The channel's target is 16–34-year-olds, and it faces heavy competition from rivals including ITV2 and E4, for an audience that the BBC has traditionally had difficulty in attracting. In 2008 it reached 26.3% of 16–34-year-olds in digital homes—the channel's highest ever such reach and above that of
E4,
ITV2,
Dave and
Sky 1. On average, nine million people watched BBC Three every week, and it had a 2.6% share of the 15–34-year-old audience and 1.4% of the whole population, according to the
Broadcasters' Audience Research Board (BARB). These ratings by BARB, the official ratings agency, average out BBC Three's viewing figures over a 24-hour period even though the channel only broadcasts in the evening, giving a distorted sense of the channel's viewership. Despite several official complaints from the BBC, BARB continued to publish figures which the BBC argues are unrepresentative. BBC Three's programming consists of comedy, drama, spin-off series and repeated episodes of series from BBC One and BBC Two, and other programmes that attempted to alert others of their actions through a series of programmes challenging common beliefs. An example of BBC Three's comedy output includes the award-winning comedy
Little Britain, which in October 2004 broke its previous viewing record when 1.8 million viewers tuned in for a new series.
Little Britain was later broadcast on the BBC's terrestrial analogue channels BBC One and BBC Two. The channel's longest-running comedy programme is
Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, which ran for ten years, eight of which were on BBC Three (having previously aired on
BBC Two and
BBC Choice) and continues to be repeated on the channel every week. Some of the most popular comedy programmes on the channel in its original incarnation featured stand-up comedians performing their own take on a subject, usually the news, examples of which include ''
Russell Howard's Good News'' (which later transferred to
BBC Two, partly due to its success, and partly to BBC Three's move to online only) and ''
Lee Nelson's Well Good Show''.
Comedy and drama The channel airs various comedies and dramas; one of its most popular sitcoms is
Gavin & Stacey, which first aired in May 2007 and was written by and starred
James Corden and
Ruth Jones. The sitcom was an instant hit, with subsequent series being moved to other BBC channels and the show being granted a Christmas special. Another example is
Being Human, a comedy drama in which a
ghost, a
vampire and a
werewolf share a flat, which has become a success and heralded several new series. American programming also features, with
American Dad! and
Family Guy being the notable examples. Numerous popular series were either repeated on the channel or have spin-offs created from them. In early 2003, viewers could watch episodes of popular BBC soap opera
EastEnders on BBC Three before they were broadcast on BBC One. This programming decision coincided with the relaunch of the channel and helped it break the one million viewers milestone for the first time. An episode of
EastEnders Revealed, which was commissioned for BBC Three and looking behind the scenes of the programme, attracted 611,000 viewers. In 2005, BBC Three commissioned the documentary series
Doctor Who Confidential, which was shown immediately after episodes of the new series of
Doctor Who had been screened on BBC One. This was followed up in July 2005, when it began to screen repeats of both programmes. In October 2005, it was announced that BBC Three had commissioned a spin-off drama series from
Doctor Who,
Torchwood, designed as a post-
watershed science fiction drama for a more adult audience.
Torchwood launched with 2.4 million viewers in October 2006.
Torchwood is the first science fiction programme ever to have been commissioned by the channel, and its popularity led to it being broadcast on BBC Two for the second series, and on BBC One for subsequent series. In 2010, BBC Three began airing episodes of the fifth series of BBC drama series
Waterloo Road after they had aired on BBC One as part of its 'catch-up' programming. From January 2015, BBC Three aired the remaining episodes of
Waterloo Road before being repeated on BBC One later the same day. Among its original programming, the channel also gave viewers the
comedy drama Pramface, which was written by Chris Reddy and comprised 19 episodes over three series, broadcast between 2012 and 2014.
