Children in Need 2026 is on BBC One on Friday 13 November from 7 pm to 10 pm, live from MediaCityUK in Salford. Mel Giedroyc is back to host, with Alex Jones, Rylan, Sara Cox and Tyler West alongside her. Radio 2’s Owain Wyn Evans starts a nearly 400-mile bike ride for the appeal in Glasgow on Monday 9 November, and last year’s show raised £45.5m on the night. Here’s when it’s on, who’s presenting, where Owain is, and why the total has started climbing again.
Children in Need 2026
- WhenFriday 13 November, 7 pm to 10 pm
- Where to watchBBC One and BBC iPlayer
- Live fromMediaCityUK, Salford
- PresentersMel Giedroyc, Alex Jones, Rylan, Sara Cox and Tyler West
- Last year£45.5m raised on the night
When is Children in Need 2026, and what time is it on?
Children in Need 2026 is on Friday 13 November, from 7 pm to 10 pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
The appeal show comes live from Salford and is made by BBC Studios Entertainment Productions, BBC Children in Need said. BBC One’s London schedule has the live show running for three hours, until the News at Ten, and describes it as a “star-studded night of music, comedy and big surprises”. Last year’s show also ran for three hours, Civil Society reported. Times can differ slightly in other regions, so check your local BBC One listing.
Earlier the same day, a Children in Need special of Bargain Hunt at 12.15 pm on BBC One has two teams of radio DJs trying to make a profit for the appeal.
The BBC’s outline of the night puts the studio at MediaCityUK and includes the Children in Need Choir singing a live medley, special collaborations with BBC shows, The One Show’s Challenge Squad, stories from children and young people around the UK, sketches and surprise guests, TV Zone UK reported. The performers hadn’t been named when we checked on Monday 9 November.
Who is presenting Children in Need 2026?
Mel Giedroyc, Alex Jones, Rylan, Sara Cox and Tyler West are presenting Children in Need 2026.
- Mel GiedroycBack for her tenth appeal show, according to the BBC’s line-up announcement.
- Alex JonesThe One Show presenter was the first name revealed, in September. She said she was “absolutely delighted” to join.
- RylanThe Radio 2 presenter raised more than £1m in 2019 by singing non-stop for 24 hours in the Great Ka-RY-Oke Challenge.
- Sara CoxLast year she walked 135 miles for the appeal, from Kielder Forest to Pudsey.
- Tyler WestCompletes the five presenters announced for this year’s appeal show.
The Children in Need presenters were announced in stages through the autumn, with Alex Jones first on The One Show’s launch night and Rylan following in October, PA reported.
Where is Owain Wyn Evans on his Children in Need ride?
Owain Wyn Evans starts in Glasgow on Monday 9 November and finishes in central Cardiff on Friday 13 November, after nearly 400 miles through all four UK nations.
Nearly 400 miles in five days, through Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales
Owain, who presents the Early Breakfast show on BBC Radio 2, is taking on the 4 Nations Cycle Challenge, the greatest distance ever covered in a Radio 2 fundraising challenge, BBC Children in Need said. The BBC hasn’t published a stage by stage route, only the start and finish. You can follow him live on Radio 2 through the week and on the live tracker.
Sports scientist Professor Greg Whyte is supporting him on the ride, and a BBC One film about it is due to air later in November, Nation.Cymru reported. Vernon Kay has promised to be in Cardiff when he crosses the line, Brit Brief reported, and the BBC’s outline has Owain in the studio for the appeal show that night.
It isn’t his first big challenge for the charity. In 2021, while he was a BBC weather presenter, Owain drummed for 24 hours on BBC Breakfast and raised more than £3.8m. We’ll update this section each day of the ride.
How much did Children in Need raise last year?
Children in Need raised £45,507,536 on the night of Friday 14 November 2025, up £6.3m on 2024 and the biggest total on the night since 2019.
The total on the night peaked at £50.6m in 2018 and fell to £33.5m in 2023, the lowest of the last ten years. Civil Society linked the decline to fewer people watching traditional TV, which Ofcom describes as being in long-term decline. Then it climbed again, to £39.2m in 2024 and £45.5m last year.
The big presenter challenges have grown over the same years. Sara Cox’s 135-mile walk from Kielder Forest to Pudsey had raised £9,523,028 by the time the 2025 show was on air, PA reported, a sum equal to about a fifth of the night’s total. It went on to reach £11.7m, and this year Sara has handed the Pudsey backpack to Owain, Nation.Cymru reported.
- 2019Rylan sings for 24 hours on Radio 2 and raises more than £1m
- 2021Owain drums for 24 hours on BBC Breakfast and raises more than £3.8m
- 2025Sara Cox walks 135 miles and reaches £9.5m by show night, then £11.7m
- 2026Owain cycles nearly 400 miles from Glasgow to Cardiff
We’ll add the Children in Need 2026 total here as soon as it’s announced on Friday night.
You can read more about Sara Cox’s 2025 challenge on Daily Tuesday.
What is Challenge Yourself 2026?
Challenge Yourself 2026 is this year’s main fundraising campaign: you set yourself a challenge built around the number 26 and raise money for doing it.
BBC Children in Need’s own examples include walking 26 miles, learning 26 new words, baking 26 cakes or giving up a favourite treat for 26 days. Anyone of any age can take part by signing up on the charity’s website.
- Run with Pudsey and Joe WicksWalk, run or roll two miles a day for the two weeks before the appeal, which adds up to a marathon.
- The official T-shirtDesigned by Spice Girl Emma Bunton with Pudsey at the centre, in yellow or black, from £4 for children and £10 for adults at George at Asda.
How do you donate to Children in Need?
You can donate through the official BBC Children in Need donation page, or give to Owain’s ride on his own donation page.
The phone and text numbers for 2026 hadn’t been published when we checked. If you donate by phone or text on the night, use only the numbers shown on BBC One or on the charity’s website.
Where does the Children in Need money go?
It funds more than 1,500 projects for children and young people across the UK, including youth clubs, family centres, hospices and helplines.
The charity says it can fund only one in six of the organisations that ask for help, which leaves around half a million children and young people without support. Its research for this year’s appeal, carried out by Censuswide with 2,000 children aged 11 to 16 and their parents, found that 44% of the children had felt worried or low with no one to talk to at least some of the time in the past month.
Who is Pudsey?
Pudsey Bear was created in 1985 by BBC graphic designer Joanna Lane and named after her home town of Pudsey in West Yorkshire. He started out with brown fur and a red bandana, turned yellow in 1986 and got his multicoloured bandana in 2007, BBC Children in Need says.
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The date, venue, campaign, T-shirt, survey and funding figures are from BBC Children in Need. The times are from BBC One’s schedule, the line-up and running order from the BBC’s announcement as reported by TV Zone UK, and the presenter details from PA. Owain’s route is from BBC Children in Need, with details from Nation.Cymru and Brit Brief. The totals on the night are from Wikipedia’s table of BBC figures and Civil Society, and Sara Cox’s total from PA and Nation.Cymru. The Pudsey facts are from BBC Children in Need.