TORONTO – It looks as though CTV did most of the shopping for its new fall TV schedule south of the border.
The network announced 11 new series (seven starting this fall and four slated for mid-season), fronted by big names like Paula Abdul, William Shatner, and Conan O’Brien, plus the Canadian broadcast rights to the U.S. version of Simon Cowell’s The X Factor.
“Strength, stability, surprise – it’s a programming mix you won’t find anywhere else,” said Susanne Boyce, president of creative, content and channels, in the announcement. “From a position of strength, we’ve freshened up Canada’s #1 schedule in all areas, from comedy, drama and reality, to daytime and late-night, to Canadian and American.”
New series joining the CTV 2010 fall schedule include No Ordinary Family about a family with superpowers; legal drama The Defenders; procedural crime drama Law & Order: Los Angeles; $#*! My Dad Says, based on the popular Twitter account and bestseller of the same name, and Blue Bloods about a multi-generational New York family of Irish cops, starring Tom Selleck.
Original daytime series The Marilyn Denis Show premieres this Fall, in addition to seven other original Canadian prime-time series including an unvarnished portrayal of one of history’s most infamous families in The Borgias, Flashpoint (season 4), The Bridge (season 2), The Listener (season 2), Hiccups (season 2), Dan For Mayor (season 2) and Comedy Now! (season 13).
Returning to the CTV schedule are perennial favourites Grey’s Anatomy, Criminal Minds, American Idol, The Amazing Race, The Mentalist, Dancing With The Stars, Desperate Housewives, Law & Order: SVU, and Human Target.
Compared to Fall 2009, this year’s lineup has been updated with more than a dozen schedule changes. CTV said that it has acquired the streaming rights for each of the new scripted and reality series, which it will add to its television portal at CTV.ca.
The /A\ schedule will see 11 series new to the network, including three brand new shows such as the romantic comedy Mike & Molly; the coming-of-age dramatic comedy Hellcats; and Maggie Q as Nikita in a sexy and suspenseful action series.
