How to watch Strictly Come Dancing abroad

Strictly Come Dancing is back for series 24 with the biggest shake-up in years, including three new presenters, five new professional dancers and 15 celebrities. If you’re outside the UK, you can still watch Strictly Come Dancing abroad on BBC iPlayer, live on Saturday night, as long as you have a UK IP address.

The easiest way to get one is a VPN. We recommend ExpressVPN, but there are other good options below. If you’re new to this, our guide explains what a VPN is. Setup takes a few minutes and you don’t need to be technical.

Last updated 15th October 2026 for series 24.

Quick guide: how to watch Strictly abroad

Can you watch Strictly Come Dancing abroad?

Yes, but not directly. Strictly airs on BBC One and streams on BBC iPlayer, and iPlayer checks your IP address before it plays anything. From outside the UK you’ll see a message saying it’s only available in the UK, even if you pay the licence fee at home.

As far as we can tell, the BBC hasn’t named an official overseas broadcaster for series 24 in the US, Canada or Australia, so iPlayer remains the way to watch.

A VPN swaps your real IP address for a British one, so iPlayer treats you like you’re sitting at home. The catch is that the BBC blocks plenty of VPN servers, which is why it pays to know the best VPNs for BBC iPlayer before you sign up. Using a VPN is legal in the UK and most other countries, though a few restrict them, so check the rules where you live. Our guide on whether using a VPN is legal has the detail.

Strictly is also one of the few shows where watching live really counts. The result is public within minutes of the Saturday show finishing, in group chats, on social media and in news app alerts. Watching live on iPlayer, rather than catching up on Sunday, is the difference between enjoying the results and being spoiled.

What you’ll need to watch Strictly abroad

You need a VPN app that works with the BBC iPlayer website and app. Say you’re in Australia: you connect to a UK server, and iPlayer sees a British connection instead of an Australian one.

ExpressVPN is our pick. It’s easy to use, it has apps for most devices, and it comes in Basic, Advanced and Pro plans. Basic covers everything you need for Strictly, while the higher tiers add extras such as a password manager.

If you’d like to compare, these three are the ones to look at:

Want the full picture? Read our ExpressVPN review, NordVPN review and CyberGhost review. If you can’t decide between our top two, we’ve put them head to head in our ExpressVPN vs NordVPN comparison.

How to watch Strictly Come Dancing outside the UK

The steps below use ExpressVPN, but NordVPN and CyberGhost work in much the same way.

1. Visit the ExpressVPN website, choose a plan and sign up.
2. Download the right app for your device and log in.
3. Open the app, choose the location list and select United Kingdom.
4. If it doesn’t connect automatically, press Connect.
5. Open the BBC iPlayer app, or go to the BBC iPlayer website.
6. Sign in with your free BBC account. If you’re new, you’ll be asked for an email address and a UK postcode, and to confirm you have a TV licence.
7. Search for Strictly Come Dancing. On Saturday, choose the live BBC One stream to watch as it airs.

If iPlayer still says it’s only available in the UK

• Pick a different UK location in your VPN app. The BBC blocks some server addresses, and another one often works straight away.
• Close and reopen the iPlayer app, or restart your browser.
• Clear your browser cookies for bbc.co.uk and try again.
• Check the VPN really is connected. Our guide on how to test your VPN is working shows you how.
• Ask your VPN’s live chat which UK server is working with iPlayer right now.

What time is Strictly on where you live?

The live show airs on Saturday evenings on BBC One and iPlayer, with the results show on Sunday. The launch show started at 7.25pm and the first live show at 6.15pm, but start times can shift from week to week, so check the iPlayer schedule each Saturday.

Add the difference below to the UK start time to get your local time. UK clocks go back on Sunday 25th October, and other countries change on different dates, so the gap moves during the series.

In Australia and New Zealand, the Saturday night show lands in the early hours of Sunday morning, so most viewers there will want an alarm or the catch-up.

Can I watch Strictly on my TV, phone or laptop?

Yes. The VPN has to be running on the device you’re watching on, or on your router.

Amazon Fire TV and Fire Stick

This is one of the easiest ways to watch Strictly on the big screen. Search for your VPN in the Fire TV app store, install it and connect to the UK. ExpressVPN, NordVPN and CyberGhost all have Fire TV apps, and we rank the best VPNs for the Fire Stick if you want to compare. Then open the BBC iPlayer app, which is available directly on Fire TV, so there’s no browser workaround needed. For more detail, see our guide to watching iPlayer on a Fire TV or Fire Stick.

Phones and tablets

If your device is set to a UK app store, install the VPN and iPlayer as normal. If you’re abroad and the iPlayer app isn’t listed, you have two options:

• iPhone and iPad: switch your App Store country to the UK by following Apple’s guide to changing your Apple Account country or region, then download iPlayer. Our list of the best VPNs for iPhone will help you choose an app.
• Android: Google only lets you change your Play Store country about once a year, so the easiest route is to watch in your phone’s browser at bbc.co.uk/iplayer with the VPN connected. Not sure which VPN to pick? See the best VPNs for Android.

Smart TVs, Chromecast and AirPlay

Most smart TVs can’t run a VPN app. Casting from your phone often doesn’t help either, because the TV usually fetches the stream over its own internet connection, so your phone’s VPN doesn’t carry across. Your options are to install the VPN on the streaming device itself, set it up on your router, or use a provider’s Smart DNS feature. We walk through how to set up a VPN on a smart TV, and ExpressVPN’s VPN router covers every device in the house at once.

Who’s in Strictly Come Dancing 2026?

Presenters

Emma Willis, Johannes Radebe and Josh Widdicombe take over from Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. It’s the first time Strictly has had three presenters, and Johannes steps out of the professional line-up to host. The spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two and iPlayer, with Ellie Taylor as the new host.

Judges

The panel is unchanged: head judge Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke.

Celebrities and their partners

The professionals

Five new professionals join this year: Aleksandra Isaeva, Cristian Priori, Lethabo Monametsi, Maddie Ingoldsby and Mark Karmalita. Neil Jones, Aleksandra Isaeva, Cristian Priori and Lethabo Monametsi don’t have celebrity partners this series, but they still appear in the group dances.

What to expect

The series runs for around 13 weeks and finishes with the live final, scheduled for Saturday 19th December. Themed weeks return, including Movies, Icons, Halloween and Musicals, along with the Instant Dance challenge. The Blackpool Tower Ballroom special usually lands around week nine, which would put it in late November, so check the BBC schedule for the confirmed date.

Do you need a TV licence to watch iPlayer?

iPlayer is funded by the UK licence fee. In the UK, a TV licence is needed to watch live TV on any channel or to use BBC iPlayer, and iPlayer asks you to confirm you have one when you sign in. A colour TV licence costs £180 a year from 1st April 2026.

If you’re a UK resident who’s travelling or working abroad for a while, your usual licence is what covers you. If you’ve moved abroad permanently, read the BBC’s terms of use before you sign up, as iPlayer is designed for UK licence payers. Our guide to the best VPN for British expats covers what else to consider when you live overseas.

Strictly Come Dancing abroad: FAQ

Conclusion

To watch Strictly Come Dancing from abroad, you need a UK IP address, and a VPN is the simplest way to get one. We recommend ExpressVPN because it’s easy to use, works on most devices and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Connect to the UK, open iPlayer, sign in with your free BBC account and you’re ready for Saturday night. Sort it before the next live show and you won’t have to dodge the spoilers.

Once Strictly finishes, the same setup covers the rest of the season. See our guides to watching I’m a Celebrity abroad, The Great British Bake Off, UK Christmas TV and Dancing on Ice.