Documentaries BBC Three also aired several youth-focused documentaries, including the
BAFTA-winning
Our War,
Blood, Sweat and T-shirts (as well as its subsequent sequels),
Life & Death Row and a season of films focused on mental illness. BBC Three also aired specialist factual documentaries, such as
How Drugs Work and
How Sex Works. Stacey Dooley, since her appearance on
Blood, Sweat and T-shirts in 2008, presented documentaries including
Stacey Dooley in the USA (2012–14),
Coming Here Soon (2012),
The Natives: This is our America (2017),
Beaten by My Boyfriend (2015),
Stacey Dooley in Cologne: The Blame Game (2016),
Sex in Strange Places (2016),
Stacey Dooley: Hate and Pride in Orlando (2016),
Stacey Dooley on the Frontline: Girls, Guns and Isis (2016),
Brainwashing Stacey (2016),
Stacey Dooley: Face to Face with Isis (2018), and several other titles under the umbrella title
Stacey Dooley Investigates (2009–present). BBC Three also commissions a number of one-off documentaries, including ''Growing Up Down's
(2014), My Brother the Islamist (2011), Small Teen Big World
(2010); Stormchaser: The Butterfly and the Tornado
(2012) and The Autistic Me'' (2009). Many were commissioned through BBC Three's FRESH scheme which provided an opportunity for 'the next generation of directors' to make their first 60-minute documentaries for the channel. In July 2022, a number of documentaries from the regional
We Are England strand (featuring celebrities such as
Bimini,
Jayde Adams and
Jassa Ahluwalia) were repeated on BBC Three, alongside a number of similarly formatted 30 minute documentaries, now made to get a premiere showing on BBC Three. However, rather than being grouped under a master brand, like BBC One's
We Are England or
Our Lives programmes, these new documentaries are now just being listed under one off titles such as
Filthy Business and
Queen of Trucks on the BBC iPlayer and in programme guides.
News and sport In its original incarnation, BBC Three featured
60 Seconds, an hourly summary of news, sport and entertainment headlines. They were presented in a relaxed style in keeping with the rest of the channel. As part of the BBC's discussions with the government regarding the founding of the channel, a longer news programme had been promised to provide a daily section of news and current affairs.
The News Show, as it came to be called upon launch, was a
Newsbeat-style fifteen-minute bulletin, later rebranded and reformatted as the more satirical and frivolous half hour ''
The 7 O'Clock News''. However, the BBC discontinued the bulletin in December 2005, following a recommendation made in the 2004 Barwise Report, which found that the channel's target audience sought news from elsewhere. Upon the 2022 relaunch of BBC Three, a new summary of news, sport and entertainment was launched under the name
The Catch Up. This programme is also broadcast on the
BBC News channel. The channel has also shown sports programming.
Match of the Day Live broadcast international football matches featuring
Wales, often when an
England match was being shown on BBC One. The channel also showed some matches of
England's Women's team. The 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008
Africa Cup of Nations tournaments were shown on the channel, while it is scheduled to air the semi-finals and final of the 2021 edition.
Online While the linear channel was suspended between 2016 and 2022, the BBC Three service was delivered primarily via
iPlayer, offering new, original content, as well as full series of previous BBC Three programmes (branded as "
Box Sets"). New content consisted of full-length programmes, and short-form
web series and features; Kavanagh explained that the new BBC Three would focus primarily on original comedies and documentaries. Despite the refocus on comedy, the proportion of the channel's output (in minutes) devoted to comedy actually fell post-switch, from 41% to 33%. By contract, the proportions of the channel's output devoted to factual programming did increase. BBC Three produced two curated content channels;
The Daily Drop—which featured blogs, videos, photo galleries, social network content, and other content trending online—and
The Best Of. Programmes from the former BBC Three channel were carried over, including new series of
Cuckoo,
Life and Death Row and
People Just Do Nothing. The initial slate of new programs to debut through BBC Three included the
Doctor Who spin-off
Class (which was cancelled after a single series), the new dramas
Clique and
Thirteen,
Live from the BBC, a stand-up comedy series focusing on up and coming comedians; the three-part web series
The Man Who Witnessed 219 Executions; With the service's budget cut to £30 million, some of BBC Three's historic staples, such as
panel shows, ''
Don't Tell the Bride, and US animated comedy Family Guy were dropped. Some BBC Three series had already been moved to other outlets in anticipation of the shutdown; Russell Howard's Good News was moved to BBC Two in 2014, and Don't Tell the Bride
was moved to BBC One for a single series before being dropped and acquired by Sky 1. ITV2 acquired rights to new episodes of Family Guy
and other Seth MacFarlane series in March 2015, although the BBC continued to hold rights to past episodes of Family Guy'' until 2017. The annual minutes of programming being made available by BBC Three on iPlayer after the channel closed its broadcast platform was around 80% less than the annual minutes of programming broadcast before the closure. The following year,
Normal People received four nominations at the
2020 Primetime Emmy Awards (on behalf of US co-production partner
Hulu). In 2019, BBC Three premiered ''
RuPaul's Drag Race UK, an adaptation of the American reality drag competition series RuPaul's Drag Race. In 2020, it was announced that BBC Three had acquired the UK broadcast rights to Canada's Drag Race''.
