills the gaps: Highland Cops, Meet the Richardsons and similar, mostly parked in daytime. It’s ballast between the comedy blocks.

How to watch Dave

Channel numbers

Here’s where to find Dave across the main UK television platforms:

Dave is free on all of the above platforms, with no subscription required. Channel numbers can vary slightly by region and set-top box, so your on-screen guide is the definitive source if these don’t match.

Streaming online

Dave streams live and on demand for free on U, UKTV’s streaming service, at u.co.uk and through the U app on smart TVs, iOS, Android and Amazon Fire TV. U was called UKTV Play until the 2024 rebrand. You need a free account, and there are ad breaks, the same ones you’d sit through on a TV set.

Dave ja vu and sister channels

Dave ja vu is the timeshift channel, running the main schedule an hour behind under a pun that has somehow survived since the 2000s. It’s on Freeview 74, and coverage is patchier than the main signal because it shares broadcast capacity with local TV services in parts of the country. Where reception is thin, the U app is the better fallback for anything you’ve missed.

The rest of the family: U&Drama, U&Yesterday and U&W free to air, with U&Gold, U&Alibi and U&Eden behind pay-TV. All of them sit in the same app.

Frequently asked questions

What channel is Dave on Freeview?

Dave is on Freeview channel 19, and Dave ja vu on 74.

What’s on Dave tonight?

Tonight, Saturday 8 August 2026: three Gavin and Stacey episodes from 7pm, QI at 9pm and 9:40pm, and Not Going Out three times from 10:20pm.

Who hosts QI and Would I Lie to You??

QI is hosted by Sandi Toksvig, with Alan Davies the permanent panellist since 2003. Would I Lie to You? is hosted by Rob Brydon, with David Mitchell and Lee Mack as team captains since the show began in 2007.

Can I watch Dave online for free?

Yes, free on U at u.co.uk or in the U app. You’ll need an account, and it’s ad-supported.

Verdict

The two new Magnum P.I. episodes at 10pm and 11pm are the reason to stay up, and they give the night a shape it would otherwise lack. Everything before them is archive panel show, competently stacked: Would I Lie to You? twice, an XL edition of QI from the Stephen Fry years, and the Hairy Bikers doing islands at 6pm.

The Would I Lie to You? pair are at least genuinely different episodes rather than one shown twice, which is not always the case here. Greg Rutherford, Kirsty Young, Joanna Scanlan and Henning Wehn take the 7:40pm; Jimmy Carr, Griff Rhys Jones, Dave Myers and Susanna Reid the 9:20pm. Gone Fishing at 7pm is the quiet one, and probably the best thing on before ten.

Related: Freeview Channel Guide | Drama TV Guide