Television slate includes 17 new series and 25 returning titles

New Canadian original series include legal drama BURDEN OF PROOF starring Kristin Kreuk;

CAUGHT starring Allan Hawco and Paul Gross; true crime series THE DETECTIVES;

comedy LITTLE DOG from Joel Thomas Hynes and showrunner Sherry White; and THE STATS OF LIFE,
revealing surprising truths about how Canadians live today

CBC expands investment in original digital content with largest offer ever spanning

15 series and new slate of CBC SHORT DOCS

With more than 100 million downloads over the past year, CBC RADIO builds on podcasting success with new original series THE FRIDGE LIGHT hosted by food writer Chris Nuttall-Smith; weekly talk show SEAT AT THE TABLE with Isabelle Racicot and Martine St-Victor; and fresh cold cases from SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING

CBC, Canada’s public broadcaster and the number-one media brand in Canada*, today announced its 2017-18 programming lineup showcasing a wide-ranging, uniquely Canadian slate of new and returning original drama, comedy, factual, arts, kids, sports, news and documentary content from the country's leading artists, creators and commentators across television, radio and digital platforms.

"Our 2017-18 slate is a tribute to the talent and authenticity of Canada's top creators, who are choosing CBC as the destination to share the stories they want to tell, including compelling new drama, comedy, factual, arts and documentary series," said Heather Conway, executive-vice president, English Services, CBC. "By launching one of our largest programming lineups to date reflecting the diversity of perspectives and voices in this country, CBC continues to reach, connect with and entertain Canadians across all platforms, guided by how audiences choose to engage with us."

New CBC original television series announced today for the 2017-18 season include:

• BURDEN OF PROOF (winter 2018, 10x60, ICF Films, Entertainment One (eOne) and Eagle Vision), a legal drama starring Kristin Kreuk as a big city lawyer passed over for partnership who returns to her hometown to take on what she thinks is a simple case, only to find herself in a fight for justice for a group of sick girls.
• CAUGHT (winter 2018, 5x60, Take The Shot Productions), Allan Hawco's new drama set in 1978, adapted from Lisa Moore’s acclaimed novel. Locked up after a drug deal goes wrong, David Slaney (Hawco; Republic of Doyle; The Book of Negroes) makes a daring break from a New Brunswick prison to attempt one more deal with his former partner (Eric Johnson, Fifty Shades Darker, The Knick, Smallville) - all this with a dogmatic police officer, Patterson (Paul Gross, Alias Grace, Hyena Road, Passchendaele), at his heels.
• THE DETECTIVES (fall 2017, 8x60, WAM Media GRP Inc.), a true crime series that brings to life the real cases of Canadian detectives by blending first-person interviews with scripted drama.
• LITTLE DOG (winter 2018, 7x30, Cameron Pictures and Elemental Pictures), a comedy from author, musician and actor Joel Thomas Hynes (Mary Kills People, Orphan Black) and showrunner Sherry White (Rookie Blue, Saving Hope) that tells the story of lightweight Newfoundland boxer Donny "Little Dog" Ross and his haphazard quest for redemption after quitting a fight.
• THE STATS OF LIFE (fall 2017, 1x60, 4x30, Frantic Films), a factual series that reveals surprising truths about how Canadians are living today based on recent population statistics.
• New CBC KIDS titles include animated series ADDISON (fall 2017, 20x11, Six Eleven Media) chronicling the adventures of a young girl who loves to solve mysteries; BEAT BUGS (winter 2018, 52x11, Thunderbird Entertainment, Grace Films, Beyond Films and Atomic Cartoons), following five charming bugs and featuring songs from The Beatles; and preschool series BECCA’S BUNCH (fall 2017, 52x11, Jam Media), which merges live action and puppetry with 2D and 3D animation.

These titles join previously announced new CBC original television series for 2017-18 including:

• 21 THUNDER (summer 2017, 8x60, PMA Productions and Generic Productions), a fast-paced drama that follows the players and coaches of an elite under-21 Montreal soccer team both on and off the field, premiering July 31.
• ALIAS GRACE (fall 2017, 6x60, Halfire Entertainment), the highly anticipated miniseries written and produced by Sarah Polley, directed by Mary Harron and starring Sarah Gadon, based on the award-winning Margaret Atwood novel and inspired by true events, premiering September 25.
• CRAWFORD (winter 2018, 12x30, Rabbit Square Productions), Mike Clattenburg’s (Trailer Park Boys) unconventional family comedy about a young man who, after a run of bad luck, moves back in with his parents and turns his natural ability to relate to racoons into a successful business, all while navigating life with his eccentric family. Starring Jill Hennessy (Shots Fired, Crossing Jordan), John Carroll Lynch (The Founder, American Horror Story) and Kyle Mac (Miss Sloane, 21 Thunder).
• FRANKIE DRAKE MYSTERIES (fall 2017, 11x60, Shaftesbury) from the producers of Murdoch Mysteries, following Toronto’s only female private detective in the 1920s (Lauren Lee Smith; The Listener, This Life) and her colleague Trudy (Chantel Riley; The Lion King) as they take on the cases that the police don’t want or can’t handle.
• THE GREAT CANADIAN BAKING SHOW (fall 2017, 8x60, Proper Television), based on the hit British format, which will bring together 10 amateur bakers from across Canada to compete in a series of themed culinary challenges. The most recent season of the British series, THE GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW, will also air on CBC beginning August 23 to warm up audiences ahead of the premiere of the Canadian version.
• TAKEN (summer 2017, 8x30, Eagle Vision), a true crime documentary series that explores the search for answers and justice for Canada’s missing and murdered Indigenous women.

