TORONTO – CBC on Wednesday unveiled its fall 2023 streaming and broadcast schedule, announcing premiere dates for new and returning original series on CBC Gem and CBC TV.
New original series include the five-part drama Bones of Crows, Marie Clements’ multigenerational epic tale of Indigenous resilience and strength starring Summer Testawich, Grace Dove (Monkey Beach) and Carla Rae (Rutherford Falls), who portray main character Aline Spears at various stages of her life “as she survives Canada’s residential school system to continue her family’s generational fight in the face of systemic starvation, racism and sexual abuse,” reads a description on CBC’s website. Bones of Crows will premiere Sept. 20 at 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador) on CBC TV. The first episode will be available to stream on CBC Gem on the same day starting at 9 a.m. ET, with a new episode available weekly at the same time.
Also new to CBC TV and CBC Gem this fall is the eight-part documentary series Black Life: Untold Stories, which will have its world premiere screening at TIFF 2023 this September. This series “reframes the rich and complex histories of Black experiences in Canada,” a CBC press release explains. The first four episodes will be available Oct. 18 on CBC Gem, with the remaining four available to stream Oct. 25. The series will debut on CBC TV on Oct. 25 at 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. in NL).
On Nov. 9, CBC TV and CBC Gem will premiere the three-part drama BlackBerry, “an extended series version of Matt Johnson’s riotous take on the tech cautionary tale starring Jay Baruchel and Glenn Howerton,” the release says. BlackBerry debuts at 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. in NL) on CBC TV and at 9 a.m. ET on CBC Gem.
Other new original series include: Telling Our Story, a four-part documentary series sharing the perspectives of the First Peoples in Quebec, with all episodes available Sept. 17 on CBC Gem; and the four-part documentary series Swan Song, offering “a backstage look at first-time director Karen Kain’s monumental new production of Swan Lake for the National Ballet of Canada on the eve of her retirement from the company,” which will debut on CBC TV on Nov. 22 at 8 p.m. (8:30 p.m. NL), with all episodes available the same day on CBC Gem.
Premiere dates were also announced for returning CBC TV series, including The Passionate Eye (Sept. 13), Family Feud Canada (Sept. 18), This Hour Has 22 Minutes (Sept. 19), The New Wave of Standup (Sept. 19), Dragons’ Den (Sept. 21), Still Standing (Sept. 26), Heartland (Oct. 1), The Great Canadian Baking Show (Oct. 1), SkyMed (Oct. 1), Murdoch Mysteries (Oct. 2), Marketplace (Oct. 13) and The Fifth Estate (Oct. 20).
On CBC Gem, season three of acclaimed series Sort Of, starring Bilal Baig, will premiere Nov. 17, with two episodes available to stream weekly. Season two of CBC Gem original Zarqa will premiere Oct. 6, with all episodes available that day. In addition, all episodes of season three of Farm Crime will be available to stream on Nov. 3.
New CBC Gem original series premiering this fall include: How to Fail as a Popstar (Oct. 13), an adaptation of Vivek Shraya’s hit play and book; The Bannocking (Oct. 20), a new Indigenous horror series; and I Hate People, People Hate Me (available to stream in late fall), an offbeat comedy created by Bobbi Summers that “explores queer identity in a time when queerness has not only been mainstreamed, but commodified,” the release says.
The full details of CBC TV’s and CBC Gem’s fall 2023 broadcast schedules can be found here.
Photo of Grace Dove from Bones of Crows courtesy of CBC.
