How To Watch The Walking Dead Season 8 Online In The UK
The Walking Dead season 8 has had an explosive first half, and the second half of the season is back, with the war between Rick Grimes’ (Andrew Lincoln) group and Negan (Jeffery Dean Morgan) in full force. UK Cord cutters might wonder – where can I watch The Walking Dead online, or on TV, without a cable TV subscription? There are several options which I’ll cover here.
For those who are either new to the series, or need a refresher, The Walking Dead is a TV series based on the comic book created by Robert Kirkman. The TV version was originally developed by Frank Darabont (who directed The Shawshank Redemption, among others), who left during the second season due to creative and financial differences.
The Walking Dead is a horror drama, showing a post apocalyptic world infested with zombies, or “Walkers” as they’re called on the show. The lead character, Rick Grimes is a former sheriff, who leads a group of survivors, including his wife, son and eventually daughter.
Season 7, which aired last year, introduced one of the series’ most notorious villains – Negan, who started the season by killing off two major (and beloved) characters. Series 7 then went on to become one of the gloomiest ever, though our heroes did manage to pick up some fighting spirit by the end of the season, which translated into an all out war on the first half of Season 8 – but not without new casualties.
Photo: Gene Page / AMC
Where Can I Watch The Walking Dead In The UK – Past And Current Episodes?
In the US, The Walking Dead airs on the AMC cable network, and in the UK it normally airs on Fox UK. Cord cutters, however, also have several options for watching the show – both past seasons and the latest one. First, no – The Walking Dead does NOT air on Netflix in the UK. It does in some countries – but alas, not here.
With Part 2 of Season 8 of The Walking Dead (starting with Episode 9) set to premiere on February 25 in the US and February 26 in the UK, these are your main options:
NOW TV – New and Old Episodes
Sky’s on-demand service, meant to compete with Netflix, offers a cheaper price over Sky’s cable TV offerings.
All past seasons (1-8) of The Walking Dead are available as box-sets on NOW TV – but only until March 27, so don’t wait too long to start watching. Season 8, Part 2 is going to air on THE NEXT DAY after its US airing, at 10pm – so that means every Monday at 10.
Pros:
- Cheap, monthly subscription (£7.99 a month) – includes The Walking Dead and many other programmes
- Includes the newest episodes, each one added shortly after airing in the US
- You can get a 14-days Free Trial.
Cons:
- Picture Quality: Only gets up to 720p, without Full HD (that’s a limitation of NOW TV)
- No subtitles (another service-wide limitation of NOW TV. They’ve promised to add subtitles for ages, but we’re not there yet).
Watch On: NOW TV Box, Chromecast, Apple TV, Gaming consoles, Certain models of Smart TVs (No Amazon Fire TV)
Amazon Instant Video – New and Old Episodes
Amazon’s video on demand library offers both the older seasons, and the new episodes. There’s a catch, however – while Series 1 to Series 6 are available via Amazon Prime Instant Video (Read our review), for the same subscription fee you normally pay, the newest episodes are only available (at this point) for direct purchase.
You can buy a “Season Pass” for Series 8, and get a message every time a new episode is available – which is usually shortly after it airs in the US.
Pros:
- Several seasons available as part of the normal subscription
- Full HD quality (1080p)
- Subtitles!
Cons:
- Series 7 (and 8) require a separate purchase
Watch On: Amazon’s website, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Smartphones, Gaming consoles (NO Chromecast or Apple TV).
Click Here To Get a 30 Days Free Trial of Prime Video (For Series 1 to Series 5 of The Walking Dead).
Click Here To Check The Purchase Price For Series 7+8 On Amazon Instant Video.
Google Play Store – New And Old Episodes
Google’s play store offers all past seasons of The Walking Dead, as well at the upcoming new episodes, which will be available shortly after they air. However, it’s a video on demand store – there are no subscription options, and you would have to buy each episode separately.
Pros:
- Full HD (1080p) quality
- Subtitles
Cons:
- No subscription – need to buy each series separately.
Watch On: Chromecast, certain models of Smart TVs, Roku, smartphones and certain other devices via the YouTube app (No direct Amazon Fire TV or Apple TV support).
Click Here To Check Prices On The Google Play Store.
Happy Zombie (sorry, walkers) Hunting!
[Featured Photo by Gene Page/AMC]
