WATERTOWN, NY; October 13, 2022 – “When it comes to the murder mystery genre no one does it like the British, with a level of craft, inventiveness and quality that isn’t matched anywhere, not even in Hollywood” said Mark Prasuhn, President & General Manager of WPBS. “In our region, WPBS is the destination for superb British drama – especially on television’s longest-running drama anthology series, Masterpiece, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year.”
Starting this Sunday, October 16th and continuing throughout the rest of this month and into November, Masterpiece presents a powerhouse lineup with three new murder mystery series: Miss Scarlet & the Duke season 2 (8:00 pm); Magpie Murders (9:00 pm); and Annika (10:00 pm).
Miss Scarlet & The Duke (Sundays at 8 PM October 16 – November 20)
TV’s dueling detectives return for a new season of intriguing cases set in Victorian-era London on Miss Scarlet and The Duke, starring Kate Phillips (Wolf Hall) as private eye Eliza Scarlet and Stuart Martin (Medici) as her hot-tempered friend, Inspector William “The Duke” Wellington of Scotland Yard. The new season presents a cavalcade of investigations, among them the search for a missing drawing by Charles Darwin, a murder that Eliza realizes mimics the plot of a mystery novel, a product-poisoning scheme, and a grave-robbing conspiracy. She also helps out Hattie by looking into prospective marriage partners proposed by her socially ambitious aunt (Helen Norton, Cracks), conveniently finding scandals associated with all.
Magpie Murders (Sundays at 9 PM October 16 – November 20)
A mystery author dies under suspicious circumstance, with his last book seemingly unfinished. This leaves two mysteries: What happened to him? And how does his latest potboiler end? Oscar-nominee Lesley Manville (The Crown, Phantom Thread) stars as the author’s editor, Susan Ryeland, who assumes the role of detective in the case. Meanwhile, Tim McMullan (Patrick Melrose) plays the fictional sleuth in the incomplete novel, whose investigation parallels Susan’s. Based on Anthony Horowitz’s (Foyle’s War) ingenious bestselling novel, the six-part series also stars Conleth Hill, Michael Maloney, Alexandros Logothetis, and Claire Rushbrook. “There is true satisfaction in watching the pieces of Horowitz’s puzzle click into place,” applauded The Telegraph (London). In addition, The Sunday Times (London) declared, “Yikes, this is excellent.”
Annika (Sundays at 10 PM October 16 – November 20)
The critically-acclaimed series is based on the hugely successful BBC Radio 4 drama, written by Nick Walker. Annika follows the sharp, witty and enigmatic DI Annika Strandhed (Nicola Walker), as she leads the specialist Marine Homicide Unit (MHU) that is tasked with investigating the unexplained, brutal, and seemingly unfathomable murders that wash up in the waterways of Scotland. Through the series, Annika makes the audience her confidante by breaking the fourth wall and sharing her wry observations on the case and her life, as she manages her brilliant yet unconventional team, and her equally brilliant yet complex teenage daughter. MASTERPIECE executive producer Susanne Simpson says, “Nicola Walker absolutely owns the role of Annika, who comes across as smart, eccentric, and funny. She leads an extraordinary cast of characters who make this show unique.”
About MASTERPIECE
Winner of 83 Primetime Emmys® and 18 Peabody Awards, MASTERPIECE has been essential Sunday night viewing for millions of fans since 1971. Susanne Simpson is the executive producer and Rebecca Eaton is the executive producer-at-large for the series. Series funding for MASTERPIECE is provided by Viking Cruises, Raymond James, The MASTERPIECE Trust, and public television viewers. Produced for PBS by GBH Boston, MASTERPIECE is known for hits such as All Creatures Great and Small, Sherlock, Downton Abbey and Victoria, and beloved classics such as Upstairs Downstairs, Prime Suspect, The Forsyte Saga and Poldark.
About WPBS
WPBS is a PBS station serving approximately 650,000 households throughout Northern New York and Eastern Ontario via cable, satellite, Internet and over-the-air distribution. WPBS is a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate, inform, and engage its two-nation region with exceptional and trusted content across multiple platforms. Its vision is to be the premier provider of extraordinary public media that instills wonder and curiosity across generations and borders. More information about WPBS, including a full channel listing, is available at wpbstv.org, or by following WPBS on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
