SBS On Demand October 2026 highlights

SBS On Demand October 2026 highlights – SBS On Demand is loading up October with new Australian crime, acclaimed international drama, landmark documentary, live Indigenous sport, food and comedy, led by Blue Lights season four, Ethan Hawke’s The Lowdown and The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden.

The month’s other major arrivals include both seasons of Hotel Portofino, the concluding 70 Up, Stanley Tucci’s latest Italian food journey, the complete six-season run of What We Do in the Shadows and the Claire Danes and Jesse Eisenberg drama Fleishman Is in Trouble. The 2026 Koori Knockout will also stream live from Raymond Terrace across the October long weekend.

For Australian viewers, the breadth is the story. SBS On Demand is pairing box-set drops with weekly releases and live coverage, while several titles also receive linear screenings across SBS, SBS2 and NITV. Below is TV Central’s comprehensive guide to the headline programs and the wider October catalogue.

The Lowdown – Thursday 1 October

Created by Reservation Dogs co-creator Sterlin Harjo, The Lowdown stars executive producer Ethan Hawke as Lee Raybon, a self-appointed Tulsa “truthstorian” and citizen journalist. Lee’s determination to expose corruption regularly pulls him into trouble, but his latest investigation places him close to a far larger story.

After Lee publishes an investigation into the influential Washberg family, Dale Washberg – played by Tim Blake Nelson – dies in an apparent suicide. The timing convinces Lee that his reporting has uncovered something significant, sending him deeper into a case where power, family and local mythology collide.

All eight episodes arrive as a box set on SBS On Demand on Thursday, 1 October. The series will later begin on SBS on Wednesday, 25 November. Viewers looking for more Hawke can also find Gattaca, A Midnight Clear and his first acting credit, Explorers, on the service.

Ethan Hawke leads The Lowdown, streaming on SBS On Demand in October 2026. — The Lowdown. Image: SBS.

Hotel Portofino seasons 1-2 – Friday 2 October

Hotel Portofino follows a British family trying to establish a hotel for wealthy travellers on the Italian Riviera during the Roaring Twenties. Seasons one and two, comprising 18 episodes, arrive together on SBS On Demand on Friday, 2 October.

Natascha McElhone stars as Bella Ainsworth, the hotel’s co-proprietor and driving force. Only weeks after opening, Bella is short of staff and money, while guests such as the imperious Lady Latchmere, played by Anna Chancellor, expect exacting standards. At the same time, corrupt local politician Signor Danioni targets Bella and threatens to drag the hotel into the political tensions of Mussolini’s Italy.

Bella is also trying to help her wounded son Lucian and widowed daughter Alice rebuild their lives after the First World War. Her husband Cecil, meanwhile, is focused on securing an advantageous marriage for Lucian and finding the money to maintain his own lifestyle. Set in the summer of 1926, the drama uses the hotel as a setting for family conflict, personal change and the liberating influence of Italian culture. The series also screens on SBS on Fridays at 7.30pm.

Two characters from Hotel Portofino, with seasons one and two coming to SBS On Demand. — Hotel Portofino. Image: SBS.

Koori Knockout – Friday 2 to Monday 5 October

The 2026 Koori Knockout returns to Raymond Terrace for four days of rugby league, culture and community. Coverage will be live and exclusive on NITV and available live and on demand through SBS On Demand from Friday, 2 October to Monday, 5 October.

Reigning men’s champions the Newcastle Yowies will host the carnival at King Park Sports Complex on Worimi Country. Around 200 men’s, women’s and junior teams from across New South Wales are expected to compete, bringing established players, emerging talent and local teams together at one of Australia’s largest Indigenous sporting gatherings.

Alongside the fast, highly competitive football, the event is a celebration of kinship, pride and community. Its live availability gives viewers around Australia access across the full long weekend, whether they watch through NITV or stream via SBS On Demand.

Official artwork for the 2026 Koori Knockout rugby league carnival. — The 2026 Koori Knockout. Image: SBS.

70 Up – Saturday 3 October

70 Up brings one of television’s most important documentary projects to its final chapter. The journey began with 7 Up in 1964, when cameras first met a group of British children. Every seven years, the production returned to record their lives and chart their progress through adolescence, careers, relationships, parenthood, loss and retirement.

