Drama

Exciting news for fans of both period drama and good literature! Casting has finally been announced for the upcoming BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s acclaimed novel Wolf Hall. And – even better news – the series is already confirmed for a transmission on Masterpiece in 2015

The six-part drama will adapt the Booker Prize-winning bestsellers Wolf Hall and its sequel Bring Up the Bodies into one series, which follows the story of Thomas Cromwell, a key adviser to King Henry VIII. Cromwell, the son of a blacksmith, enjoyed a meteoric rise to power, first when he served under Cardinal Wolsey and later as chief minister to the king himself. Among other things, Cromwell was a chief architect of the English Reformation, helping to engineer the annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Katherine of Aragon, in order to allow the king to marry his mistress Anne Boleyn. He was also instrumental in Anne’s later fall from grace, negotiated Henry VIII’s fourth marriage to Anne of Cleves and instituted widespread (and extensive) religious reforms.

Mantel’s novels present a somewhat revisionist take on the infamous politician, as Cromwell has been historically presented as an unlikeable figure. It’s also just an incredibly great story. Read on for more details.

David Suchet will reprise his iconic role as Belgian detective Hercule Poirot one more time for a final series of Agatha Christie’s Poirot. With the release of this new season, the actor will achieve his stated “life’s ambition” of filming the entirety of Christie’s Poirot canon. Suchet has been playing Poirot for over twenty years, so this is a truly impressive accomplishment.

The thirteenth and final series is comprised of four new feature-length Poirot films, which include The Big Four, Dead Man’s Folly, The Labours of Hercules and Curtain, the latter of which is the famous detective’s last case. ITV has released an official trailer for this final season, and it’s wonderfully bittersweet. With a tagline of “The End is Near”, the spot features new footage interspersed with classic clips from Suchet’s many previous episodes and a voiceover of the detective reflecting on his life and career.

It’s really rather lovely. Watch for yourselves below.

Premium cable network Starz is slowly becoming something of a destination for fans of British television. Though you probably wouldn’t expect it, the network has been responsible for bringing several popular British programs to America over the past several years, including sci-fi sequel Torchwood: Miracle Day and lavish War of the Roses drama The White Queen.

Starz will now bring us period drama Dancing on the Edge, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, another British actor whose complicated name you should probably get used to spelling, because he’s about to have a breakout year with three films coming out, one of which is the basically guaranteed Best Picture nominee 12 Years a Slave. (Also? He’s an amazing actor.) Ejiofor is joined by a cast of notable actors, including Matthew Goode, John Goodman, Anthony Stewart Head, Merlin’s Angel Coulby, Doctor Who companion Jenna Coleman and The Paradise’s Joanna Vanderham.

Mystery series Broadchurch was one of the most buzzed-about dramas of 2013 on both sides of the pond –earning rave reviews from critics and fans alike. Therefore, it probably shouldn’t surprise many people that an American television network has already jumped on the chance to make a US version of the series. FOX is currently working with Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall, to craft an American remake of the eight-part drama. Chibnall will serve as the series’ executive producer, as well as write its first episode.

And now the American remake has gotten a bit closer to its British roots – TV Guide announced last week that David Tennant, star of the UK version of the series, will be reprising his role as the tortured lead detective assigned to investigate a devastating murder in a small town. Tennant, who is best known for his turn as the Tenth Doctor on Doctor Who, received high praise for his portrayal of a tortured divorcee put in charge of the investigation into the murder of a young boy. It’s being reported that Tennant’s lead investigator character in this American production will be virtually the same as UK version DI Alec Hardy, However, Tennant will apparently be doing an American accent for the FOX production, which makes a certain amount of sense, but still seems kind of strange at the same time. No other casting has been announced yet, but the choice of Tennant makes everything very interesting right out of the gate.

It’s a day that ends in “y”, so it’s probably time to watch a preview for a new Benedict Cumberbatch project of some type. This is in no way a complaint, mind you. At all. We can do this everyday; it’s cool.

The Sherlock star’s latest is a new independent short film project, an action thriller entitled Little Favour. The film was made by production company SunnyMarch – a collaboration founded by Cumberbatch himself, along with friends Adam Ackland and Ben Dillon – and made headlines earlier this year by way of its super successful Indigogo public fundraising campaign. We’re talking £85,000 worth of successful, just so you know.

A brief teaser trailer was released a few weeks ago, and now a proper trailer has finally arrived, which you can watch below. (Spoiler: It looks amazing.) Best news of all, however, is probably the announcement that Cumberbatch fans around the world won’t have to struggle with how to see the film for themselves – a frequent problem in a global media marketplace.

American Downton Abbey fans are furiously counting down the days until the costume drama returns to our television screens on January 5, 2014. We’re all also trying to contain our jealousy that our lucky lucky UK friends are currently getting to watch the new season for themselves as we speak, so any tidbit or snippet of new information is like water in the desert for us.

So, while we can’t have new episodes yet, we can get another new look at the upcoming season – PBS has released its official first trailer for Downton Series 4. Watch for yourselves below.

Another British series has joined the list of intriguing imports we can expect from across the pond next year – period drama Breathless will be coming to Masterpiece next year on PBS stations nationwide.

The upcoming six-part drama will focus on the lives of a group of doctors and nurses working in a London hospital in the 1960s. The series is set in a busy gynecology unit in 1961, during a time when abortion was still illegal, the contraceptive pill was only just available to married women and moral codes were shifting.

Read on for more details.

We’re all missing Broadchurch, the complex mystery series that recently wrapped up its first season on BBC America. So here’s an extra treat for those that just can’t get enough of the twisty mystery – an extra scene that most US viewers probably haven’t seen yet.

After the season finale aired in the UK last April, ITV was kind enough to provide a bit of bonus material for fans: a clip of several characters attending the wake for young Danny Latimer. (In the actual episode, this moment would have occurred at some point before the emotional scene when the entire town gathered to light a memorial beacon/bonfire for him.)

Take a look for yourselves below (and warning: there are mild spoilers here if you haven't finished Series 1 yet!)

Costume drama fans rejoice! You can get your period drama fix once again starting this October on PBS stations nationwide. The new series The Paradise, which adapts Emile Zola’s classic French novel set in a Victorian-era department store premieres on PBS stations nationwide beginning this October.

The Paradise is a rags-to-riches tale set in the first department store in northern England in the late nineteenth century. It follows the story of Denise Lovett, a bright-eyed country girl who finds more than just shop work when she brings her clever ideas and ambition to the glamorous store called, you guessed it, The Paradise. She is plunged headlong into intrigue and romance as she catches the eye of the store’s dashing and enigmatic owner, John Moray, who harbors a dark secret. Drama, predictably, ensues.

Watch the first PBS preview for this new lavish costume series below – and get a sneak peek at a scene from the first episode!

It is done. The final episode of Broadchurch: Series 1 aired on BBC America this week. After eight weeks of multiple dead ends and a few red herrings, we finally know who killed Danny Latimer. And quite a bombshell it was!

Understandably you might be experiencing a bit of withdrawal now that all the suspense and excitement is over. But never fear! The detective mystery is a genre that the Brits basically own. Just consider how many times the stories of Agatha Christie alone have been dramatized.

The next series of Broadchurch isn’t set to return until sometime next year so if you’re feeling a bit out of sorts and need a little whodunit pick-me-up, may I suggest a few series that might fit the bill?