List of series General comedy •
Brain Candy (2003) •
2004: The Stupid Version (2004) • ''Three's Outtakes'' (2005–2010) •
Welcome To My World: Funny Business (2006) •
Conning The Conmen (2007) • ''
It's Adam and Shelley'' (2007) •
Two Pints of Lager: The Outtakes (2008–2011) •
The Wall (2008) • ''
Russell Howard's Good News'' (2009–2013) •
Special 1 TV (2010–2011) • ''
World's Craziest Fools'' (2011–2013) •
The Pranker (2011) •
World Series of Dating (2012) •
Unzipped (2012) •
BBC Comedy Feeds (2012–2015) •
Impractical Jokers UK (2012–2014) •
People Just Do Nothing (2014–2015)
One-off comedy pilots/specials •
Sort-It-Out-Man (2003) •
The Bunk Bed Boys (2004) •
Sweet and Sour (2004) •
From Bard to Verse (2004) •
Killing Time (2004) •
Hurrah for Cancer (2004) •
AD/BC: A Rock Opera (2004) •
10:96: Training Night (2005) •
Marigold (2005) •
Cubby Couch (2006) •
Bash (2007) •
Living With Two People You Like Individually... But Not As A Couple (2007) •
Under One Roof (2007) •
Green (2007) •
Moonmonkeys (2007) •
Be More Ethnic (2007) •
Biffovision (2007) •
Splitting Cells (2007) •
Placebo (2008) •
Delta Forever (2008) •
Torn Up Tales (2008) •
Barely Legal (2008) •
MeeBOX (2008) •
LifeSpam: My Child Is French (2009) •
Ketch! And HIRO-PON Get It On (2009) •
Vidiotic (2009) •
Things Talk (2009) •
Brave Young Men (2009) • ''Mark's Brilliant Blog'' (2009) •
May Contain Nuts (2009) •
The Site (2009) •
Above Their Station (2010) •
This Is Jinsy (2010) •
Laughter Shock (2010) •
Stanley Park (2010) •
Dappers (2010) •
The Inn Mates (2010) •
The Klang Show (2010) •
The Adventures Of Daniel (2010) •
D.O.A. (2010) • ''Chris Moyles' Comedy Empire'' (2012) •
The Comedy Marathon Spectacular (2012) • ''An Idiot's Guide To Politics'' (2015) •
The Totally Senseless Gameshow (2015)
Sketch comedy •
3 Non-Blondes (2003) •
Monkey Dust (2003–2005) •
Little Britain (2003–2004) •
The Comic Side of 7 Days (2005) •
High Spirits with Shirley Ghostman (2005) •
Tittybangbang (2005–2007) •
Man Stroke Woman (2005–2007) •
The Message (2006) • ''
Touch Me, I'm Karen Taylor'' (2006–2008) •
Little Miss Jocelyn (2006) •
Comedy Shuffle (2007) •
Rush Hour (2007) •
Marc Wootton Exposed (2008) •
Scallywagga (2008–2010) •
The Wrong Door (2008) •
Horne & Corden (2009) •
La La Land (2010) • ''
Lee Nelson's Well Good Show'' (2010–2011) •
Wu-How: The Ninja How To Guide (2010) •
One Non Blonde: Down Under (2010) •
The Revolution Will Be Televised (2012–2015) • ''
Lee Nelson's Well Funny People'' (2013) •
Boom Town (2013) •
Lazy Susan (2022–present)
Comedy gameshow •
Celebdaq (2003) •
HeadJam (2004) •
Stars in Fast Cars (2005–2006) • ''
Rob Brydon's Annually Retentive'' (2006–2007) •
The King is Dead (2010) •
24 Hour Panel People (2011) •
Sweat the Small Stuff (2013–2015)
Sitcom •
Swiss Toni (2003–2004) •
Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (2003–2011) •
Grass (2003) •
Nighty Night (2004) •
15 Storeys High (2004) •
Catterick (2004) •
Cyderdelic (2004) •
Coupling (2004) •
The Mighty Boosh (2004–2007) •
