Lying in bed watching the latest episode of Strictly Come Dancing on a mobile phone will become possible from next month after a tie-up between the BBC and Nokia.

All BBC programmes transmitted in the past seven days will be available to download to the new Nokia N96 multimedia handset, in a first for the broadcaster and phone maker.

Trials of the device, and other data about mobile television, show that, contrary to expectations, about 30 per cent of viewing happens at home rather than on the move.

Matthew Postgate, the BBC’s controller of mobile, said: “We found that people watch television on the mobile when commuting, just before lunch and in bed for half an hour instead of reading a book.”

The 16-gigabyte storage allows the phone to store 40 hours of programmes. BBC shows can be downloaded via 3G mobile and wi-fi, which is supported by the handset. An hour-long programme will take five to ten minutes to download via wi-fi. The handset will cost up to £100 on all networks and may be available on some networks free, but those wanting to download BBC programmes will have to sign up to an all-inclusive data bundle to ensure they do not run up a huge bill downloading EastEnders on a pay-as-you-go 3G mobile connection.

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