BBC UKTV is an Australian

pay television Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to Subscription business model, subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichan ...

channel in Australia and New Zealand, screening British entertainment programming, sourced mainly from the archives of the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

RTL Group RTL Group (for "Radio Television Luxembourg") is a Luxembourg-based international media conglomerate, with another corporate centre in Cologne, Germany. The company operates 68 television channels and 31 radio stations in Germany, France and ...

(mainly

Talkback Thames Talkback Thames (stylised as talkbackTHAMES) was a British television production company, a division of Fremantle (part of the RTL Group, which in turn is owned by Bertelsmann). It was formed by the merger of Talkback Productions and Thames Tel ...

material) and

ITV plc ITV plc is a British media company that holds 13 of the 15 regional television licences that make up the ITV network (Channel 3), the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom. ITV plc is listed on the ...

. The channel was originally a joint venture with

Foxtel Foxtel is an Australian pay television company—operating in cable television, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April 2018, superseding an earlier company from 1995. The service was establi ...

(60% ownership), the RTL Group (20% ownership) and

BBC Worldwide BBC Worldwide Ltd. was the wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the BBC, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in January 1995. The company monetises BBC brands, selling BBC and other British programming for broadcas ...

(20% ownership). It is now owned solely by

BBC Studios BBC Studios is a British content company. It is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC that was formed in April 2018 through the merger of the BBC's commercial production arm and the BBC's commercial international distribution arm, BBC Worldwide. ...

. It is the home of the channel's flagship programme ''

The Graham Norton Show ''The Graham Norton Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton s ...

''.

History

The channel was first launched in Australia in August 1996, becoming available on Austar in April 1999 and on Optus in December 2002. A New Zealand version with different programming launched on Sky TV, in November 2003. It shows a mix of repeats of old UK shows previously screened in Australia or New Zealand and new episodes of programs not shown before in Australia or New Zealand. Repeated series include ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'', ''

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' (sometimes referred to as ''HG2G'', ''HHGTTG'', ''H2G2'', or ''tHGttG'') is a comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally a 1978 radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4, it w ...

'', ''

Are You Being Served? ''Are You Being Served?'' is a British sitcom created and written by executive producer David Croft (Croft also directed some episodes) and Jeremy Lloyd, with contributions from Michael Knowles and John Chapman, for the BBC. Set in London, t ...

'', ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...

'', ''

Torchwood ''Torchwood'' is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. A spin-off of the 2005 revival of ''Doctor Who'', it aired from 2006 to 2011. The show shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing ...

'', ''

Torchwood Declassified ''Torchwood Declassified'' is a documentary series created by the BBC to complement the British science fiction television series ''Torchwood''. Each episode is broadcast on the same evening as the broadcast of the weekly television episode. A sec ...

'', '' The Jewel in the Crown'', ''

Never the Twain ''Never the Twain'' is a British sitcom that ran for eleven series from 7 September 1981 to 9 October 1991. It was created by Johnnie Mortimer, and was the only sitcom he ever created without his usual writing partner, Brian Cooke. Mortimer w ...

'', ''

The Sweeney ''The Sweeney'' is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London. It stars John Thaw as Detective Ins ...

'', and ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

'' that have already been seen on free-to-air terrestrial television in Australia. New series include '' Shameless'', new episodes of popular soap operas ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'' and ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' and the original UK version of ''

The Weakest Link ''Weakest Link'' (also known as ''The Weakest Link'') is a television game show which The Weakest Link (British game show), first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and originally ended on 31 March 2012 when its host ...

'' which have not otherwise been screened in Australia. UK soap opera ''

Family Affairs ''Family Affairs'' is a British soap opera that aired on Channel 5. It debuted on 30 March 1997, the day of the launch of said channel and was the first programme broadcast on the channel. It was screened as five thirty-minute episodes per w ...

'', which has never been screened on free-to-air Australian television, ran on UKTV from 1998 to 2007. In July 2006 UKTV began screening 2006 episodes of UK soap opera ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, '' ...

'' which had never before been screened in Australia. UKTV's episodes of ''EastEnders'' are currently two weeks behind the United Kingdom, and ''Coronation Street'' is about one week behind. Current ''Emmerdale'' episodes currently in 2021 are about four weeks behind the original UK broadcasts. In addition to British programming UKTV has repeated Australian soap operas '' Sons and Daughters'' and ''

Prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'' which were both produced by the

Reg Grundy Organisation Reg Grundy Organisation (founded as Reg Grundy Enterprises, later known as both Reg Grundy Productions and Grundy Television and known informally as Grundy's) was an Australian-based multinational mass media company, primarily involved in tele ...

(now owned by

FremantleMedia Fremantle (; formerly FremantleMedia) is a British multinational television production and distribution company based in London. Fremantle takes its name from Fremantle International, acquired by predecessor company All American Television in ...

). In both cases the entire series was shown; the '' Sons and Daughters'' repeat run was from 1997 until 2000 and ''

'' ran from 1997 until October 2004, ''Prisoner'' is now screening on 111 Hits from March 2011. It also screened the

TVNZ , type = Crown entity , industry = Broadcast television , num_locations = New Zealand , location = Auckland, New Zealand , area_served = Nationally (New Zealand) and some Pacific Island nations such as the Cook Islands, Fiji, and the So ...

soap opera ''

Shortland Street ''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital, first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992. It is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, being broadcast continuously ...

