SILVER SPRING, Md.,
Sept. 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In
partnership with DRG, Acorn TV, North
America's most popular streaming service focused on British
and international television, is thrilled to announce the return of
one of the most popular series in Britain and Acorn's best-selling series with
Doc Martin, Series 8
beginning its Exclusive U.S. Premiere on Thursday, September 21, 2017, the day after
its British premiere on ITV. BAFTA winner Martin Clunes (Arthur & George, Men
Behaving Badly) returns in his uproarious lead performance as a
tactless, self-centered, and uptight doctor in a quirky seaside
town in Cornwall. After having
therapy to save their marriage in the last season, Doc Martin and Louisa (Caroline Catz, Murder in Suburbia)
face the challenge of living happily together with their baby,
James Henry. The new eight-episode
season premieres every Thursday through November 9, 2017 when the complete season will be
available for binge-watching. Acorn TV is also excited to announce
its October slate led by its newest Acorn TV Original Series, Irish
conspiracy thriller Acceptable Risk.
Mark Stevens, President of Acorn
Brands at RLJ Entertainment, noted, "Acorn TV is ecstatic to
exclusively offer our subscribers new episodes of one of their
favorite series, Doc Martin.
After waiting two years for more episodes, we're delighted to
shorten the wait for North American fans, and will be offering each
new episode the day after its UK debut. Martin Clunes, Caroline Catz and our partners at Buffalo
Pictures and DRG have put together another fun, can't
miss season with the Doc." Stevens added, "Additionally, we
continue to aggressively grow our co-productions slate and a
high-quality, transatlantic production like Acceptable Risk
is another perfect addition to our Acorn TV Originals
slate."
Richard Halliwell, DRG CEO,
added, "We are thrilled that Acorn TV continues to support
Doc Martin, by offering the
brilliant new series to its subscribers in North America. With its human stories,
fish-out-of-water lead and universal themes, Doc Martin continues to resonate with audiences
around the world. And of course, the gorgeous Cornish scenery and
quintessentially British eccentric characters all add to its
appeal. We are proud to have this wonderful title in our catalogue
and with Series Nine already in development, we can't wait to see
what's next for Martin and the world of Portwenn."
Called "completely addictive" (Slate) and
"absolutely bloody hilarious" (London Evening
Standard), Doc Martin is
one of the most successful British series in the U.S. with new fans
continuing to discover the series on Acorn TV, public television,
and on Acorn's deluxe DVD and Blu-ray sets. In the U.K., the series
remains one of ITV's highest-rated drama series. The series is also
a global phenomenon, having sold to more than 70 countries, with
licensed local versions in France,
Germany, Spain, Russia, and many more.
Acorn TV features the previous seven series available to watch
anytime and recently created and added the behind-the-scenes
documentary, Doc Martin: It's Always Sunny in Portwenn, with the
cast and crew reflecting on eight seasons on the series and a sneak
peek at Series 8.
Set in the fictional town of Portwenn, Series 8 features
returning favorites Dame Eileen
Atkins (Upstairs, Downstairs, Cranford) as the
Doc's formidable Aunt Ruth, Ian
McNeice (Doctor Who, Rome) as Bert
Large, Joe Absolom
(Hatfields & McCoys) as his son Al. Additionally, Series
8 guest stars include Art
Malik (Cold Feet, Homeland, True Lies) and
another guest turn by Martin Clunes'
Men Behaving Badly co-star Caroline Quentin. Doc Martin is created by Dominic Minghella, produced by Buffalo Pictures,
and distributed by DRG.
Coming up in October, Acorn TV features Acceptable Risk
(Acorn TV Original Series), a high-end, transatlantic
co-production. This brand new six-part drama stars Elaine Cassidy (The Paradise, No
Offence) in an edge-of-the-seat thriller which follows
Sarah Manning (Cassidy) as she comes
to realize how little she knew about her husband, Lee, before he
was murdered. Her growing suspicions around his death lead Sarah to
confront a powerful conspiracy of corporate, police and political
interests. Exclusive U.S. Premiere begins Monday, October 16th.
Also in October, Acorn TV features the return of Scandinavian
drama Black Widows, Series 2; Clive Owen in 2000 British detective drama
Second Sight; a documentary on The Queen's official
residences with Penelope Keith's
At Her Majesty's Service; more episodes of Trial &
Retribution from the creator of Prime Suspect and with
an early guest turn by Michael
Fassbender; fascinating documentary Witches: A
Century of Murder; and three M.R. James Ghost Stories
timed for Halloween.
In addition to Doc Martin
and Acceptable Risk, Acorn TV's Fall 2017 slate is filled
with must-see new dramas and returning favorites, including the
final seasons of intense, award-winning cop drama 19-2
(Friday, Sept. 22) and hit BBC One
detective drama George Gently; plus new Kay Mellor BBC One
drama Love, Lies and Records, and Aussie legal drama
Newton's Law (Mon., Sept. 11);
as well as exclusive new seasons of several of Acorn TV's trademark
series, including addictive Aussie period drama A Place to Call
Home and New Zealand detective
drama The Brokenwood Mysteries.
Called a "glorious streaming serviceā¦ an essential
must-have" (The Hollywood Reporter) and
"Netflix for the Anglophile" (NPR), Acorn TV
(https://acorn.tv) curates the very best in international
television and is North America's
most popular streaming service for British and international
television. From RLJ Entertainment (NASDAQ: RLJE), Acorn TV is also
the greatest value in streaming at only $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year. Acorn TV exclusively premieres
several new international series and/or seasons every month from
Great Britain, Australia, New
Zealand, Ireland, and
Canada.
IMAGES are available here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j2pe83vkanq6hq0/AAC8HhzWegAKnI_aB7XSyyeea?dl=0
WATCH: Register to watch Acorn TV's exclusive premieres
at its press watch site, https://acorn.tv/press with DVDs available
upon request.
To read our recent press releases, please visit our Corporate
Press Room:
http://www.rljentertainment.com/press-room/
Acorn TV Press Contact: Chad
Campbell, ccampbell@acorn.tv
About RLJ Entertainment
RLJ Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: RLJE) is a premium digital
channel company serving distinct audiences primarily through its
popular OTT branded channels, Acorn TV (British TV) and UMC (Urban
Movie Channel), which have rapidly grown through development,
acquisition, and distribution of its exclusive rights to a
large library of international and British dramas, independent
feature films and urban content. RLJE's titles are also distributed
in multiple formats including broadcast and pay television,
theatrical and non-theatrical, DVD, Blu-ray, and a variety of
digital distribution models (including EST, VOD, SVOD and AVOD) in
North America, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Additionally, through Acorn Media
Enterprises, its UK development arm, RLJE co-produces and develops
new programs and owns 64% of Agatha Christie Limited. For more
information, please visit RLJEntertainment.com, Acorn.tv, and
UMC.tv.
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