Downloading iPlayer videos to your computer/iphone/media player

[Crispy]

without viewing restrictions? impossible? not so

On windows: http://r2software.blogspot.com/2009/04/idownload-download-bbc-iplayer-drm-free.html (custom GUI)
On mac: http://snapshotmedia.co.uk/projects/iplayer-downloader/ (browse the iplayer website and click the show to download)
On linux: http://linuxcentre.net/getiplayer/ (it's command line only, can't find a graphical tool)

You get a 480x272 mp4 file in a .mov container. It's intended for the iphone, so you can copy it straight over to one of those. Quality's not quite as good on a big screen, but it's a small price to pay VLC will play them quite happily, so no need to install quicktime.

This is of course against the terms and conditions, so I don't recommend you actually use such tools, that would be bad.

 

[boskysquelch]

.

 

[sumimasen]

Crispy a little offtopic but would you have any idea how to play videos on the ipod? Video not bought from the iStore that is.

I downloaded a film 'for ipod' from the warez bb board. 400mb mp4. I dragged it into my iTunes and synched my ipod (nano, latest or 2nd-to-latest gen). However on my ipod the film doesn't come up at all.

 

[Crispy]

you have to drag it from the library in itunes onto the ipod icon on the left. Not sure if your nano will accept it though 'formatted for ipod' usually means the touch. worth a go though

 

[cybershot]

Download BBC iPlayer videos to your PC

http://www.blogsdna.com/4438/download-bbc-iplayer-drm-free-video-audio-with-idownload.htm

Haven't tested it myself but have seen the question asked before on here.

Not sure if it downloads everything or just the stuff that hasn't been DRM'd!!

 

[Crispy]

cheers. original post updated

 

[joe candy]

theres get_iplayer, works ok, no gui though

 

[boskysquelch]

theres get_iplayer, works ok, no gui though

if y'all look about some you'll find some... & then some.

http://linuxcentre.net/getiplayer/projects-using-get_iplayer/

 

[temper_tantrum]

Hi techy people
Sorry for bumping an old thread but I thought my query was far too basic to be worth starting a new one!
I'm trying to download iPlayer programmes onto my iPhone, and I've installed the BBC iPlayer download manager ok, but now I can't find any way of actually downloading the programmes!!! All I can find on the iPlayer website pages is the 'play' button. I can't see any 'download now' button.
I've just spent half an hour browsing through the iPlayer help section, looking for a basic step-by-step guide that shows how to actually download a file, but came up with nothing. They have loads of info on how to do just about everything else!
I'm probably being a complete moron. Can anyone help?!

 

[Crispy]

There are two ways to download iplayer programmes.

1: The official way, using the BBC iPlayer download manager. These downloads will only play for one week (or so) after downloading. They cannot be converted to play on the iphone.

2: The cheeky way, using one of the tools in the first post. This will give you a file that can be dropped onto your iphone on the right hand side of itunes, without any conversion.

The BBC website does not tell you this because it's not what they want you to be able to do.

 

[temper_tantrum]

I don't mind not being able to play stuff for more than a week (I'd quickly get backed up if I wasn't time-constrained ) but does point 1 in your post mean that I can't play anything from iPlayer on iPhone?
I've managed to play radio programmes on my iPhone when I was on a wifi connection, and it worked fine.
The reason I decided to look into downloads is so that I can listen to stuff on the train when I'm not in range of free wifi. Is this unpossible, then?!

Edit: In case anyone really cares, my main inspiration was the new Radio 4 series, A History of the World in 100 Objects, which at 15 mins long would fit into my daily train journey perfectly And I just know that if I don't find time for it while I'm travelling, there's no way I'm going to keep up with all the episodes ...

 

[boskysquelch]

tt jus look at get_iplayer & then drag n drop into yer iPod or however you do it... I zap things down most days/get anything I want/ in any format needed...give them to peeps months later for their iPods...they still work. End of.

or go read this & more http://iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.uk/help/mobile/how_to_sideload and so on.

