By Rick Gables
NBC will enter the fall season with a strong schedule of 16 returning dramas, comedies and alternative programming. Christopher Meloni will reprise the role of Elliot Stabler in the new series Law & Order: Organized Crime. So far, the initial returning line up looks like this: MONDAYS – Returning coaches Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, Blake Shelton, and Gwen Stefani, along with host Carson Daly, reunite for The Voice, followed by mystery drama Manifest. TUESDAYS – The Voice setting the stage for the No. 1 drama This Is Us, followed by New Amsterdam. WEDNESDAYS – The windy city block returns with Chicago Med, followed by Chicago Fire and concluding with Chicago P.D. THURSDAYS – Comedies Superstore and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, followed by drama Law & Order: SVU, leading into Law & Order: Organized Crime. FRIDAYS – Return of The Blacklist followed by two hours of Dateline NBC. SUNDAYS – Sunday Night Football will broadcast 19 games throughout the NFL season. MIDSEASON – Eventual returning series will include Mr. Mayor, Kenan, Young Rock, Good Girls, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, Ellen’s Game of Games and Making It. Jimmy Fallon will rock into primetime as host of musical game show That’s My Jam, along with new series True Story and game show Small Fortune.
PBS to premiere Lucy Worsley’s Royal Photo Album on Sunday, Aug. 16, at 8 p.m. ET (check your local listings). Once upon a time, the idea of the monarchy was spread through fairy tales, but since the days of Victoria and Albert, photographic images have shaped public perception. From official portraits to tabloid snapshots, the camera has been the British royal family’s confidante, messenger, and nemesis. In this intriguing new special, Lucy Worsley explores the royal family photo album, from Queen Victoria to Princess Diana to the current generation, and reveals how the monarchy used the power of the photograph to reinvent itself, engage the public and ensure its survival.
Hallmark Channel’s annual Countdown to Christmas, along with sister network Hallmark Movies & Mysteries’ holiday franchise Miracles of Christmas, is set to kick off Oct. 23, consisting of 23 all-new movies leading up to Christmas. Many of our favorite actors from previous Hallmark movies will be returning to star in these new movies.