Now in their seventies, the participants look back on lives that have been documented in a way few people ever experience. The two episodes revisit hopes expressed in childhood, the paths their lives ultimately took and the triumphs, trials and bereavements encountered along the way.

Both episodes stream from Saturday, 3 October. SBS will broadcast them on 7 and 14 October. The entire collection from 7 Up through 63 Up, plus 7 Up and Me, becomes available on SBS On Demand from 1 October, while SBS2 will run a marathon from 6pm across 3-5 October.

Participants from the long-running Up documentary series reunite for 70 Up. — 70 Up. Image: SBS.

The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden – Monday 5 October

The SBS Original true-crime format The Jury returns with Skeleton in the Garden, a five-part event built around a real Australian manslaughter trial. Episodes one to four arrive as a box set on Monday, 5 October, with the fifth episode and verdict reveal following on Tuesday, 13 October.

Professional actors restage the trial word for word from the original court transcripts. As in a real courtroom, the defendant’s fate rests with twelve everyday Australians drawn from different ages, cultures and life experiences. Their task is to test the evidence, debate reasonable doubt and decide whether the prosecution has proved its case.

This case concerns a woman who disappeared, with her remains found buried in the defendant’s former backyard a decade later. However, there is no confirmed time, location, cause or motive of death, no weapon and no direct forensic evidence. The jurors must decide whether the secret burial establishes guilt or whether the evidence points elsewhere.

After the verdict, a final revelation asks the group to confront whether truth and justice always lead to the same place. The first season, The Jury: Death on the Staircase, remains available on SBS On Demand.

The twelve jurors from The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden seated in a courtroom. — The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden. Image: SBS.

Blue Lights season 4 – Thursday 8 October

Blue Lights returns with six episodes as an Australian-premiere box set on Thursday, 8 October. Three years into their work as response officers, Grace Ellis, Tommy Foster and Annie Conlon are operating at their limits as a new threat develops on the streets of Belfast.

Knife Edge Chasing Michelin Stars season 2 key art for Apple TV

At the same time, Gerry Cliff’s murder trial exposes a dangerous secret buried for years. Its consequences spread through both the police service and the criminal underworld. With major decisions about their futures looming, Grace, Tommy and Annie must confront the truth behind the greatest threat they have faced.

The multi-award-winning police drama stars Sian Brooke, Martin McCann and Katherine Devlin. Seasons one to three are already available on SBS On Demand, while season four will also air on SBS on Wednesdays at 9.30pm.

Tucci in Italy – Thursday 8 October

Stanley Tucci returns to explore Italy through its food in the five-part Tucci in Italy. Episodes begin a weekly drop on SBS On Demand on Thursday, 8 October, with the series also airing on SBS on Thursdays at 7.30pm.

Tucci’s starting point is that food offers one of the clearest ways to understand a country. In Italy, the shape of pasta and the sauce served with it can express regional identity. The series follows his culinary journey through the links between food, land and people in a country that has long been central to his life and work.

Stanley Tucci enjoys food in Italy for his SBS On Demand series Tucci in Italy. — Tucci in Italy. Image: SBS.

Fleishman Is in Trouble – Sunday 18 October

Based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s novel, Fleishman Is in Trouble stars Jesse Eisenberg as Toby Fleishman, a recently divorced 41-year-old doctor who enters app-based dating and finds a level of success he never experienced when he was younger.

Just as Toby begins to enjoy his first summer of new freedom, his former wife Rachel, played by Claire Danes, disappears. She leaves him with their children and no explanation of where she is or whether she plans to return. The story gradually widens beyond Toby’s perspective to examine a marriage, ambition, friendship and the pressures placed on its central characters.

Lizzy Caplan and Adam Brody also star. The eight episodes were directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, and Alice Wu. The full box set streams from Sunday, 18 October and the drama will also air on SBS2 on Sundays at 8.30pm.

Claire Danes and Jesse Eisenberg in Fleishman Is in Trouble. — Fleishman Is in Trouble. Image: SBS.

What We Do in the Shadows seasons 1-6 – Thursday 22 October

All six seasons of What We Do in the Shadows arrive together on Thursday, 22 October, giving viewers a 61-episode box set of the acclaimed vampire mockumentary. Based on the film by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, the series follows the nightly lives of vampires who have shared a home on Staten Island for hundreds of years.