The Smoking Room (2004–2005) •
My Life In Film (2004) •
Ideal (2005–2011) • ''
I'm with Stupid'' (2005–2006) •
Snuff Box (2006) •
Grownups (2006–2009) •
Live!Girls! present Dogtown (2006) •
Pulling (2006–2009) •
Thieves Like Us (2007) •
Gavin & Stacey (2007–2008, 2022–) •
Coming of Age (2007–2011) •
The Visit (2007) •
How Not to Live Your Life (2007–2011) •
Lunch Monkeys (2008–2011) •
Trexx and Flipside (2008) •
Massive (2008) •
Clone (2008) •
Off the Hook (2009) •
We Are Klang (2009) •
The Gemma Factor (2010) •
Mongrels (2010–2011) •
Him & Her (2010–2013) •
White Van Man (2011–2012) •
Pramface (2012–2014) •
Dead Boss (2012) •
Bad Education (2012–2014;2022–2024) •
Cuckoo (2012–2014; 2022) •
Some Girls (2012–2014) •
Way to Go (2013) •
Bluestone 42 (2013) •
Badults (2013–2014) •
Uncle (2014–2015) •
Siblings (2014–2016) •
Crims (2015) •
Murder in Successville (2015) •
Top Coppers (2015) •
Fried (2015) •
Together (2015) •
Josh (2015) •
Ladhood (2019-2022) •
Peacock (2022–present) •
PRU (2022–present) •
Funboys (2025–present)
Comedy drama •
Grease Monkeys (2003–2004) •
Spine Chillers (2003) •
Outlaws (2004) •
Twisted Tales (2005) •
Casanova (2005) •
Funland (2005) •
Drop Dead Gorgeous (2006–2007) •
Sinchronicity (2006) •
Phoo Action (2008) •
Being Human (2008–2013) •
The Last Word Monologues (2008) •
Personal Affairs (2009) •
Mouth to Mouth (2009) •
Becoming Human (2011) •
Wreck (2022–present) •
Boarders (2024–present)
Live music and stand-up comedy • ''Paul and Pauline Calf's Cheese and Ham Sandwich'' (2003) •
Glastonbury Festival (2003–2015) •
The Fast Show Farewell Tour (2003) •
Eurovision Song Contest Semi-finals (2004–2015, 2022) •
28 Acts in 28 Minutes (2005) •
MOBO Awards (2006–2013) •
The Mighty Boosh Live (2008) •
Russell Howard Live (2009) •
Edinburgh Comedy Fest Live (2010–2014) •
Russell Howard Live: Dingledodies (2010) •
Three@TheFringe (2011) •
Simon Amstell: Do Nothing Live (2011) •
Stand Up For Sport Relief (2012) •
Live at the Electric (2012–2014) • ''Chris Ramsey's Comedy Fringe'' (2012) •
Greg Davies Live: Firing Cheeseballs At A Dog (2012) •
Russell Howard: Right Here, Right Now (2012) •
Russell Kane: Smokescreens & Castles (2012) •
Lee Nelson Live (2013) • ''Seann Walsh's Late Night Comedy Spectacular'' (2013–2014) •
Kevin Bridges – The Story Continues (2013) •
Jack Whitehall Live (2013) • ''Nick Helm's Heavy Entertainment'' (2015)
Drama •
Burn It (2003) •
Bodies (2004–2006) •
Conviction (2004) •
Torchwood (2006) •
West 10 LDN (2008) •
Dis/Connected (2008) •
Spooks: Code 9 (2008) •
Personal Affairs (2009) •
Lip Service (2010–2012) • ''
Frankenstein's Wedding'' (2011) •
The Fades (2011) •
In the Flesh (2013–2014) •
Orphan Black (2013–2015) •
Murdered by My Boyfriend (2014) •
Our World War (2014) •
Waterloo Road (2015) •
Tatau (2015) •
Red Rose (2022) •
Mood (2022–present) •
Life and Death in the Warehouse (2022–present)
Documentary •
Appleton On Appleton (2003) •
Dreamspaces (2003–2004) •
Liquid Assets (2003–2004) •
Fatboy Slim: Musical Hooligan (2003) •
