What's on NHK World?

Date: 2023 January 29 12:50

Posted by Joe

Being a fan of anime, manga and Japanese stuff in general it's always good to find a great source of content. Most fans will hunt on DVDs and blu-rays for those extra features, read magazines and articles and various bonus features included in books and so on. They'll even read websites like this one, but one resource that we find that is frequently overlooked is NHK World.

NHK is the national state broadcaster for Japan. NHK World is it's international arm. It's content is available in a selection of languages including either dubbed into English or in Japanese with English Subtitles. The service is free to access and is available on a wide range of satellite and cable providers in the US, UK and further afield. You can also watch it free and legally on the website or app that's offered on many platforms including iOS (iPhone and iPad), Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android, Roku and more. You can watch the live broadcast or the video on demand service.

A lot of the content there is excellent for anime and manga fans.

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We have:

Manben: Behind the Scenes of Manga with Urasawa Naoki.


In this show best selling manga artist Urasawa watches other manga artists at work, as you learn how they draw, tips of the trade and various techniques. Each artist is different and it's a fascinating insight into how it manga artists work. Since Urasawa himself is a manga artist he spots details normal hosts might not be aware of and asks the artists extra questions around it all. Currently only two episodes are available on NHK World, but we're hoping they release more. This is a great show for fans of manga and artists too.
[Watch on NHK World]


10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki


This 4 part documentary series follows legendary Studio Ghibli director behind the scenes as he works away at the studio. He get an insight into his creative process, how strenuous it is to create anime. This documentary is also the source of many Miyazaki memes often taking the form of subtitled screen grabs. This documentary series is a must watch for any fan of Miyazaki's works.
[Watch on NHK World]


TRIGGER - The Anime Studio


This one off documentary focuses on fan favourite anime Studio TRIGGER, known for works including Kill la Kill, Darling in the Franxx, Promare and Little Witch Academia this documentary focuses on their most recent project Cyberpunk: Edge Runners. It also shows the origins of their famed explosions!
[Watch on NHK World]


Inheriting the Sailor Crystal - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Special!


Another one off documentary, this one focuses on Sailor Moon, it's origins, history and popularity with fans. There's something for every fan of Sailor Moon here. This is what we like about NHK World, there's always some new content to discover.
[Watch on NHK World]


Living in the Moment Through Manga


This show focuses on legendary manga artist Chiba Tetsuya who created the hugely influential Ashita no Joe and traces his life and his current work as a manga artist and teacher.
[Watch on NHK World]


Anime Is Not to Be Underestimated: Tomino Yoshiyuki / Animation Director


This interview Tomino Yoshiyuki best known for being the man behind Gundam, he reveals the franchise's origin and he's motivation for creating it.
[Watch on NHK World]


Document 72 Hours


The concept for this slice of life documentary is simple. They send a camera crew to somewhere interesting, maybe a particular shop, tourist attraction or local landmark, generally somewhere with lots of footfall and they interview people there and ask what they're doing over 72 hours. This is fun relaxing show, sometimes you meet interesting local eccentrics, other times you get peoples life stories or a hint of nostalgia.
[Watch on NHK World]


Japanology Plus


This show dives into different aspects of life and culture in Japan. Each episode focuses on a particular theme or a Japanophile who has fallen in love with a particular aspect of Japan. Host Peter Barakan provides additional insight, while we also get the occasional slot with author, translator and yokai expert Matt Alt.
[Watch on NHK World]


Design Talks Plus


If you're a fan of design this show is a must watch focusing on architecture, materials and all sorts of other design stuff there's always something new and interesting to discover.
[Watch on NHK World]


Dining with the Chef


You can't think of Japan and it's culture without thinking about the food! So it makes sense that NHK World would host a cooking show or two. Dining with the Chef has a Japanese chef, such as Chef Saito introduce the audience to dishes they can cook at home. We love this show, not just for the dishes, but the for little cooking tips and techniques you learn while watching.
[Watch on NHK World]


Lessons from a Solo Diner


Not just food, but manga and food. This episode of Face to Face follows the creator of the The Solitary Gourmet manga that chronicles a travelling salesman who searches for good restaurants in locations across Japan.
[Watch on NHK World]


Cycle Around Japan


The title of this series is self explanatory. If you like getting on your bike you'll love this travel show for inspiration of where to cycle in Japan. Then again it's also like those cooking shows where they travel around the world and eat nice food, you can just watch it and enjoy the locations.
[Watch on NHK World]


Ukiyoe EDO-LIFE


Traditional Japanese Ukiyoe woodblock prints are about as Japanese as it gets. This show spends five 5 minutes explaining one woodblock print and walks you through the details and the meanings behind each picture. Our favourite is the Asakusa Ricefields and Torinomachi Festival by Utagawa Hiroshige, also known as the angry cat!
[Watch on NHK World]


Somewhere Street


Somewhere street is an interesting little show, they drop a camera crew off somewhere in a town or city and let them walk about looking at the local attractions and talking to passersby. You'll get to see places in Japan you've never considered such as Naha in Okinawa or Hida Takayama. But they also go to other places around the world from Siem Reap in Cambodia, Ghent in Belgium and Newcastle in the UK.
[Watch on NHK World]

These are small sample of what's available on NHK World.
You should head over and see if anything else grabs your attention. We find the station is part of our regular viewing!