An unexpected visit from their dark lord reminds the group that they were sent to New York more than a century ago to secure complete domination of the New World. The problem is working out how to achieve it. A documentary crew follows the vampires as supernatural ambition collides with housemate disputes, bureaucracy and the realities of modern life.

The ensemble includes Matt Berry, Natasia Demetriou, Kayvan Novak, Harvey Guillen, Mark Proksch and Kristen Schaal. The original film is already available on SBS On Demand, while the television series will also screen on SBS2 on weeknights at 8.30pm.

A vampire holds a skull in What We Do in the Shadows. — What We Do in the Shadows. Image: SBS.

More titles coming to SBS On Demand in October 2026

The headline programs sit inside a much larger October catalogue spanning drama, documentary, movies, entertainment, food and short films. Dates and titles can change, but SBS has outlined the following additions.

1 October: Made in Italy with Silvia Colloca, Ina, Sunshine, The Lowdown, Scotland’s Greatest Escape and six Stories of Power profiles featuring Arad Niksefat, Emmanuel Asante, Erkmen Savaskan, Niro Vithyasekar, Racha Abou Alchamat and Ruth Juwa Dradi.
1 October – documentaries: 7 Up, 14 Up, 21 Up, 28 Up, 35 Up, 42 Up, 49 Up, 56 Up, 63 Up, 70 Up, 7 Up and Me, Child of Dust, Deep Ocean: Kingdom of the Coelacanth, Every Little Thing, Fashion Reimagined, King of the Mountains, Like the Wind, March of the Penguins, My Generation and Peace Wilderness Man.
1 October – movies: Close-Up, Drag Me to Hell, Forte, Kill Bill: Vol. 1, Kill Bill: Vol. 2, Late Night with the Devil, Talk to Me, The Bubble and Girl You Know It’s True.
2 October: Hotel Portofino seasons one and two.
3 October: 70 Up and Maria.
5 October: The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden and Sukiyaki Western Django.
6 October: People of the North season three.
7 October: Apollo Has Fallen season two.
8 October: Canal Boat Diaries season six and Inside Sydney Fish Market.

More arrivals from 9 October

9 October: Catching Dust, Cube, Hellraiser, Jackie Brown, Razorback, The Cat O’ Nine Tails, The Dead Don’t Hurt, The Grudge, The Grudge 2, The Toxic Avenger (1984) and The Toxic Avenger (2023).
11 October: Hautalehto season two, subtitled Building 31.
12 October: Icons Unearthed: Quentin Tarantino and El Topo.
14 October: Corsage, Dead End Drive-In, Drazen, El Sett, Parthenope, Shutter, The Great Buck Howard, Slumdog Millionaire and The Elysian Field.
15 October: Coastal Adventures season one, The Holy Mountain, Andaz Apna Apna, Blue Star, Bullet Diaries, Daughter, Nanban, Pallotty 90’s Kids, Pellikuturu Party, Phas Gaye Re Obama, Pyaar Hai Toh Hai, Rangeela, Rode College, Santosh Subramaniyam and the short film Family Man.
16 October: The Black Forest Girl and When the White Lilacs Bloom Again.

Drama, comedy and movies from 18 October

18 October: Constantine’s Crossing and Fleishman Is in Trouble.
19 October: Big Fat Quiz Best Bits collections Ultimate Triumphs, Ultimate Chaos, Ultimate Flops, Ultimate Rants, Ultimate Rebels and Ultimate Shocks, plus What’s Love Got to Do with It?
20 October: Death Proof.
22 October: What We Do in the Shadows and Hildur.

Late October additions

23 October: Black Sea, Honest Thief, Noryang: Deadly Sea, Psycho Therapy, The Captain and Tony Takitani.
24 October: The Old Man and the Gun.
29 October: Northern Traces.
30 October: Wishing on a Star, Emotional Arithmetic, My Daughter’s Hair and the short film Lie to Me.

For more TV Central SBS On Demand news, head to our SBS On Demand section. Viewers can browse and stream the latest programs through the official SBS On Demand website.

Tags: 70 Up Blue Lights Fleishman is in Trouble home-streaming Hotel Portofino Koori Knockout Monthly Streaming Report MSR SBS SBS on Demand SBS On Demand October 2026 The Jury: Skeleton in the Garden The Lowdown Tucci in Italy What We Do in the Shadows