# BritBox - streaming from the BBC and ITV



## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Britbox has one thing to offer that is a surprise - all 1973-1989 episodes of _Doctor Who_.

From BritBox, A Breakthrough Streaming Service For British TV Enthusiasts, Launched Today:

For $6.99 a month, Americans get access to a plethora of past BBC and ITV-produced series - but the service will also be home to various fresh episodes of British soaps and dramas as little as 24 hours after their U.K. broadcast, including _EastEnders, Emmerdale, Holby City,_ and _Casualty,_ to start with. BritBox will feature the U.S. series premiere of dramas _New Blood,_ from writer Anthony Horowitz, and _Tutankhamun_ from writer Guy Burt, as well as the season premieres of drama favorites _Cold Feet_ and _Silent Witness_.

BBC Worldwide and ITV decided to join forces for their American streaming service in December, with AMC Networks - already a partner with BBC Worldwide through its 50% ownership in BBC America - taking a minority stake. BritBox will theoretically compete with RLJ Entertainment's Acorn TV SVOD service, which since 2011 has offered a fairly wide array of British series like Poirot for the price of $4.99 a month, or $49.99 for a year. In October, AMC Networks invested $65 million in RLJ Entertainment. BritBox launches Tuesday on responsive web, AppleTV, iPhone, iPad, and Android mobile phones and tablets, and will be available on Roku and Chromecast shortly after launch.​
In it's review, _The Verge_ notes:

While that may sound appealing to any British expats or American Anglophiles longing for easy access to their favorite shows, the actual selection is somewhat lacking, particularly when it comes to recent or popular shows. So you're still out of luck if you're hoping to watch _Sherlock, Downton Abbey, Doctor Who, Top Gear, or The Great British Bake Off_ (although some of those shows are available on other streaming services, albeit with more limited access to recently aired episodes).

On the other hand, British soap operas like _EastEnders, Emmerdale, Holby City, and Casualty_ will be better represented, with new episodes getting uploaded to BritBox within a day of airing in the UK. And while newer shows aren't well represented, there are some worthwhile options when it comes to classic British TV, including the original version of _The Office, Miss Marple, Gavin & Stacey, A Bit of Fry and Laurie, Absolutely Fabulous, Blackadder, and Red Dwarf_.​
For now I'll limit our British Empire content to an Acorn TV subscription and PBS. But I may be tempted in the future.


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I do like British shows. I still have to make a decision about Acorn TV. Seems like more and more content each week.

Rich


----------



## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Rich said:


> I do like British shows. I still have to make a decision about Acorn TV. Seems like more and more content each week.
> 
> Rich


We watch more shows on Acorn TV than any other single "channel." It's weird.

For instance if you happened to remember the 2014 show "Rake" on Fox starring Greg Kinnear - a real dud. It was based on an Australian show by the same name which first aired in 2010, was a hit, continued, and aired 8 episodes last year. Now it's available on Acorn TV. Great show! I'll never understand why anyone thought they had to remake it for American audiences.

Then there is "800 Words", a Aussie family show set in New Zealand. Absolutely great!

There are shows for all tastes there. It's amazing.


----------



## makaiguy (Sep 24, 2007)

phrelin said:


> For instance if you happened to remember the 2014 show "Rake" on Fox starring Greg Kinnear - a real dud. It was based on an Australian show by the same name which first aired in 2010, was a hit, continued, and aired 8 episodes last year.


Australian version was available in US several years ago, before the US version. Don't recall where - think it was DTV's Audience but might have been Netflix or Amazon.


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

phrelin said:


> We watch more shows on Acorn TV than any other single "channel." It's weird.
> 
> For instance if you happened to remember the 2014 show "Rake" on Fox starring Greg Kinnear - a real dud. It was based on an Australian show by the same name which first aired in 2010, was a hit, continued, and aired 8 episodes last year. Now it's available on Acorn TV. Great show! I'll never understand why anyone thought they had to remake it for American audiences.
> 
> ...


