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On Benefits - Episode Guide

Season 1

26 Kids and Claiming

Episode: 1x01 | Airdate: Mar 17, 2016

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A man with 11 children has been signing on for ten years.

On the Yorkshire Dole

Episode: 1x02 | Airdate: Mar 24, 2016

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Steve thinks his tattoos are stopping him finding a job.

Benefit Beauty Queens

Episode: 1x03 | Airdate: Mar 31, 2016

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People on benefits who believe fame is around the corner.

Got Talent?

Episode: 1x04 | Airdate: Apr 7, 2016

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Emma doesn't let her budget stop her from entering pageants.

Episode 5

Episode: 1x05 | Airdate: Apr 14, 2016

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Documentary about people living on benefits in Portsmouth.

Episode 6

Episode: 1x06 | Airdate: Apr 21, 2016

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25-stone Blossom is due to have exploratory surgery.

Episode 7

Episode: 1x07 | Airdate: Apr 28, 2016

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Rob and Roxanne have been sent an eviction notice.

Episode 8

Episode: 1x08 | Airdate: May 5, 2016

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Young couple Nathan and Kim struggle to afford to eat.

Episode 9

Episode: 1x09 | Airdate: May 12, 2016

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Two couples trying to have the perfect wedding on benefits.

Episode 10

Episode: 1x10 | Airdate: May 19, 2016

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Brits trying to live on the dole and care for their pets.

Episode 11

Episode: 1x11 | Airdate: May 26, 2016

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Benefits Special: 18 Kids and Claiming

Episode: 1x12 | Airdate: Jun 2, 2016

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Documentary series looking at people trying to get by on benefits, including Maria who has five children with five different dads, and Kate in Weymouth who gets almost £30,000 a year in benefits for her and her seven kids.

On Benefits: Bargain Barbie and Desperate Dole Claimants

Episode: 1x13 | Airdate: Jun 9, 2016

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Documentary series. Sammy has to spend her reduced benefits wisely to cater for her family. Simone is hoping to forge a career as a model. Brian is struggling to live on just £46 a week after ill health. Ex-con Anthony's benefits have been slashed twice in the last year.

Episode 14

Episode: 1x14 | Airdate: Jun 16, 2016

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Documentary series. Featuring the stories of four island-living people on benefits who feel cut off from society.

Episode 15

Episode: 1x15 | Airdate: Jun 23, 2016

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Documentary about people living on benefits. Newlyweds Rob and Roxanne have been sent an eviction notice for rent arrears. Anne-Marie and Shaun need to qualify for disability benefits to add to their household budget. Shelley downsized to avoid the bedroom tax, but is not happy with the outcome.

Episode 16

Episode: 1x16 | Airdate: Jun 30, 2016

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Documentary about people living on benefits. Chantelle spends her day hanging out with her friends as they try to make their benefits stretch. Jayne is working and claims less ú10 in benefits. Lee from Tredegar bemoans the lack of industry and opportunity in the Valleys. Nigel had a successful business but lost everything. He now has a place to call home, but has very little else to his name.

Episode 17

Episode: 1x17 | Airdate: Jul 7, 2016

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Lisa spent seven years in prison for smuggling cocaine, and has been unemployed and on benefits ever since. James is dyslexic and surviving on only £13k a year. Jai quit his job to move to the Scottish highlands, but has found something that doesn't cost any of his benefit money.

Bargain Bride on Benefits

Episode: 1x18 | Airdate: Jul 14, 2016

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Documentary about people living on benefits. Yvonne and David are planning their dream wedding despite only earning in a year the same amount as the cost of the average UK wedding.

Episode 19

Episode: 1x19 | Airdate: Jul 21, 2016

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Documentary about people living on benefits. Rob has been on the dole for 20 years, until a freak accident offers him some compensation cash. Michelle and Thomas moved to Leeds, pushing for their children to have a better future than themselves. Kyle and Leisha live in Whitby, but the money they receive is only enough to feed them for five days out of the week. Alex blew thousands on record decks, but says that Yorkshire's lack of opportunity is holding him back from becoming a DJ.

