Easter 2026 on TV and BBC iPlayer, Radio and BBC Sounds

Looking for one thing to observe this Easter weekend?

Whether you’re searching for drama, leisure or household enjoyable, there’s one thing for everybody on iPlayer.

Here’s only a collection of the Easter delights…

Harry Clark Goes to Rome

Blending heat, wit and emotional honesty, Harry Clark Goes to Rome follows Harry Clark’s private journey to re-connect together with his Catholic religion in these trendy occasions.

In a one-hour documentary for BBC One and iPlayer, 25-year-old Harry Clark (of BBC Traitors and Pilgrimage: The Road to the Alps fame) embarks on a private pilgrimage to Rome searching for solutions about perception, identification, and what it means to be a “good” Catholic at this time. He additionally has an audacious quest to fulfill one of the crucial highly effective figures on the earth – and newest addition to his (religious) household; the just lately appointed Pope Leo XIV.

Michelle McManus Sings for The Pope

This transferring documentary follows Scottish singer and broadcaster Michelle McManus on essentially the most profound religious journey of her life. The hour-long programme follows the previous Pop Idol winner as she embarks on an emotional pilgrimage from Glasgow to Rome to sing a brand new hymn, impressed by Pope Francis’s name to look after the planet.

The documentary shares the extraordinary second she sings the hymn in entrance of Pope Leo XIV, Francis’s successor, within the Palace of Castel Gandolfo, the Pope’s summer time residence.

Written by Rev John L. Bell of Scotland’s Iona Community for the sixtieth anniversary of SCIAF (Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund), ‘Because’ is a religious anthem born from Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’s landmark encyclical urging humanity to guard creation.

Pilgrimage – The Road to Holy Island

BBC Two and iPlayer’s annual Easter Pilgrimage is again for an eighth sequence as seven well-known personalities of various faiths and beliefs set off on a spectacular route throughout the wild landscapes of North East England. In Pilgrimage: The Road to Holy Island, the group comply with a exceptional 390km community of trails by means of the center of the North East England, which have a good time early Celtic Christian saints whereas exploring their very own beliefs and studying extra about one another alongside the best way.

Taking half on this distinctive journey are Ashley Banjo, practising Christian and chief of dance troupe Diversity; Hermione Norris, Spooks and Cold Feet actor, who believes the divine might be present in all dwelling issues; Tasha Ghouri, TV character and atheist; Hasan Al-Habib, humorist and observant Muslim; Jayne Middlemiss, radio presenter, who self-describes as religious; Ashley Blaker, comic, beforehand ultra-Orthodox and now a non-practising Jew; and Patsy Kensit, actor and self-proclaimed “à la carte” Catholic.

Easter Morning Service from Ripon Cathedral

A triumphant celebration of the resurrection of Jesus begins at 10am on Easter Sunday, with music, readings and prayers, from the gothic splendour of Ripon Cathedral within the coronary heart of rural North Yorkshire.

The service begins within the cathedral’s Saxon crypt (the oldest in England), the place the Dean of Ripon, the Very Revd John Dobson, displays on the reworking second of that first Easter morning, when Jesus overcame the powers of sin and dying, giving hope and the promise of everlasting life. In her sermon, the Bishop of Ripon, the Rt Revd Anna Eltringham, will discover how the occasions of the Resurrection proceed to problem and encourage.

Urbi et Orbi

Live from Rome at 11am, Pope Leo delivers his first Easter Message and Blessing – Urbi et Orbi – to the City and to the World.

Petroc Trelawny units the scene on this historic day.

Songs of Praise

To have a good time the resurrection of Christ on Easter Day, Pam Rhodes joins the neighborhood of Redruth Baptist Church in Cornwall for a exceptional endeavour – elevating the Carn Brea cross. Beginning in 1976 an enormous 30ft cross has stood as a beacon over the Cornwall panorama each Easter and Pam is becoming a member of the group to have a good time its fiftieth 12 months.

Race Across The World

Race Across the World returns to iPlayer and BBC One for its sixth sequence on 2 April 2026, as 5 intrepid groups embark on the journey of a lifetime, racing greater than 12,000km throughout Europe and Asia, the most important continental space on earth.