I have seen _Rake _on NF. I've never seen the American version. I'm gonna close this post and get Acorn before I forget about it yet again...Got it! Thanx!

Rich


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

makaiguy said:


> Australian version was available in US several years ago, before the US version. Don't recall where - think it was DTV's Audience but might have been Netflix or Amazon.


IIRC, there were only 2 seasons on NF at the time. I really enjoyed it.

Rich


----------



## l'Aucherie (May 8, 2010)

I've been checking out the content on Britbox since it started up and still do not find it compelling enough to consider it an alternative to Acorn. It is mainly old stuff that one way or another I have seen over the years. It is of course early days for this service, so it would be reasonable to expect that the the mix of old and new content will improve with time. I think Acorn will still be a player with its non-British international content.


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

phrelin said:


> We watch more shows on Acorn TV than any other single "channel." It's weird.
> 
> For instance if you happened to remember the 2014 show "Rake" on Fox starring Greg Kinnear - a real dud. It was based on an Australian show by the same name which first aired in 2010, was a hit, continued, and aired 8 episodes last year. Now it's available on Acorn TV. Great show! I'll never understand why anyone thought they had to remake it for American audiences.
> 
> ...


NF just sent me a message saying _Rake's _third season (along with the first and second) is now available. I could only find the first season on Acorn TV.

Rich


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

l'Aucherie said:


> I've been checking out the content on Britbox since it started up and still do not find it compelling enough to consider it an alternative to Acorn. It is mainly old stuff that one way or another I have seen over the years. It is of course early days for this service, so it would be reasonable to expect that the the mix of old and new content will improve with time. I think Acorn will still be a player with its non-British international content.


See any Aussie content on Britbox?

Rich


----------



## l'Aucherie (May 8, 2010)

Not yet and I don't expect there ever will be Aussie content. It is my understanding that Britbox is a showcase for UK BBC and ITV shows which in itself should be a treasure trove, if and when they start adding more current content. In the mean time, there's always iPlayer ;-)


----------



## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Rich said:


> NF just sent me a message saying _Rake's _third season (along with the first and second) is now available. I could only find the first season on Acorn TV.
> 
> Rich


The second season is on Acorn TV as of April 10. Now I have to pay more attention to NF - watch for Aussie stuff. I'm watching "Dreamland" on Hulu which I love and see it's also on Netflix. This could get confusing....


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

l'Aucherie said:


> Not yet and I don't expect there ever will be Aussie content. It is my understanding that Britbox is a showcase for UK BBC and ITV shows which in itself should be a treasure trove, if and when they start adding more current content. In the mean time, there's always iPlayer ;-)


Thanx, I like the Australian/New Zealand series and movies a bit more than the British content for some reason.

Rich


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

phrelin said:


> The second season is on Acorn TV as of April 10. Now I have to pay more attention to NF - watch for Aussie stuff. I'm watching "Dreamland" on Hulu which I love and see it's also on Netflix. *This could get confusing*....


Yup, sure is. NF, Amazon and Hulu have so much content, add a couple more streamers and...it's just confusing. Hulu has my interest at the moment, I see some problems with it. The audio levels seem to range from normal to very low depending on the content. I've never seen that on NF or Amazon. I was watching _The Running Man_ last night on Hulu and had to turn the volume up from 19 to 25. 19 is where we have the soundbar for NF and Amazon. The newer shows/movies on Hulu don't seem to have that problem. Pretty awful movie, BTW.

Rich


----------



## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Rich said:


> Yup, sure is. NF, Amazon and Hulu have so much content, add a couple more streamers and...it's just confusing.
> 
> Rich


From one source, which I already know is missing some content available (i.e. Hulu has 1,700+), offers the following numbers for TV Shows:










It's more than I can cope with. As I browse, I see a show or 75 I'd like to watch on top of what I'm watching now. It's pretty overwhelming.


----------



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

phrelin said:


> From one source, which I already know is missing some content available (i.e. Hulu has 1,700+), offers the following numbers for TV Shows:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I kinda like being overwhelmed. So much to watch...

Rich


----------

