TV Guide UK Tonight: Fri 14 Aug 2026 – Bergerac, Ann Droid & Coronation Street

Friday 14 August 2026. There’s a scheduling scrap on BBC One tonight: the European Athletics Championships elbow into the evening from 8pm, pushing everything else around them. Over on BBC Two, Bergerac edges closer to signing off, while ITV1 sends Sarah Platt deeper into her prison nightmare with Coronation Street at 8:30pm. BBC Four clears its evening for Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, and Ann Droid closes out BBC One’s night at 10:40pm. If you’re after EastEnders, you’re out of luck tonight. More on that below.

Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best

• Bergerac ⭐ BBC Two, 9pm. A counsellor’s betrayal, with the finale a week away.
• Coronation Street ITV1, 8:30pm. Sarah’s prison secret stops being a secret.
• Ann Droid BBC One, 10:40pm. A camping trip that goes wrong fast.
• Athletics: European Championships BBC One & BBC Two, from 8pm/7pm. Day five from Birmingham.
• EastEnders isn’t on tonight. It’s a Monday-to-Thursday show, full stop.

Early Evening

Before any of that, there’s an afternoon detour and then BBC One spends its early slot celebrating itself.

The Hairdresser Mysteries – BBC One, 2pm

A Halloween-flavoured entry in the salon murder run, Monster Mash dance number included. Lily’s costume does a lot of heavy lifting, while the case unfolds in a client’s house where stuffed animals and a pair of looming stag heads do nothing for anyone’s nerves. BBC iPlayer.

The One Show at 20 – BBC One, 7pm

Twenty years is a decent innings for a show built on chat, celebrity plugs and the odd escaped animal in the studio. Roman Kemp and Alex Jones dig through more than 4,000 episodes’ worth of archive, tracing how a shaky 2006 launch turned into a genuine weeknight fixture, trumpet theme tune and all. BBC iPlayer.

BBC Proms – BBC Four, 7pm

Same time slot, entirely different mood. Gustavo Dudamel brings the LA Philharmonic to the Proms for Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, part of the orchestra’s first run at the Royal Albert Hall in over two decades. Not background telly. This one rewards actually sitting down for it. BBC iPlayer.

Prime Time

Gardeners’ World – BBC Two, 8pm

Monty Don takes stock of a genuinely brutal summer, working out which plants coped with the heat while harvesting his veg patch. Frances Tophill visits a clifftop garden in Clovelly, north Devon, and Adam Frost tours a walled Norfolk kitchen garden. There’s also a trip to the Isle of Wight, where a couple are reviving Tennyson’s old Victorian garden. BBC iPlayer.

Coronation Street – ITV1, 8:30pm

Sarah Platt has been on remand since she killed Theo Silverton, the third Weatherfield resident locked up in eight months. Producers built an actual prison set for the story, and tonight it earns its keep: word gets round the wing that Sarah’s relationship with copper Kit Green isn’t the secret she thought it was, and the walls start closing in ahead of her sentencing. Comparisons with Prisoner: Cell Block H practically write themselves. ITVX.

Bergerac – BBC Two, 9pm ⭐

This is where tonight actually gets interesting. Jim’s counsellor has handed over the contents of their private sessions to his boss, and there’s a strong hint that therapist Pete has his own reasons for wanting the case to collapse. With the finale landing next week, this is where the loose threads start pulling tight. A blunt twist, but an effective one, and the best reason to be in front of the telly at 9pm. BBC iPlayer.

Frank Skinner: Thirty Years of Dirt – Sky One, 9pm

Recorded at Soho Theatre’s Walthamstow outpost, Skinner looks back across three decades on stage without the polish of a bigger arena set. It’s billed as a farewell to a show that’s sold out 85 dates around the country. An ending too, just a filthier one than Bergerac’s.

Late Night

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox – ITV1, 10pm

The penultimate episode leaves Amanda dealing with people determined to make her freedom as miserable as her imprisonment was, a blunt reminder that acquittal doesn’t come with an off switch for public opinion. ITVX.

