As someone lucky enough to have subscriptions to all the big streaming platforms, there’s something particularly maddening about typing in the title of a film and coming up empty – even across the likes of Netflix, Paramount+ and Apple TV+.
That’s exactly what happened to me yesterday, when I was trying to track down the Oscar-winning movie Spotlight.
After a sulk and some aimless Netflix scrolling, I turned to Google – where I discovered that while I could pay to rent the film on Prime Video, a streaming service I’d never heard of had it available… and it was completely free.
Too good to be true? Apparently not.
Discovering Tubi
The platform was Tubi – a streaming service that has no subscription model and is instead fully funded by ads. After a quick download, I was in and watching Spotlight within minutes.
Yes, there were ad breaks (a few 30-second interruptions), but the platform gave a heads-up before they happened, making it feel more like watching a film on Channel 4 or the BBC.
As I browsed through, I was struck by how wide-ranging the catalogue was.
What to watch on Tubi
In one sitting, I spotted I Know What You Did Last Summer (the nostalgic ’90s slasher that just got a modern remake with Outer Banks’ Madeline Cline), Jennifer Aniston’s fun romcom The Bounty Hunter and the cult camp classic Death Becomes Her (starring Meryl Streep).
Then there were heavier hitters like Andrew Garfield’s Oscar-winning Hacksaw Ridge, Timothée Chalamet’s Call Me By Your Name and, of course, the film that started this whole search, Spotlight.
© Alamy Stock PhotoThe whole experience reminded me of another free streaming service I’d almost forgotten about: U.
Formerly known as UKTV Play, U is a free app offering shows from channels like Dave, Drama, Yesterday and W.
© UWhat to watch on U
I’ve used it to binge-watch the entire season of period drama Outrageous, but you can also browse by genre – from “Cosy crime mysteries” to “Chilling crime dramas”, “British TV classics” and “True crime documentaries”.
While the top pick sitting on my watchlist is Sam Claflin’s The Count of Monte Cristo, there’s also a host of standout crime dramas and thrillers on there, which include fan favourites like Sherwood, Black Sands, The Brokenwood Mysteries, Blackshore, Silent Witness and Whitstable Pearl.
© paolo modugno / UKTVSo, if you’re running out of inspiration on the big-name streamers – or have given up on them entirely – don’t forget there are other free platforms out there. You never know, you might just find exactly what you’re looking for…
Read the full article here