Episode 20

Episode: 1x20 | Airdate: Jul 28, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. In Whitby, a family of four's problems include Tourette's, an autistic child and possibly another on the way. In Doncaster, a lady with cerebral palsy is an ardent campaigner for animal rights despite needing round-the-clock care. In Barnsley, an arthritic hoarder struggles to survive on benefits despite making her own washing powder, cat litter and growing her own tobacco.

UK's Most Hated Woman?

Episode: 1x21 | Airdate: Aug 4, 2016

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The 'Lotto Gran' who claimed to win the National Lottery.

Desperately Seeking Stardom

Episode: 1x22 | Airdate: Aug 11, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. Debra hopes that a part in a movie will be her ticket off benefits. Anthony is afraid that his epilepsy puts off potential employers. Anne Marie cannot afford day trips for her granddaughter on £350 a week. Steven uses his benefits to feed others less fortunate than himself.

Costa Del Dole

Episode: 1x23 | Airdate: Aug 18, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. Gary moved to Jaywick to be with his partner Geoff, but it has left him unemployed for the first time since he was 16. After being made homeless, Caroline moved in with Heather, but their flat is now overcrowded. Gordon became a full-time carer for his mother in 2009, but he has not received any benefits money for months.

Living the High Life

Episode: 1x24 | Airdate: Aug 25, 2016

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Episode revisiting some of the people previously featured including the 'Millionaire Shoplifter', a former Big Brother contestant with stars in her eyes and Blossom in Brighton, whose weight was having a serious effect on her health.

Single and Skint

Episode: 1x25 | Airdate: Sep 1, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. 56-year-old Donna is about to try her hand at online dating after her desire for work got in the way of romance, 39-year-old Carl heads to a comic convention to find love, and despite receiving £9,000 a year in benefits 25-year-old single mum Jade refuses to date a guy without a job.

The Bargain Queen

Episode: 1x26 | Airdate: Sep 8, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. Sixty-year-old Avril is one of the long-term unemployed. Her nickname is the Bargain Queen because she spends much of her time at boot sales. Steve has just returned from Turkey and, at 56, is facing unemployment for the first time in his life. Transgender Jess finds job-seeking difficult while she is undergoing transitional medical treatment. Single parent and carer Tony is about to move in with his girlfriend and her son. Their benefits have been frozen pending reassessment.

Breadline Brummies

Episode: 1x27 | Airdate: Sep 15, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on benefits. Meet a single mum who needs income support to help feed her children, a young man hoping to find a job to pay off his debts, a former ASBO kid trying to put his criminal past behind him and a woman deemed fit for work, contrary to her doctor's opinion.

Cash-Strapped Couples

Episode: 1x28 | Airdate: Sep 22, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on welfare. Andy and Diane married three years ago when they were both working, however living on a severely reduced income has put a strain on their relationship. Suzanne and Derek are looking to move rather than pay bedroom tax on their four-bedroom home. Carl and Angie's benefits allowance is affected by his disability allowance and her wages from a part-time job. Stephan and Linda are deep in debt but spend ú12 a week feeding the homeless.

Breadline Brits

Episode: 1x29 | Airdate: Sep 29, 2016

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People who have served in the armed forces and now sign on.

And a Baby in the Way

Episode: 1x30 | Airdate: Oct 6, 2016

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Amy is a 20-year-old mum trying to get by on benefits.

Famous and Claiming

Episode: 1x32 | Airdate: Oct 20, 2016

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Documentary revisiting people living on welfare.

Spend it Like Backham

Episode: 1x33 | Airdate: Oct 27, 2016

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The documentary revisits individuals featured in previous episodes to see how they have been getting on.

30 Stone and Claiming

Episode: 1x34 | Airdate: Nov 3, 2016

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The documenary catches up with people featured in preivious episodes.

Baked Bean King

Episode: 1x35 | Airdate: Nov 10, 2016

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Documentary series about people living on welfare.

Britains Benefits Blackspots

Episode: 1x44 | Airdate: Jun 8, 2017

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Stories of people getting by on benefits. Shaun is trying to fight the temptation to fall back into his criminal past and make a better future off the system. Leon has exhausted all the job opportunities in his area and must look further afield. Mark suffers from diabates, sciatica and angina, and has been begging the housing association to move him.

