TV Guide UK Tonight: Wed 12 Aug 2026 – EastEnders, Spy Next Door & Murder Trial

Wednesday 12 August 2026. EastEnders opens the night on BBC One at 7:30pm, then the channel clears its evening for the European Athletics Championships from Birmingham. Channel 4 launches a documentary on Russian sleeper agent Anna Chapman, BBC Two opens a new Scottish murder case, and ITV1‘s It’ll Be Alright on the Night marks another year of outtakes.

Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best

• EastEnders BBC One, 7:30pm. Sheila’s plot around Jordan unravels.
• Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story ⭐ Channel 4, 9pm. The real-life Russian spy story begins.
• Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker BBC Two, 9pm. A new case, filmed inside court.
• European Athletics Championships BBC One, 8pm. Live from Birmingham; Super Cup highlights at 10.40pm.
• It’ll Be Alright on the Night ITV1, 9.50pm. Tom Allen’s run through the archive of blunders.

Early Evening

EastEnders – BBC One, 7:30pm

Gray Atkins is still pulling strings from his cell, leaning on grandmother Sheila Atkins and fellow inmate Ian Beale. Trouble flares in the prison visitors’ room, catching an unsuspecting Chelsea Fox in the middle of it. Sheila has already taken Chelsea’s son Jordan, and once Walford realises he’s missing, Denise decides to hunt her down herself rather than wait for partner Jack Branning. BBC iPlayer.

The Repair Shop – BBC Two, 8pm

Four items this time: a miniature drum kit built around a broken clock, a water-damaged photo once given by Jackie Kennedy to a former nanny, and a wax statuette awarded for Barnardo’s fundraising. Luthier Julyan Wallis repairs a battered Venezuelan cuatro after a renovation went wrong. iPlayer.

Extraordinary Extensions – Channel 4, 8pm

One triumph, one near-disaster. A Nottingham homeowner chases a mid-century Hollywood look with a bold extension, while a Canterbury couple’s B&B mash-up hits trouble when a bomb shelter turns up underground. Channel 4 streaming.

Voices of the Valleys – Sky Arts, 8pm

The Beaufort Male Choir have landed a big job: singing South Africa’s anthem before Wales face the Springboks at the Principality Stadium. It’s a notoriously tricky anthem in five languages, and conductor Conor doesn’t hide his frustration after a fluffed opening verse. There’s a gentler thread too: Joel Whitaker, who found belonging in the Froncysyllte Male Voice Choir despite years of Tourette syndrome. Now.

Casualty 24/7: Every Second Counts – Channel 5, 8pm

A burst pipe throws Barnsley’s emergency department into chaos, putting a section out of bounds as patients keep arriving. Channel 5 runs straight into 999: Critical Condition at 9pm, moving to Birmingham for a young mother unconscious after a fall, an elderly patient at risk of pneumonia, and a 19-year-old whose spinal injury could have left him paralysed. My5.

Prime Time

Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story – Channel 4, 9pm ⭐

Long before the FBI caught up with her in New York, Anna Kushchenko was building her cover story here in Britain. Part one traces how she talked her way to a UK visa via a Brighton DJ, then a quick wedding to another Briton that gave her the passport and surname she’d later carry into infamy. From there she worked into serious money, persuading a City financier to hire her as his PA and mixing with people who mattered, including Boris Berezovsky, a Kremlin insider turned fierce Putin critic. Former FBI and CIA officers do the talking. Concludes tomorrow. Channel 4 streaming.

Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker – BBC Two, 9pm

This strand heads north for a case that caught investigators off guard. Retired groundsman Brian Low was found dead near Aberfeldy in February 2024, first treated as a medical emergency until forensic evidence showed he’d been shot. The man in the dock is David Campbell, a retired gamekeeper who worked alongside Low for years on local shoots. Crime scene manager Claudia Hunter and prosecuting advocate Greg Farrell feature, with much of the hour turning on a disputed timeline. Concludes next week. iPlayer.

It’ll Be Alright on the Night – ITV1, 9.50pm

Coming up on almost fifty years now, still finding fresh outtakes. Tom Allen, the latest host since Denis Norden stepped back in 2006, narrates mishaps from Ant and Dec, Joel Dommett, Colin Murray, Amol Rajan, Susanna Reid, Romesh Ranganathan, Joe Pasquale and Dame Prue Leith. Best of the bunch: Alan Carr, halting his own quiz show filming after a suggestively shaped prop sets the panel off. ITVX.

Also on: PBS America’s Athens: Birth of Democracy at 7.15pm, BBC Four‘s Rome Season from 8pm, and BBC Three’s Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont-Spelling Bee, then This Country from 11.35pm.

Sport

BBC One clears its evening for the European Athletics Championships from Birmingham, running from 8pm after this morning’s 10.30am session, with BBC Two covering from 7pm and TNT Sports 3 running both. In Salzburg, Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain face Europa League winners Aston Villa in the Super Cup at 8pm on TNT Sports 1, with BBC One airing highlights at 10.40pm (11.40pm in Northern Ireland). ITV1 has a pre-season friendly too: Manchester United v Leeds United from Croke Park, Dublin, kicking off at 7.30pm.

The Viewing Schedule

What’s On Streaming

• BBC iPlayer: EastEnders, The Repair Shop, Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker
• Channel 4 streaming: Extraordinary Extensions, Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story
• Now: Voices of the Valleys
• My5: Casualty 24/7: Every Second Counts, 999: Critical Condition
• ITVX: It’ll Be Alright on the Night

Frequently Asked Questions

Is EastEnders on tonight (Wednesday 12 August 2026)?

Yes. EastEnders is on BBC One at 7:30pm, with Gray Atkins working Sheila and Ian Beale from prison as the fallout from Jordan’s disappearance spreads through Walford. BBC iPlayer afterwards.

Why has BBC One changed its evening schedule tonight?

BBC One hands its evening to the European Athletics Championships from Birmingham from 8pm, with Super Cup highlights following at 10:40pm.

What is Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story about?

A two-part Channel 4 documentary at 9pm on Russian sleeper agent Anna Chapman, from building a cover in Britain to her US arrest. Part two airs tomorrow.

Is Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker a new case?

Yes, a new two-part BBC Two documentary at 9pm covering the trial over Brian Low’s 2024 death near Aberfeldy. Part two follows next week.

What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight (Wednesday 12 August 2026)?

Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story on Channel 4 at 9pm is the pick, with EastEnders at 7:30pm and Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker on BBC Two close behind.

Final Verdict

Spy Next Door: the Anna Chapman Story ⭐ is worth clearing 9pm for, a stranger-than-fiction opener with the access to back it up. EastEnders keeps the regulars happy at 7:30pm before BBC One switches to the athletics, and Murder Trial: Death of a Dog Walker gives true crime fans a fresh case. Prefer something warmer? Try Voices of the Valleys.

Related: What’s On TV Tonight Wednesday | What’s On TV Tonight Tues 11 Aug 2026 | What’s On TV Tonight Thursday