KLRU has acquired the broadcast rights to the BBC detective series, DCI Banks.  The Yorkshire countryside provides a striking and contrasting backdrop to four chilling murder stories based on the InspectorBanks novels by Peter Robinson.  Stephen Tompkinson portrays detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks.

In the first episode titled, “Aftermath,” two police officers stumble across the lair of a serial killer.  InspectorBanks finds himself faced with a chilling murder investigation that will test him to the limit.

DCI Banks will air on Sunday nights after Masterpiece Classic “Downton Abbey” starting January 6^th.

The Café will join KLRU’s British Comedy lineup starting Jan. 13th. It will air on Sunday nights at 10:30 pm. Watch an interview with co-writer and star Ralf Little.

Set in a small seaside town, The Café is homely, comfortable and welcoming. Middle-aged divorcee Carol owns the place. Mary, in her seventies is Carol’s mum. She is very broad minded and a real character. Completing the trio is daughter Sarah. Having lost her job and been dumped by her boyfriend, she’s had to move back home from London, where a host of old school friends await. Until she gets her life back on track she’s helping out in the welcoming café that’s a bit like Friends’ Central Perk – but not quite as trendy!

Each heart-warming episode sees all sorts of colourful characters pop in and out of the cafe, including old school friends like Richard, who secretly fancies Sarah, and best friends Chloe and Keiran. John, another former school-friend and former ‘fat kid’, is also back in town but is now a successful businessman, driving a Porsche and looking good. There is a definite spark between John and Sarah, making Richard wildly jealous of the obvious attraction.
Warm, funny and engaging and with a pedigree of hot comedy talent on and off-screen, The Cafe is the hub for all walks of life, and a lot of very funny comedy.

This weekend, Call the Midwife will start.  This moving, intimate, funny and true-to-life series, based on the best-selling memoirs of the late Jennifer Worth, tells colorful stories of midwifery and families in London’s East End in the 1950s. Jenny Lee, a young woman raised in the wealthy English countryside, has chosen to become a nurse and now, as a newly qualified midwife, has gone to work in the poorest area of the city. Attached to an order of nursing nuns at Nonnatus House, Jenny is part of a team of women who minister to expectant mothers, many of whom give birth at home in appalling conditions. The drama follows Jenny as she meets her patients and learns to love the people who live in the East End. Call the Midwife will air on Sundays at 7 pm starting September 30th and repeat on Saturdays at 9 pm.

Land Girls will continue to air on Saturdays at 8 pm.  Just started the series on September 1st and will continue with Series 2 & 3 in October & November.  Commissioned by BBC1 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of World War II, Land Girls follows the lives, loves, highs and lows of four young English women who left their homes and families to join the Woman’s Land Army. A civilian organization, the WLA sent city women to rural farms to replace the male workers who had been called up to the military.

Masterpiece Classic “Upstairs, Downstairs, Series 2″ will begin to air on Sunday nights at 8 pm on October 7th.  If you want a chance to review Series 1 of Upstairs, Downstairs, you can watch all three episodes back-to-back this Sunday, September 30th from 8 pm – 11 pm.   As 165 Eaton Place reopens its doors, new arrivals make their mark.

Also KLRU will have new episodes of Doctor Who Series 6 coming up in October.

In November and December, KLRU will provide rebroadcasts of Downton Abbey episodes.  And then the new season of Downton Abbey will be featured in January 2013.

Our station has heard that Doc Martin will be producing a new series of programming.  Once those episodes are made available, KLRU will acquire them for air.

Many of our viewers think that all the best British programming comes from PBS. Yes, our well known series like Masterpiece Mystery and Masterpiece Classics like Downton Abbey comes from PBS. Yet, our station will look for additional British programming to add to the KLRU-TV schedule. For instance, Doc Martin is a special acquisition from American Public Television (APT) and it has become a hit with our viewers. And now, KLRU has acquired another series from APT titled Land Girls. This new series will air on KLRU on Saturdays at 8 pm starting September 1st.

