What's On Tonight Screensaver
The What's On Tonight screensaver shows the real broadcast schedule for today from the key-less TVMaze API, rolled forward to what is on from now, with the episode currently on air highlighted. It's free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
Live preview
Press ESC to leave fullscreen. Settings are saved in your browser only.
How the What's On Tonight screensaver works
The saver reads TVMaze directly in your browser — no key and no account.
The real broadcast schedule for today from the key-less TVMaze API, rolled forward to what is on from now, with the episode currently on air highlighted..
It refreshes on a schedule, so what you see stays current.
Colours can be changed in settings; nothing is stored beyond your own browser.
TVMaze and the shape of a broadcast day
TVmaze provides TV information through a free REST API that returns JSON. Its schedule endpoint returns the episodes airing in a given country on a given date, in the order in which they air, with full episode and show information. This saver pulls the list for a day and keeps only what is still to come, with the slot currently on air highlighted.
The schedule endpoint only includes episodes tied to a country through a network or a local web channel, so globally distributed streaming services such as Netflix are not part of it. TVmaze offers a separate web schedule for web and streaming channels. Reruns and new episodes can appear in the same list, so an entry does not by itself tell you whether an episode is new.
Evening primetime is crowded because it is the most valuable slot, while late-night, daytime and early-morning entries tend to be sparser, so the on-screen list changes density as the day goes on. Schedules change. Live events overrun, sport displaces regular programmes and networks reshuffle at short notice, so a listing is a plan and not a guarantee, and a quiet-looking evening may not match what a channel is actually broadcasting.
A worked example
The real broadcast schedule for today from the key-less TVMaze API, rolled forward to what is on from now, with the episode currently on air highlighted.
Settings & tips
- Accent and Background recolour the display.
- Data comes straight from TVMaze in your browser.
- Press ESC to leave fullscreen.
Frequently asked questions
- Is this real data?
- Yes — it comes from TVMaze and is refreshed on a schedule.
- Is a key needed?
- No. This source is fully key-less.
- Is it free?
- Yes — free, no download, in your browser.
- Does this include streaming releases?
- Not generally. TVmaze’s main schedule covers episodes tied to a country through a network or local web channel, and globally distributed services such as Netflix are excluded from it.
- Why might a listed show not be on?
- Schedules are plans. Live events, news coverage or last-minute changes by the network can replace a listed programme.