 

[Mr Smin]

get_iplayer is available for windows and linux (and mac I think). there is no gui but it's not too hard to use
follow the installation instructions and then open a terminal
in windows this means
start menu > run
then type cmd.exe in the box and press enter
you now have a command prompt
type
get_iplayer --type=radio
it will get a list of available radio programmes
type
get_iplayer --type=radio Objects
'Objects' is the word I thought was most likely to return your programme and nothing else (the other words in the title were more common!)
it should give you a list of the available episodes, with 5-digit numbers as identifiers next to the name of the programme
type
get_iplayer 12345
but don't use 12345, use the appropriate number next to the episode you want
you should get a download in mp4a format, although you may be able to get other formats, i think the iphone plays mp4a

 

[boskysquelch]

it is very easy to get yer head around in Terminal after a few goes...but there is a GUI or 3...this one is the one I linked to earlier which can be used within FF. http://linuxcentre.net/getiplayer/get_iplayer-pvr-manager

 

[boskysquelch]

Update:::grrrrrssssss

http://linuxcentre.net/get_iplayer-dropped-in-response-to-bbcs-lack-of-support-for-open-source

BBC says stop play etc etc etc

 

[nuffsaid]

Get iPlayer, records BBC iPlayer progs and allows playback on non Flash devices

This seems a good solution to me wanting to download BBC iPlayer radio shows that Auntie said it wouldn't allow.

http://www.infradead.org/get_iplayer/html/get_iplayer.html

Unlike the web sites above, get_iplayer has PVR-like capabilities (like Sky+ / TiVo / Series-Link); You can save lists of programme searches which are automatically recorded when they become available so that you can watch them when you choose and on devices that cannot run Adobe Flash Player - even if you don’t have adequate broadband speeds or if your broadband streams too slowly at peak hours when you want to watch a programme.

 

[Crispy]

Merged for the 4th time

 

[Throbbing Angel]

Get iPlayer, records BBC iPlayer progs and allows playback on non Flash devices

This seems a good solution to me wanting to download BBC iPlayer radio shows that Auntie said it wouldn't allow.

http://www.infradead.org/get_iplayer/html/get_iplayer.html

Unlike the web sites above, get_iplayer has PVR-like capabilities (like Sky+ / TiVo / Series-Link); You can save lists of programme searches which are automatically recorded when they become available so that you can watch them when you choose and on devices that cannot run Adobe Flash Player - even if you don’t have adequate broadband speeds or if your broadband streams too slowly at peak hours when you want to watch a programme.

Buuuuump

I'm just on my way out now, but, will check back later....I would like to record part of a BBC iPlayer Radio stream to keep and cherish.

Does anyone know if ^^this^^ Get iPlayer thing still works after the changes to the iPlayer system?

I'm on a Chromebook at present so would like to know if it is worth blowing the dust off my Win7 machine.

Or, any other suggestions for software that does this?

 

[hippogriff]

I last used get_iplayer a couple of months ago (on linux); it was working then. No working GUI these days, it's command line, and you have to pass the program id to it as a parameter, which you get from the url of the program you want to watch - for example, in this url: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b05whvjr/the-detectives-2-interrogation, the pid is b05whvjr

 

[Mr Smin]

http://manual.audacityteam.org/o/man/tutorial_recording_computer_playback_on_windows.html

You could use Audacity while streaming iPlayer

 

[Throbbing Angel]

Cheers, both. I'll have a look at those later. I have Audacity already.

 

[Throbbing Angel]

am trying Get iPlayer - seems confusing - it has a GUI on Windows by the way, uses a web browser, have asked it to record a radio show that will disappear soon, using the Pid, says it has run the 'PVR run' but no recordings have appeared, yet - I'll give it a few more goes and try Audacity I think [I didn't have it installed as it turned out]

 

[Throbbing Angel]

screenshot of GUI - got it to work using the URL rather than just the Pid,why, I don't know, anyway...