Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole Episode Rating Graph
Jun 2014 - present
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Documentary looking at people and families whose sole source of income is benefits and state welfare
Browse episode ratings trends for Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole. Simply click on the interactive rating graph to explore the best and worst of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole's 18 episodes.
Best Episodes of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole
Benefits House - Me and My 22 Kids
S1 Ep2
7.5
23rd Jun 2014
This edition of the programme focuses on large families who depend on the benefits system, including 64-year-old Peter Rolfe, whose children - by 15 different women - range in ages from three to 43, of which he is the sole carer for six. He has been fighting his council in the Isle of Wight for a much bigger house and is also at loggerheads with the benefits office for capping his weekly payment. West Midlands mother-of-eight Marie Buchanan has recently split from her partner and is looking for a larger home, while Ipswich couple the Fisks have been in dispute with their neighbours, who objected to two houses being knocked into one to accommodate them and their 13 children.
Episode 5
S2 Ep5
7.4
9th Feb 2015
Tony ʻScrapʼ Taylor is a well-known figure in the community doing odd jobs and collecting scrap. He claims just £51.40 a week but does odd jobs for food, enabling his benefits money to go a bit further. If you need something in Jaywick then Tony is the man who can sort it out!
Episode 12 Jailbird Boys Going Straight
S2 Ep12
7.3
15th Aug 2015
Ex-prisoners trying to go straight on the welfare state.
Episode 7
S2 Ep7
7.2
23rd Feb 2015
Life on the dole north of the border with a pair of wannabe pop stars, a globetrotter who has invented her own new age Chakra swing, and a woman who is convinced that her weight is stopping her from getting a job.
Episode 6
S1 Ep6
7.1
21st Jul 2014
The final episode of the series meets 38-year-old Heather, who has 11 children and whose family live in a knocked-through council house on the outskirts of Gloucester. Heather makes nearly £60,000 a year in benefits and many of her children also survive on welfare payments. Elsewhere, in Liverpool, Julie has six children, none of whom have jobs. She and her husband Vinnie earn roughly the minimum wage from benefits. Finally, in London, single mums Emma and Sophie support themselves in London's Zone 1 by claiming money from the state.
Worst Episodes of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole
Episode 2
S2 Ep2
6.3
3rd Dec 2014
In Blackpool, a mother-of-six is banned from the job centre.
Episode 3
S2 Ep3
6.5
10th Dec 2014
We meet the immigrants who are claiming UK welfare to send back home.
Episode 6
S2 Ep6
6.5
16th Feb 2015
Dean, an 18-year-old from Harlow in Essex, made sure that he signed on as soon as he was old enough, regarding benefits as “free money”. He still lives at home with his mum, has zero ambition, spends his days in bed until 2pm and plays on his phone the rest of the time. His mum does everything for him and his benefits are spent on booze and fags. A brief stint in a reality show gave him a taste of fame and left him with no intention of getting a normal job – until he is sanctioned.
Episode 8
S2 Ep8
6.6
2nd Mar 2015
This time we're at the seaside. Debbie suffers from numerous disabilities, while single mum Stacie is living in a small flat with a three-month-old baby. We also meet Dave, a firearms fanatic who hasn't worked for two years and lives in a two-bedroom home with his mother.
Episode 11 Me & My 14 Kids
S2 Ep11
6.6
23rd Mar 2015
Tom and Stacey have 14 children and claim £70,000 a year.
Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole Episode Guide
Benefits Brits by the Sea
S1 Ep1
6.8
16th Jun 2014
Documentary examining the lives of people dependent on state welfare in the Norfolk seaside town of Great Yarmouth, where the majority of work is seasonal. Leona and Lee worry about their three-month-old daughter's future when their payments are cut because they failed to fill in the correct forms, while Jordan McDonald has his benefits halved after the job centre discovers he has not attended a government work programme.
Benefits House - Me and My 22 Kids
S1 Ep2
7.5
23rd Jun 2014
This edition of the programme focuses on large families who depend on the benefits system, including 64-year-old Peter Rolfe, whose children - by 15 different women - range in ages from three to 43, of which he is the sole carer for six. He has been fighting his council in the Isle of Wight for a much bigger house and is also at loggerheads with the benefits office for capping his weekly payment. West Midlands mother-of-eight Marie Buchanan has recently split from her partner and is looking for a larger home, while Ipswich couple the Fisks have been in dispute with their neighbours, who objected to two houses being knocked into one to accommodate them and their 13 children.
Benefits, Babies and Jail
S1 Ep3
7.0
30th Jun 2014
The documentary examining the lives of unemployed people visits South Yorkshire, which has some of the most deprived neighbourhoods in the UK and where benefits caps, sanctions and the bedroom tax are hitting those at the poorer end of society. Larry is a 60-year-old ex-steelworker and desperate for work, but says no one wants to hire him as he is considered too old, while father-of-three Kevin is long-term unemployed and back living with his parents in the bedroom he occupied as a teenager.
Episode 4
S1 Ep4
6.9
7th Jul 2014
The documentary examining the lives of unemployed people visits Hull, which has one of the highest unemployment rates and lowest average weekly wages in the UK. Rebecca is 16 and expecting her first baby with 17-year-old boyfriend Sonny, who is adamant he will be in work by the time the child arrives, while her foster mother Anita is concerned she will be unable to afford her house when her children move out. Gordon has not worked in decades and has very strong political views as to why employment has eluded him and many others in the north of England.
Episode 5
S1 Ep5
6.7
14th Jul 2014
The documentary examining the lives of individuals on the dole in the UK follows the stories of Roma people who moved to the UK and are now surviving on payments from the welfare state. Ion is from Romania and wants to make £40,000 from benefits to help him build a new house for his family back in his home village, while Katarina arrived from Slovakia seven years ago and has 11 children and 11 grandchildren living in and around an estate in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. Nottingham resident Viorel is 25 and lost both legs in an accident in his native Romania when he was seven, and now wants to pursue a career in the movies.
Episode 6
S1 Ep6
7.1
21st Jul 2014
The final episode of the series meets 38-year-old Heather, who has 11 children and whose family live in a knocked-through council house on the outskirts of Gloucester. Heather makes nearly £60,000 a year in benefits and many of her children also survive on welfare payments. Elsewhere, in Liverpool, Julie has six children, none of whom have jobs. She and her husband Vinnie earn roughly the minimum wage from benefits. Finally, in London, single mums Emma and Sophie support themselves in London's Zone 1 by claiming money from the state.
The best rated episodes of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole are:
- Benefits House - Me and My 22 Kids S1E2 rated 7.5
- Episode 5 S2E5 rated 7.4
- Episode 12 Jailbird Boys Going Straight S2E12 rated 7.3
- Episode 7 S2E7 rated 7.2
- Episode 6 S1E6 rated 7.1
The lowest rated episodes of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole are:
- Episode 2 S2E2 rated 6.3
- Episode 3 S2E3 rated 6.5
- Episode 6 S2E6 rated 6.5
- Episode 8 S2E8 rated 6.6
- Episode 11 Me & My 14 Kids S2E11 rated 6.6
The first episode of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole aired on June 16, 2014.
The last episode of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole aired on August 15, 2015.
There are 18 episodes of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole.
There are 2 seasons of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole.
Yes.
Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole is set to return for future episodes.
Shows for Fans of Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole
