Streaming, VPNs and the BBC: How to Watch Dr Who Online in 2023
Since the series was revived in 2005, Dr Who has gone from strength to strength. The whole concept has undergone a whole new look even including the very first female Doctor – Jodie Whittaker. The latest is series 13 (restarted in 2005) is going to be the last one for Jodie who’s handing in the keys to the Tardis.
Doctor Who Season 13 Teaser
Doctor Who seasons 1-12 are available for streaming on BBC iPlayer currently. After Season 12 we’ve had a bit of a gap for obvious reasons but Doctor Who season 13 is coming soon! Fans can also watch some of the episodes on show online through various streaming services although not currently on the major ones like Amazon and Netflix.
The new series is about to begin – here’s the latest trailer from Series 13.
Jodie Whittaker to leave show after this season
Jodie Whittaker is leaving Doctor Who after the upcoming series and three specials next year. The actress became the first female Doctor Who in 2017, but her comments suggest she will be “filled with a lot of grief” when she hands over the role to the next star.
Doctor Who is new series beginning October 31st on BBC One and you can watch it online through BBC iPlayer and BBC America. It’s not yet been announced who the new Doctor Who is going to be but there’s obviously been a lot of speculation !
When does Doctor Who return to TV?
On Saturday October 31st, Doctor Who will return to the BBC with a six-part series aptly titled Flux.
Flux is set in London and will follow three different stories revolving around the central characters: The Doctor, Yaz and Dan.
How to Watch Doctor Who’s Special – Flux in 2021
You can watch it broadcast live on Saturday night, 31st October on BBC of course to coincide with Halloween. However it will also be shown on BBC America on the same date, where you can also catch up with series 12 too. Some other broadcasters may have rights to air the show at a later point but at the moment it’s just HBO Max.
If you miss the live viewing as you’re out trick and treating it’s of course available online on those channels too. Normally the BBC allows access for up to twelve months after initial broadcast on it’s BBC iPlayer application. It should be available on BBC America’s online site for a similar period too.
Unfortunately that’s about it, which obviously makes it difficult for anyone outside the UK and US to access the latest Doctor Who episodes. They generally appear on other channels including on demand from Amazon but there’s no exact schedule released yet.
How to Watch Dr Who Online in the UK
If you’re in the UK then the BBC is by far the best choice. Not only is it entirely free, you can also enjoy full episodes of the Dr Who adventures whenever you like on the BBC iPlayer archive. There’s currently 168 episodes online, every one of the shows since it was revived in 2005, it’s not clear how long these will be available but they’re currently displayed as accessible up to the end of 2021. The older episodes are only available on Britbox currently which requires a subscription.
Anyone can watch, although you should have a UK TV license if you’re watching any live TV. You will need an account but these are simple to create and free also. The accounts are largely used to keep track of your viewing, so you can restart a show you’ve been watching and similar. You’ll need an email address and you have to give them your postcode plus confirm you have a valid UK TV license (no checks are made on any of these though).
How to Watch Dr Who Online From Outside the UK
This is where it gets a little trickier for Doctor Who fans. In the US you at least have the option of BBC America although I’m told it’s not always great value in many cable subscriptions. For everyone else it’s kind of difficult to get early access to the latest Dr Who episodes.
The simplest option is to focus on BBC iPlayer the home of Dr Who. This is where all the episodes are guaranteed to be available. The only problem is that ‘officially’ BBC iPlayer is not available outside the United Kingdom. Unofficially of course it is, there’s thousands of expats all over the world happily enjoying their BBC shows and have done for many years. So what’s happening? Well basically the BBC iPlayer uses a system called geo-targeting to determine access to the BBC iPlayer,
When you connect to the BBC website it checks where your IP address is registered to in order to work out your location. Most of us have no way to change our IP address nationality without emigrating. Fortunately there is another way, simply by using something called a VPN server.
Here’s a simple demonstration of how easy it is –
As you can see it’s extremely simple, just install the VPN service and then click the country you need. The one demonstrated in the video above is called NordVPN and is one of the most popular, but there are many others. If you want to ensure that you can enjoy Doctor Who then just make sure that whichever VPN service you choose that it works with the BBC. Only a few do work in 2021 unfortunately.
How to Watch Doctor Who Outside UK (Using a VPN)
As we’ve seen a VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a private network that allows users to connect with other users or networks across public or shared networks like the internet. To watch Dr Who online in your country, you will probably need a VPN app. There are hundreds of them on the market but not all work with BBC iPlayer.
A good VPN service for watching Doctor Who is around US10 per month or less and sign up for longer periods is cheaper. There are some which are much more expensive but if you’re just using it to watch TV then you probably don’t need them ! It’s well worth it as there are eleven live streaming channels and thousands of shows in the archive too. You can even enjoy Premiership football on Match of the Day if you like football.
Best VPNs for Watching Doctor Who
For the last ten years I have basically only used two VPNs regularly for watching BBC iPlayer from outside the UK. A few years ago it didn’t really matter which one you chose but that’s very different now. This is because the BBC like most other large media sites now actively block VPN connections.
They have unfortunately been fairly successful and now the vast majority of VPN services will no longer work with BBC iPlayer from outside the UK. Don’t believe all the stories online though, some still work perfectly fine it’s just that it takes a little more effort to keep the VPN servers accessible to the BBC. The below two also work with ITV Hub at the time of writing.
Here’s the two which definitely still work in 2021 and have done for many years.
NordVPN – (discount link)
They maintain access to BBC iPlayer through specific servers. Other’s may work but you’re better using these for watching BBC iPlayer. UK# 1840-1847, 1850-1863, 1865, 1869, 1873, 1875-1878, 1880-1881, 1900-1901, 1903-1904, 1911, 1913, 1917, 1919-1920.
Low cost, hundreds of servers and great support, last used it a couple of weeks ago to watch the BBC from Ireland. Also have versions for all your different devices too.
Identity Cloaker – (trial link)
The first VPN I ever used (during a holiday to Canada) and one of the first on the market. It’s interface is a little old fashioned and it works best on a PC or laptop. Ultra reliable servers though and never seem to be blocked by any of the large media providers including the BBC iPlayer.
Dr Who Episodes to Watch
Getting yourself a VPN service and a BBC iPlayer account is not as difficult as you may think. Indeed it only takes a few minutes if you’ve got everything in place. So when you have access to all the Doctor Who Tv series which are the best ones to watch ?
The best Dr Who episodes to watch are the ones with the most interesting stories. For instance, “The Empty Child” is an episode about a child who appears out of nowhere and is different from all other children. The “The Girl in the Fireplace” is an episode about a girl who travels through time. These episodes have great stories that are worth watching, and they’re highly recommended.
Here’s my and many other favourites of Dr Who online episodes – Midnight.
Trailer for Midnight
A really great classic Doctor Who with my personal favourite Doctor who is also in the creepy Blink which could even alter your breathing style it’s so scary !
Here’s some more great Doctor Who episodes –
It’s difficult to choose any particular episodes as there is so much quality spread across literally hundreds of episodes. I particularly like ‘story’ type episodes as opposed to the ‘blockbuster movie’ style that try to mirror Hollywood films myself.
These are worth checking out though.
- Four Doctors and a War
- Farewell to Sontar
- In the Forest of the Night
- The End of Time, Part 2
- A Good Man Goes to War
- Blink