Body Hits (2003) • ''Posh & Becks' Big Impression: Behind the Scenes & Extra Bits'' (2003) •
Mind, Body & Kick Ass Moves (2004) •
Destination Three (2005) •
Spendaholics (2005–2008) •
Doctor Who Confidential (2005–2011) •
Generation Jedi (2005) •
Forty Years of F*** (2005) •
Kick Ass Miracles (2005) • ''F*** Off I'm Fat'' (2006) •
Japanorama (2006–2007) •
The Indestructibles (2006) •
Torchwood Declassified (2006) •
Most Annoying People (2006–2011) •
Freaky Eaters (2007–2009) •
Body Image (2007) •
Castaway: The Last 24 Hours and Castaway Exposed (2007) •
Kick Ass in a Crisis (2007) •
The Bulls**t Detective (2007) •
Say No to the Knife (2007) •
Pranks Galore (2007) •
The Most Annoying TV We Hate to Love (2007) •
The Most Annoying Pop Songs We Hate To Love (2007) •
Find Me the Face (2008) •
The Mighty Boosh: A Journey Through Time and Space (2008) •
Blood, Sweat and T-shirts (2008) • ''Alesha: Look But Don't Touch'' (2008) •
The Most Annoying Couples We Love to Hate (2008) •
Gavin and Stacey 12 Days of Christmas (2008) •
Two Pints: Fags, Lads and Kebabs (2009) • ''Comic Relief's Naughty Bits'' (2009) •
Two Pints: The Love Triangle (2009) •
Blood, Sweat and Takeaways (2010) •
The Autistic Me (2009) •
Stacey Dooley Investigates (2009–2015) •
My Life as an Animal (2009) •
Great Movie Mistakes (2010–2012) •
Blood, Sweat and Luxuries (2010) •
Peckham Finishing School for Girls (2010) •
Small Teen Big World (2010) •
Great TV Mistakes (2010) •
Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents (2011–2015) • ''Pop's Greatest Dance Crazes'' (2011) •
My Brother the Islamist (2011) •
Stormchaser: The Butterfly and the Tornado (2011) •
Stacey Dooley in the USA (2012–14) •
Coming Here Soon (2012) •
Unsafe Sex in the City (2012) • ''Websex: What's the Harm?'' (2012) •
People Like Us (2013–2014) •
Hotel of Mum and Dad (2013–2014) •
Cherry Healey: Old Before My Time (2013) •
Doctor Who: Greatest Monsters & Villains (2013) •
Tough Young Teachers (2014) • ''Growing Up Down's'' (2014) •
Junior Paramedics (2014) •
Life and Death Row (2014) •
Invasion of the Job Snatchers (2014) •
My Brother the Terrorist (2014) •
Tyger Takes On... (2014–2015) •
Excluded: Kicked Out of School (2015) •
Bangkok Airport (2015) •
Beaten by my Boyfriend (2015) •
Traffic Cops (2016) •
Sex in Strange Places (2016) •
We Are England (2022) •
Doctor Who: Unleashed (2023–present)
Chat show •
This Is Dom Joly (2003) •
The Graham Norton Effect (2005) •
Lily Allen and Friends (2008) • ''Comic Relief's Big Chat With Graham Norton'' (2013) •
Backchat with Jack Whitehall and His Dad (2013–2014) •
Staying In With Greg & Russell (2013)
Repeats •
The Murder Game (2003) •
Angry Kid (2003) •
Absolutely Fabulous (series 5) (2003) •
EastEnders (2003–2016, 2022–) •
Spooks (2003–2009) •
Doctor Who (2005–2016, 2023–) •
Top Gear (2006–2016, 2022–) •
The Apprentice (2006, 2011–2013, 2024–present) •
That Mitchell and Webb Look (2006–2010) •
Giving You Everything (2008) • ''
Wallace & Gromit's Cracking Contraptions'' (2008–2009) •
