BBC America Announces Two New Original Scripted Series and Original Scripted Development Slate

BBC America announced on Friday two new co-productions - the first co-developed series under the wide-ranging, creative partnership between BBC Worldwide and AMC Networks that was announced late last year.* Undercover, a gripping political thriller from acclaimed writer Peter Moffat (Silk, Criminal Justice) starring Sophie Okonedo (Criminal Justice) and Adrian Lester (Hustle), and Thirteen, a compelling contemporary mystery from rising star Marnie Dickens, will both air on BBC America in 2016.

Speaking at the Television Critics Association in Los Angeles, Sarah Barnett, President and General Manager, BBC America, also announced the first tranche of an extensive original scripted development slate including:

Dirk Gently,an adaptation of Douglas Adams' (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) wildly successful comic novel, Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, is an anthology series set in the unexpected world of the hyper, absurd, ridiculous Dirk Gently. With an utterly fresh, comically self-aware tone, this series is equally sincere in its danger, humor, violence and drama. Penned by Max Landis - the mind behind cult classic Chronicle - this series is produced by IDW, Circle of Confusion and Ideate for BBC America.

'The Last Kingdom' to Premiere October 10 on BBC America

The Last Kingdom premieres October 10 on BBC America.

BBC America revealed the key art for its new original series, The Last Kingdom, earlier today and announced that the drama is set for premiere on Saturday, October 10 at 10 p.m. ET.

The Last Kingdom is a contemporary story of redemption, vengeance and self-discovery set against the birth of England. The eight part drama series follows young warrior and outsider, Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon, American Horror Story), on a fierce mission to reclaim his birthright.

The Last Kingdom comes from the award-winning executive producers of Downton Abbey, Gareth Neame and Nigel Marchant.

Adapted from Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling series of books “The Saxon Stories,” by BAFTA nominated and RTS award-winning writer Stephen Butchard, The Last Kingdom combines real historical figures and events with fiction, re-telling the history of King Alfred the Great and his desire to unite the many separate kingdoms into what would become England.

'Doctor Who' Season 9 Trailer Released

Exploding with epic and thrilling adventures, Doctor Who returns to BBC America on Saturday, September 19 in the new season of the hit show.

The Doctor (Peter Capaldi) is joined by Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) for time travel on a cinematic scale. Having the time of their lives, the pair meet new and old monsters, and go on a journey that takes them to deadly alien planets, creepy underwater bases, Vikings villages, a global Zygon uprising, and leads them through hidden alien dens, to the very end of time itself.

Meeting monsters old and new the Doctor will come face to face with Missy (Michelle Gomez), a city of Daleks, deadly mercenaries called the Mire, terrifying ghosts and more.

Having filmed in Cardiff since January, Peter Capaldi said:

“Soaring through all of time and space, series nine sees the Doctor throw himself into life with a new hunger for adventure. The Cosmos is there for the taking, thrilling, epic and enticing, and his to play in. But he’s almost reckless in his abandon. It’s almost like he’s running from something, something that if it ever catches him will turn his life upside down.”

BBC America's 'Broadchurch' Premiere Date Changed to March 4

Broadchurch Season 2 premieres March 4.

The second season of Broadchurch will now premiere on Wednesday, March 4 at 10 p.m. ET on BBC America. Watch the Season 2 trailer below:

'Orphan Black' Adds Justin Chatwin, James Frain, Ksenia Solo, Kyra Harper and Earl Pastko to Season 3 Cast

Justin Chatwin, Kyra Harper, James Frain, Ksenia Solo and Earl Pastko.

Justin Chatwin (Shameless) and James Frain (Intruders) have joined the cast of BBC America original drama Orphan Black for its third season, which is currently in production and set to return in 2015.

Chatwin joins in a recurring role as Jason Kellerman. With rugged good looks and street-smarts, Jason is a savvy drug-dealer in the guise of a charismatic businessman. Frain guest stars as Ferdinand, a well-educated, “cleaner” who is both charming and intimidating. Ferdinand is a powerful player in a secretive, multi-national political faction that operates with questionable ethics and a ruthless approach.