The route carves by means of eight distinctive nations: Italy, Greece, Türkiye, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia – every bringing its personal language, tradition and local weather. In essentially the most excessive race up to now, situations swing from 30-degree Mediterranean warmth to subarctic temperatures of –20°C. And they’ve received to do all of it on a finances of lower than £26 per particular person per day.

Doctor Who

Two ‘lost’ episodes of Doctor Who from the 1960’s will probably be made out there for viewers on BBC iPlayer on Good Friday.

The two episodes; The Nightmare Begins and Devil’s Planet have been from the third sequence entitled The Daleks’ Master Plan. Written by Terry Nation, the sequence starred William Hartnell because the Doctor and Peter Purves as Steven Taylor. It additionally featured Nicholas Courtney as Bret Vyon, Adrienne Hill as Katarina, and Kevin Stoney as Mavic Chen.

Secret Garden

After seven a long time exploring the world’s wildest locations searching for unique animals and vegetation, Sir David Attenborough turns his consideration to Britain’s gardens. We might not realise it, however it seems that our backyards are house to hundreds of species.

Over 5 episodes – set in 5 very totally different gardens throughout the UK – Sir David reveals the lives of the usually charming, often daring, at all times secretive animal characters that inhabit the hidden world proper on our doorsteps. Theirs is not any cosy existence – even in these stunning and seemingly genteel environment the principles of the wild nonetheless apply.

From pine martens within the Western Highlands to dormice in south Wales, swallows within the Lake District to otters in Oxfordshire and blue tits in Bristol, the sequence reveals not only a wealthy and stunning range of life but additionally how every species finds its personal technique to dwell alongside us.

And by means of assembly the gardeners which have created these wild oases, we uncover how our nation of animal lovers and gardeners can do their bit to save lots of struggling species. Eighty per cent of Britons have entry to a backyard, and collectively they cowl an space better than all of our nationwide nature reserves mixed – so what we do in our personal backyards has an affect not solely on the animals that dwell there, but additionally on complete populations.

You’ll by no means have a look at your backyard in the identical manner once more.

The Young Offenders

Conor and Jock are again collectively after a disastrous brush with the legislation noticed them spend jail time on two totally different continents.

After an opportunity alternative permits Jock to flee again from Colombia to Cork, the lads slip again into their outdated methods shortly, wreaking havoc in every single place however nonetheless solely wanting the most effective for themselves and their households.

Per week of Radio 3’s Classical Live, by which Linton Stephens foregrounds specially-made recordings of music from composers enterprise ‘spiritual journeys’, reaches a fruits on Good Friday from 1pm with a efficiency of Bach’s St Matthew Passion – one of the crucial deeply transferring expressions of the human, emotional side of the Easter story and one of the crucial profound articulations of religion within the classical music repertory.

There’s Good Friday Meditation on BBC Radio 4 from 3pm, as creator and broadcaster Rhidian Brook explores the occasions main as much as the dying of Jesus, reimagining them in at this time’s context.

And the Reverend Kate Bottley hosts a reflective show on BBC Radio 2 from 6pm with soulful music and inspiring company.

Easter Sunday

The Reverend Kate Bottley celebrates Easter Sunday from 6am on BBC Radio 2 with some dwell music from Nottingham singer-songwriter Jerub. Harry Clark additionally joins to replicate on his current journey to Rome, in a quest to fulfill the brand new Pope. Plus, Richard Coles shares a particular Pause For Thought.

Reverend Grace Thomas meets with the bishop of Salford on the Laudato Si’ Centre in Salford for Sunrise Service from 6.35am and Sunday Worship sees the Most Rev. and Rt Hon. Sarah Mullally, the Archbishop of Canterbury, delivers her first Easter sermon within the position within the dwell Eucharist from Canterbury Cathedral from 8.10am.

Swarzy hosts a special hour celebration for Easter Sunday on BBC Radio 1Xtra from 10am, taking part in the most effective uplifting gospel music. Swarzy will play well-known classics, among the latest hits, and will characteristic specifically recorded music from Philippa Hanna and Israel Houghton and Becca Folkes.

And BBC Radio 4Extra Daljit Nagra selects a programme from the BBC’s poetry archives to mark Easter Sunday with The Pslams at 7am, 12pm and 6pm.