How to Listen to the Ashes Online

For many cricket fans there’s definitely only one way to listen to the 2023 Ashes and that’s from the Test Match Special team.  You can be assured that even if the cricket does get a little dull, then there’s always something to listen to.  Besides if you’re an English cricket fan it’s important to face these matches with a sense of humor.  Here’s one of the classics from the August 1991 and will without doubt bring a smile to your face whether you’ve heard it or not!

Of course, Brian Johnston is unfortunately no longer with us, but the TMS team are still wonderful to listen to even if they have a tendency to stray off the cricket commentary occasionally.  Over the last few years, the BBC have lost the broadcasting rights to many high-profile crickets matches but thank goodness they’ve managed to secure the rights to the 2019 Ashes against a very strong Australian team!

There is a major issue for many of us though, Test Match Special is unfortunately not accessible if you’re currently located outside the United Kingdom.  So, anyone travelling, on their holidays or simply moved to sunnier climes means that you can’t enjoy that wonderful pleasure of relaxing back and listen to an Australian batting collapse whilst you sip your holiday cocktail.

How to Listen to the 2023 Ashes Coverage from Anywhere in the World

The Problem – Your IP Address is not in the UK

Which is why when you visit the BBC website looking for the TV and live radio, from somewhere like Spain or Portugal then you’ll discover a completely different setup than if you were visiting from the UK.   The BBC will not consider you British even if you happen to be relaxing by the pool with a knotted hanky on your head and a cup of tea in your hand.  Any computer or device you use (while outside the UK) will be treated as a non-domestic visitor and routed through to the international version of the BBC website.

You won’t find any links or even access to any of the multimedia pages on the international version of the BBC site – so no live TV, BBC iPlayer archive or even the radio links just a standard news site.  Even if you try and sneakily bypass this and go directly to the BBC iPlayer URL then you’ll simply be blocked with a message like this.  There may be a couple of radio links you can access but not many and certainly no sporting type broadcasts which require specific rights.  So unfortunately, that includes the Test Match Special Ashes 2022 coverage and lots of other great events.

Now of course, it’s possible wherever you happen to be might have some local coverage of the Test Matches.  However, as any cricket fan on holiday will discover there’s an awful lot of places in the world which have absolutely no interest in cricket whatsoever.  Searching for decent cricket commentary in Spain, Germany or the USA is very difficult for example, so you may be out of luck.  Fortunately, there is a simple method which you can use to bypass all these stupid blocks and filters on all your devices wherever you happen to be.

The solution – use this simple method to make your IP address British, Australian or any nationality you choose.

Here’s all you need to do

To change your address on any device you happen to use outside the UK then you’ll need to use something called a VPN service.  It sounds complicated but it’s really not, mostly it simply involves clicking on the country icon you need.

Here’s the company I use and recommend as it offers seriously great value and reliability, click on the picture and check them out.

Yes, I know VPN which stands for virtual private network sounds all geeky and complicated but the guys from NordVPN have made it pretty simple.  They have created software and apps for all your devices from computers to phones and tablets, so don’t worry if you listen to the cricket on something like a Chromebook.

Here’s a demonstration of how I use it on a PC but there are versions for all Smartphones, Computers, laptops and tablets which work in an almost identical way.

If you’re getting bored, then fast forward to about 2:00 minutes in if you want to see the software working! That’s basically it though, click on the UK and then go to the BBC Cricket site or the BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra link – https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket and everything will work just like you’re in the United Kingdom.

The subscription allows access from six devices so you can install the various versions on most of your devices and enjoy the cricket on anything wherever you are.

But there’s more! Yes, much, much more!

Not only can you listen to the Ashes Test matches stream perfectly to any of your devices wherever you are.  All the BBC will work perfectly too, you can watch any of the BBC channels live or stream and download from the thousands of archived shows and box sets stored in BBC iPlayer too.

However, don’t restrict yourself to the BBC there’s loads of other great UK TV channels which will work providing you’ve selected a UK based server from the drop-down list. So go and check out ITV, Channel 4 and 5 and enjoy virtually every UK television programme which is broadcast online.

Remember Channel 5 streams the Ashes Highlights every evening too, which you can enjoy too.  Sky TV have the live rights so if you have an active Sky Sports subscription then you can watch these too from abroad.   Again, simply select a UK server before you go the Sky GO site, remember though NordVPN will only hide your location – you’ll still need a Sky Sport subscription to watch it online.

If you’re feeling adventurous, then there’s lots of other places that broadcast cricket that can be opened up.  Many cricket lovers use NordVPN to watch the coverage from other countries – so just select an Australian server to watch Channel 7 or Fox Sports.   There’s almost certain to be decent coverage on Hotstar in India too if you click on an Indian server first.  Some of these channels make various events for subscribers only so it’s best to you check first though if you don’t want to pay for the subscription.

There are of course lots of VPN services out there, so the choice can be confusing.  Unfortunately, many services are little more than a fancy web site and a couple of rented servers so you should be careful which you choose.  NordVPN are among the few global companies with a huge infrastructure backed with excellent support to help you if you have any issues.  You’ve probably seen their advertisements on TV channels and the mainstream media.

Because NordVPN are one of the biggest VPN service providers they can provide top quality software for all your devices, super-fast servers all over the globe at the lowest price on the market.

Check out their packages and see how cheap it is to unlock all the locked content on the internet.  But of course, do it in time to watch the latest England vs Australia Ashes Test Matches.  It looks like it’s going to be very close if England can occasionally bowl Steve Smith out!

NordVPN Special Discount offers

See how little it costs to watch all UK TV and listen to the Ashes Test matches from anywhere in the world.