Commissioned by BBC1 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of World War II, Land Girls follows the lives, loves, highs and lows of four young English women who left their homes and families to join the Woman’s Land Army (WLA). A civilian organization, the WLA sent city women to rural farms to replace the male workers who are off in the military. The young girls arrive at the Hoxley Estate to begin their new lives at the farm owned by Frederick Finch and to work at the manor house occupied by Lord and Lady Hoxley. The young girls, Nancy Morrell, Joyce Fisher, Bea Holloway and Annie Barratt, have joined the WLA for very different reasons. But they want to serve their country and to help win the war.

In the first episode, Nancy joins the WLA and hates every minute of it. But when she finds herself in a life or death situation with Annie, will her priorities change? Fun-loving Bea finds herself the center of attention at a dance – which has life changing consequences for the naive 16-year-old.

So if you are interested in trying out a new British series, join KLRU on Saturdays nights at 8 pm starting September 1st.

“Ding Dong Merrily”
When Janey comes home for Christmas, she’s pregnant and Susan wants to know who the father is. However, Janey refuses to tell her, but does tell Ben, who then lies to Susan about the father. Meanwhile, Nick starts a Christmas tree business and then invites round Mr Bradley (Trevor Peacock), an “old person”, for Christmas Day. When Susan cooks the turkey with chocolate and raisins, everyone decides they are vegetarians.

“Glad Tidings We Bring”
Janey gets engaged to Ches Rochester (Danny Webb), a nightclub owner who is old enough to be her father, whom she has only known 10 days, but a psychic told her she would meet the love of her life at a wedding. They marry two weeks later at his house and Susan is worried about Ben giving the “father of the bride” speech. Meanwhile, Michael’s girlfriend Molly (Verity Dearsley) is into long-term plans. At the wedding, Grace and Ches’s father (Freddie Davies) dance together, while Michael and Hubert sell the wedding presents on eBay. But, shortly after marrying, Janey goes off with a waiter calls Lars (Mathew Bose) and asks for a divorce. Meanwhile, Nick is sending videos to Ben and Susan claiming to be destitute in the Far East and asks for money. Guest starring Edna Doré.

“…And I’ll Cry If I Want To”
Susan is organising a third birthday for Kenzo, partly to make up for the fact she got forgot Janey’s third birthday, and wants Janey to bring the father. She wants to hire an expensive clown, but Ben secretly asks Roger to do it instead. However, on the day, Christmas Eve, Roger gets drunk so Ben has to do it instead. Meanwhile, Welsh musician Alfie Butts (Rhodri Meilir), a friend of Nick’s, turns up and Susan insists he stay. Ben finds a £1200 ring which he thinks is for him from Susan, but is actually from Grace to her toyboy (John Burgess), so he goes out and buys Susan a £1200 first edition of Mrs Dalloway. Also, Michael gets a Christmas job as a postman and Abi becomes a beautician.

“Living The Dream”
Ben and Susan join a pyramid selling scheme on Roger’s advice even though he didn’t receive any of his money through the scheme. Upon asking Michael’s advice, he says don’t touch it but Ben and Susan know better, don’t they? Meanwhile, Roger buys himself some special treats and Ben finds himself getting extremely jealous as he cannot shift any of his stock. When Roger buys himself a convertible, Ben finds himself questioning Roger’s profits or rather, from whence they came. Also the family is suffering from the effects of a broken boiler, occasional power cuts and Ben’s dreams of having a champagne breakfast for the first time in his life.

Should we repeat the final six new episodes now to give you a chance to see them again? Or should we repeat episodes from earlier in the series that haven’t been seen in awhile?

Cast your vote today here

KLRU’s popular British drama Lark Rise To Candleford returns for a fourth series, teeming with its usual wit, intrigue and romance. Its vividly drawn, much-loved characters continue to delight and entertain. The series opens with the arrival of Gabriel Cochrane, played by Richard Harrington, and sees the return of Dawn French’s character, Caroline Arless, later in the run.

