What Time Is Bridge of Lies On? 4.30pm Weekdays on BBC One, iPlayer and Series 5

Week of 12 October 2026 — New Series 5 episodes are at 4.30pm on BBC One from Monday 12 to Thursday 15 October: Episodes 18 to 21. Friday 16 October is a repeat in the slot, Celebrity Specials Series 2, Episode 1, with Sam Quek, Dion Dublin, Joanna Page and Melvin Odoom. Episodes 22 to 25 are listed for Monday 19 to Thursday 22 October, and Friday 23 October is Celebrity Specials Series 2, Episode 2. Checked on Monday 12 October against BBC One's published schedule and the BBC's episode pages.

The gist: Bridge of Lies is on BBC One at 4.30pm on weekdays and finishes at 5.15pm, when Pointless takes over. New Series 5 episodes go out from Monday to Thursday, Friday's edition is an older celebrity special, each one reaches BBC iPlayer after it airs, and Ross Kemp presents.

It is the first quiz of BBC One's teatime, a 45-minute slot that hands straight to Pointless at 5.15pm. A team of four walks out one at a time on to a floor of lit circles and tries to cross it without treading on a wrong answer.

October's run is the back half of Series 5. By the BBC's numbering the series has 25 episodes, and the last twelve of them are being shown across three weeks.

What time is Bridge of Lies on BBC One?

4.30pm to 5.15pm, Monday to Friday. BBC One's schedule has it at 4.30pm on every weekday from Monday 5 October to Friday 23 October, always directly before Pointless. Each episode runs 43 or 44 minutes on the BBC's own pages.

That puts it up against ITV1's afternoon. ITV's guide for Wednesday 7 October has Deal or No Deal at 4pm and The Chase at 5pm, so Bridge of Lies overlaps the end of one and the start of the other. Our day-by-day quiz list lays the whole afternoon out.

Is Bridge of Lies on today?

If it's a weekday between 5 and 23 October, yes, at 4.30pm. Whether the episode is new depends on the day. In all three weeks BBC One's schedule gives Monday to Thursday to new Series 5 episodes and Friday to a repeat from the Celebrity Specials.

The Friday 16 October repeat has Sam Quek, Dion Dublin, Joanna Page and Melvin Odoom as the team. Our dates for 19 to 22 October come from the BBC's London listings, which are the only regional pages published that far ahead.

When does Bridge of Lies go on iPlayer?

After the BBC One showing. Before an episode airs, its BBC page carries the line "This programme will be available shortly after broadcast". Episode 15, shown on Tuesday 6 October, was already on iPlayer when we checked the next morning.

On Wednesday 7 October the programme page listed 25 episodes available to watch. That figure moves as older episodes drop off and new ones arrive, so treat it as a snapshot.

How many episodes are in Series 5 of Bridge of Lies?

25, and they've arrived in two blocks. Every episode page is labelled "of 25". Its page for Episode 13 gives a first showing on Tuesday 19 May 2026, and the next new episode, number 14, didn't appear until Monday 5 October.

TVmaze dates the series opener to Monday 27 April 2026, which fits a spring block of thirteen episodes. This autumn block is twelve: four a week for three weeks, ending with Episode 25 on Thursday 22 October.

After Episode 25, the 4.30pm slot stays with Bridge of Lies but turns to repeats: BBC One's London schedule for Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 October, read on Sunday 11 October, lists Series 4, Episodes 11 and 12, first shown in June 2025. A sixth series has been commissioned, according to an STV release of 3 September 2026 carried by the Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce: 40 new episodes plus ten of Celebrity Bridge of Lies, with Ross Kemp returning to host and filming in Glasgow this autumn. The BBC's take-part page gives 25 October 2026 as the closing date for applications. No transmission date has been published. The episode guide runs to five regular series and four sets of Celebrity Specials, so there is plenty for the BBC to repeat. We'll add the date of any new run here once the BBC publishes one.

How does Bridge of Lies work?

Each crossing, in the BBC's own description, has 32 possible steps, 22 of them truths and ten of them lies. A player earns money for every truth they step on. Step on a lie and the money is halved. Step on three lies and that player is out.

The team chooses who takes each crossing according to the question category, and there's always a safe route across. Players who make it over join forces for a final crossing, and that one decides whether the team takes the cash home.

We don't reproduce the statements on the bridge. Those mechanics are the format, and they're the same from one episode to the next.

Is Bridge of Lies repeated in the morning?

Yes, on BBC Two, a day or two after the BBC One showing. Episode 16 is listed for 6.30am on Thursday 8 October, the morning after it first airs. Next week the gap widens: Episode 18 from Monday 12 October is down for 7.15am on Wednesday 14 October, and Episodes 19 and 20 follow at 7.15am on the Thursday and Friday.

Those early showings shift about, so iPlayer is the more dependable way to catch up. The weekday 4.30pm slot on BBC One is the only place new episodes appear first.

Questions readers ask

Who presents Bridge of Lies?
Ross Kemp. He is credited as presenter on every Series 5 episode, and the BBC's episode pages name STV Studios as the production company.

Is Bridge of Lies on at the weekend?
Not in BBC One's schedule for Saturday 10 or Sunday 11 October. It's a weekday programme, like most of the teatime quizzes. For early evening, BBC Two has House of Games at 6pm on weekdays.

How do I apply to go on Bridge of Lies?
On the BBC's programme page there is a link headed "Register your interest in future series!", and the BBC says it wants to hear from teams of four. Use that page for the details and any closing date.

What else is on for quiz fans in the afternoon?
Countdown on Channel 4 comes first, and our Tipping Point page explains what ITV1 is doing at 4pm at the moment. Our round-up for the week of 5 October keeps track of the week, there are more explainers in the UK Quiz Guide, and Monday evenings belong to Mastermind and its BBC Two neighbours. Our sister site has a night-by-night soap guide for later on.

Sources

• BBC: Bridge of Lies, Series 5, Episode 16 (episode 16 of 25, 43 minutes, Wednesday 7 October 16:30 BBC One, Thursday 8 October 06:30 BBC Two, format description, Ross Kemp and STV Studios credited)
• BBC: Bridge of Lies Series 5 episode guide (episodes 1 to 25, upcoming dates to Thursday 22 October)
• BBC One schedule (weekdays 5 to 23 October: Bridge of Lies 16:30, Pointless 17:15; Friday repeats from the Celebrity Specials; Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 October: Series 4, Episodes 11 and 12 at 16:30)
• BBC: Bridge of Lies programme page (25 available episodes on 7 October, "Register your interest in future series!")
• BBC: Bridge of Lies, Series 5, Episode 13 (first shown Tuesday 19 May 2026, 16:30 BBC One)
• itv.com TV guide (ITV1 on Wednesday 7 October: Deal or No Deal 16:00, The Chase 17:00)
• TVmaze: Bridge of Lies (cross-check of the spring air dates, opener listed for 27 April 2026)

By the UK Quiz On Air desk · Updated 12 October, 11.48am BST