How to watch The Responder online and on TV in the UK and abroad

Night after night, Chris Carson navigates the dark streets of Liverpool responding to emergency calls, but worn down by the stresses of the job and issues at home, he decides to put his neck on the line in an ambitious effort to clear his conscience and get his life back on track. Taking place across five action-packed nights, you can watch The Responder as it comes on TV or binge the lot online. Read on as we explain how to watch The Responder for free from anywhere, with culminating episodes 4 and 5 airing in the next few days.

Relentlessly forced into distressing situations by the nature of his work, the 12-hour nights of endless pressure have taken a heavy toll on Chris's mental health and self-esteem. 

Disillusioned with the job he's been doing, deeply unhappy in his marriage, and seeking a change in rhythm to arrest his slide towards apathy, he decides to go beyond the line of duty when he meets Casey, a young heroin addict who's stolen drugs from the wrong person. 

But in order to do something good, Chris is going to have to take a walk on the wild side. And to make things even trickier, he's also been lumbered with a rookie partner, Rachel Hargreaves, who openly suspects the worst of him.

Written by ex-responder Tony Schumacher, it provides a raw insight into the lives of people on the edge, showing how relationships can save people and pull them under. Here’s how to watch The Responder online for free no matter where you are.

How to watch The Responder online FREE in the UK

All five episodes of The Responder will be available to watch for FREE on BBC iPlayer, from Monday, January 24.

They're all airing on BBC One too, at 9pm GMT on January 24, 25 and 31, and February 1 and 2.

Both BBC One and BBC iPlayer are free to watch with a valid TV licence, and the streaming service works across a huge array of devices, including laptops, tablets, smartphones, media streaming devices like Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Chromecast and Roku, and PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

If you're not in the UK, use a VPN to stream your favourite BBC shows online from anywhere as if you were at home.

How to watch The Responder online from outside your country

If you’re abroad when an episode airs, you won't be able to watch the show as you normally would at home, thanks to annoying regional restrictions.

Luckily, there’s an easy solution. Downloading a VPN will allow you to stream it online no matter where you are. It's a simple bit of software that changes your IP address, meaning that you can access on-demand content or live TV just as if you were at home.

Use a VPN to watch The Responder online from anywhere

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Three simple steps to using a VPN to watch The Responder

1. Download and install a VPN - we recommend ExpressVPN

2. Connect to the relevant server location - launch the VPN app, click on 'choose location' and select the right location i.e. UK for iPlayer

3. Head to the chosen broadcaster's live stream - in this case, head to BBC iPlayer