The Best TV Shows on NHK BSP4K

In their 50s, single, and living in their family home, these two childhood friends were born in a housing complex. Even though their hearts are stirred, they are fine together. It’s a warm and humorous story of friendship, featuring the famous duo Koizumi Kyoko and Kobayashi Satomi.

Prominent Japanese wildlife photographer and filmmaker Mitsuaki Iwago loves cats of all shapes and sizes. So he's set out on a journey to film cats all over the world as they live their lives. Join him in a cat's-eye view of many diverse cities spanning the globe in a unique program that perhaps even your own cat will enjoy as well!

Two unemployed men started a "service business" out of desperation - it was a "religion".

East Shinjuku Night High School has students with various challenges. Delinquent Taketo is trapped in a negative spiral. Filipina-Japanese Angela struggles with schoolwork, while Kasumi spends all her class hours in the infirmary. Shozo had to leave school to work in his youth. With guidance from their new science teacher, Fujitake, they work on an experiment for an academic conference.

During the Kyoho period in the reign of Tokugawa Yoshimune, there is a gang of thieves active not just in Edo but also the Tokaido and the Nakasendo, and all across the Kansai region, stealing large sums of money with skillful techniques. They only target the very wealthy and never kill or injure people. They appear with the clouds and disappear like the mist. On the night that the beautiful Ochiyo is to become the bride of a dry goods dealer, a large amount of money hidden inside the shop is stolen. The gang disappears without injuring anyone. It was a two-year plan to marry Ochiyo off so that she could bring them in. The leader of this gang is Kumokiri Nizaemon, the greatest bandit of all time. He keeps a rein on his highly-skilled and notorious followers Nanabake no Ochiyo, Kinezumi no Kichigoro, Subashiri no Kumagoro, Ingakozo Rokunosuke and others.

Riki, who works as a temp, is distressed when her colleague invites her to earn money by donating her eggs. However, after taking the interview, she realizes it’s not for egg donation but for surrogacy. A former ballet dancer, Kusaoke Motoi, and his wife, Yuko, are looking for a surrogate mother to bear their child in exchange for high rewards.

In Tokyo, police officer Mari Kouda and Chinese interpreter Ryo Arikino solve cases while bonding over meals from different cultures, forming an unexpected connection through their shared experiences.

Kishibe Midori (Ikeda Elaiza), an editor for a popular fashion magazine, finds herself transferring to the lexicography division following the magazine's discontinuation. The place is filled with a group of quirky characters, led by Majime Mitsuya (Noda Yojiro), a boss with a shaggy hair who is extremely serious. While being tossed about by them, Midori is influenced by their patience and passion for making a dictionary which takes over a decade, and she gradually immerses herself in the work. This drama depicts their struggles in creating and finalizing the dictionary, "The Great Passage."

Fukutaro, the former president of a board game company, continues to show up at work even after handing over his position to his son-in-law. Fukutaro grabs anyone he can to repeatedly brag about the same past exploits, which irritates those around him. Triggered by an event, his daughter finally unleashes her unspoken true feelings about his toxic old-age behavior. Although Fukutaro seems sad and apologetic, he secretly plots a counterattack with his five elderly fellows.

A group of talented artists breathe new life into classic Japanese songs and pop songs that have influenced them, covering them in fascinating arrangements, each with their own unique flavor. This is also a music program where they talk about their obsessions to the fullest.

At Seven Star Town, a high-class facility where Asako works as the head nurse, wealthy elderly people are elegantly living the last chapters of their lives. For Asako, who was living a humble life and taking care of her mother, it was a world far from herself. Satsuki, who works in Seven Star Town, also takes care of her parents who live with her, and her colleague Kuniko also has problems in the family over caring for her father. Asako has problems finding a facility for her mother. Both Satsuki and Kuniko face headwinds in their lives every day. Asako and her friends put into action a bold plan to break the status quo, and the drama of the people gathered in Seven Star Town begins to come alive. Will they be able to find paradise on earth?

Set in the mid-Edo period, this drama follows Sachi, who works as an apprentice at the Osaka Tenma kimono merchant Isuzuya and strives to carve a way to success despite the challenges she faces.

Utagawa Hiroshige, along with Katsushika Hokusai, is widely recognized in the world of Ukiyo-e, Japanese Woodblock Print. However, it is lesser known that Hiroshige was also a firefighter while he painted. This drama depicts the untold story of Hiroshige and his wife, Kayo.

Based on the novel of the same name by Jirō Asada. Three adult children visit their mother living in the countryside, each at separate times, but things aren't really what they seem to be.

Yoshizawa Miku leads a busy life as part of the variety show team at the local TV station "P-Tele". One day, her drama proposal is accepted and she's able to transfer to the drama department. Her joy was short-lived, as the department head then asked "Can we make the protagonist of this proposal a person with disabilities?"

A music program that connects (JOINT) fans and artists to have fun (ENJOY).

Sasaki Yuko (Adachi Yumi) works as a temporary employee at a call center, struggling with her mortgage and child-rearing. Despite her overbearing boss and uncertain future, she tries to make ends meet. Her husband Yoshimitsu (Aoki Munetaka) is optimistic but doesn’t earn much, which frustrates Yuko and her only joy is her son. One day, a misfortune strikes the Sasaki family, and a momentary lapse in judgment drastically changes their lives. Peculiar characters disrupt their peace, leading to chaos as hidden desires and wishes come to the surface.

A taxi driver grieving his family's loss is drawn to a melody sung by a young girl, sparking a journey of healing, connection, and hope through music.

In 18th-century Edo, Tsutaya Juzaburo rises from a poor background to become a leading publisher. Despite political changes threatening his career, he works to shape Edo’s cultural scene through innovative books and collaborations with artists.