Thursday, December 29, 2022

Britbox!

 RHYS BOWEN: Remember when TV was three or four channels. Remember when we waited with anticipation for the next episode of our favorite drama? Now it's all about streaming. We've adapted to it slowly, first Netflix then Prime. During the Pandemic I discovered the joy of binge-watching. When I was sick and on a clear liquid diet it was the Great British Baking Show. One of the most comforting shows on Earth, right?

One of the things I discovered during the pandemic was Britbox. All my favorite British TV shows in one place. Heaven! I have binge watched ever since, rejoicing in new crime series, like Murder in Provence and Val McDermid's brilliant new one.

Another fun benefit has been that Britbox has teamed up with Jungle Red Writers to share about new shows. What fun! And now they have told us about a fantastic contest happening right now, over the holidays.

Here is what they say:

LIGHTS, CAMERA, PLAY DEAD! GIVE THE GIFT OF BRITBOX AND BE ENTERED TO WIN A TRIP TO LONDON, VISIT THE SET OF A BRITBOX FAN-FAVORITE SERIES, AND BE AN UNDERSTUDY TO AN ON-SCREEN MURDER MYSTERY VICTIM

 

BritBox hosts first sweepstakes “One Way Ticket”, offering fans up-close and personal access to the idyllic locations of its beloved series

 

From the lush rolling hills of The Cotswolds to the buzzing streets of London, there’s no shortage of stunning British destinations on display in BritBox’s series. This year, BritBox is giving fans the chance of a lifetime through its One Way Ticket sweepstakes. With each purchase of a gift subscription*, gift-givers will be entered to win the ultimate fan experience: a trip to Britain to visit these locations and a live set!

 

The grand prize winner will receive a trip for two to London and the Cotswolds, including round trip airfare, lodging, and planned excursions. Best of all, the winner will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to visit the live set of an upcoming BritBox series during filming. Second prize winners will receive an exclusive BritBox item.

 

Gift-givers will be automatically entered to win with each purchase of a one-year gift subscription on BritBox.com. Those who choose not to participate will be given the ability to opt out—just uncheck the designated box.

 

For shoppers looking for a quick, easy, or even last-minute gift, a BritBox gift subscription is a thoughtful solution that will always be in stock. For $79.99, get 12 months for the price of 10 and give the best of British TV, all year long.

 

Images: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ov2g4u5ktoio54g/AAAq1ZAbbZDUCTjVZTKmxi_-a?dl=0

 

*Entrants must be 18 years or older and a legal resident of the U.S. or Canada. Sweepstakes ends at 11:59:59 p.m. ET on January 5th, 2023. Must travel summer 2023. Purchase not required for entry. See official rules for details.

 

BritBox is available for $7.99 per month/79.99 per year—after an introductory free trial period—on Roku®, Amazon Fire TV stick, Apple TV 4th Gen, Samsung, LG and all iOS and Android devices, AirPlay, Chromecast, and online at https://www.britbox.com/us/. BritBox is also available on Amazon Channels for Prime members and on Apple TV Channels on supported devices.

About BritBox

BritBox is a digital video subscription service offering the largest collection of British TV in the U.S. and Canada. Created by two British content powerhouses—BBC Studios, the subsidiary arm of the BBC, and ITV, the UK’s biggest commercial broadcaster—the service features iconic favorites, exclusive premieres, and current series and soaps—most available within 24 hours after their UK premiere. BritBox also offers expert curation and playlists that enable fans to easily find programs they know and discover new favorites via the web, mobile, tablet and connected TVs.   

 

 

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 RHYS:  How can you resist? Worth every penny. The contest closes soon. So if there is someone for whom you haven't found the right gift yet... here it is! Good luck

And what streaming services do you watch? What have you binge-watched? I've done that with Alone, Bridgerton, the Crown.... what else?

40 comments:

  1. That’s quite a contest . . . .

    We are so out of step with streaming and binge-watching . . . we have a Disney+ subscription; we’ve sort-of binged on “The Mandalorian” when we’ve missed an episode, but that’s about it . . . .

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  2. How splendid and tantalizing Rhys. For you to be able to bring us the opportunity to visit your old BBC corridors as it were. So wish this were in the budget. We are planning to pick up another streaming service for the coming year, I will vote for this one. I began streaming during the video store era when the libraries began to carry ebooks and videos. The video format often gave me a way to 'hear' using closed captioning and replay features. Now that the networks have joined streaming it feels like a grocery store has become a supermarket -- too many choices for my poor head. However, we use HULU, Netflix, HBOmax, and the following apps, PBS passport, Paramount +, and I forget the rest. Boy that offer is tempting.. almost morphing from a want to a need. Good luck all.

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  3. I stream a lot of channels from Disney+, Paramount Plus, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO Max, Peacock, and Tubi. I tend to watch movies and when they have the TV shows, I want on the day they have scheduled. Recently watched Gamache and Leverage Redemption 2. At some point, I will have to get rid of my cable which I keep for local news channels + the intercom to my building.

