Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Este documentário passou no canal público ontem à noite. - This documentary aired on the public channel last night.

It’s the pretérito perfeito simples (simple past), used for a single, completed event in the past. Because the time frame is explicit (yesterday at night), passou is the natural choice in European Portuguese.

Does passou really mean “aired”? Doesn’t passar mean “to pass”?

Yes, passar literally means “to pass,” but in media contexts it also means “to be shown/broadcast.” Example: O filme passou no cinema. Alternatives:

Colloquial: dar (e.g., Deu na TV.)
Formal: emitir/transmitir (e.g., Foi transmitido pela RTP.)

Can I use deu instead of passou here?

Yes. Deu no canal público ontem à noite is very common in everyday European Portuguese. It’s slightly more informal than passou, which is neutral.

What exactly is no?

No = em + o. It contracts the preposition em (in/on/at) with the masculine singular article o. Because canal is masculine, you get no canal. Female would be na (em + a), e.g., na televisão. If you mean “on a public channel,” use the indefinite contraction num (em + um): num canal público.

Why is there a grave accent in à noite?

À is a contraction of a + a (preposition a “at/to” + feminine article a “the”). À noite is an established time expression meaning “at night.” With ontem, it gives “last night.” Without the accent (a noite), it means “the night” as a noun (e.g., A noite foi fria.).

Is ontem à noite the only way to say “last night”?

It’s the most natural. Others:

Na noite passada (a bit more formal or narrative).
Na noite de ontem (news style).
Ontem de noite is mostly Brazilian or regional; in Portugal, ontem à noite is preferred.

Can I move ontem à noite to another position?

Yes. All of these are fine, with small shifts in emphasis:

Ontem à noite, este documentário passou no canal público.
Este documentário passou ontem à noite no canal público. Avoid splitting it as à noite ontem; the fixed chunk is ontem à noite.

Why este and not esse or aquele?

In EP:

este: close to the speaker (physically, temporally, or in focus/attention).
esse: closer to the listener or already mentioned in discourse.
aquele: far from both or more remote. Here, este documentário suggests it’s the one presently in focus (e.g., the one we’re discussing/pointing to).

Could I just say O documentário instead of Este documentário?

Yes. O documentário presumes shared, identifiable reference. Este adds immediacy/focus (the one “right here/right now” in our discourse or context).

Why este and not esta?

Agreement: documentário is masculine singular, so use este. Plural: estes documentários. Feminine singular would be esta (e.g., esta série).

What does canal público mean in Portugal?

It refers to the public/state broadcaster’s channel(s), i.e., RTP (e.g., RTP1, RTP2). Many speakers would specify and say na RTP1 or na RTP2. It’s different from Brazilian canal aberto (“free-to-air”), which isn’t necessarily public/state-owned.

Can I name the channel? How do articles work with channel names?

Yes: na RTP1, na RTP2, na SIC, na TVI. In EP, many channel names take a definite article, hence na. Some names that include a common noun keep that noun’s gender, e.g., no Canal Q (masculine).

Why not passou pelo canal público?

Pelo = por + o (“through/by”). Passar pelo canal suggests physically “passing through the channel,” not being broadcast on it. For broadcasting, use em: passou no/na.

What’s the difference between passou and passava here?

passou (preterite): a single, completed airing (fits “yesterday at night”).
passava (imperfect): ongoing/background or habitual. Example: Quando liguei a TV, o documentário passava no canal público (“was airing” when I turned the TV on).

How would the present perfect work in EP for TV shows?

EP uses the compound perfect (tem passado) for repeated action up to now: Esse programa tem passado no canal público (“has been airing repeatedly”). For a one-off last night, don’t use it—stick with passou.

Any pronunciation or spelling tips for tricky words?

Stress: docu-men-TÁ-rio, PÚ-bli-co, ON-tem, NOI-te.
Accents matter for meaning: público (“public”/“audience”) vs publico (“I publish”). documentário needs the accent on á. The à in à noite must have a grave accent because it’s a contraction.