Want to Watch His Dark Materials on BBC iPlayer?
An update in 2023, there’s now Three series of His Dark Materials and you can currently watch every single one on BBC iPlayer free of charge. If you’re outside the UK then you’ll need to hide your location by using a VPN before you use the BBC site. It’s easy though, just pick one that’s not blocked and you’ll have no issues. We use NordVPN as it has specially configured servers for streaming all the UK TV channels.
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If you do use NordVPN make sure to connect to one of the BBC optimized servers – UK# 1840-1847, 1850-1863, 1865, 1869, 1873, 1875-1878, 1880-1881, 1900-1901, 1903-1904, 1911, 1913, 1917, 1919-1920.
His Dark Materials on the BBC
It’s not the cheeriest, pre-Christmas programme idea basically the death of God, but the show has been very eagerly awaited. It’s a classic fantasy tale though which should appeal to many different viewing audiences. I’m talking of course about His Dark Materials books from Philip Pullman. It’s been adapted and brought to our screens by one of the increasing joint ventures this time from BBC and HBO.
Here’s a taster – His Dark Materials HBO trailer.
Here’s a quick introduction and review from Lucy Mangan from the Guardian.
Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials is a deep, rich brew delivered via a ripping yarn about Lyra Belacqua, an orphan who journeys from an alternative Oxford – lit by naphtha lamps and traversed by airships – to the frozen north to rescue her friend Roger from child-snatchers. She becomes embroiled in a deeper mystery involving her explorer uncle Asriel, his discovery of elementary particles known as Dust and possible parallel worlds that the all-controlling Magisterium wants to keep hidden. From there arise questions about the value of organised religion, the corruptibility of authority, the ambiguity of truth, what we mean by souls (embodied by the daemons all characters have, who represent their inner essences) and other such moral and theological considerations.
Jack Thorne, the writer of acclaimed work from the This Is England series (with Shane Meadows) to National Treasure and most recently The Accident, is the man in charge of adapting Pullman’s magnum opus for the small screen. This series covers the first book, Northern Lights, and a second one, covering The Subtle Knife, has been commissioned. There is time and space to do them justice and the first episode, in all its steampunkish glory, gave every sign that the potential is to be realised. We begin with Lyra – a fierce, intelligent performance by 14-year-old Dafne Keen – being delivered for safekeeping to Jordan College by Lord Asriel (James McAvoy), invoking the principle of “scholastic sanctuary”. It’s a phrase that encapsulates so much of what drives the first part of the story, and is a sure sign to fans that they can relax and enjoy what’s to come
HBO and BBC iPlayer His Dark Materials Both Broadcasting
Fans of the books will definitely be hoping for an improved adaptation than the film of 2007 – The Golden Compass. It’s suggested that much of the problems with that film was down to studio interference, toning down the anti-religious aspects in order to make it more ‘US friendly’. It looks like they’ve learned from these mistakes and the ideas behind the book have stayed relatively intact.
Is it ok for younger viewers? Many will think it’s too dark, but the hope is that children will enjoy on whatever level they wish, Will Parry casting has probably encouraged that. There’s plenty of traditional action and the story is fast moving, in some sense the show can be enjoyed without fully appreciating the underlying ideas on organised religion and the other theological and moral considerations.
There’s eight full episodes to enjoy and you can watch them either on the BBC or HBO as both channels are broadcasting at the same time. The decision probably rests on your location however there are some options if you find yourself unable to access these two channels.
It’s called a VPN and you can use them to hide your actual location and supply a alternative one instead. So, for example, a BBC fan in Marbella could hide their Spanish IP address and use the VPN to present a UK one too. This would enable them to watch all the BBC’s online content, including this series. At the time of writing the BBC iPlayer His Dark Materials should be available online for eight months – approximately June 2020.
VPN Recommendations for BBC iPlayer
There’s a lot of talk about which VPN’s are working with the various media sites at the moment. The BBC has particularly been cracking down on the use of these programs and blocking access to many of the most popular VPN’s services. Many now simply don’t work, but don’t worry there are still some that do and indeed work perfectly. If you choose the right service, you can get unfettered access to geo-restricted sites like HBO and BBC iPlayer. Of course, you have to select the right country depending on the service you require, so choose a UK server for the BBC and US for HBO. So, for example, if you want to watch the BBC from Portugal just click on a UK server before visiting the site. It will work from any location so you can watch the BBC from France, or anywhere in the world.
Our favorite is a security VPN which has never been targeted by the BBC simply because it’s legitimate security software. You won’t get fancy TV icons on their website, but you will get an unlockable VPN service which can unlock BBC iPlayer, HBO and just about every other media site.
It’s called NordVPN and is prefect for streaming video from whichever country you require.
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Try the short trial subscriptions and stream BBC iPlayer His Dark Materials wherever you are, to see how easily it works.