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  4. What fun!

    I subscribe to both Britbox and Acorn, and find myself watching their programming almost exclusively. We also have Netflix and Amazon, but I rarely choose shows from those services. My husband is the opposite, so we are both happy.

    Making a list of likely giftees! Thank you.

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  5. I am the opposite of most people. I pretty much quit watching TV during the pandemic. My husband became a binger; so occasionally I will dip in to see what all the fuss is about. Then I go back to author interviews on fb and reading. We have Netflix. Once in a while I will watch a movie. The series I’ve watched are The Lincoln Lawyer and Wednesday. I watch All Creatures Great and Small and Magpie Murders on PBS so I would probably enjoy Britbox if I were willing to add it to the budget.

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  6. Our streaming service choices are limited in Canada & tend to combine several US services under one name. My main streaming service is CRAVE TV which includes HBO and Paramount+ shows. It's how I watched the 5 new STAR TREK series during the pandemic. I currently have a free 3-month trial of Apple+TV and watched both seasons of SLOW HORSES (sooooo good). I have signed up/cancelled free trials of Disney+ to watch both seasons of ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING.

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    1. I think we still get most shows/movies, just differently. There's content on Disney+ Canada that isn't available on Disney+ US...Just in time for the season finale of Star Trek Prodigy, CTV Sci-Fi is free from Rogers...I have dozens of streaming apps on my Smart TV. Maybe one day I'll get around to watching them/getting free trials. I've never managed to get a free trial of Disney+.

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    3. I gave up cable TV a decade ago and also have lots of free streaming apps on my smart TV which I don't use. I just finished watching the finale of ST: Prodigy, so will have to wait until February for new Star Trek. And once Slow Horses ends tomorrow, I will cut back on my TV watching.

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    4. I'd give up cable but I watch football and don't like the streaming option for football. I could have watched Prodigy this morning but not legally.

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  7. We have NetFlix, PBS Passport, and HBOMax (the latter courtesy of my son). I find I can't binge more than two shows at one sitting, and I know I've missed a lot of good shows on other services, but I don't watch enough TV to make paying for them worthwhile.

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    1. I can’t either, Edith. I get bored! Rhys

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  8. I have Netflix, Amazon Prime and Izzy (Israeli tv/movies) but tend to watch more from the services I get free/inexpensive promotions. I currently have Paramount+ Canada (50% off for a year), Apple TV+ (2 months free) and Starz and Stingray (inexpensive for 2 months from Amazon Prime). Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday are good for streaming deals (multiple email addresses also gets you multiple free trials :-) I've done catch up binges on Slow Horses (Apple TV+) and Tulsa King (Paramount+) and am/will watch them weekly now. Season finale of Slow Horses is tomorrow. Loot with Maya Rudolph (Apple TV+) is a fun binge.

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  9. Britbox and Acorn. What’s not on one is on the other. Like Edith — I think — we also have pbs passport. Those three could keep me entertained for eons.

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  10. Currently, I'm entered into a contest that would give me a trip to the filming location in Northern Ireland that was used for Game of Thrones for ten years. That would be fun for me. Back when the first Lord of the Rings trilogy of films was wrapping up, there was a travel package to go visit the location shoots from the movies in New Zealand. I would've loved to have gone for that as well.

    As for what streaming services I watch: I pay for Disney+, I get Peacock for free via my cable system (and a ton more smaller services as well). I have access to Amazon's Prime Video. I can watch Netflix stuff if I head to my friend Ann's place. I usually check out something on AcornTV when they have a free week special.

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    1. As for what do I binge watch, the better question would be what don't I? I watch a ton of different shows. They could be new shows or rewatches. But I spend a lot of time watching TV these days.

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  11. How was ‘Why Didn’t They Ask Evans?’

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    1. Not as good as the book! Like everything else these days they overdramatize. ? Rhys

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  12. Hope one of you wins the contest! We have subscribed to Showtime for 2 months so we can watch George and Tammy. It's fantastic, though so tragic. I think we saw everything they've released so far, now anxiously awaiting Sunday! (PS back when I was throwing dress-up lip-sync parties, my favorite moment was doing Tammy Wynette singing STAND BY YOUR MAN, with a green frog dancing in the background. That was pure fun!)

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    1. Thanks for the recommendation about George & Tammy. Showtime is also included in my CRAVE TV subscription, and I will check it out.

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  13. How I would like to win this contest but no one around me watch shows in English and would appreciate Britbox.
    I’m not usually paying for streaming services but occasionally, like this month, I benefit from a free month service to watch something appealing to me. That’s how I watched The Village of Three Pines on Prime. I prefer the books.
    Danielle

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    1. DANIELLE: I also watched GAMACHE and prefer the books, too.

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  14. That's so tempting. I would love to be a subscriber to Britbox but I have to watch my pennies this year. I've been dipping my toes into streaming. I've been a sustaining member of my local PBS station for years, so I have streamed some of their shows when I've missed them on TV.