Historical Drama 'The Last Kingdom' Begins Filming, Stars Alexander Dreymon

Alexander Dreymon stars in The Last Kingdom.

Filming has begun on The Last Kingdom, an eight-episode new historical drama series from BBC America, BBC Two and the Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning producers of Downton Abbey, Carnival Films.

The Last Kingdom is an adaptation of Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling series of books “The Saxon Stories”, by BAFTA nominated and RTS award-winning writer Stephen Butchard. The production films in Hungary and the UK.

Alexander Dreymon (American Horror Story, Blood Ransom) heads up the cast, which also includes Rutger Hauer (True Blood, Blade Runner), David Dawson (Ripper Street, Road to Coronation Street), Emily Cox (The Silent Mountain, Circle of Life), Matthew Macfadyen (Anna Karenina, MI-5), Ian Hart (Boardwalk Empire, The Bridge), Tobias Santelmann (Kon-Tiki, Hercules-The Thracian Wars), Thomas W. Gabrielsson (A Royal Affair, The Killing III), Peter Gantzler (A-klassen, Italian For Beginners), Joseph Millson (Penny Dreadful, 24:Live Another Day), Alexandre Willaume (Deadline, Over the Edge), Rune Temte (Ulykken), Johan Falk: Organizatsija Karayan), Henning Valin Jakobsen (The Bridge, The Killing). Young cast members include Tom Taylor, Jocelyn Macnab and Madeleine Power.

Production Begins on 'Orphan Black' Season 3

Production has begun on the third season of BBC America's Peabody Award-winning series Orphan Black. The conspiracy thriller stars award-winner, Tatiana Maslany, who returns to her unprecedented lead role as multiple clones. The critically-acclaimed, action-packed series that sparked an inspired fan base named Clone Club, unveiled new and more treacherous enemies in season two. But it was the finale that shocked viewers when it introduced a male line of clones, raising more complex questions that left viewers on the edge of their seats. Orphan Black is produced by Temple Street Productions in association with BBC America and Bell Media’s Space.

'Doctor Who' Had Highest Rated Season Premiere Ever on BBC America

The start of the Peter Capaldi era of Doctor Who was a
ratings success for BBC America.

The new era of Doctor Who began with the highest rated season premiere ever on BBC America. The US embraced award winning actor Peter Capaldi's first full episode as the Doctor, delivering 2.58 million total viewers Live+SD Cume*. From 8-10 p.m., Doctor Who ranked as the #1 program in all of cable among total viewers and A25-54. BBC America was the #1 network and Doctor Who was the #1 show in all of television on Twitter and Tumblr for the day. Over 1 million total viewers Live+SD Cume* tuned in for BBC America's new eight part paranormal thriller, Intruders, which helped deliver BBC America its highest rated Saturday night ever.

BBC America and BBC One Announce New Drama 'The Living And The Dead'

BBC AMERICA and BBC One announce new 6 X 60’ drama series, The Living and the Dead, written by Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham, co-creators and writers of Life on Mars, Ashes To Ashes and Eternal Law. Ashley has also created dramas including Where The Heart Is, Wild At Heart and Moonfleet; Matthew's original dramas include The Last Train, POW and Walk Away and I Stumble. It is co-produced by BBC Wales Drama Production and BBC AMERICA in association with Monastic Productions for BBC One.

Somerset, England, 1888. A land and a community on the edge of monumental change, on the great hinge between ancient traditional ways and an industrial, scientific future. A land of ghosts and myths, poltergeists and demons - if there was ever a time for those ghosts to rise out of the ground, this would be that time. At the heart of this small community is Nathan Appleby, a reluctant gentleman farmer who is obsessed with proving the existence of the afterlife.

BBC America Announces Special Programming and Nationwide Theatrical Events to Launch 'Doctor Who's' First Season Starring Peter Capaldi

Peter Capaldi is the new Doctor Who.

It's a new beginning for the iconic series that explores all of space and time, as award-winning actor Peter Capaldi takes on the role of the mysterious time traveler, the Doctor. BBC America will launch Peter Capaldi's first season of Doctor Who with special programming on the channel and theatrical events across the country with Fathom Events. The new season of Doctor Who premieres Saturday, August 23, 8 p.m. ET on BBC America.

