The given sentence is "Are they watching the programmes?". This is in active voice. To convert it into passive voice, we need to follow these steps:

1. Identify the subject and object: The subject is "they" and the object is "the programmes".
2. Change the object to the subject: "The programmes" becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
3. Use the appropriate form of "to be" + past participle of the verb: The verb "watching" is in the present continuous tense. The passive equivalent requires the present continuous passive form ("are being watched").
4. Add "by" + the original subject (optional): We add "by them" to indicate who is performing the action, although this is often omitted in passive constructions.

Applying these steps, the passive voice sentence becomes: "Are the programmes being watched by them?". This matches Option 1.

Let's examine why other options are incorrect:

• Option 2 ("Have the programmes been watched by them?") uses the present perfect passive, indicating an action completed at some unspecified time before now. This doesn't reflect the continuous nature of the original question.
• Option 3 ("Had the programmes been watched by them?") uses the past perfect passive, referring to an action completed before another past action. This is also inappropriate.
• Option 4 ("Were the programmes being watched by them?") uses the past continuous passive, suggesting an ongoing action in the past. The original question implies a present continuous action.

Therefore, only Option 1 accurately reflects the tense and meaning of the original sentence in passive voice.