29 July 2026

Press Release

5 adds 11 new streaming channels to Freely

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Release Info

Network

Channel 5

5 adds 11 new streaming channels to Freely

11 new streaming channels from 5 have launched today on Freely, the live and on demand streaming platform from Everyone TV. They join 5’s other live channels on the Freely platform and build on the broadcaster’s commitment to meet viewers where they are as audiences increasingly switch to viewing online.  

The new channels – curated from popular 5 content – are available to watch free of charge on the Freely TV guide, which enables viewers with Freely-enabled sets to browse and watch premium streamed channels from 5 as well as collaborators, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and others. These sets are available to purchase from a number of manufacturers including Hisense, Bush, Toshiba, Panasonic, Sharp, TCL, Amazon Fire TVs and METZ, as well as streaming devices from Manhattan and Netgem.  

Each channel will cater to specific interests and individual titles to show the best of 5’s programming, including true crime, police, medical, emergency shows, and movies. There is also a Milkshake! channel for 5’s celebrated children’s content, plus dedicated channels to 5’s best loved shows, including Police Interceptors, Bargain-Loving Brits, and The Yorkshire Vet. Five of the channels are exclusive to Freely at launch – 5Movies, 5Medical, 5Yorkshire Vet, 5History, and Milkshake! – and all the new channels on Freely are also available to watch on the 5 Streaming platform. 

5’s VP, Distribution & Business Development, Kiaran Saunders said: “Launching these channels on Freely will help us expand their reach beyond the 5 streaming platform and directly into the homes of our audiences. As more and more people stream TV live, we want to meet audiences where they are with content they care about. These new channels showcase the range and breadth of genres that 5 excels at. 

“We’re also pleased to build on the recent launch of 5Sport on YouTube as we expand our distribution across platforms.” 

Jonathan Thompson, Everyone TV’s CEO, said: “5 is home to a wide range of programmes that audiences love, and these new channels bring even more of that content to Freely, from true crime and films to children’s favourites, with the new Milkshake! channel giving families even more choice to watch over the summer holidays. As more households choose to stream live TV, we’re continuing to work with our partners to bring the best of free TV together all in one place, making it easier than ever for audiences to discover and enjoy the programmes they love.” 

The new channels are featured below, including programming details and their channel numbers: 

  • 5Cops – (channel 69): featuring Traffic Cops, Motorway Cops, Police Night Shift 999, and Police Code Zero, among others. 
  • 5Police Interceptors – (channel 70): 24/7 programming of one of the country’s best-loved real life policing programmes 
  • 5Movies – (channel 77): the new home of made-for-TV thriller movies, exclusive to Freely and 5 Streaming, with films such as Danger Rocks The Cradle, You'll Never Leave Me, Deadly Surrogacy, and A Killer Behind Closed Doors.  
  • 5A&E – (channel 84): featuring shows such as 999 Critical Condition, A&E After Dark, and Casualty 24/7 
  • 5Crime – (channel 85): featuring shows such as Rogue Claimers, Call the Bailiffs, Killer at the Crime Scene, 999 Killer on the Line, and Making a Serial Killer 
  • 5Medical – (channel 107): exclusive to Freely and 5 Streaming, featuring shows such as GPs Behind Closed Doors, Autopsy, Don’t Tell the Doctor, Plastic Surgery Nightmares, and Maternity Ward 
  • 5Yorkshire Vet – (channel 108): exclusive to Freely and 5 Streaming, 24/7 programming of the hugely popular programme that takes viewers inside the life of a working veterinarian in the beautiful Yorkshire countryside 
  • 5Bargain-Loving Brits – (channel 118): 24/7 programming of 5’s Bargain-Loving Brits series, including Bargain-Loving Brits in the Sun, Bargain-Loving Brits by the Sea, and Bargain-Loving Brits in Blackpool 
  • 5Trucking Hell – (channel 119): featuring shows such as Trucking Hell, Outback Truckers, and Trucking Heavy 
  • 5History – (channel 128): exclusive to Freely and 5 Streaming, featuring shows such as Inside the Tower of London, Secrets of the Royal Palaces, Walking Wartime Britain and more 
  • Milkshake! – (channel 360): exclusive to Freely and 5 Streaming, and with different content and a different schedule to 6-9am Milkshake! slot on 5, featuring shows such as Fireman Sam, Thomas & Friends, Mimi’s World, Stan and Gran, and The World According to Grandpa 

ENDS   

For media enquiries, please contact:  

Paramount: Richard Bell: (e) Richard.Bell@paramount.com  

Everyone TV: samantha.stewart@everyonetv.co.uk 

Notes to Editors  

About 5  

5 is the home of award-winning content from the UK’s third largest commercial PSB, a culmination of the creative transformation of Channel 5 over more than a decade. 5 is part of the Paramount Skydance Corporation. 

Through a mix of live TV channels and bingeable boxsets, the free-to-air service allows UK audiences to watch or stream the breadth of programming from the 5-branded portfolio, the dedicated preschool brand Milkshake!, and a wide selection from the wider Paramount family of brands, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV Entertainment Studios, Paramount+ and more. In keeping with its PSB remit, 5 tells the story of modern Britain by reflecting the lives of people across the UK, featuring well-known faces and fresh new talent. Its programme roster spans original UK drama, premium factual, true crime, science, news & current affairs and kids’ content, which continue to attract critical acclaim. Recent wins include ‘Channel of the Year’ at the 2025 Edinburgh TV Awards, BAFTA Television and RTS Awards for the documentary White Nanny, Black Child in 2024, along with a BAFTA nomination for Endurance Race to the Pole. Factual hit The Yorkshire Vet and the broadcaster’s series on air fryers also won RTS Yorkshire awards, while Michael Palin received the Radio Times Special Judges Award for his Channel 5 documentaries. 

About Freely 

Freely is the new streaming platform from Everyone TV, which allows audiences to stream live TV channels alongside on demand content for free via their smart TVs, removing the need for a dish or aerial.   

Viewers can switch seamlessly between live and on demand content from the UK’s leading broadcasters the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, 5, STV, S4C and free-to-air broadcasters, including U (UKTV), WATCH FREE UK (AMCNI), PBS America, Warner Bros. Discovery and Channel 4 exclusive streaming channels 4Reality, 4Homes, and 4Life.   

With over 75,000 hours of content, Freely surpassed one million weekly users at the end of 2025, this makes Freely the fastest growing TV platform in the UK in 2025 and is forecast to be the largest TV device platform by 2030*   

See a full list of the 60+ live TV channels available over Wi-Fi here.  

About Everyone TV  

Everyone TV (formerly Digital UK) is a joint venture owned and supported by the UK’s leading public service broadcasters – BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and 5.  

Leading the evolution of free TV into the streaming age, Everyone TV believes that great quality TV should be accessible to all, regardless of location or income. Through delivering compelling free TV services for audiences and advocating for the future of free TV, Everyone TV ensures the best content made for British audiences remains free, easily accessible and discoverable.  

In 2024, Everyone TV launched Freely, a new streaming platform which allows viewers to watch the best live and on-demand TV for free, all in one place. Freely is now available in the UK through the next generation of smart TVs and streaming devices.  

Everyone TV also runs the UK’s free-to-view TV platforms – Freeview and Freesat – reaching millions of UK households. Formerly known as Digital UK, the organization updated its name to Everyone TV in January 2023 to better reflect its mission – to champion free TV for all.   

Press Contacts

Affiliates

affiliates@vimn.com

Senior Communications Manager

richard.bell@paramount.com