The BBC has announced today that it’s giving its viewers a special treat over the upcoming yuletide period, as several of the network’s top shows will be made available to stream online. The series chosen include Doctor Who, Sherlock, Line of Duty, Planet Earth, Happy Valley and many more. From what we understand, they’ll be made available on the BBC’s catch-up service BBC iPlayer, in a move that suggests the corporation is trying to rebrand the site as a rival to the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime.
BBC director of content Charlotte Moore had this to say about the treat in a statement released earlier:
“It’s fantastic to give audiences a special gift on iPlayer to complement our schedules. Sit back and indulge as we curate some of the most loved shows you may have missed first time round or favourites you want to watch again.”
Specifically, fans will be able to watch seasons three and four of smash-hit detective drama Sherlock, which should lift the spirits of those who are missing the show now that it’s been placed on indefinite hiatus. Meanwhile, to tie in with the oncoming switch-over of Peter Capaldi into Jodie Whittaker in this December’s Christmas special, every regeneration episode of Doctor Who since 2005 will be free to stream as well.
The series that will be available in full include all four seasons of both police drama Line of Duty and the Cillian Murphy-starring Peaky Blinders, while iPlayer users can also watch all three seasons of horror/thriller anthology series Inside Number 9 and the complete debut season of comedy-drama Fleabag, featuring soon-to-be Solo: A Star Wars Story star Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
Likewise, Tom Hardy’s Victorian drama Taboo and historical piece Wolf Hall are also up for grabs. As are David Attenborough documentary series Blue Planet, Frozen Planet and Planet Earth.
All of these will be made available to stream on BBC iPlayer from December 16th. Enjoy!