What BBC iPlayer shows: "BBC iPlayer only works in the UK. Sorry, it's due to rights issues." Or a message that you seem to be using a VPN or proxy.
BBC iPlayer Sees This Address:
216.73.217.22
Columbus, Ohio, United States · Anthropic, PBC
Your address is placed in United States, outside the UK. BBC iPlayer goes by that. The fixes below usually clear it.
What BBC iPlayer Can Tell From Your Connection
Country:
United StatesBBC iPlayer works in the UK only.
Outside
Datacenter address:
Anthropic, PBC is a home or mobile provider
No
VPN app:
No known VPN network
No
iCloud Private Relay:
Not an Apple or Cloudflare relay address
No
Shared mobile address:
Not a mobile network
No
Cloudflare WARP:
checking…
Clock vs Address:
checking…
Why BBC iPlayer does this
BBC iPlayer is for the UK only, and it checks your address to make sure. Addresses it believes are VPNs or proxies are blocked even when they are in the UK.
Some UK mobile, business and college networks use address blocks that location databases place abroad or mark as proxies.
How to fix it
Turn off any VPN, proxy or iCloud Private Relay, then close and reopen iPlayer.
If you're on mobile data, try Wi-Fi (or the other way round) and check this page: the country should say United Kingdom.
Restart your router for a new address.
If your UK address is placed abroad, ask your provider to correct it with the location databases (MaxMind, IP2Location).
Fixed something? Reload this page: the checks above update with your new connection.
Why does iPlayer say I'm outside the UK when I'm not?
Your address is placed outside the UK by the location databases iPlayer uses, or it's on a list of VPN and proxy addresses. The country above is what sites see.
Does BBC iPlayer work with a VPN?
The BBC blocks addresses it knows belong to VPNs, so a VPN can trigger the same error. Turn it off to watch in the UK.
