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WETA UK

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WETA Television proudly presents WETA UK, an innovative channel devoted to British television programming at its best, around the clock, seven days a week. The new, local channel features classics, new favorites, and contemporary series from an array of major U.K. producers — including classics from the BBC.

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WETA UK presents British television programming at its best, around the clock, seven days a week.

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Programming highlights

Primetime Sundays-Thursdays

Each night on WETA UK, the program lineup includes comedies followed by classic and contemporary dramas such as Doctor Who, MI-5 and Inspector Morse.

WETA UK Comedy Fridays

Each Friday, WETA UK will present comedy programming around the clock, including popular British imports Men Behaving Badly, Outnumbered, and Coupling, among others. The Friday lineup is in addition to the comedies that will air throughout the week.

The WETA UK Event: Prime Suspect

Saturdays in May, 8 p.m.- midnight

The WETA UK Event in May features Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren in her signature role as police detective Jane Tennison in the dramatic series Prime Susupect. The productions, which garnered multiple Emmy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, BAFTA Awards and a Peabody Award, were created in seven series from 1991 to 2006. WETA UK reprises series four through seven (the fi nale), following Tennison’s career as she is assigned major inquiries in different stations and advances through the ranks of the maledominated police world to ultimately head all murder investigations in London. WETA UK presents the series in 18 parts as follows: Prime Suspect 4: The Lost Child/Inner Circles/The Scent of Darkness (6 parts); Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgment (4 parts); Prime Suspect 6: The Last Witness (4 parts) and Prime Suspect 7: The Final Act (4 parts). Four parts air each Saturday night, beginning May 4.

Also Airing on WETA UK This Month

  • Comedy series Lead Balloon, starring Jack Dee, airs Sundays at 9 p.m., beginning May 5.
  • Comedy of errors The Worst Week of My Life airs Sundays at 9:30 p.m., beginning May 12. (See schedule for details)

Photo gallery

Want to see some of the faces you'll be seeing on WETA UK? Well, you're in luck!

  • Doctor Who: Experience time traveling adventures with the Doctor and his Companions in this iconic British sci-fi hit. Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper star in the first series of the highly-anticipated 2005 franchise "reboot".

  • Coupling: A hilarious comedy that follows the dating and relationship misadventures of six friends in their thirties.

  • Life on Mars: John Simm and Philip Glenister star in this drama about a present-day Manchester detective who, after suffering near-fatal injuries in a car-crash, awakes to find himself living in 1973.

  • Primeval: A sci-fi drama in which a team of scientists investigate the appearance of "temporal anomalies" across Great Britain, through which prehistoric and futuristic creatures can enter the present day.

  • MI-5: This tense drama follows the work of a group of British intelligence officers based at the British Security Service's (MI-5) Thames House headquarters. Series 1 stars Matthew Macfadyen, Keeley Hawes, David Oyelowo and more.

  • Red Dwarf: In this cult sci-fi comedy classic,the last human being alive and his friends, stranded three million years into deep space on the mining ship Red Dwarf, try to get back to Earth.

  • New Tricks: Amanda Redman, Dennis Waterman, Alun Armstrong and James Bolan star as a team of retired police officers who reopen investigations of unsolved crimes.

  • Waking the Dead: A special police team investigates unsolved "cold cases" in this contemporary crime drama starring Trevor Eve as DSI Peter Boyd.

  • Doc Martin: Martin Clunes starts as the brash doctor Martin Ellingham, whose blunt opinions and tactless manner cause mayhem in a small Cornish community.

How to watch WETA UK

You can watch WETA UK in Greater Washington over the air via antenna, or on various cable systems as listed below.

  • Via antenna: 26.2
  • Comcast: 265
  • Cox: 800
  • Verizon FiOS: 474
  • RCN: 39

Frequently asked questions

Isn’t WETA UK just another BBC America?
Absolutely not. WETA UK is a unique independent channel programmed specifically by WETA for its members and viewers. The channel features the kind of entertaining and intelligent programming that historically has been popular with WETA audiences. While WETA UK features programming from British networks, it is not affiliated with a British television entity.

Why is WETA launching a television channel devoted to British imports?
WETA UK is the first channel of its kind among public television stations throughout the country. It will expand WETA Television’s service with programming that is unique to WETA in the Washington, DC, market.

Where can I find how-to programming on WETA?
How-to programming can be found Saturdays on WETA TV 26. Check the WETA TV 26 schedule for details.