PBS Announces Mid-Season Schedule

Sherlock on MASTERPIECE: Mary Watson (AMANDA ABBINGTON), Sherlock Holmes (BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH) and John Watson (MARTIN FREEMAN). Courtesy of Robert Viglasky/Hartswood Films 2016 for MASTERPIECE. Alicia Keys: Courtesy of GREAT PERFORMANCES

Lineup Showcases New Drama, Arts, History and Nature Programs in 2017

Major New Arts Strand LANDMARKS LIVE IN CONCERT from

GREAT PERFORMANCES

New VICTORIA on MASTERPIECE and MERCY STREET Anchor Drama-filled January

Also, SHERLOCK on MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! Returns

ARLINGTON, VA; December 1, 2016 - PBS unveiled today a strong 2017 winter/spring season lineup that includes the January 15 premiere of the seven-part drama Victoria on MASTERPIECE (watch the trailer) about the early years and fraught relationships of the 19th-century teenage queen; the much-anticipated returns of Sherlock on MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! on New Year's Day and the second season of PBS' original American drama series MERCY STREET (watch the trailer) on January 22. For the first time, PBS is announcing a major new arts strand, LANDMARKS LIVE IN CONCERT, part of GREAT PERFORMANCES, which features performances by Alicia Keys on January 20 and Brad Paisley on January 27. Also in the line-up beginning February 1 is a new NATURE series called SPY IN THE WILD, A NATURE MINISERIES, a John Downer Production for BBC, PBS and THIRTEEN Productions LLC; the three-part, six-hour film The Great War airs on AMERICAN EXPERIENCE April 10, as well as the tandem premieres of Oklahoma City and Ruby Ridge on February 7 and February 14, respectively; Africa's Great CIvilizations from Henry Louis Gates, Jr. starts February 27, AMERICAN MASTERS Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise premieres on February 21 and a GERSHWIN PRIZE special honoring Smokey Robinson airs on February 10; and much more.

Throughout early 2017, PBS offers an abundance of new and returning drama, history and science programs. Spring brings the sixth season of the acclaimed drama CALL THE MIDWIFE beginning April 2, followed by the final season of Home Fires on MASTERPIECE. On March 26, To Walk Invisible: The Bronte Sisters on MASTERPIECE is a special that chronicles how Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte's genius for writing romantic novels was, against all odds, recognized in a male-dominated 19th-century world. A preview of VIETNAM, the highly anticipated new film from award-winning filmmakers Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, airs May 28.

Our winter/spring 2017 schedule represents the very best of PBS, said Beth Hoppe, PBS' Chief Programming Executive and General Manager. We're delivering new seasons of our award-winning Sunday dramas, awe-inspiring science and nature programs, deep dives into history and up-to-the-minute takes on current events that will leave viewers informed and entertained.

PBS' winter/spring 2017 programs are typically available to stream each morning after broadcast on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and PBS apps for iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Chromecast. Select programs can also be streamed on Passport, a benefit for local PBS station donors that offers extended access to a rich library of public television programming.

Sunday nights remain PBS' most-watched nights, and Sundays in January feature the premieres of four new and returning series. The long-awaited Sherlock on MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! will premiere in the U.S. on the same date as BBC One's broadcast on January 1. Starting January 15, Victoria on MASTERPIECE stars Jenna Coleman as the titular queen. The seven-part series follows her ascension to the throne in 1837 at 18, through her relationship with her first prime minister and intimate friend Lord Melbourne (Rufus Sewell), as well as her courtship with and marriage to Prince Albert (Tom Hughes).

On January 22, MERCY STREET Season Two premieres, pushing the drama beyond the hospital walls and picking up where season one ended. The show chronicles the chaos in Alexandria, Virginia; the complicated lives of Dr. Foster (Josh Radnor), Nurse Mary Phinney (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and the Mansion House staff; the increasingly precarious position of the Green family; and the changing world of the burgeoning black population. Joining the Sunday lineup on January 22 is a new three-part series, SECRETS OF THE SIX WIVES, which follows popular English historian Lucy Worsley as she travels back to the Tudor court to witness some of the most dramatic moments in the lives of notorious King Henry VIII's numerous spouses.

For PBS' celebration of Black History Month, the music special SMOKEY ROBINSON: THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS GERSHWIN PRIZE FOR POPULAR SONG, hosted by Samuel L. Jackson, honors the famed singer/songwriter - a rhythm and blues icon - on February 10. THE TALK - RACE IN AMERICA provides a unique perspective, through six independent producers, on how black and Hispanic families counsel their kids to stay safe if they are stopped by the police. The two-hour film airs February 20. AMERICAN MASTERS Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise, the first documentary feature about the incomparable poet, memoirist and civil rights activist, airs February 21.

A spate of powerful documentaries and new independent films continues with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.'s new documentary series AFRICA'S GREAT CIVILIZATIONS on February 27, bringing little-known yet epic stories of to life, detailing African kingdoms and cultures. INDEPENDENT LENS brings Birth of a Movement on February 6, exploring race relations and representation, and the power and influence of Hollywood; TOWER, a reflection on the fateful 1966 massacre on the campus of the University of Texas in Austin, airing February 14; and Newtown on April 3, which reflects on the Connecticut town's rebuilding after the

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