Acorn TV September 2016 Schedule

Monday, September 5

800 Words, Season 1 (Exclusive U.S. Premiere)

*Logie Award winners for Best Actor (Erik Thomson) and Most Outstanding Newcomer (Melina Vidler)

Australia’s #1 drama series follows a recently widowed father (Erik Thomson, Packed to the Rafters) who quits his job as a popular 800-word columnist for a top-selling Sydney newspaper. Over the internet he buys a house on an impulse in a remote New Zealand seaside town. He then has to break the news to his two teenage kids, who just lost their mom, and now face an even more uncertain future. But the colorful and inquisitive locals ensure his dream of a fresh start does not go to plan. (8 episodes)

 Janet King Series 2, Episode 3

 

Friday, September 9

Beau Brummel – This Charming Man (Friday Feature)

In Regency England, Beau Brummell’s (James Purefoy, Rome, A Knight’s Tale) simple, clean, masculine style won him the Prince Regent’s friendship and shot him into high society. But in defiance of the prince, Brummell also befriended the politically and sexually adventurous poet Lord Byron (Matthew Rhys, The Americans), leading to his downfall.

  

Monday, September 12

The Secret Agent – Exclusive U.S. Premiere (Sep. 12-14)

Based on Joseph Conrad’s timeless novel about terror, espionage and betrayal, this riveting psychological thriller is from the producers of the acclaimed Line of Duty. In 1886 London, Verloc (Toby Jones, Detectorists) runs a seedy sex shop in the heart of Soho. Unbeknown to his loyal wife Winnie (Vicky McClure, Line of Duty), Verloc also works for the Russian embassy, spying on a group of London anarchists. The Russians are furious with the English establishment’s indifference to the anarchist threat gripping the rest of Europe. So Verloc is assigned a mission: blow up the Greenwich Observatory and make it look like a terrorist attack to provoke a crackdown. Should he fail, Verloc’s real identity as a spy will be exposed to his vicious comrades. The miniseries co-stars Tom Goodman-Hill (Humans), Stephen Graham (Boardwalk Empire), and Ian Hart (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone).

 Boomer’s, Series 1

This BBC One sitcom follows the ups and downs of three late middle-aged recently retired (or due to retire) couples who live in Thurnemouth, ‘Norfolk’s only west-facing resort’. Starring Philip Jackson (Agatha Christie’s Poirot, Raised by Wolves), Alison Steadman (Pride & Prejudice), and Stephanie Beacham (Coronation Street). (7 episodes)

Janet King, Series 2 Episode 4

 

Friday, September 16

Holy Flying Circus (Friday Feature)

From Oscar^®-nominated writer Tony Roche (In the Loop) and starring Darren Boyd (Little Dorrit), Charles Edwards (The Shell Seekers), Tom Fisher (The Illusionist), and Stephen Fry (Jeeves and Wooster), this fantastical docudrama recreates the controversy surrounding Monty Python’s 1979 film, Life of Brian, which was greeted with widespread outcry and accusations of blasphemy. Matters reached a head when Michael Palin and John Cleese agreed to take part in a BBC talk show about Life of Brian with a Church of England bishop and a staunchly Catholic broadcaster. The ensuing TV debate put the Pythons in their most absurd role yet: the voice of reason.

 

Monday, September 19

Capital (Streaming Exclusive)

From the makers of Broadchurch and Humans and based on John Lanchester’s best-selling novel, Capital is a witty, colorful and sharply observed drama about the interconnected lives of a diverse group of characters linked to a fictional street. One day, the street’s residents all receive an anonymous postcard through their front doors bearing a simple message: “We want what you have”. Who is behind the anonymous hate campaign? And what do they want? As the mystery of the postcards deepens, interweaving stories reveal lives filled with love and loss, fear and greed, fortune and envy, and at its heart, family and home. The miniseries stars Toby Jones, Gemma Jones (Harry Potter films, Sense & Sensibility), and Rachael Stirling (Detectorists). (4 episodes)

 The Delivery Man

Newly qualified midwife Matthew Bunting (Darren Boyd, Fortitude) is the first male midwife to hit the Easthill Park Maternity Unit. In his mid-30s, ex-policeman Matthew is hoping to find something more meaningful in his life: some enduring satisfaction. (6 episodes)

 Janet King Series 2, Episode 5

  

Friday, September 23

The Yellow House (Friday Feature)

In November and December of 1888, Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin shared a home called “The Yellow House” in southern France. The out-of-luck painters abandon all responsibilities to commit themselves fully to their craft. Starring John Simm (Life on Mars, State of Play) as Van Gogh and John Lynch (Bleak House) as Gauguin, this moving drama brings to light the ordinary lives of two extraordinary men to illuminate a critical moment in the story of modern art.

  

Monday, September 26

Agatha Christie’s AND THEN THERE WERE NONE (UK edition, Streaming Exclusive)

This new, landmark BBC adaptation of the best-selling novel of all-time features Aidan Turner (Poldark, The Hobbit trilogy), Charles Dance (Game of Thrones), Anna Maxwell Martin (The Bletchley Circle), Sam Neill (Jurassic Park), Miranda Richardson (Harry Potter films, Sleepy Hollow), and Toby Stephens (Black Sails, Jane Eyre). The gripping miniseries follows a dinner party on an isolated island where the guests start dying one by one. Lifetime aired a two-part version in March 2016. This is the 3-part UK/BBC Broadcast Edition.

 Jericho of Scotland Yard

Chief Inspector Michael Jericho of Scotland Yard is a respected, uncompromising and forward-thinking detective investigating high-profile murders in 1950s London. The series is set in a fascinating period of Britain’s social history, when London saw an explosion of shifting attitudes after the Second World War. (4 episodes)

 The Yorkshire Vet, Series 1

Get a glimpse at the true story behind the classic BBC drama All Creatures Great and Small inspired by the books of Alf Wight. This six-part series follows staff at Wight’s original practice in Thirsk, North Yorks. Christopher Timothy, star of All Creatures Great and Small, narrates, and Peter Wright, Alf’s former trainee and the current head of practice, offers some insight into the real James Herriot. (6 episodes)

 Janet King, Series 2, Episode 6

  

Friday, September 30

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (Friday Feature)

In this cleverly inspired twist on William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, two of the outrageous supporting players take center stage for a dazzling game of illusion and reality that delivers one-of-a-kind entertainment! Winner of the prestigious Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion Award – Best Picture. Starring Gary Oldman, Richard Dreyfuss, and Tim Roth and directed by Tom Stoddard.