GREAT! Action TV Guide: Listings, Schedule & What’s On GREAT! Action Tonight

Published: 17 September 2026

GREAT! Action is a free-to-air film channel on Freeview 42, built around action films and westerns. It started out as Sony Movies Action on 10 September 2019 and has been renamed twice since, most recently in March 2023. Tonight, Friday 18 September 2026, is more series television than film to start: The Unit opens primetime at 6pm, then two Burn Notice episodes run back to back from 7pm to 9pm, both repeats of the afternoon’s showings, before Takers takes the film slot at 9pm, split by a five-minute This Week Back Then bumper at 9:56pm and resuming at 10:01pm. A classic Avengers episode closes out the night from 11:15pm.

GREAT! Action Schedule: Friday 18 September 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete GREAT! Action schedule for Friday 18 September 2026, on Freeview 42.

Overnight

Breakfast

Morning

Afternoon

Early evening

Primetime

Late night

What’s on GREAT! Action today

The Baron opens the night at 12:15am (series 1, episode 17), followed by The Persuaders! from 1:15am (series 1, episode 20) and the thriller Absolute Zero from 2:15am. The reality strand Coast Guard Alaska follows from 3:50am (series 2, episode 2), then three short Air Rescue instalments fill the small hours from 4:35am to 5:50am (series 1, episodes 1 to 3), each one followed by a Good News on GREAT! Extra bulletin, before Teleshopping takes over from 6am to 9am.

Raiders Of The Lost Art opens the morning proper at 9:10am, running two back-to-back editions (series 1, episodes 5 and 6), then the western Angel and the Badman fills the rest of the morning from 10:40am, split by a five-minute This Week Back Then bumper at 11:36am before resuming at 11:41am. The Unit takes the early afternoon from 1pm (series 3, episode 9), then two Burn Notice episodes run from 2pm to 4pm (series 6, episodes 8 and 9), and Out of Control closes out the afternoon from 4pm ahead of tonight’s line-up below, which repeats The Unit and the same two Burn Notice episodes from 6pm.

GREAT! Action tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the GREAT! Action primetime line-up for tonight, Friday 18 September 2026.

The Unit — GREAT! Action, 6pm

The Unit opens primetime at 6pm (series 3, episode 9), repeating the episode shown earlier in the afternoon.

Burn Notice — GREAT! Action, 7pm–9pm

Two Burn Notice episodes run back to back from 7pm (series 6, episodes 8 and 9), themselves repeats of the afternoon’s pair, ahead of tonight’s film.

Takers — GREAT! Action, 9pm

Takers occupies the 9pm film slot, interrupted by a five-minute This Week Back Then bumper at 9:56pm and picking back up at 10:01pm.

The Avengers — GREAT! Action, 11:15pm

A classic episode of The Avengers rounds off the night from 11:15pm (series 6, episode 15).

What kind of films are on GREAT! Action

Classic westerns and action icons

The channel advertises itself as the home of John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, and for once the marketing is accurate. Westerns from the 1930s to the 1960s take up most of the daylight hours, series as well as films, with Tombstone Territory and The High Chaparral in heavy rotation. After that come the 1980s and ’90s action vehicles, built around a small and very dependable cast list.

Contemporary action and thrillers

Evenings go harder on star names, usually one bigger studio picture with a leaner independent thriller either side of it. Most had a cinema release before they arrived here.

Anime, rescue documentaries and reality strands

Since around August 2024 the overnight hours have gone to things that are not films at all: Dragon Ball Super, and rescue documentaries such as Coast Guard Alaska and Air Rescue. The evening slots have so far been left alone.

How to watch GREAT! Action

Channel numbers

Here’s where to find GREAT! Action across the main UK television platforms:

Freesat viewers lost it in early February 2024, along with eight other Narrative Entertainment channels, and it has not come back.

Streaming online

GREAT! Action streams free through Great! Player at great-player.com, with no account or sign-in. The app is on Freeview Play, YouView, Amazon Fire TV, and Samsung and LG smart TVs, plus the App Store and Google Play. GREAT! Movies and GREAT! TV sit in the same app, so the whole network is in one place.

GREAT! sister channels

GREAT! Action is one of four channels run by Narrative Entertainment UK Limited under the GREAT! banner.

A fifth channel, GREAT! Movies Christmas, appears seasonally and runs festive films from September to December.

Frequently Asked Questions

What channel is GREAT! Action on Freeview?

GREAT! Action is on channel 42 on Freeview. It’s not currently on Freesat, having been withdrawn from that platform in early February 2024 along with eight other Narrative Entertainment channels. It remains free on Freeview, Sky and Virgin Media.

What channel is GREAT! Action on Sky and Virgin Media?

Channel 323 on Sky, channel 426 on Virgin Media. Both carry the same schedule as Freeview 42 and both are free to watch.

What’s on GREAT! Action tonight?

Tonight, Friday 18 September 2026, The Unit opens primetime at 6pm, then two Burn Notice episodes run from 7pm to 9pm, both repeats of the afternoon’s showings. Takers takes the 9pm film slot, split by a five-minute This Week Back Then bumper at 9:56pm before resuming at 10:01pm. A classic Avengers episode closes out the night from 11:15pm. See the schedule table above for the rest of the day.

Is GREAT! Action free to watch, and does it carry adverts?

Yes, entirely free on Freeview, Sky and Virgin Media, with no subscription. It carries advertising during films, which is why some titles run in two parts around a short interstitial such as This Week Back Then.

Who owns GREAT! Action?

Narrative Entertainment UK Limited. The channel launched in September 2019 as Sony Movies Action, was rebranded Great! Movies Action in 2021 after Narrative Capital’s acquisition of Sony’s UK channels, and became GREAT! Action in March 2023.

What are the GREAT! sister channels?

GREAT! Movies, GREAT! TV and GREAT! Romance, plus the seasonal GREAT! Movies Christmas. All stream free via Great! Player.

Can I watch GREAT! Action online for free?

Yes, through Great! Player at great-player.com, with apps on Freeview Play, YouView, Amazon Fire TV, and Samsung and LG smart TVs. No account is needed.

Verdict

GREAT! Action costs nothing to watch and needs no sign-up, and tonight leans on series television before the film slot arrives. Overnight runs The Baron, The Persuaders! and Absolute Zero through the small hours, then Coast Guard Alaska, a run of Air Rescue instalments and Teleshopping fill the gap to nine, before Raiders Of The Lost Art and Angel and the Badman take the morning and The Unit and two Burn Notice episodes fill the early afternoon.

Primetime repeats that same Unit-and-Burn Notice run from 6pm to 9pm before Takers takes the film slot, interrupted once by the regular five-minute This Week Back Then bumper rather than running straight through. A classic Avengers rerun closes out the night from 11:15pm. It’s a schedule built on repeats and returning faces rather than anything new, watchable rather than essential, and better suited to having on than sitting down for.

Related: Film4 TV Guide | Freeview Channel Guide | Films on TV This Week