• To: Julian Fellowes; From: Judi Dench; Re: Downton Abbey 3

    To: Julian Fellowes; From: Judi Dench; Re: Downton Abbey 3

    While the second series of Downton Abbey is coming to a cliff-hanging close on Christmas Day in the UK and with all eyes in the United States on Sunday, January 8, 2012 when the second series premieres as part of PBS’ Masterpiece, series 3 is just around the corner. As most everyone, except maybe the […]

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  • BBC1 vs. ITV1 in Christmas Smackdown 2011

    BBC1 vs. ITV1 in Christmas Smackdown 2011

    Will 2011 be the year that ITV unseats the 600 pound giant in the room, BBC One, for Christmas Day ratings dominance? Cue Michael Buffer….Let’s get ready to rumble! The infamous long-awaited Christmas Day schedules for both BBC One and ITV1 have been set, sort of, (as of today, anyway) and war has officially been […]

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  • Call the Midwife – Sunday night drama in 2012

    Call the Midwife – Sunday night drama in 2012

    Thankfully, Mad Men is set in the 60’s putting an end to inconceivable bandwagon-jumping comparisons between the hit AMC series and the upcoming BBC series, Call the Midwife. The series, which will focus on the joys and hardships of a group of midwives working in London’s East End in the 50’s is definitely not your typical […]

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  • Sir Kenneth Branagh – more Mankell & more Wallander in 2012

    Sir Kenneth Branagh – more Mankell & more Wallander in 2012

    Following their most recent on-screen efforts together in My Week with Marilyn, Dame Judi Dench and Sir Kenneth Branagh will, again, join forces in an adaptation of Henning Mankell’s Italian Shoes. Branagh is no stranger to the work of the Swedish author as he is currently filming the third season of Mankell’s Wallander series for […]

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  • BBC's 2012 Shakespeare Olympiad

    BBC's 2012 Shakespeare Olympiad

    A long-time tradition of BBC programming will be ramped up a notch in 2012 as part of the BBC’s contribution to the Cultural Olympiad and Festival. Television adaptations of the works of William Shakespeare have been announced that include both documentaries and plays. BBC viewers will be treated to the likes of Richard II, Henry […]

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  • PBS' Masterpiece brings Great Expectations in 2012

    PBS' Masterpiece brings Great Expectations in 2012

    While BBC One viewers will get an early Christmas present to unwrap, fear not, PBS faithful, the upcoming BBC production of the Charles Dickens classic, Great Expectations, is scheduled to premiere as part of PBS’ Masterpiece series in Spring 2012. The classic novel will be the centerpiece of both the Beeb’s and PBS’ bicentenary celebration […]

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  • Giving thanks for British television brilliance

    Giving thanks for British television brilliance

    No matter where you are this Thanksgiving holiday, it’s a traditional time to take a moment and think about family and friends and the things you are thankful for. When it comes to the best that television has to offer, one can’t help but think of a few genuine gems from across the pond that […]

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  • A bit of Frankenstein history at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards

    A bit of Frankenstein history at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards

    Evening Standard Theatre Awards Frankenstein stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller were named joint winners of the best actor award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards this past Sunday. Cumberbatch and Miller alternated in the roles of Frankenstein and the Creature in Danny Boyle’s National Theatre production of the Mary Shelley classic. Having seen […]

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  • Dame Judi Dench returns to school play

    Dame Judi Dench returns to school play

    Let this be a lesson to anyone, anywhere, who thinks twice about asking for something for fear of getting turned down. Fortunately, children attending a North Yorkshire boarding school didn’t listen to skeptics and recently wrote to Oscar-winning film actress, Dame Judi Dench asking her to take a part in their school play along with […]

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  • It's an All Creatures Great & Small Christmas

    It's an All Creatures Great & Small Christmas

    More presents coming by way of the BBC to UK telly watchers as part of the annual blockbuster Christmas line-up. Word comes via the Guardian of an All Creatures Great and Small prequel, entitled Young Herriot which will focus on the vets early years in 1930’s Glasgow. The original series, based on the diaries of […]

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