A student’s perspective of using Box of Broadcasts

Ever feel stuck looking for something to watch or listen to? If you are looking for recordings as resources for your studies, Box of Broadcasts (BoB) is a UK university initiative with over 3 million TV and radio broadcasts.

With shows and films dating back to the 1970s, this educational resource is a hidden gem many don’t know about. It can be used for teaching, learning and research purposes and includes access to over 75 free-to-air channels. Simply use UCL single sign-on and you’re good to go.

Series

From some of the highest rated series of all time, like Blue Planet and Band of Brothers, to various reality shows (which may not stand the test of time so well a.k.a. the likes of Love Island), if you’ve ever needed to watch shows from the last 50 years, this is the resource for you. 

Whilst it can be a bit tricky to navigate the first episode of your chosen series from the search bar, the public playlists feature allows you access to other people’s curated playlists, which are often the whole series in the correct order of episodes. Further to this, if you’re using a specific documentary as part of your studies, you may be able to find a public playlist with related titles by another student studying something similar, which could be a great starting point for primary and secondary sources. 

Films

Many of the highest rated and grossing films of all time are also available. From The Shawshank Redemption (9.2 rating on IMDB) and Tarantino’s cult classic, Pulp Fiction, to Finding Nemo and Moana, high chances are that BoB will have it. 

A number of more niche film broadcasts are also available, essentially anything that’s been premiered on the free-to-air channels. This is a useful resource for study. 

Although there are intermittent ad-breaks, they add to the nostalgia of watching things on an actual TV, something many of us now no longer do with the turn towards streaming services in recent years. 

Features

The other great thing with public playlists is that the categories you come across will have series and films put together by a human rather than an algorithm, giving rise to different links between broadcasts, allowing you to browse via a human mind rather than a computer. And if you really rate your curating ability, you too can create and save a public playlist for others.

Sometimes a little scrolling is needed to find what you’re looking for, but having most series and films shown on Freeview for the last few decades it’s a small price to pay. You can also filter your searches by date, playlist, title etc. which can make it simpler to navigate, if searching for something specific.

The ‘guide’ section also indicates what is currently on air and lets you see what will become available imminently – usually within half an hour or so. And, if you have the burning desire for something that isn’t available, you can request it.

My recommendations

Finally, a quick pointer in the direction of what to watch if you’re feeling stuck for choice, likely with the millions of titles on BoB. 

Series

• Ashes to Ashes 
• Star Trek
• Mad Men
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Gavin and Stacey
• The Office 

Films

• The Godfather 
• The Matrix
• Whiplash 
• Solaris 
• Hector and the Search For Happiness