These are the last six episodes of the series. The BBC has ended production on the show.

KLRU is adding two new Britcoms to Saturday night’s lineup starting Jan. 22.

Outnumbered at 10 p.m.
Outnumbered, the multi-award-winning BBC comedy series, captures the turbulent chaos of family life in a way not seen before, at its most deliciously chaotic. Two parents and their three children are locked in an unequal battle. Using elements of improvisation, Outnumbered sees the world as much from the children’s as the adults’ point of view.

Reggie Perrin at 10:30 p.m.
A modern-day update of the classic British sitcom The Fall And Rise Of Reginald Perrin, starring Martin Clunes in the title role. Reggie Perrin retells the story of a sales executive on the edge – an average man finding it increasingly difficult to put up with the monotony of life, the disappointing marriage, the office grind as head of disposable razors at male-grooming firm Groomtech and the daily commute. Rebellion begins to build in his mind, in the form of increasingly surreal flights of fancy, and slowly, Reggie begins to say what he really thinks.

Of course, we understand that many of our viewers of KLRU-TV want to continue to watch our classic British comedies, while we also have viewers that want some new comedies to watch as well.  So for now, our station will take a short break from these classics.  But, they will surely return to the KLRU-TV schedule in the future.

In the coming weeks, our station will present some additional new British programming for you to look watch.

One new series is REGGIE PERRIN.  This British comedy chronicles the life of a man feeling rather marooned in the modern world.  In this new update of the classic 1970′s Britcom, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) stars as the middle-aged business man who has become disaffected with the tedium and dishonesty of everyday life. The daily commute, with its battle for a seat surrounded by others ear-plugged into all manner of electronics, and especially his days at Groomtech, where he has worked for 10 years in the position of Head of Disposable Razors, are beginning to get to him. At the office he must deal with the absurd jargon and PowerPoint presentations that comprise his day, and at home Reggie is becoming increasingly out of sync with family life – in fact, he’s starting to have fantasies.  Martin Clunes should be a perfect fit for this Reggie Perrin part.

In addition, our station will be acquiring new episodes of “Larkrise to Candleford.”  Those eight new episodes will be coming our way in the spring of 2011.  The residents of Lark Rise and Candleford return to this award-winning adaption of Flora Thompson’s novels. A newcomer Gabriel Cochrane will arrive in Candleford with a vendetta against banker Steerforth, who he feels has tricked him into losing his business. Elsewhere, Dorcas makes an ill-judged intervention, Minnie becomes worried that Alfie might fall out of love with her and Emma is left in a precarious situation.

Our station is also looking into acquiring another British comedy titled, “Outnumbered.”  This British comedy follows the battle of wills between two parents and their three young children, who are seemingly locked into a never-ending contest to see just whose patience will run out first.  KLRU-TV is currently negotiating for the rights to this series for presentation in early 2011.

Again thank you for your feedback on our programming and for your support of KLRU-TV, Austin PBS.

Maria Rodriguez
Sr. V. P. of Programming

KLRU adds After You’ve Gone to our Britcom lineup Saturday, August 13. For this special evening author and comedian Owen Egerton will be joining KLRU staff in the studio.

Jack-of-all-trades Jimmy Venables is probably the only man in Britain who gets divorced and ends up with his mother-in-law. That’s not how he planned it, but since when does life go according to plan? When his ex-wife volunteers to go to East Africa to help the victims of a natural disaster, weekend-dad Jimmy agrees to take care of their two teenage kids full-time in an attempt to win her back. Unfortunately, his posh mother-in-law Diana sees Jimmy as the true natural disaster and virtually moves in herself to keep order, keep an eye on things and undermine Jimmy whenever possible. Starring Nicholas Lyndhurst (Only Fools and Horses, Goodnight Sweetheart), Celia Imrie (Nanny McPhee, Mr Harvey Lights a Candle) .