Monday Montage

What’s happening, what’s on and what’s interesting this week …

Discover a legendary choreographer whose dances center on the Black American experience with grace, strength and beauty. Tune in as AMERICAN MASTERS presents AILEY – Tuesday night at 9 on PBS NC.

Great news for fans of the books by James Herriot: The second series has just premiered but ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL has already been renewed for two more seasons!

She graced the screen for more than 60 years in a host of unforgettable roles. Join some of her friends and co-stars as they celebrate the life and career of BETTY WHITE: FIRST LADY OF TELEVISION – Friday at 10pm on PBS NC.

Where Do I Know That Actor? (Harry Potter Edition)

Unless you’ve been asleep since the turn of the century, you’re no doubt are aware of one of the biggest blockbuster cinematic franchises ever – Harry Potter. The eight films premiered over a period of ten years starting in 2001 and it’s no exaggeration to say they made an immense impact on pop culture. Later this week, HBO Max will present a reunion of many of the series’ actors and, as I watched a promo for this much-anticipated event, I couldn’t help but notice how many faces I knew from PBS programs.

In celebration of this celluloid juggernaut, I thought it might be fun to cast an eye (or spell) towards the cast of the Harry Potter franchise and see just who’s who from public broadcasting fare.

To start with, Daniel Radcliffe plays the titular hero, Harry Potter, aka The Boy Who Lived. He was John Kipling in the 2008 Masterpiece production of My Boy Jack (based on David Haig’s 1997 play). However, going back to 1999, we see that Radcliffe made his acting debut as David Copperfield in a 2000 adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic on Masterpiece Theatre.

The late Richard Harris played Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore. While it is true that Harris is best known for film, he did appear once on Masterpiece Theatre in the mid-90s – as Ernest Kandinsky in The Great Kandinsky.

Where Do I Know That Actor?

If you’re watching Prime Suspect Fridays at 11pm on UNC-EX, then you know the first case just wrapped up this past week. Jane Tennison begins her next case Friday night. It’s also worth mentioning that the program originally aired off and on from 1991 to 2006 in seven series, each with its own title and, with the exception of series four, each season centering around one “prime suspect” (series four was presented as three specials, each its on case). The fifteen episodes are now split in half so that we can air them in hour blocks, thus making Prime Suspect a 30-part series for UNC-TV.

Also, there were several familiar faces in the first series that viewers may have (or should have) recognized from other shows UNC-TV has broadcast. Let’s see if you spotted them.

First, we have the prime suspect himself – George Marlowe, as played by John Bowe. I first noticed him as Kester Woodseaves in Precious Bane, a mid-80s Masterpiece Theatre presentation starring Janet McTeer and Clive Owen. More recently, he played Dr. Morgan on Cranford.