Comedian and Doctor Who superfan Chris Hardwick will host Doctor Who: Live Pre-Show at 7:30 p.m. ET and Doctor Who: After Who Live at 11 p.m. ET following the premiere of Intruders on August 23. The pre-show and post-show will feature an array of guests in the studio including writer and actor Mark Gatiss along with exclusive behind-the-scenes footage.

BBC America Announces New Seasons of 'Orphan Black,' 'Broadchurch' and New Drama Series 'Tatau' and 'The Last Kingdom'

BBC America's General Manager, Perry Simon, made the following announcements today during the channel's presentation for the Television Critics Association in Beverly Hills.

Acclaimed series Orphan Black and Broadchurch will return with new seasons in 2015 and the channel has two new dramas going into production - Tatau, from the producers of Being Human, and The Last Kingdom, from the producers of Downton Abbey.

RETURNING SERIES ANNOUNCED:

Orphan Black - Season Three Premieres 2015

BBC America has renewed award-winning original series Orphan Black for a third season. The drama starring Tatiana Maslany has been re-commissioned for a 10-episode order from Temple Street Productions. Orphan Black became the first ever ad-supported drama series to double its ratings from season one to season two in A25-54 and 18-49 in Live+7.* The season two finale earned series highs in Live+7 among total viewers (1.376 million).

BBC America Announces New Historical Drama Series 'The Last Kingdom'

BBC America, Carnival Films – the Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning producers of Downton Abbey – and BBC Two announced today that production will begin this fall on The Last Kingdom, a new historical 8 x 60 drama series.

BAFTA nominated and RTS award-winning writer Stephen Butchard, (Good Cop, Five Daughters, House of Saddam), will adapt Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling franchise "The Saxon Stories" for the screen. Cornwell is also known for his much-loved "Sharpe" novels that became the long-running TV series of the same name starring Sean Bean and aired on BBC America.

Set in the year 872, when many of the separate kingdoms of what we now know as England have fallen to the invading Vikings, the great kingdom of Wessex has been left standing alone and defiant under the command of King Alfred the Great.

Against this turbulent backdrop lives our hero, Uhtred. Born the son of a Saxon nobleman, he is orphaned by the Vikings and then kidnapped and raised as one of their own. Forced to choose between the country of his birth and the people of his upbringing, his loyalties are ever tested. What is he - Saxon or Viking? On a quest to claim his birthright, Uhtred must tread a dangerous path between both sides if he is to play his part in the birth of a new nation and, ultimately, seek to recapture his ancestral lands.

'Doctor Who' Returns to BBC America August 23

BBC America has announced the premiere date for the eighth season of Doctor Who. The feature-length episode, entitled "Deep Breath," will air Saturday, August 23 at 8 p.m. ET. The episode ushers in an exciting new era for the show as Peter Capaldi (The Musketeers, The Thick of It) steps into the role of the Doctor. Fans first got a glimpse of Capaldi's Doctor in November's 50th Anniversary Special, and again in the final minutes of last year's Christmas Special, but the upcoming season premiere marks the first full episode for the Twelfth Doctor.

Capaldi will be joined by Jenna Coleman (Death Comes to Pemberley), who returns as companion Clara Oswald, and Samuel Anderson (History Boys, Gavin & Stacey) who joins the cast as Danny Pink, a teacher at Coal Hill School where Clara also works. Previously announced guest stars include Ben Miller (Primeval, Death in Paradise), Keeley Hawes (Line of Duty, Upstairs, Downstairs), and Tom Riley (Da Vinci's Demons).

Leading up to the premiere, Capaldi and Coleman will appear together in the United States for the first time when they arrive in New York on Thursday, August 14 as part of the first ever Doctor Who World Tour. The largest promotional undertaking in the show's 50-year history, the tour will kick off in Cardiff, Wales before heading to London, Seoul, Sydney, New York, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro.

'Doctor Who' Returns to BBC America in August (Video)

BBC America has released a teaser trailer confirming an August start date for the new season of Doctor Who.