The Best Free-To-Air Shows You Need To Stream

You don’t need to shell out to be entertained – some of the best shows to watch are on free-to-air channels. We know because we’ve watched them! So, stop jumping between all your subscriptions to lock onto something to watch, and jump back onto your humble local channel. There are some true gems waiting to be enjoyed.

We’ve done the hard (viewing) yards for you and uncovered the very best free-to-air shows you need to binge now.

ABC iView 

Better Date Than Never

Better Date Than Never is from the creators of Love On The Spectrum and is already on its second season. The docuseries follows a diverse group of single love seekers as they take a huge step into the dating world. Each participant has a different reason for a later start to their dating journey and is matched with a potential suitor. We then see them ready themselves to meet on a blind date. 

Savage River

If there's one show we're really going to need you to rip into this month, it's the ABC's crime drama Savage River. The gripping six-part series stars Golden Globe-nominated actress Katherine Langford (who you know from 13 Reasons Why and Cursed), Virginia Gay, Jacqueline McKenzie, Cooper Van Grootel, Nadine Garner, Daniel Henshall, Robert Grubb, James Mackay, Mark Coles Smith, Osamah Sami and Bernard Curry. In this series, Miki Anderson (Langford) returns to her rural hometown in Victoria after she's spent eight years in prison but naturally, the community aren't about to let a convicted criminal like herself just pick up her life where she left off. 

Stateless

ABC is at it again with this epic, raw drama that will seriously make you think. Inspired by true events, Stateless follows a young woman escaping a cult, a refugee fleeing with his family, a father trapped in a dead-end job and bureaucrat on the verge of a national scandal—all coming from vastly different walks of life, they find their paths intertwined at an immigration detention centre. The cracking cast includes Cate Blanchett, Yvonne Strahovski, Jai Courtney and Asher Keddie. Prepare to be moved.

State Of The Union

Short on time? Then this series is for you. In each ep, no more than 10 minutes long, we follow estranged lovers Tom (Chris O’Dowd) and Louise (Rosamund Pike), on their weekly catch up at the pub as they chat through what went wrong in their 15-year union… all before they head to a couples counselling session. Raw and honest with a touch of humour, you’ll devour the first season in a single sitting. 

Total Control stars powerhouse actors Rachel Griffiths and Deborah Mailman—that fact alone should be enough of a drawcard. In this ground-breaking political drama, we meet Alex Irving (Mailman) a fearless Indigenous senator, who just weeks into her political career in Canberra is bitterly betrayed. Not one to rest on her laurels, she’s on a quest to seek redemption and settle a score against the party, and the Prime Minister of Australia. 

Fisk

Starring (and guest starring) all of your favourite Aussie comedians, Fisk is a quirky comedy set in a suburban Aussie law office. The show follows Kitty Flanagan as Helen, a middle-aged lawyer trying to start her life over and find a new job. Kitty and the rest of the cast (including Aaron Chen and Marty Sheargold) play oddballs in the best way, with low-stakes plots leading to a lot of laughs.

The Newsreader

After its release in 2021, the first season of The Newsreader became the ABC’s most-viewed drama program of the year. It focuses on two journalists, Dale and Helen, in a Melbourne newsroom in the 1980s. There’s a reason why this show is so compelling and why I binged the first season so quickly. It explores Dale and Helen’s personal lives and the challenges they’re facing, including sexism and sexuality, while weaving through the big news stories they are covering, from AIDS to the Challenger Disaster and Halley’s Comet.

Utopia

While this show is a satire, it has often been called something much closer to a realistic portrayal of what it’s like to work in a government department. Which is not troubling at all. Utopia’s five seasons follow the employees of the fictional National Building Authority as they try to get work done. The show is frustrating, hilarious, and while you side with Tony (Rob Sitch) and Nat (Celia Pacquola) as they seem to be the only sane ones in the building, you have to admire the sheer level of shambles and inefficiency that occurs.

10 Play 

Drunk History Australia

Is there anything better than getting cultured about Australia’s history from your favourite comedians and celebs? Well, add in the fact that they’re absolutely sloshed and making it up as they go and you’ve got the recipe for success that is Drunk History. The show, which already has series in the UK and US, features the likes of Matt Okine regaling the origins of Waltzing Matilda, Em Rusciano recounting Dawn Fraser’s infamous last Olympics, while Joel Creasy explains Australia’s forgotten war… you know, the one with emus. If you need a good laugh—and let’s be honest, we all do—then head here immediately. Here's an peek at the UK version.

L.A’s Finest

If you’re a fan of Will Smith’s Bad Boy flicks then you’ll love this spin off show. L.A’s Finest follows the life of LAPD detective Sydney Burnett (played by Gabrielle Union) aka the sister of Martin Lawrence's Marcus Burnett. In it we watch Sydney and her cop partner Nancy McKenna (played by Jessica Alba) take on everyone from drug cartels to corrupt government officials in this fast-paced, gritty show. 

