Watch BBC iPlayer Outside UK

BBC TV CentreThe British Broadcasting Corportaion has announced that their BBC iPlayer Global service is closing down.  They will be shutting off access to the international BBC iPlayer service on June 26th, 2015.  That will leave a lot of viewers scrambling to find alternative ways to stream their favorite BBC shows.  The easiest way to watch BBC iPlayer outside the UK is by using a VPN.  In a moment I’ll show you just how easy it is to unblock the site using a popular VPN service.

First I would like to share a little information on how a VPN works so you can better understand the simplicity of this approach.  BBC iPlayer uses IP-based geographic blocking to only grant access to viewers in the United Kingdom.  That means it looks at the location of your IP address to determine whether or not you can stream content.  When you connect to a VPN server in the UK it will assign you a local IP address.  From there you can surf the web and stream BBC iPlayer content with being blocked.

A VPN has many uses and unblocking access to streaming sites is a major benefit.  A good VPN will also secure your data via encryption and help protect your online privacy.  Since we’re talking about a streaming service you may also want a VPN that supports mobile devices.  The options listed in this post all have client software for Windows and iOS along with mobile apps for iOS and Android.  They are well equipped with the bandwidth needed to stream HD content through an encrypted connection.

Best VPN to Unblock BBC iPlayer

First you will want to find a reliable VPN service.  In this case you will want one with fast servers in the United Kingdom.  There are several VPNs to choose from.  Here are some of our favorites.

RankVPN ServiceOur
Score
Server
Locations
Visit
1ExpressVPN9.8160Visit ExpressVPN
2NordVPN9.487Visit NordVPN
3Private Internet Access9.295Visit PIA

How to Use a VPN to Watch BBC iPlayer

I’ll use ExpressVPN for the example of how to use a VPN service to watch shows like EastEnders and The Syndicate on BBC iPlayer.  First you’ll want to download their client.  ExpressVPN offers free software for Windows, Mac and Linux.  In addition to free apps for iOS and Android.

Now that you’ve had a chance to download and install the software it’s time to connect.  Launch the ExpressVPN client and select a server location. We’ll walk you through step by step using their Windows client.

ExpressVPN UK servers

  • Remember that you will need to connect to a server in the United Kingdom to watch BBC iPlayer. ExpressVPN has a large network of servers located all over the world.
  • We recommend you select OpenVPN (TCP) or (UDP). For streaming videos from sites like YouTube, we use OpenVPN (UDP) because its faster than TCP. They also support PPTP, L2TP, and SSTP. We still recommend OpenVPN UDP for the best mix of speed and privacy protection.
  • Click the big round connect button. After a few seconds, you’ll see the shield around the button turn green. There will also be a message letting you know the “VPN is ON”
  • You now have an IP address in the UK, as far as anyone can tell online. As such, you can reach any site as if you were sitting there. The same would be true if you connected to a server in the US or anywhere else in the world.

That’s all there is to it.  Now that you have an IP address from an ExpressVPN server in the UK you can browse the Internet as if you were actually there and stream content using BBC iPlayer.  Connecting to a server in the USA would give you full access to geo blocked sites there as well.  The same is true for other countries.

As you can probably tell by now a good VPN opens access to content around the world.  If you live outside the United States the service can help you access popular services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Instant.  You still need an account for services like Netflix but the VPN will help you watch shows and movies in any Netflix region.

Watch your favorite movies and original programs like The Interceptor and Napoleon on BBC iPlayer from outside the UK.  Please share this post with your friends so they can unblock access to streaming services as well.  Follow us @VPNFan for the latest reviews and promotions from leading VPN services.

VPN Fan
A VPN service will help protect your online privacy and unblock sites from around the world. We support a free and open Internet.