'' for several years in the 1990s, after early episodes of that series had briefly been screened by SBS on free-to-air television in Australia. In Australia, UKTV, like all pay TV drama channels, is legally required to spend 10 per cent of its total program expenditure on funding new eligible (Australian and New Zealand) drama programs. Such productions include ''

Changi Changi () is a planning area located in the geographical region of Tanah Merah in the East Region of Singapore. Sharing borders with Pasir Ris and Tampines to the west, Changi Bay to the southeast, the South China Sea to the east and the Sera ...

'', ''

Supernova A supernova is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. It has the plural form supernovae or supernovas, and is abbreviated SN or SNe. This transient astronomical event occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star or when ...

'', ''Make or Break'' and ''

False Witness ''False Witness'', also known as ''The Diplomat'' internationally, is a two-part Australian television mini-series, produced by Screentime Australia, and broadcast simultaneously on the Australian subscription television channel UKTV (Australia ...

''. UKTV has separate services in Australia and New Zealand, partly to reflect different local tastes, but also for rights reasons, as many programmes are shown on free-to-air channels in New Zealand. For example, ''Coronation Street'' has been shown on

TVNZ 1 TVNZ 1 ( mi, Te Reo Tātaki Tahi) is the first national television channel owned and operated by the state-owned broadcaster Television New Zealand (TVNZ). It is the oldest television broadcaster in New Zealand, starting out from 1960 as indep ...

for many years, while until May 2009, ''EastEnders'' was shown on

Prime A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...

, before moving to UKTV. On 1 July 2008 BBC Worldwide assumed full control of UKTV. BBC Worldwide previously had a 20 per cent stake in UKTV in a three way partnership with Foxtel and Fremantle Media. BBC Worldwide launched two new Australian channels,

BBC Knowledge BBC Knowledge was a British television channel which was owned by the BBC and was launched on 1 June 1999, broadcasting documentary, cultural and educational programmes. It was shut down on 2 March 2002, and was replaced by BBC Four. History L ...

(documentary and non-fiction programming) and

CBeebies CBeebies is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 years and under. Its sister channel CBBC is aimed at older childr ...

(an advertising-free channel for 0 to six-year-olds) on 1 November 2008. On 3 October 2009 UKTV revealed a new logo, displaying that of the BBC, although its name remained unchanged. On 15 November 2009 the channel launched an HD simulcast, replacing

BBC HD BBC HD was a 24-hour high-definition television channel provided by the BBC. The service was initially run as a trial from 15 May 2006 until becoming a full service on 1 December 2007 before its discontinuation on 26 March 2013. It broadcast ...

. In April 2013, the channel changed its logo and name to BBC UKTV. On 1 July 2014, the HD simulcast closed, making the channel solely available in standard definition. This came prior to the launch of

BBC First BBC First is an entertainment subscription television channel featuring comedy, crime, drama and film programming, originating from UK and mostly from the BBC. The channel is wholly owned and operated by BBC Studios. The channel began rolling ou ...

, which would use the HD feed formerly used by BBC UKTV. In addition, BBC UKTV changed subscription packages on Foxtel - moving from the Drama & Lifestyle add-on package to the basic Essential package increasing its reach. On 1 February 2015, BBC UKTV launched on Australian independent IPTV service

Fetch TV Fetch TV is an Australian IPTV provider that delivers a subscription television service over a user's regular internet service. Fetch TV launched in 2010 backed by its Malaysian parent Astro Malaysia Holdings. On 2 August 2022, Telstra acquire ...

, after they won the broadcast rights to

. From 10 October 2016, the channel refreshed its logo and branding identity, to appeal to a younger audience and better distinguish its programming from the more premium offerings on sister channel

. In September 2022,

partnered with South African FTA broadcaster,

OpenView HD OpenView is a free-to-view direct broadcast satellite television provider in South Africa which is run by Platco Digital (part of the eMedia Group which includes free-to-air channel e.tv). It launched on 15 October 2013. In addition to the "e" ...

, to launch the channel in the country. It will be available on Channel 114 as of 18 October 2022.

Original programming

*''

'' (2001) (co-production with the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

) * ''

'' (2005-06) (co-production with

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

) * ''

'' (2009) (co-production with

) *''

Dripping in Chocolate Dripping, also known usually as beef dripping or, more rarely, as pork dripping, is an animal fat produced from the fatty or otherwise unusable parts of cow or pig carcasses. It is similar to lard, tallow and schmaltz. History It is used for ...

'' (2012) *''

Top of the Lake ''Top of the Lake'' is a mystery drama television series created and written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee, and directed by Campion and Garth Davis. It aired in 2013, and the sequel, entitled ''Top of the Lake: China Girl'', in 2017. It mark ...

'' (2013–2017) (co-production with

and

SundanceTV Sundance TV (formerly known as Sundance Channel) is an American pay television channel owned by AMC Networks that launched on February 1, 1996. The channel is named after Robert Redford's character in ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' and, w ...

)

Logo history

File:UKTV original logo.svg , 1996–2009 File:UKTV logo.svg , 2009–2013 File:BBC UKTV.svg , 2013–2016 File:BBC uktv logo.svg , 2016 – present

References

*UKTV Website 200

Retrieved 16 January 2006.

External links

BBC UKTV AustraliaBBC UKTV New Zealand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Uktv Television networks in Australia New Zealand television channels International BBC television channels Television channels and stations established in 1996 English-language television stations in Australia English-language television stations in New Zealand 1996 establishments in Australia 2003 establishments in New Zealand BBC Worldwide