UK streaming highlights: 7 new additions to watch for free (Jan. 19-25)
Not everything has to cost money!
It's mid-January, which can be a bit of a bleak time of year, but the good news is that UK TV channels are doing their level best to keep you stocked with a welcome wave of shows and movies to watch – and if you're a license fee-payer (for the BBC), you can access loads of them for no money at all.
The Traitors
- Streaming on: BBC iPlayer (21, 22, 23 January)
This season of The Traitors has been phenomenal, with a welcome twist on the formula helping it to stay fresh even though we only just recovered from the celebrity edition ending a couple of weeks beforehand. Now, just like that, the show is hurtling towards another big ending.
The final three episodes will all air this coming week, and be immediately available to watch on iPlayer if you don't have an aerial (and who the heck does?). Expect backstabbing, plotting and almost certainly at least one incredible stupid decision that costs someone the whole game.
Industry Season 4
- Streaming on: BBC iPlayer (19 January)
HBO's brilliant show went under the radar for at least a few years, but is now starting to get more attention – rightly so! It's a look at the sort of high-stakes drama that can go down in the world of financial services, with a particular focus on the messy personal lives of powerful traders.
Best of all, because it's a co-production with the BBC, we get to watch it for free, unlike those in the US who need a fairly pricy HBO Max subscription if they want to see it. This fourth season is now ongoing, with new episodes coming out on Mondays, but it's also all on the iPlayer for a catchup session.
The Night Manager Season 2
- Streaming on: BBC iPlayer (25 January)
Another glitzy co-production that the BBC has managed to nab is the long-awaited second season of The Night Manager, which has been taken over mostly by Amazon Prime Video. The good news is that we get to watch it on the iPlayer, though, and it's looking superb after a few episodes so far.
New episodes come out on Sundays, and there will be eight in total, so this one still has a little way to run, with Tom Hiddleston's main character getting further and further undercover with a dangerous drug-runner. There are layers to peel back in the show, so brace for secrets to come out!
The Great Pottery Throw Down
- Streaming on: Channel 4 (25 January)
Another show airing its new episodes on a Sunday is The Great Pottery Throw Down, which has rightly built itself a cult following over the course of eight full seasons, with the ninth now airing. It's a charming look at a handicraft that might have been in danger of going out of fashion without the show's popularity.
Now, countless people tune in to see how its earnest and warm contestants can do each week, as they take on new challenges and techniques to earn praise or sympathy from the judging panel. It's a lovely journey, so check it out if you never have!
Love Island All Stars
- Streaming on: ITVX (Daily)
One of the biggest reality shows ever is back, and Love Island All Stars should have fans of the format tuning in every darn day thanks to the collection of past contestants that it's bringing to the table. It started off ludicrously hot, too, with instant chemistry and action between various contestants looking for love.
There will be constant tests of loyalty and peacocking for attention, and the whole thing's marshalled by the charming Maya Jama. At a time of the year when the weather is frankly rancid most of the time, this dose of sunshine could be a welcome tonic.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- Streaming on: ITVX
One of the highest-grossing animated movies of all time, this is the perfect opportunity for family viewing, since there's a big-time sequel out this year, in just a matter of months. This might be a fairly straight-bat adaptation of the Mario story, but it's also faultlessly competent and has some really fun moments.
If you have young kids and they haven't seen this one yet, prepare to watch it on repeat until it eventually leaves ITVX – like most family movies nowadays, it's full of soundbites and catchphrases that they'll love to parrot.
Unforgiven
- Streaming on: BBC iPlayer
It's always nice when there's a Best Picture winner on one of the domestic streaming services available to watch for free, and Unforgiven ticks that box handily (as does Oppenheimer, available for a few more days) – a western for the ages starring and directed by Clint Eastwood.
Its story of an ageing outlaw who takes on one last bounty when he's persuaded to by a younger hunter is a modern classic, and one that actually feels like it's from a previous era (in the best way possible). Full of memorable performances and beautiful to look at, don't let this one slide by.
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