Season 4

On Benefits & 40 Grand In Debt

Episode: 4x02 | Airdate: Mar 23, 2017

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Dad-of-three Dave is £30k in debt and has to weigh up whether a job that he has been offered will help his situation or whether he should stay on benefits, and Rapper Daz is in debt and about to be kicked out of his house unless fame and fortune knock on the door.

Britain's Most Married Man

Episode: 4x03 | Airdate: Mar 30, 2017

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67-year-old Ron believes his ninth wife, Cristel from the Philippines, will be the perfect carer for him in his old age, a carer who looks after his wife hopes a new home will bring happiness and Gwyn dreams of a life on the ocean waves.

90 Years Claiming

Episode: 4x04 | Airdate: Mar 6, 2017

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A former benefits officer now relies on the same system.

Depressed, Stressed, and Repossessed

Episode: 4x05 | Airdate: Apr 13, 2017

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Former bar manager and part-time drag queen Mark lost his Spanish bar after a licensing dispute. Now home and claiming sickness benefits for depression, Mark is keen to get well enough to work again, and ponders the possibility of returning to his beloved Spain.

Breadline Scousers

Episode: 4x06 | Airdate: Apr 20, 2017

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Jimmy cannot find a job as his religious views stop him working on the Sabbath. Nicola has become an expert bargain hunter to help stretch her benefits. Father of ten Joe has a number of serious health conditions and hasn't had a shower at home for years.

100 Stone and on the Dole

Episode: 4x07 | Airdate: Apr 27, 2017

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27-stone Sarah dreams of solving her family's financial problems by making it as a plus size model. For 31-stone James, a fear of public spaces could be holding him back. Meanwhile in Brighton, housebound MS-sufferer Bryan has taken up indoor archery.

Could Work, Should Work

Episode: 4x08 | Airdate: May 4, 2017

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Marie dreams of getting back into security work, but life gets in the way. Mike was falsely accused, and now eats one meal a day in an attempt to save money. Billy hopes that music will be his route off benefits.

Episode 9

Episode: 4x09 | Airdate: May 11, 2017

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Single mum Vanessa dreams of being a model, so she tries to scrape together £195 to apply for a nationwide beauty contest. Single mum Tasha was signed off work for mental health, but the system has denied her long-term sickness benefits. Divorced mum Hannah has big dreams of becoming an artist, but with three children under six, it will be a struggle to find the time and confidence.

Britain's Benefits Blackspots

Episode: 4x10 | Airdate: Jun 8, 2017

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Shaun is trying to fight the temptation to fall back into his criminal past and make a better future off the system. Leon has exhausted all the job opportunities in his area and must look further afield. Mark suffers from diabates, sciatica and angina, and has been begging the housing association to move him.

Living Hand to Mouth

Episode: 4x11 | Airdate: Jun 15, 2017

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Wales is home to the famous Valleys and male voice choirs, but it's also home to the highest level of benefit claims in Britain. Dawn sepnds all her money looking after five children, Rachael relies on charity shops to clothe her family, while Claire's heart condition stops her finding a full-time job.

It's a Hard Knock Life

Episode: 4x12 | Airdate: Jun 22, 2017

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James hopes that his alter ego Mrs Plonker will help him get into showbiz and off benefits. Melissa dreams of being a model to get her family of three off the system. Tracy has type-2 diabetes, hindering her efforts to look for work.

In Sickness and in Wealth

Episode: 4x13 | Airdate: Jun 29, 2017

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In Blackpool, Kung Fu master Mark hopes to get back in to paid employment after being dismissed for breaking a colleague's nose, despite having his benefits cut William has a mobility scooter on his shopping list, and Clive and Sheila are planning to get married on a benefits budget.

Generation Poverty Gap

Episode: 4x14 | Airdate: Jul 6, 2017

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In Britain there are over 700,000 people reliant on benefits, and they include people of all ages. 32-year-old Richard is eager to get his five-member family out of their two-bedroom home. 57-year-old Clive's partying gets in the way of keeping a job. Pensioner Cori's lack of teeth spoils her plans for stardom, so is trying to find a proxy to get into the music industry by.

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