Ann Droid – BBC One, 10:40pm (11:40pm in Northern Ireland)

Sue and Linda’s idea of a relaxing break is a camping trip built around catching a rare meteor shower, and it unravels the second the phone signal disappears. A game of hide and seek turns into a crisis, a walk gets everyone lost, and Linda’s bedtime stories veer into territory no android should be covering with children. Meanwhile Michael, played by Paul Ready, is job-hunting under mounting pressure now a baby’s on the way, and true to form his solution is more clinical trials rather than actual work. BBC iPlayer.

On Falling – BBC Two, 11:05pm

Laura Carreira’s quietly devastating debut follows Aurora, a Portuguese warehouse picker in Scotland racing an Amazon-style quota system that has no interest in how she’s holding up. Carreira spoke to real warehouse workers while writing the script, and it shows. BBC iPlayer.

Mothers’ Instinct – BBC One, 11:10pm (12:10am in Northern Ireland)

Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain play 1960s neighbours whose friendship curdles after tragedy, with a toy ambulance doing a lot of symbolic legwork. Handsome to look at, and first-time director Benoît Delhomme’s years as a cinematographer show, but it never quite builds the tension it’s reaching for. BBC iPlayer.

Sport

Day five of the European Athletics Championships takes up a huge chunk of BBC’s schedule from Birmingham: morning coverage from 10:30am on BBC One and TNT Sports 3, then an evening session from 8pm on BBC One and 7pm on BBC Two. The Championship season also gets going, with Wolves hosting Blackburn Rovers from 7pm on Sky Sports Football ahead of an 8pm kick-off. The Hundred reaches its eliminator stage too, women’s and men’s matches back to back on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket from 2pm and 5:30pm.

The Viewing Schedule

What’s On Streaming

• BBC iPlayer: The Hairdresser Mysteries, The One Show at 20, BBC Proms, Gardeners’ World, Bergerac, Ann Droid, On Falling, Mothers’ Instinct
• ITVX: Coronation Street, The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox
• Sky / NOW: Frank Skinner: Thirty Years of Dirt

Frequently Asked Questions

Is EastEnders on tonight (Friday 14 August 2026)?

No. EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday on BBC One and doesn’t broadcast on Fridays, so there’s no new episode tonight. Catch up on iPlayer, or wait for Monday’s return.

Why does BBC One’s schedule look different tonight?

The European Athletics Championships take over BBC One’s evening, with day five coverage from Birmingham from 8pm, which is why The One Show sits in its earlier 7pm slot and the usual 9pm drama slot is handed to sport instead.

What time is Bergerac on tonight, and how close is it to ending?

Bergerac airs on BBC Two at 9pm. Jim’s counsellor has broken patient confidentiality by talking to his boss, and with the series finale due next week, tonight’s episode is where the fallout starts to bite.

What live sport is on TV tonight: Friday 14 August 2026?

Day five of the European Athletics Championships runs from Birmingham from 10:30am, with an evening session from 8pm on BBC One. The Championship season also gets going with Wolves hosting Blackburn Rovers from 7pm on Sky Sports Football, and the Hundred’s eliminators air on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket from 2pm and 5:30pm.

What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight (Friday 14 August 2026)?

Bergerac on BBC Two at 9pm is the pick, with a confidentiality breach that sets up next week’s finale. Coronation Street’s prison storyline on ITV1 and Ann Droid on BBC One at 10:40pm are the other strong choices.

Final Verdict

Friday 14 August belongs to Bergerac ⭐, which turns a broken confidence into the sharpest hour of the run so far, one week from the finale. Coronation Street isn’t far behind, finally putting that prison set to proper use, and Ann Droid closes BBC One’s night on a gentler note. BBC Four’s Beethoven takeover is worth building your evening around, and On Falling and Mothers’ Instinct give film fans a late choice. Sport dominates everything else, from the Athletics to the Championship’s return. One thing you won’t find: EastEnders, which sits out Fridays as usual.

Related: What’s On TV Tonight Friday | What’s On TV Tonight Saturday