What time is Waterloo Road on tonight? Series 17 schedule and how to watch new episodes early
Waterloo Road is finally back, but you don't need to wait to watch series 17
Waterloo Road is finally back, with series 17 dropping its first two episodes in a double bill tonight – but if you don’t want to wait, you can watch them early.
The last season ended on a bit of a grim note: Jon Richardson’s Darius successfully ousted Jack from the school, paving the way for him to become Waterloo Road’s new deputy. Meanwhile, Joe broke up with Mike to pursue his love affair with Mitch, the new SENCO.
Will Darius ever be held accountable for Hope’s death, will Jack return, and what’s going on with Miss Haydock?
It’s an exciting time for Waterloo Road fans, so make sure you know when to tune in tonight,
What time is Waterloo Road series 17 back on tonight?
Waterloo Road series 17 premieres tonight (January 6) at 9pm on BBC One.
It gets better: after the first episode finishes, you can watch episode 2 at 10:40pm.
According to the synopsis, episode 1 will see “chaos unleashed as Darius welcomes excluded students to the school”.
His deputyship will be put to the test early by a “violent new arrival… who holds a surprising connection with Agnes”.
Don’t expect things to slow down in Episode 2. “Portia is humiliated when her new romance turns sour,” the synopsis teases, “while Ben finds himself being schooled by a rebellious supply teacher after landing himself in hot water.”
Something tells us that’s referring to Steph Haydock, Denise Welch’s returning teacher from the original series.
“Still unmarried but eternally hopeful, Steph is back as a supply teacher. What she is supplying remains to be seen, but I am having a great time stepping back into the shoes of a character I love,” the actress said in a statement.
Series 17 schedule
New episodes from Waterloo Road series 17 will air every Tuesday on BBC One. They’ll air in two-episode blocks at the same time, all the way through to the finale on January 27.
You can check out the show’s full schedule below:
- Episode 1: January 6, 2026
- Episode 2: January 6, 2026
- Episode 3: January 13, 2026
- Episode 4: January 13, 2026
- Episode 5: January 20, 2026
- Episode 6: January 20, 2026
- Episode 7: January 27, 2026
- Episode 8: January 27: 2026
How to watch Waterloo Road series 17 early
You don’t need to watch Waterloo Road weekly: you can stream every episode of series 17 on BBC iPlayer now.
Unlike The Night Manager series 2, which is airing weekly without an early release on iPlayer, you can already binge every new episode of Waterloo Road.
The series was added to the platform in its entirety at 6am on January 6, so there’s nothing stopping you from watching the whole thing in one day.
Don’t worry if you speed through the episodes. The BBC has already confirmed series 18 and 19, with the next series expected to air in September this year.
Read more: The best BBC iPlayer films you can watch now
