Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
I know you’re all about what’s new on Netflix and what’s percolating on HBO, but believe me when I say you should really be giving PBS (and its growing streaming service) a try this fall and winter. Between Hamilton’s America, The Great British Baking Show‘s Masterclass series, the upcoming completion of The Hollow Crown series, and early 2017’s Sherlock season four and Victoria, PBS is totally killing it when it comes to brilliant original content. Oh, yeah, and they make it easy and free to stream almost all of their shows and specials.
I should admit up top that I’ve always been a massive dork for PBS programming. I was practically weaned on Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, Sesame Street, and Reading Rainbow. I grew up on Anne of Green Gables and marathons of The Chronicles of Narnia. I learned all about romance from Masterpiece Theater. You get what I’m saying. Still, even as a lifelong devotee, I’m in absolute awe of how PBS has significantly upped their game this fall and winter. PBS always has a steady stream of great arts entertainment, but now there seems to be a newfound focus on the “entertainment” part of that phrase.
PBS kicked off their fall programming slate with Hamilton’s America. The documentary features an intimate look at the creation of the Broadway smash and gives us an all-too-human look at the lives of both Lin-Manuel Miranda and Alexander Hamilton himself. It was a big, bold start to a season that continues to get better and better. PBS presented rebooted versions of Anne of Green Gables and Pollyanna in time for Thanksgiving. They’ve been slaying it on Masterpiece: Poldark‘s controversial second season and The Durrells in Corfu just ended, making way for the aforementioned The Hollow Crown, Sherlock, and Victoria.
The Hollow Crown is a catch all term for a series of lavish BBC Shakespeare adaptations. The first four came out a few years ago and gave us Ben Whishaw as Richard II and Tom Hiddleston as Henry V. Now we’ll get Tom Sturridge as Henry VI and Benedict Cumberbatch as Richard III. Cumberbatch is kind of a big deal on PBS. Season Four of Sherlock will finally debut on January 1, 2017. Finally, Victoria might be your next costume drama obsession. It became a massive hit when it debuted in the UK this year. Think of it as The Crown, but the queen actually has power.
PBS is also changing the way they approach streaming. They’ve always offered free access to some of their biggest titles, but now they’ve launched PBS Passport. This new membership based service offers subscribers the chance to watch popular titles that have expired from the free streaming site. Think Downton Abbey, Wolf Hall, and yes, Hamilton’s America (boy, they yanked that off of the “free to stream” list fast). Yes, you have to pay for it, but in true PBS fashion, you’re not paying for a streaming service. Instead, you are “becoming a member.” It’s $60 for a year’s “membership” or a mere $5 per month.
