Beebs Channel Guide

BBC Four TV Guide & Listings (United States Timezone)

BBC Four dives into culture, history, arts and world cinema with thoughtful documentaries, acclaimed drama and curated film seasons. See what's on BBC Four on Thursday 26 February 2026 in the United States timezone with full listings and upcoming programmes.

Times shown in the United States timezone.

Heads up: you're viewing listings from Thursday 26 February 2026. Jump to today's schedule.
Channels
BBC One (BBC1) BBC Two (BBC2) ITV1 ITV1 Anglia ITV1 Anglia West ITV1 Border ITV1 Central East ITV1 Central West ITV1 Granada ITV1 Meridian East ITV1 Meridian North ITV1 Meridian South ITV1 North ITV1 Tyne Tees ITV1 Wales ITV1 West Country ITV1 West ITV1 Yorkshire East ITV1 Yorkshire West STV Central STV North UTV Channel 4 Channel 5 BBC Three (BBC3) Film4 BBC Four CBeebies BBC News BBC ALBA ITV2 ITV3 ITV4 E4 More4 GREAT! movies Sky Arts RTÉ One Al Jazeera English BBC Parliament BBC Scotland Blaze Bloomberg TV Europe CBBC Challenge Challenge (IE) Channel 4+1 Court TV Dave ja vu DMAX DMAX+1 Drama+1 E4 Extra E4+1 Eden Eden+1 Euronews English Film4+1 Food Network Food Network+1 GREAT! action GREAT! action+1 GREAT! mystery GREAT! mystery+1 GREAT! romance GREAT! tv GREAT! tv+1 ITV Quiz ITV1+1 ITV1+1 Granada ITV1+1 Meridian ITV1+1 Midlands ITV2+1 ITV3+1 ITV4+1 LBC News Legend Legend Xtra Legend Xtra+1 London Live More4+1 Movies24 Movies24+ Newsmax TV PBS America Quest Red+1 Quest+1 Really Really+1 Rewind TV RTÉ Kids Jr RTÉ News RTÉ One+1 RTÉ Two RTÉ Two+1 S4C Sky Arts (IE) Sky Mix (IE) Sky News STV Central+1 STV North+1 Talking Pictures TV TG4 TLC TLC+1 True Crime True Crime Xtra True Crime+1 Virgin Media Four Virgin Media One Virgin Media One+1 Virgin Media Three Virgin Media Two W+1 Yesterday+1
Dates
Thu 26 Feb Yesterday Today Fri 24 Apr Sat 25 Apr Sun 26 Apr Mon 27 Apr Tue 28 Apr Wed 29 Apr Thu 30 Apr

BBC Four Schedule — Thu 26 Feb

12:00 AM

Beautiful Equations — 00:00

Art critic Matt Collings explores the most famous equations in science and realises that concepts of beauty and elegance have been used by many scientists to advance their work.
Runtime: 1 hr
1:00 AM

Canals: The Making of a Nation — 01:00

Liz McIvor recounts the tales of the men who built the canals - the navigators or navvies - focusing on their work on the Manchester Ship Canal.
Runtime: 30 min
1:30 AM

Tribe (2005) — 01:30

Layap
Documentary series with explorer Bruce Parry, who this week treks into the high mountains in the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan to live with the isolated Layap people.
Runtime: 1 hr i Available on iPlayer
2:30 AM

Castles: Britain's Fortified History — 02:30

Sam Willis looks at how castles survived into the Tudor era. But these strategic seats of power had to become palaces to impress monarchs such as Elizabeth I.
Runtime: 1 hr
3:30 AM

This is BBC Four — 03:30

This is BBC Four
Programmes start at 7.00pm.
Runtime: 2 hr
5:30 AM

This is BBC Four — 05:30

This is BBC Four
Daily from 7.00pm.
Runtime: 13 hr 28 min
6:58 PM

This is BBC Four — 18:58

This is BBC Four
Programmes start at 7.00pm.
Runtime: 2 min
7:00 PM

Canals: The Making of a Nation — 19:00

Heritage
Liz McIvor explores how the nation's canals were saved following years of postwar neglect, becoming places of tranquillity and popular for boating holidays.
Runtime: 30 min
7:30 PM

Gareth Edwards’s Great Welsh Adventure — 19:30

Episode 5
Gareth and Maureen enlist in tank school and gear up for a drive like no other. In the Brecon Beacons, they discover if they’ve finally cracked the art of narrowboating.
Runtime: 30 min
8:00 PM

The Bridge: Fifty Years Across the Forth — 20:00

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Forth Road Bridge, charting the memories of those who built it and those who operated the Forth ferries that ran until the bridge opened.
Runtime: 1 hr
9:00 PM

The Read — 21:00

The 39 Steps: The Read with John Hannah
Murder, conspiracy and espionage are the thrilling themes of Buchan’s gripping adventure novel set against the backdrop of WWI. BAFTA-nominated actor John Hannah reads.
Runtime: 1 hr
10:00 PM

The 39 Steps — 22:00

A man is pursued by the police for a murder he did not commit and by an international spy ring for information he does not possess. Classic Hitchcock mystery.
Runtime: 1 hr 20 min
11:20 PM

Calendar Girls — 23:20

A starkly brilliant comedy
Comedy drama based on the true story of 12 Yorkshire ladies who find a compelling way to raise money for charity: a nude calendar. Stars Helen Mirren and Julie Walters.
Runtime: 1 hr 45 min
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Frequently Asked Questions

What is on BBC Four tonight?

Tonight (Thursday 26 February) on BBC Four, you can watch This is BBC Four, Canals: The Making of a Nation, Gareth Edwards’s Great Welsh Adventure, and The Bridge: Fifty Years Across the Forth. Check the full schedule for more details.

How can I watch BBC Four live?

You can watch BBC Four live on the official bbc.co.uk website or app. Use the 'Watch Live' button to go directly to the player.

When does programming end on BBC Four today?

Today's programming on BBC Four ends at 01:05 (20:05 your time) with Calendar Girls.

Is this TV schedule shown in UK time or my local time?

All times shown on this page are automatically converted to your local device timezone for easy viewing, though the original UK broadcast time is also displayed.

Watch BBC Four Live