Last Updated on December 30, 2023
Ridley Road – BBC drama Watch on the BBC Free from Anywhere
If you love period dramas, then the two largest TV channels in the United Kingdom are well worth checking out. This month sees the release of the delayed drama called Ridley Road. It looks a great show and tells a great story with a profound message for today’s society.
What is the BBC Drama Ridley Road?
The BBC drama Ridley Road is a four-part series that tells the true story of Vivien Epstein, a Jewish hairdresser from Manchester who found herself in an undercover movement against racism. Based on the book of the same name by British author Jo Bloom, it is a vivid, romantic and inspiring TV series.
The story takes place in 1962 when a group of fascists, the National Socialist Movement (NSM), launch an attack on the 62 Group. This is important to tell because antisemitism was rising in both left and right wings at this time.
The drama “Ridley Road,” which originally aired on BBC One, tells the real-life story of Nancy Wake who led a resistance movement against German Nazis during World War II while she was also working as a spy for Britain’s Special Operations Executive led by Winston Churchill.
Besides, the BBC drama Ridley Road is based on a book of the same name by Jo Bloom. It’s an inspiring TV series that tells people about Nancy who has to face anti-Jewish hatred in British history.
Watch the Ridley Road Trailer
The BBC has released a new series of 4 episodes called Ridley Road. The trailer is available here and the show was published back in 2015. It stars Vivien Epstein, a Jewish woman who deals with her husband’s death by taking care of their son, his broken marriage to another woman and trying to find out what happened between them before he died.
Ridley Road cast
Ridley Road is a new BBC drama that tells the story of Vivien Epstein, a Jewish girl who grew up in London during World War II. She was born into a wealthy family and attended private school before being sent away to live with her aunt on an estate called Ridley Road.
As she starts to discover the realities of life outside of her privileged world, she finds herself torn between two worlds – one which thrives off prejudice, violence and hatred; the other which is hopeful for the future.
Ridley Road is an upcoming BBC drama that will be premiering on September 16, 2018. The cast of Ridley Road includes some familiar faces like Agnes O’Casey and Rory Kinnear but also newcomers to the UK television scene.
The show stars Agnes O’Casey, who is making her television debut as Vivien Epstein. Other notable cast members include George MacKay and newcomer Ella Purnell-James. Cast also includes Danny Hatchard (Eddie Marsan) and Hannah Traylen (Tamzin Outhwaite).
BBC Drama – Ridley Road Release date
The original release date for the BBC Drama – Ridley Road is in April 2020. However, delays due to the pandemic meant that this had to be put back significantly.
The current release date is the beginning of October 2021, and it will be available on BBC iPlayer for at least 11 months (September 2022). After this date it will probably be accessible on the Britbox platform.
Watch Ridley Road on BBC iPlayer Anywhere in the World
If you’re outside the United Kingdom, then you’ll need something called a VPN or a proxy to watch the BBC and all the other great shows on BBC iPlayer. Don’t worry though it’s really simple and doesn’t cost much. The investment of a few bucks a month is easily worth it when you can get access to probably the world’s best online drama site.
Here’s how it’s done –
As you can see it’s extremely simple and once installed can be used anywhere with just the click of a button.
This is the VPN service we use – NordVPN and is illustrated in the video but quite a few others work fine.
Creating and using a BBC iPlayer Account
Some people get a little bit concerned about using a BBC iPlayer account from outside the UK but there’s nothing really to it. Here’s a couple of points to remember –
You Will Need a BBC iPlayer Account
Just set one up they’re free and basically used to keep track of where you are in programmes, what you’ve watched etc. You’ll need a valid email account plus have a valid UK postcode ready to use as your address (there’s no check as long as it is valid). You can find a valid BBC Postcode here if you’re struggling.
You Will be Asked if you have a Valid UK TV license
There is only one answer to give here, you have to say YES! You can’t buy a UK TV license outside the UK anyway, if you say ‘No’ – nothing else will work irrespective of using a VPN. Don’t worry there’s no check at all as long as you say ‘YES’, you’ll be fine.
Can I Get Into Trouble?
Nah don’t worry, the very worst that can happen is that your VPN is detected, and you’ll be blocked. There are literally millions of people watching the BBC everyday using this method all over the world from Spain to Australia and including my 80-year-old grandparents in Turkey! It’s much riskier to do this inside the UK without a UK TV license where you can get potentially fined.
Can I Download from the BBC
Yes, there’s a great little downloader feature on the BBC iPlayer site which works a treat. You simply download the programmes, and you can watch them offline without an internet connection. They will expire though after a set period or when they’re removed from the BBC iPlayer archive. You can read how to download from the BBC here.

