You've done the hard part — the visas, the shipping quotes, the school places, the endless moving abroad checklists. The adventure is real, and you can't wait to start your new life in the sun.
But ask anyone who's already made the move: even in the sunshine, there are days you miss home. A familiar voice on the telly, the news read the way you're used to, the shows everyone back home is talking about.
UK television is one of those small comforts that keeps you feeling connected — and it's one of the easiest things to sort out before you go.
You'll have thought of the big things. UK telly rarely makes the list — until the first rainy Sunday in your new home, or the evening you fancy the news from back home, and BBC iPlayer greets you with: “This content isn't available in your location.”
UK streaming services check your IP address, and from abroad you're blocked. Big-name VPNs get detected and blocked too, often just as you've settled in for the evening.
The reliable fix is a pre-configured SmartHub VPN router with a genuine UK residential IP, so BBC iPlayer, ITVX and the rest see an ordinary UK home rather than a VPN. You keep using your own UK subscriptions — you're simply watching them from a new address, exactly as you would at home. No apps, no settings, no fuss.
The easiest time to organise UK TV is while you've still got a UK address and UK internet. Order before you leave — delivered to your UK address by DPD, usually next-day — set it up, test it, and pack it with your things.
That's one less thing to work out in a new country, in a new language, while a hundred other admin jobs compete for your attention. And buying it here and taking it with you — as part of the move, not a shipment sent out later — keeps things simple and saves importing electronics into your new country.
Best of all, it's peace of mind: it works the moment you're connected at the other end.
Moved in, but the fibre won't be installed for a few weeks? No problem. The SmartHub Home, Travel and Pro can connect over any existing Wi-Fi — a temporary rental, a relative's place, even a mobile hotspot — so you're watching from day one.
Once you're settled and properly online, plug a Freely box (the Netgem PLEIO or Manhattan Aero) into the telly for the full big-screen, living-room experience.
It's more than entertainment. It's the football results on a Saturday, the soaps you've followed for years, the kids keeping up with the same shows as their cousins back home, and the familiar faces on the sofa at Christmas.
It can matter most for the children. Relocating for a different pace of life or better weather is a big adjustment for them too — and keeping the programmes they've grown up with, the same characters and shows their friends back home are watching, helps a new country feel familiar far faster. It's a small thing that makes a big move easier on the whole family. (More on keeping the kids on UK TV.)
Staying connected to home makes settling somewhere new that much easier — you get the best of both worlds: your exciting new life abroad, and your favourite UK telly whenever you want a little piece of home. Whether you're retiring in the sun or splitting your time between two countries, it's the same simple setup.
Emigrating is a huge, exciting step — and it's often the small comforts that make a new place truly feel like home.
Put UK TV on the checklist, sort a pre-configured VPN router before you leave, and take a piece of home with you. Our guide to the SmartHub range helps you pick the right one.
We've country-specific guides for Spain, France, Italy and Portugal — and if family come to visit over the summer, here's how to keep the kids on UK TV over the school holidays.
