BBC Studios unveils BBC Belgium   

From 5 May 2026, premium drama channel BBC First will be rebranded to BBC Belgium, enhancing the most popular international channel in Flanders with a fresh new identity.

Audiences will continue to have access to a packed lineup of world class dramas and compelling light crime series’ in a new-look home, all of which have been especially curated for Flemish audiences and fully localised with Dutch subtitles.

Bram Husken, SVP and General Manager Benelux and Nordics at BBC Studios, said: “Rebranding the channel to BBC Belgium allows us to better reflect our loyal Belgian audience and our commitment to bringing exceptional British stories to the region. For over a decade, our handpicked stories having been starting conversations, and changing perspectives. Our new identity will help to deepen our growing connection with fans of the best British content.”

New series’ premiering from launch on BBC Belgium include:

Wild Cherry – 6 May
Created and written by BAFTA-award winning Nicôle Lecky, Wild Cherry is set in a private enclave in the Home Counties. The six-part series is a provocative and deliciously honest look at mother/daughter relationships in a haze of social media, hidden apps and peer pressure that asks: how far will we go to protect our children? And just how much do teenage girls know about the women raising them? If the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, then who is leading these girls astray?

The Marlow Murder Club S3 – 5 May
Now an established part of newly promoted DI Tanika Malik’s crime solving team, retired archaeologist Judith Potts, dog walker Suzie Harris and vicar’s wife Becks Starling are back and bringing their unconventional methods to a string of high-profile murders. But it soon becomes clear to the amateur sleuths that this time their investigations may hit closer to home than ever before. From the sudden death of the kindest man in Marlow, the town’s beloved Mayor, to a celebrity chef found dead at the launch of his cookbook with half the town in attendance, the team will be working under the watchful eye of the Marlow community. They’ll also be called to an eerie manor house in the middle of nowhere where they’ll face a case intrinsically linked to Becks’ past that could threaten the future of their roles as civilian advisors. Judith, Suzie and Becks will have to pull closer together than ever to catch these killers. Starring Samantha Bond, Jo Martin, Cara Horgan and Natalie Dew.

Call The Midwife S15 – 7 May
When senior members of the Nonnatus House staff head to Hong Kong on a mercy mission, the younger midwives are left to cope alone. As the Christmas action shifts between the sun-drenched Far East and a snowy East End, Sister Julienne suddenly finds herself excited about the Order’s future. After years of battling change, she decides to embrace it, work with it, and see what love can do. This change of energy reverberates throughout series 15. The new series kicks off in 1971 with several of the ladies embracing Women’s Lib and burning their bras outside Nonnatus House. As the year unfolds, we see the team handle cases including premature birth, placenta previa, kidney cancer, tuberculosis and slavery.

Lynley – 8 May
Leo Suter and Sofia Barclay star as the unconventional detective duo DI Tommy Lynley and DS Barbara Havers in a modern reimagining on the popular original series. Tommy Lynley is a brilliant police detective but an outsider in the force – simply by virtue of his aristocratic upbringing. He is paired with Barbara Havers, a sergeant with a maverick attitude and a working-class background. With seemingly nothing in common and against all odds, the mismatched duo of Lynley and Havers become a formidable team, bonded by their desire to see justice done.

Foyle’s War S6 – 16 May
The sixth series of Foyle’s War unfolds in the uneasy months following Victory in Europe, as Britain struggles to transition from conflict to recovery. Detective Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle, played by Michael Kitchen, increasingly disillusioned with the political constraints placed upon his work, finds himself navigating a new landscape where wartime loyalties shift, old secrets resurface, and the boundaries between justice and national interest blur.

Series 6 begins in June 1945 when Foyle, tracking an escaped Russian POW at the behest of British intelligence, becomes involved in a murder investigation conducted by his former subordinate, DI Paul Milner. The situation threatens not only their already strained relationship, but also Foyle's life. Meanwhile, Sam Stewart (Honeysuckle Weeks), struggling to adjust to civilian life, once again becomes indispensable as she and Foyle uncover the truth behind a wave of nighttime robberies and the suspicious death of a man charged with treason.

Miss Scarlet S6 – 25 May
When we last saw Eliza Scarlet, her life seemed out of balance. A new Detective Inspector had taken charge at Scotland Yard; one with no intention of enlisting her services. But true to form, Eliza didn’t back down. Through grit and brilliance, she earned the DI's respect. And Eliza's maternal housekeeper decided to marry coroner Barnabus Potts as Season 5 wrapped—what will that mean for the household? Now as a new chapter begins, we wonder: Will Eliza continue to pour everything into the job, or will she attend to her personal life?

BBC Belgium will officially launch on 5 May 2026.

ENDS

About BBC Studios
BBC Studios is the main commercial arm of BBC Commercial Ltd and generated revenues of £2.1 billion in the last year and profits of over £200 million for a fourth consecutive year. Its content, internationally recognised across a broad range of genres, includes world-famous brands like Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing with the Stars, the Planet series, Bluey and Doctor Who. BBC Studios Audio produces and distributes an expansive portfolio including hit podcasts, vodcasts and iconic radio including Desert Island Discs, You’re Dead to Me, The Global Story, Things Fell Apart, The History Bureau and In Our Time. With drama, factual and comedy and entertainment teams delivering world-class audio and digital content to audiences around the world, BBC Studios Audio produced over 600 hours of content in the last year, winning 33 awards internationally.