‘Tom Jones’, the mother of all Rom-coms, headed to PBS

Long considered to be one of the earliest novels in the English language, Henry Fielding’s The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling will be adapted and reimagined for television by PBS Masterpiece. The story follows the growth and misadventures of the title character, played in this new adaptation by the young actor Solly McLeod (The Rising), who stars opposite Sophie Wilde (You Don’t Know Me) as the heroine, Sophia Western.

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‘Van der Valk’ begins series 2 filming in Amsterdam

It just keeps getting better from a drama standpoint on PBS as Masterpiece recently announced that the Amsterdam-based series, Van der Valk, has begun filming their second season. Marc Warren (Hustle, Mad Dogs, Beecham House, The Good Wife) reprises his role as Commissaris Piet Van der Valk, and Maimie McCoy (All Creatures Great and Small, Grantchester), Luke Allen-Gale (The Borgias), Elliot Barnes-Worrell […]

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Jenna Coleman signs on for ‘The War Rooms’

Much like I have come to believe David Tennant is the hardest working British actor on the male side, I’m now convinced that Jenna Coleman holds that distinction on the female side. Coleman became a household name back in 2012 as Matt Smith’s traveling companion, Clara Oswald, in Doctor Who following an early soap stint on Emmerdale and the […]

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Remembering Midsomer Murders’ Sykes and other 4-legged screen pets on National Love Your Pet Day 2021!

No self-respecting animal lover will ever forget Isis and Pharoah, the two 4-legged companions that were forever by Lord Grantham’s side in Downton Abbey or the majestic visual of Seamus riding up and down the Cornish coast in Poldark with Captain Ross Poldark at the helm or Queen Victoria’s beloved Dash, always at the young Queen’s side in Victoria. To celebrate National Love Your Pet Day, my thoughts immediately turned to the fictional English county of Midsomer and one of its most recognized residents, Sykes. It was a sad day back in September 2016 when one of the most beloved TV dogs since Lassie announced his retirement from Midsomer Murders. Sykes, John Barnaby’s beloved pet dog, hung up his lead following series 15 and retired after five years with the show.

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Somewhat disheveled yet always calculating, DCI Stanhope set to return for ‘Vera’ S11 in 2021-22

While fans of Sanditon and Victoria continue to await word as to whether or not their favorite series will return, the greatness of Vera has been commissioned for an 11th series. Adapted from crime author Ann Cleeves’ novels, the Northumberland-based detective series will be back with Brenda Blethyn as DCI Vera Stanhope of the Northumberland & City Police Department who […]

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Behind the scenes with Tori, aka Dash the dog from ‘Victoria’

One of the more lovable and memorable characters in ‘Victoria’ was Queen Victoria’s King Charles Spaniel, Dash, played by Tori. In an earlier role that probably was instrumental in securing her face time in ‘Victoria,’ Tori also played Dash back in the 2009 film ‘The Young Victoria’ starring Emily Blunt.

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