Watching The BBC iplayer from outside the UK

It is possible to access UK TV on demand sites from abroad in 3 main ways. Some of them are free, some need a little technical know-how and some are simple.

Option 1. Slingbox. This is a piece of hardware that connects to your computer. For this to work you need a friend in the UK with some technical savvy and who doesn't mind you taking some (!) bandwidth while you are watching. Rather complicated but possible. You can read more about Slingboxes by following the link below.

2. Using proxy servers in the UK. This method is free but a bit of a B***er to get to work consistently. The easiest way is to install 'FoxyProxy' an add-on for Firefox. Then you need to find a UK based proxy which is a) anonymous, b) open and free to use and c) not been blacklisted. These can be found by googling for British free proxies but you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince!. Then you route yourself through the UK proxy server using Foxyproxy, when you want to view.

Another method of using proxies is by setting up Tor. But that is a bit more complicated.

3. By far the easiest, and most consistent method (although not free) is by setting up a VPN. This stands for 'virtual private network' and it acts as another connection to the net on your computer.

Although this is not the primary use for a VPN, the nice by-product is that by using a VPN service with UK servers, you will be able to access sites with these geo-restrictions.

They are easy to set up (usually takes just a few minutes) and easy to use. The prices range anywhere up to £20 a month. From all that I have seen out there, I would recommend ADTelly who come in at £5,50 a month. Click on ADTelly for more information

So, there you go. Lots of options, take your pick!