The Voice UK (2012–2015) •
Live at the Apollo (2015–2016) •
Fleabag (2022–present) •
This Country (2022–present) •
Killing Eve (2022–present) •
Back to Life (2022–present) •
Waterloo Road (2015, 2023–present) •
Champion (2023–present) •
Planet Earth (2023–present)
Unscripted and reality • ''
The 7 O'Clock News'' (2003–2005) •
Re:covered (2003) •
Liquid News (2003–2004) •
The Bachelor (2003–2005) •
60 Seconds (2003–2016) •
Little Angels (2004–2006) •
Slam Poets (2004) •
The House of Tiny Tearaways (2005–2007) •
The Real Hustle (2006–2012) •
Anthea Turner: Perfect Housewife (2006–2007) • ''
The Apprentice: You're Fired!'' (2006) •
Celebrity Scissorhands (2006–2008) •
The Baby Borrowers (2007) •
Kill It, Cook It, Eat It (2007–2010) •
Comic Relief Does Fame Academy (2007) •
Last Man Standing (2007–2008) • ''
Don't Tell the Bride'' (2007–2014) •
Bizarre ER (2008–2011) •
Snog Marry Avoid? (2008–2013) • ''
Britain's Missing Top Model'' (2008) •
Make My Body Younger (2008–2009) • ''
The World's Strictest Parents'' (2008–2011) •
Undercover Princes (2009) •
Young, Dumb and Living Off Mum (2009–2011) •
Freak Like Me (2010) •
I Believe in UFOs: Danny Dyer (2010) •
Hotter Than My Daughter (2010–2011) •
Dancing on Wheels (2010) •
Nicola Roberts: The Truth About Tanning (2010) •
Undercover Princesses (2010) •
Are You Fitter Than a Pensioner? (2010) •
Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands (2011–2013) •
The Call Centre (2013–2014) •
Sexy Beasts (2014) •
Hair (2014) •
Killer Magic (2014–2015) •
Life Is Toff (2014) •
South Side Story (2015) •
I Survived a Zombie Apocalypse (2015) •
Asian Provocateur (2015) • ''
RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs the World'' (2022–present) •
The Catch Up (2022–present) •
The Fast and the Farmer(ish) (2022–present) •
Hungry For It (2022–present) •
The Drop (2022–present) •
Gassed Up (2022–present) •
Love In The Flesh (2022–present) •
Charlotte in Sunderland (2023–present) •
I Kissed a Boy (2023–present) •
I Kissed a Girl (2024–)
Imports •
24 (2003) •
Taken (2003) •
The Practice (2004) •
The Office: An American Workplace (2005) •
Family Guy (2006–2016) •
American Dad! (2007–2016) •
Assy McGee (2007-2009) •
Jonah from Tonga (2014) •
Devin (2010) •
The Next Step (2022) •
Ghosts (airing as
Ghosts US) (2022–present) •
SpongeBob SquarePants (2025-Present) •
Top Gear (airing as
Top Gear America) (2023–present) •
The Traitors (airing as
The Traitors Australia) (2023) •
Love, Victor (2023) •
Crazy Fun Park (2023)
Most watched programmes The following is a list of the ten most watched broadcasts on BBC3 since launch, based on data supplied by
BARB. Number of viewers does not include repeats. From January 2024, An update was made to how the Top 50 programmes are reported. Includes viewing in TV and non-TV homes. This includes repeats that aired within the reporting week and to the same broadcaster group have been aggregated since this date, whereas this was reported separately before. ==Presentation==