Your Freeview TV finally rivals Sky thanks to a BBC channel upgrade

The BBC is finally upgrading some of its content from today and it’s good news for those using Freeview. The British broadcaster will now offer regional programming in stunning High Definition (HD) which means the end of having to switch away from BBC1 HD to watch the local news.

This upgrade was actually pushed out to Sky boxes last month but it’s taken a little longer to arrive on Freeview devices.

Once the update arrives, it will stop the annoying pop-up message that most BBC users will be well aware of that warns regional programming is not available in HD.

The BBC has confirmed that it’s retiring that frustrating red slate that previously advised viewers to go to channel 1 for their neighbourhood news. It’s a very welcomed change but, sadly, there is one catch as not everyone will get this boost today.

Whilst some areas, such the East Midlands, Yorkshire and London, will see the makeover from March 22, many others will have to wait until April 26. That’s due to the sheer scale of the task of switching over to these improved broadcasts.

READ MORE: Millions of Freeview users will lose access to popular ITV channel this year

“Making BBC One HD available on a regional basis is a major undertaking for BBC teams and our suppliers, so we are going to launch regional versions of BBC One HD in two phases,” the BBC explained in an email sent to Express.co.uk.

“This allows us to launch the first set of regions as early as possible while we complete the preparatory work to enable us to launch the second set.”

If you switch on your TV and already have BBC One HD on channel 101, the changes will take place automatically. However, you may still need to give your telly or set-top box a retune – full instructions at can be found at the bottom of this article.

Here are full details on when to expect the BBC HD upgrade.

FROM TODAY – MARCH 22

• East Midlands – East Midlands Today

• West Midlands – Midlands Today

• East Yorks & Lincs – Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

• London – BBC London

• Channel Islands – Look North (Yorkshire)

• Yorkshire – Look North (Yorkshire)

HD FROM APRIL 26

• North East & Cumbria – Look North (North East & Cumbria)

• North West – North West Tonight

• West – Points West

• South West – Spotlight

• South (incl. Oxford) – Look East

• East (incl. Cambridge) – Look East

• South East – South East Today