The 2026 edition of the Tour of Britain begins on Wednesday as riders embark on their 910km quest through England and Scotland.
It starts in Lincoln on Wednesday and winds its way north through Yorkshire and North Yorkshire before crossing the border.
This year’s winner will be crowned on Sunday in the 160.4km final stage in the Scottish Borders, which starts and finishes in Earlston.
It’s been 10 years since a British rider won the Tour of Britain, with Steve Cummings the last to claim the title in 2016.
A strong international field suggests the wait for a home hero is set to go on but the good news for UK fans is that there is extensive free coverage and highlights throughout.
Radio Times brings you all the details about how to watch the Tour of Britain 2026.
How to watch Tour of Britain 2026 on TV and live stream
UK viewers can watch the Tour of Britain 2026 for free on ITV4 and ITVX.
Fans can also tune in to watch the race on TNT Sports.
There are multiple ways to get TNT Sports. At the time of writing, if you already have BT Broadband, you can add TNT Sports to your existing contract from £5 per month for the first three months (£25 per month after). You can add the ‘Big Sport’ package for £15 per month (£55 per month after) which includes all TNT Sports and 11 Sky Sports channels via a NOW pass.
You can also access TNT Sports via HBO Max and stream directly to your smart TV.
You can watch the race on TNT Sports via a HBO Max sport pass without signing up to a contract.
Regular subscribers can also stream matches on a variety of devices including laptops, smartphones and tablets via the HBO Max app.
HBO Max is the new streaming home of TNT Sports, showing events including live Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, Premiership Rugby, UFC, Boxing and MotoGP. Learn more here: hbomax.com
Live coverage of the race will also be available online via the Tour of Britain YouTube channel.
Want to see this content?
Accept and continue
Tour of Britain 2026 schedule
Wednesday 2 September
Stage 1 [187.6km]: Lincoln > Lincoln (10:30am) ITV4 / ITVX / TNT Sports 1 / HBO Max
Thursday 3 September
Stage 2 [180.2km]: Boston > Skegness (10:30am) ITV4 / ITVX / TNT Sports 1 / HBO Max
Friday 4 September
Stage 3 [194.1km]: Hull > Beverley (10:30am) ITV4 / ITVX / TNT Sports 1 / HBO Max
Saturday 5 September
Stage 4 [165.8km]: Helmsley > Leyburn (11am) ITV4 / ITVX / TNT Sports 4 / HBO Max
Sunday 6 September
Stage 5 [156.1km]: Earlston > Earlston (11am) ITVX / TNT Sports 1 / HBO MaxTour of Britain 2026 highlights on free TV
A one-hour Tour of Britain highlights show will be broadcast every night on ITV4 and ITVX.
It is scheduled for 8pm on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, and 9pm on Saturday.
There will also be highlights across TNT Sports, via HBO Max, so you can keep track of all the biggest moments.
You can also tune in for highlights every evening at around 7pm on free-to-air channel 5 in the UK.
Tour of Britain past winners2010: Michael Albasini2011: Lars Boom2012: Nathan Haas2013: Bradley Wiggins2014: Dylan van Baarle2015: Edvald Boasson Hagen2016: Steve Cummings2017: Lars Boom2018: Julian Alaphilippe2019: Mathieu van der Poel2021: Wout van Aert2022: Gonzalo Serrano2023: Wout van Aert2024: Stephen Williams2025: Romain Grégoire
Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.