SBS On Demand

Alone Australia

Alone Australia became one of SBS’s local breakout success stories. The show began airing in the US in 2015, with Alone Australia premiering in 2023. Contestants see who can outlast each other in the wilderness for the chance to take home a cash prize. Australia’s first season was set in Tasmania and it looked rough – freezing temperatures, difficulty finding food and just general loneliness. We’re already up to season three, so there are plenty of episodes to catch up on if you’re in the mood to binge.

Shrill

This binge-worthy dramedy follows Annie (Saturday Night Live’s Aidy Bryant), an up and coming journalist in Portland, Oregon, who has spent her life trying to conform to “the norm”. She’s always on a diet but would rather be eating pancakes (who wouldn’t?), her sort-of boyfriend is a jerk and her parents are sick. But Annie still has a smile on her face… that is until she falls pregnant, and so the journey of life begins. Prepare for LOLs and tears in this absolute must-watch direct from Hulu. Catch seasons one and two here.

Wellington Paranormal

Created by Oscar winner Taika Waititi (Thor and JoJo Rabbit) and Jemaine Clement (What We Do In the Shadows), this New Zealand mockumentary comedy series is the perfect anecdote to the grim world news right now. It follows two members of the Wellington police—Sergeant Maaka and Officers Minogue and O’Leary—whose job is to investigate paranormal phenomena, yep it’s weird and wonderful, just like you’d expect from Waititi. In their first adventure the crime fighting duo encounter what they think is a drunk projectile-vomiting teenager, when in actual fact it’s a body-hopping demon who stops by Wellington every 66 years. Scope seasons one and two here. 

Back To Life 

Produced by Harry and Jack Williams (Fleabag), this British dark comedy series follows Miri Matteson who has just arrived back in her home town, a place she no longer recognises, in the dysfunctional family home she involuntarily vacated as a teenager, living with parents she no longer has a relationship with. Why? Because she’s just been released from prison after serving an 18-year prison sentence. You’re probably wondering about the funny part? Watching Miri adjust to her new life as the ultimate awkward and endearing adult beginner will make you laugh... and cry. If you liked Fleabag, you’ll love this. Catch season one here.

On Becoming A God In Central Florida

Kirsten Dunst is back on the small screen in this must-watch dark comedy. Dunst plays Krystal Stubbs, a minimum-wage water park employee, who lies, schemes and cons her way up the ranks of the cultish, multibillion-dollar pyramid scheme that drove her family to ruin in the first place. Special shout to Alexander Skarsgård who plays Dunst’s estranged husband Travis. You won’t regret carving out some time to catch this show. 

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9Now

Madam

It’s technically a workplace comedy, considering it’s set in a brothel. Madam follows Mackenzie ‘Mack’ Leigh (Rachel Griffiths) as she sets up an ethical brothel in rural New Zealand after finding her husband cheating with a sex worker. There’s a lot to love about the show, which definitely includes the colourful team of sex workers. It also has real heart, with Mack trying to balance being a business owner and a mum, and plenty of humour, with some of the interesting problems that pop up in the day-to-day running of a brothel.

Friday Night Lights 

Prepare for all, and we mean all, the feels when you settle in for this epic drama. While this beauty hit screens back in 2006 and wrapped after five seasons, it became a cult classic for years to come. Why? Because it has so much heart. Set in Dillon, Texas, this spin-off of the movie of the same name, follows football squad the Panthers and their dedicated coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler). In this small American town, football and its players rule everything which leaves little room for injury, relationships and heartbreak but of course, this show serves up plenty of it. Be sure to stick around for the latter seasons which show Black Panther’s Michael B Jordan getting his big break. Enjoy all five seasons here. 

The Mindy Project

If you’re after some serious light-hearted LOLs from one of the funniest women going around, then look no further than The Mindy Project. The show follows Dr. Mindy Lahiri (Mindy Kahling), an obstetrician and gyno living in New York who has just about everything figured out… except her love life. Following her disastrous dating escapes is reason enough to watch this show but the best bit is her colleagues—the cranky but loveable Dr Danny Castellano (yes, you will be rooting for them to get together) and the hilarious nurse Morgan Tookers (Ike Barinholtz) whose one-liners will make you cry. The best bit, 9Now has the entire six seasons ready for you to devour here. 

The Arrangement 

This juicy drama delivers a seedy behind the scenes look at Hollywood. The Arrangement follows Megan Morrison, who auditions for a role in a blockbuster flick alongside famous heartthrob Kyle West (Josh Henderson). While Megan doesn’t get the role she does get another job offer—$10 million if she agrees to marry Kyle. But naturally nothing is that simple and soon Megan is thrown in the middle of creepy cult religion that is taking over Hollywood… sound familiar? Seasons one and two are ready for your binging pleasure here.

7Plus

Gold Digger

Image Credit: ABC iView

Contributors: Elizabeth Barry

Urban List Best Of has our highest stamp of approval—curated lists of the very best recommendations for you to eat, do, see, buy or book, carefully chosen by our Editors.