    More recently, I signed up for Peacock so I can watch all of Leeds United's matches--although with their dishy American coach and a couple of US- born players, their games are often on cable TV. It's just such a treat for my sisters and me to have this team back in the PL and be able to watch them after decades of long distance fan-dom.

    I finally signed up for Netflix two months ago, because my Spanish teacher wants us to watch a few movies in Spanish. The first one was Ahí Te Encargo (You've Got This) which was a delightful funny movie with lots of crazy Mexican slang. Because I now have Netflix, I have been watching The Crown and loving it! I haven't really explored much beyond that yet, and don't binge very much. I need some time for reading!

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    1. I forgot my first adventure in streaming--MLB so I can watch the Cardinals, which I have been doing for 4? 5? years... confessions of a sports fan.

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    2. Another sports fan here, Especially tennis Rhys

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  15. From Celia:- What fun, but travel isn’t in my life right now but maybe someday. I understand binging to be watching several episodes consecutively. Which means I binged the original Masterpiece, The Forsyte Saga way back as part of a PBS fundraiser. I went to bed very late as V was on a biz trip, and had disturbing Forsyte dreams all night. No more binging beyond a couple of episodes for me thank you.

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  16. I gave up cable so many years ago that I can’t remember when I last had it. At the beginning of the pandemic I began subscribing to streaming services. I’ve added and subtracted different services in this time. I currently have Netflix, Amazon, Brit Box, Acorn, Apple TV. But I don’t watch every day!

    DebRo

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  17. I have two streaming services currently--Netflix which came free with my phone service and TUBI which is free because they do commercial breaks like old-time TV :-) I've had Britbox and will probably add that back in at some time. Right now the only kind of TV I can sit for are documentaries. I can barely read, either, which is distressing. But I'm finding short pieces--I hadn't realized how many short stories Agatha Christie wrote, for example. So, new Miss Marple mysteries!! But I would love the chance to visit London and the Cotswolds! Thanks, Rhys!

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    1. I’m sorry you find it hard to read, Flora. Is it hard to concentrate or vision problems? From Rhys

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    2. Rhys, thanks for your concern! It's a bit of both. An eye exam in a couple of weeks should help--I'm sure new glasses will be an improvement. And there has been a bunch of distractions--furnace went out, dishwasher died, cat needed surgery all at once. You know, the usual sort of things!

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  18. I have Britbox and Acorn and watch them more than any others. Since I am on a budget I chose them over HBO or Showtime because I find the British shows more entertaining. Just watched the Madame Blanc Christmas special on Acorn. Also on Britbox I watch Eastenders, a soap opera which I have somehow gotten hooked on.

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  19. I love love love BritBox! It's our absolute go-to. Line of Duty is one of my favorite series of all time. And the Anthony Horowitz shows, oh gosh, Injustice and ..Collision? They are SO brilliant. There was there--Silks? And, oh, I always forget, but there is always something terrific. I don't watch the cozy ones, I'm afraid, just can't , but I love love love the lawyer/detective dramas. Yay, BritBox!

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  20. I asked for BritBox for Christmas and I didn't get it... if I give myself a gift, can I enter the contest?? :-D

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  21. Our BritBox is having issues right now, it sputters and starts when we cast it to our Tv

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  22. We subscribed to BritBox to see Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? (agree it wasn’t “all that”), but stayed to watch so many more shows. Also have Acorn and PBS Passport so are well covered for British television. We also have other streaming services and my husband wants to ditch DirectTV, but I like the NFL package. Would love to win the trip but don’t have anyone to gift the subscription to.
    —Pat S.

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    1. NFL Sunday Ticket is leaving DirectTV next season and going to YouTube - https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/22/media/youtube-nfl-sunday-ticket/index.html

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    2. What a fabulous trip this would be! I hope someone here enters and wins! We have Britbox and Acorn (I consider a work necessity!!)/ We gave up satellite/cable about ten years ago now so have almost every streaming service, still so much less expensive than what we used to pay for cable monthly. I've also been a PBS sustaining member for decades, so can watch PBS Passport. Definitely spoiled for choice. Lately I've been bingeing Doc Martin on Acorn and think I'm almost caught up to the final season. I watch the cozy and the hardboiled, depending on the mood of the moment. My favorite show on Britbox this past year was The Responder, starring Martin Freeman. Very tough but so good.

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    3. Me too! I have pbs passport. Diana

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  23. We have never had cable, but when the Roku came out I jumped on it. We had no "cord" to cut, and the only streaming service we had for years was Netflix. So now I don't feel bad about still having less than a third of the cost of cable.

    When I traveled for business and had cable in motels, I realized I wasn't missing a darn thing.

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  24. Woke up with a headache 🤕 now I’m starting to feel better. Love love britbox!!
    Have not been able to watch Netflix since I watched the boy who saved Christmas
    Because I need to upgrade my computer 🤦🏻‍♀️
    Also get apple plus and acorn tv on my iPad.

    Diana

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