ITV3 TV Guide: Listings, Schedule & What’s On ITV3 Tonight

Published: 7 September 2026

ITV3 is ITV’s drama channel, launched on 1 November 2004 as a home for the broadcaster’s back catalogue of detective series, period drama and classic sitcoms. Midsomer Murders, Lewis, Poirot, Heartbeat: if it involves a village, a body and a detective in no hurry to leave, it has probably run here. Today, Tuesday 8 September 2026, Agatha Christie’s Poirot takes up the whole of the mid-morning, Heartbeat runs in pairs either side of lunch and again into early evening, and Vera holds the 8pm slot. Downton Abbey follows at 10pm and two Scott and Bailey episodes close the night from 11pm. There’s no film today.

ITV3 Schedule: Tuesday 8 September 2026 (Full Listings)

Here is the complete ITV3 schedule for Tuesday 8 September 2026, on Freeview 10.

Overnight

Breakfast

Morning

Afternoon

Early evening

Primetime

Late night

What’s on ITV3 today

Overnight, Scott and Bailey plays at 12:20am, then George and Mildred and Unwind with ITV carry the schedule through to Teleshopping at 2:30am.

Wild at Heart opens the proper day at 6am, followed by paired runs of Classic Emmerdale and Classic Coronation Street through breakfast. Agatha Christie’s Poirot then holds the 9:10am slot for over two hours, and two Heartbeat episodes bridge into the afternoon. The Royal and Wild at Heart fill early afternoon, before the Classic Emmerdale and Classic Coronation Street pairs repeat later in the day and a further Heartbeat double leads into primetime.

ITV3 tonight — primetime and the evening schedule

Here’s the ITV3 primetime line-up for tonight, Tuesday 8 September 2026.

Heartbeat — ITV3, 6:55pm

The second of tonight’s two Heartbeat repeats, both from the drama’s thirteenth series and set in the fictional North Yorkshire village of Aidensfield. Adapted from Nicholas Rhea’s Constable novels, the show ran on ITV for eighteen series between 1992 and 2010. This one leads straight into primetime.

Vera — ITV3, 8pm

Brenda Blethyn returns as DCI Vera Stanhope in the fourth episode of the seventh series, working a case against Northumberland’s coastline and moorland. Based on Ann Cleeves’ novels, the drama trades pace for atmosphere, letting Vera’s brusque manner and sharp instincts carry the investigation rather than a twist-a-minute plot. ITV3 doesn’t schedule Vera every night, so a primetime outing is worth flagging.

Downton Abbey — ITV3, 10pm

Still early in the first series, this second episode finds the Crawley household adjusting to new arrivals both above and below stairs, with the question of who inherits the estate already hanging over everything. Julian Fellowes’ period drama went on to become one of ITV’s biggest exports; this rerun catches it before the storylines that made it famous had fully unfolded.

Scott and Bailey — ITV3, 11pm

Suranne Jones and Lesley Sharp lead as Manchester detectives Rachel Bailey and Janet Scott in the third episode of the show’s debut series. The drama built its reputation on procedural casework paired with the two leads’ off-duty friction, a mix that has aged better than most cop dramas from the same period.

Scott and Bailey — ITV3, 11:55pm

The night closes with a second helping of Scott and Bailey, the fourth episode of the same first series, running straight on from the hour before. ITV3 tends to schedule this drama as a late-night double bill rather than a single episode.

What kind of shows are on ITV3

Detective drama and cosy crime

The backbone. Midsomer Murders, Vera, Inspector Morse, Endeavour and Wycliffe cover roughly four decades of British detective television between them, and ITV3 works through them in long runs rather than one-off repeats. You can usually pick a series up mid-week and stay with it.

Period and literary adaptation

The Darling Buds of May, and Agatha Christie’s Poirot when it comes round. David Suchet played the part across thirteen series for ITV between 1989 and 2013. These tend to be scheduled in full-series blocks.

Classic sitcom

George and Mildred and its ITV contemporaries fill the overnight and early-morning slots. Nobody’s setting an alarm for these; they’re on while the day gets going.

How to watch ITV3

Channel numbers

Here’s where to find ITV3 across the main UK television platforms:

Free on all of them, no subscription. Numbers shift regionally, so check your on-screen guide if one doesn’t match.

Streaming online

ITV3 streams live and free through ITVX, at itv.com/watch and via the ITVX app on smart TVs, mobiles, tablets and most games consoles. A free account is all that’s needed, no payment details. The ITVX library also carries individual episodes and full boxsets from the channel, Vera and Poirot included, if you’d rather not wait for a repeat to come round.

ITV3 +1 and sister channels

The +1 channel is less useful than it used to be. Since November 2023 it has broadcast only a reduced overnight window rather than a full hour-behind simulcast, so if you’ve missed the start of something, ITVX catch-up is the better bet.

ITV3 sits alongside ITV1, home to Coronation Street, Emmerdale and the network’s biggest primetime shows, and ITV4, which handles sport, action films and older action series.

Frequently asked questions

What channel is ITV3 on Freeview?

Channel 10, free to air.

What’s on ITV3 tonight?

A single episode of Vera at 8pm, then Downton Abbey at 10pm and two Scott and Bailey episodes closing the night from 11pm. There’s no film today. Times are in the rundown above.

Can I watch ITV3 online for free?

Yes, live through ITVX on the website, the app, and most smart TVs and consoles.

Is ITV3 free to watch?

Yes, and it has been since 2004. There’s advertising, but no subscription fee on any platform.

Verdict

ITV3 has never pretended to be about new television, and today’s line-up leans more period drama than usual: Poirot through mid-morning, Heartbeat running in pairs either side of lunch and again into early evening, then Vera holds the 8pm slot. Downton Abbey and two Scott and Bailey episodes take the two latest slots. Nothing here is new, and there’s no film today, but it’s still a schedule built for cosy-crime and period-drama regulars.

Related: ITV1 TV Guide | ITV4 TV Guide | What’s On TV Tonight | Films on TV This Week