What's on TV tonight: Friday 16 October 2026

What's on TV tonight in the UK — your free Freeview guide

TV Radar is a free UK TV guide covering what's on TV tonight, weekly schedules and the best programmes on Freeview, Sky and streaming. Every show in our nightly guides is free to watch with a Freeview aerial or via BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 streaming and My5 — no subscription needed. We publish a fresh guide every day, generated automatically from the published schedule and checked against our listings data, with editor’s picks, accurate UK times, and quick-glance recommendations for what to actually watch. A human editor spot-checks the guides, but not every page is read before it goes live.

What you'll find on TV Radar

Tonight's TV guide updates daily with the night's most-watched UK programmes. Use the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday guides for any other night this week. Each guide lists primetime times for BBC One, BBC Two, ITV1, Channel 4 and Channel 5, plus the best of BBC Four, BBC Three, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, More4, E4, Film4, Sky Max, Sky Atlantic, Sky Documentaries and U&Drama.

UK channels we cover

Free-to-air (Freeview): BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC News, BBC Parliament, BBC Scotland, BBC Alba, S4C, ITV1, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, ITVBe, Channel 4, E4, Film4, More4, 4seven, Channel 5, 5USA, 5Action, 5Star, 5Select, U&Dave, U&Drama, U&Yesterday, U&Alibi, U&Eden, U&W, That's TV, Talking Pictures TV, GB News, Together TV.

Subscription (Sky / Virgin): Sky Max, Sky Atlantic, Sky Witness, Sky Comedy, Sky Documentaries, Sky Showcase, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Sports Football, TNT Sports 1–4, Eurosport.

Streaming we reference: BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 streaming, My5, U Watch, Sky Go, NOW TV, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, Paramount+, Discovery+, Freely.

How our TV guides work

Every dated guide names the night's top pick, lists the most relevant programmes with their channel and start time, and flags catch-up locations. We focus on the genres UK viewers actually search for: drama (BBC One Sundays, ITV1 thrillers), entertainment (Strictly Come Dancing, The Masked Singer, Britain's Got Talent), reality (Race Across the World, MasterChef, The Traitors), live sport (Premier League, Six Nations, FA Cup), films (Channel 4 and Film4 premieres) and factual (Panorama, Horizon, Dispatches).

Frequently asked questions

What's on TV tonight in the UK?

Tonight's editor's pick is at the top of this page, followed by a full guide for the evening. Our UK TV listings cover BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, ITV1, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, Channel 4, E4, Film4, More4, Channel 5, 5USA, U&Dave, U&Drama, U&Yesterday, Sky Atlantic, Sky Max and more. Primetime in the UK runs roughly 7pm to 10:30pm, with the biggest shows usually starting at 8pm or 9pm.

What's on Freeview tonight?

All of the night's biggest programmes are on Freeview — the UK's free-to-air TV service. Our nightly guide highlights what's worth watching tonight on BBC One, BBC Two, ITV1, Channel 4 and Channel 5, plus the best of BBC Three, BBC Four, ITV2/3/4, E4, Film4 and the U&... channels. Catch up free via BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 streaming and My5.

What's the best TV to watch tonight in the UK for free?

Our editor's pick for tonight is at the top of this page. Every programme on our nightly guide is free to watch in the UK, either live on Freeview or via BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 streaming and My5. The best free TV tonight typically sits between 8pm and 10pm.

Is TV Radar free to use?

Yes. TV Radar is free, ad-supported, and never asks for a sign-in. There's no premium tier and no app to download — every TV guide on this site is open to read.

How accurate are the listings?

Times are based on official broadcaster schedules and are accurate at publication. Broadcasters do change live schedules at short notice (especially around news events and sport overruns), so always cross-check your on-screen Freeview guide if timing is critical. Spotted an error? Contact us and we'll fix it.

Do you cover Freeview, Sky and streaming?

All three. Our priority is Freeview because it's free for every UK household, but we'll always include the night's biggest Sky exclusives and flag where shows are streaming on BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, NOW or Prime Video.

What time does TV "primetime" start in the UK?

UK primetime runs roughly from 7pm to 10:30pm, with the biggest audiences between 8pm and 10pm. Most flagship dramas, soaps and entertainment shows start at 8pm or 9pm on the main five channels. Our guides are written around that 7pm–11pm window.

How often is the TV guide updated?

Daily. A new dated guide is published every morning for that evening's TV. The day-of-week pages (Monday, Tuesday, etc.) automatically show the latest dated guide for that day, so they're always current.

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