If you don't have Sky or BT, Virgin etc, how do you check live free TV listings?

[PassportPhotosAreHorrific]

I’ve had BT TV/EE TV for a couple of years but it’s getting too expensive so I’m thinking of cancelling.

One thing I do like is that with the BT box I can browse a live TV guide (BBC 1, BBC 2, Channel 4 etc) and it’s really easy for elderly relatives when they visit — they can just scroll through channels rather than having to open lots of apps.

I thought there might be an app that replicates that simple experience without the box, but it seems oddly hard to find.

What do you guys do now? How do you replace that live-listing + channel browsing simplicity? Appreciate any suggestions!

Also, has anybody cancelled BT/ee and kept the box? I'm not sure if they ask for it back but I wonder if the free channels will still show on the listings on there once I've cancelled the subscription?

you can get a set top freeview box from Argos and the like. They generally have the tv guide option. Or many tvs have them build in. Otherwise it’s an old fashioned paper tv guide.

I have a freeview EE box [ think that it is the same as a Humax box ]. It was a one off payment, no subscription.
I get all freeview channels on it. Can record, forward and rewind. I can pause Iive TV. can check up all TV listings for 7 days ahead.

I bought a Samsung to which has either freesat and freeview built in. You attach your Ariel or satellite cable and it has live tv listings. You can also add a memory stick to the usb port and record programs.

https://www.tvguide.co.uk/

Our TV has freeview guide built in or I go online.

Until this week I used the Radio Times online TV listing but now they're behind a pay wall...

If you sign up to PressReader, free with your library card, the Radio Times is on there so you can look the old fashioned way.

Thanks @RedRiverShore5 :)

We have smart TVs and the remote control has a button for TV guide - it couldn’t be simpler.

There’s a Freeview phone app which has a TV Guide but I’m not sure if it’s available to download on smart TVs.

Also, I know this isn’t relevant when watching on a TV but if you also have the channel apps installed on your phone (iPlayer, ITVX etc) then you can tap what you want to watch on the Freeview TV Guide and it will open the relevant channel app and play the programme, so it feels very much like a normal TV experience if that makes sense.

I have an app, “tv guide” where I can look at tv schedule. I have it on my phone/ipad though so not sure that’s what you want.

We’ve just bought a recordable freesat box. It does everything our sky box did, but no more monthly payments!

@wizbit93 do you mind me asking which you bought please?

Our Samsung TV has a guide for live TV channels and freesat which is built in.

We use the tv guide on the Freeview website.

Smart TV’s have listings built in, at least every one i have had.

I've only had a smart TV since 2022. Even my previous elderly TV (c1997) had an onscreen guide for Freeview.

As others have said, you may well find that your TV has it's own guide built in if it's fairly modern. Presumably you have a separate remote to switch the TV on and off, so have a look to see if there is a 'guide' button on it.

Do you have an old fashioned TV arial connected to the TV ? If so you can just change the source to see what you'd get.

@PassportPhotosAreHorrific

It’s this one, we got it from Argos.