Don’t Trust The B—- In Apartment 23 and Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek is set to star in CBS’ multi-camera comedy pilot Friends With Better Lives.
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In what is likely to be yet another nail in CSI: NY‘s coffin, Hill Harper has joined the cast of USA Network’s Covert Affairs as a series regular for its upcoming fourth season. While officially no decision has been made on the fate of CSI: NY, word is that the season 9 finale which aired on CBS last night will be the show’s final episode.
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EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that Channel 4 has put into development a one-off TV movie about the 7/7 London bombings. The docudrama has been given a script order and I hear that Philip Ralph (Doctors, Holby City) is writing the script for the as-yet untitled 2 hour piece for production company Hat Trick Productions. Insiders have admitted to me that a docudrama about a major terrorist attack in the heart of London is a dicey proposition, but add that there have been numerous dramatisations of the 9/11 terror attacks not to mention Seal Team Six’s raid on Osama Bin Laden. Despite the so-called dicey territory of this project, insiders tell me that they’re not concerned and believe a compelling and emotional drama about the events could be produced “as long as the subject matter is approached carefully and with respect.”
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EXCLUSIVE: It looks as if Channel 4’s loss could once again be Sky’s gain. Last year, the satcaster handed a series order to Big Talk Productions’ Chickens, a sitcom from Simon Bird, Jonny Sweet and Joe Thomas. That project, which revolves around 3 men in a world of women after they get out of serving in the army during World War I, had some heady auspices, originating from the stars of Channel 4’s hit series The Inbetweeners, and was given a broadcast pilot order at Channel 4. The pilot was aired in a late-night slot in 2011 and despite those heady auspices, executives at Channel 4 passed on picking up Chickens to series. Sky1 then picked up the project with a six episode order in 2012, with Chickens curently set to air on Sky1 this Summer. Sky’s Head of Entertainment Stuart Murphy had been critical of Channel 4’s decision to pass on Chickens: “If I was at Channel 4 and talent that had delivered my biggest hit in comedy for 15 years have an idea, I would probably not just order a pilot and stick it out late at night” he said at MGEITF 2012.
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EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that Robert Emms is the first actor to be cast in BBC One’s upcoming fantasy series Atlantis. My sources tell me that Emms will be playing a young Pythagoras, a brilliant mathematician and philosopher who is one of the many interesting characters that Jason meets upon arriving in Atlantis. An up and comer, Emms, repped by ICM Partners and Curtis Brown, is coming off of a starring role in Universal’s Kick Ass 2. His previous credits include War Horse and Relativity Media’s Mirror Mirror: The Untold Adventures of Snow White.
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Emmy Award winner Margo Martindale has been cast in CBS’ as yet Untitled Greg Garcia Comedy Project, TVWise has learned.
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A+E Networks UK’s History channel has ordered two new factual series to join their lineup. The broadcaster has commissioned Banger Boys from Orion TV and Hoard Hunters from ITV Studios, with both shows receiving 8 episode orders. The commissions are both in genres where History has had success: motoring and archaeology. They also come after the channel posted record ratings in 2012.
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Primeval: New World – the spin-off of Impossible Picture’s Primeval – has been cancelled by Canadian broadcaster Space after airing one low rated season of 13 episodes. The series was acquired by UKTV’s Watch channel last year and is currently being broadcast on the channel here in the UK, while Syfy has acquired the series for broadcast in the US. Word is that the series’ producers are shopping the series to other networks in the hopes of a last minute revival.
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