Great Expectations, one of Charles Dickens’ greatest novels, has a 2012 airdate as part of PBS’ Masterpiece series. The two-part series will premiere April 1, 2012 on PBS stations across the U.S., with the conclusion of the most recent adaptation scheduled the following Sunday, April 8, both at 8p CT/9p ET. This version of Great Expectations, the fifth by the BBC since 1959, has all the makings of being classic television as evidenced by the initial trailer just released by the BBC in advance of the scheduled UK broadcast in late December on BBC One.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlR1ll0exBg

The mini-series features an all-star cast with Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) as Miss Havisham, David Suchet (Poirot) as Jaggers, Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast) as Magwitch and Douglas Booth (Worried About the Boy) as Pip. Sarah Phelps, who adapted Oliver Twist for the Beeb in 2007 has written the newest incarnation. Dickens’ Great Expectations will be one of a number of scheduled programs in 2012 that will be broadcast on both PBS and the BBC as part of international celebration marking the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens’ birth,

In: Drama