This fall, CBC will broadcast the Canadian premiere of the next instalment of Jane Campion’s Emmy and Golden Globe® nominated  TOP OF THE LAKE: CHINA GIRL (2017, 7x50, See-Saw Films, BBC Worldwide), which will see Elizabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale, Mad Men) reprise her Golden Globe® winning role as Detective Robin Griffin. She will be joined by Nicole Kidman and Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones, Star Wars: The Force Awakens). The first season of TOP OF THE LAKE (2013) will stream on cbc.ca/watch ahead of the Season 2 premiere. Season 1 of the BAFTA-nominated, feel-good British series THE DURRELLS (2016, 6x60, Sid Gentle Films Ltd., BBC Worldwide) will also air in fall 2017, based on Gerald Durrell’s trilogy of novels about a family’s adventures on a Greek island after leaving their English home in hopes of a better life.

Returning drama, comedy, factual and arts series include BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW (summer 2017 starting June 27, Season 2); CORONATION STREET (fall 2017, Season 19); DRAGONS’ DEN (fall 2017, Season 12) featuring Arlene Dickinson’s return to the Den; EXHIBITIONISTS (Season 3, fall 2017); weekday daytime series THE GOODS (fall 2017, Season 2); HA!IFAX COMEDY FEST (winter 2018, Season 22); HEARTLAND (fall 2017, Season 11); HELLO GOODBYE (winter 2018, Season 3); INTERRUPT THIS PROGRAM (fall 2017, Season 3); JUST FOR LAUGHS: GALAS (fall 2017); KIM’S CONVENIENCE (fall 2017, Season 2); MR. D (fall 2017, Season 7); MURDOCH MYSTERIES (fall 2017, Season 11); RICK MERCER REPORT (fall 2017, Season 15); SCHITT’S CREEK (winter 2018, Season 4); STILL STANDING (summer 2017 starting June 27, Season 3); THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES (fall 2017, Season 25); WHEN CALLS THE HEART (summer 2017 starting June 18, Season 3); THE WINNIPEG COMEDY FESTIVAL (winter 2018, Season 16); and WORKIN’ MOMS (winter 2018, Season 2).

CBC's award-winning news and documentary programming returning this fall includes flagship daily news program THE NATIONAL, MARKETPLACE (Season 45) and THE FIFTH ESTATE (Season 43). Moving to Sunday nights are acclaimed documentary series FIRSTHAND (Season 3) and David Suzuki’s THE NATURE OF THINGS (Season 57), which will launch its new season with THE WILD CANADIAN YEAR (5x60, River Road Films), showcasing Canada’s extraordinary wildlife.

Furthering CBC’s commitment to Canadian music, THE JUNO AWARDS return to Canada’s public broadcaster in 2018, with the 47th annual awards to be broadcast live on CBC from Vancouver's Rogers Arena on Sunday, March 25 (produced by Insight Productions). CBC MUSIC will also launch new music programming initiatives and special events in partnership with CARAS, including covering a more diverse range of genres and musicians and investing in educational initiatives to support the next generation of artists. The JUNO Awards join CBC’s annual line-up of awards programming celebrating Canadian creators, artists and storytellers, including the CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS (winter 2018); CANADIAN COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION AWARDS (September 10); GOVERNOR GENERAL’S PERFORMING ARTS AWARDS (June 29 & 30); POLARIS MUSIC PRIZE GALA (September 18); and SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE (fall 2017).

CBC continues to expand its investment in original digital content with its largest slate ever spanning 15 new and returning series streaming at cbc.ca/watch  and on the CBC app in 2017-18, including new seasons of award-winning comedies MY 90 YEAR OLD ROOMMATE and THE AMAZING GAYL PILE.
New arts, comedy and factual series include ART WORKS! (working title), a subversively surreal series profiling Canadian artists; BUT I’M CHRIS JERICHO, based on the fictionalized, funny life of the pro wrestler; HOW TO BUY A BABY, following a couple’s darkly funny struggle with infertility; KIDS THAT ARE KIND OF AMAZING AT STUFF…WITH GERRY DEE, following the comedian as he meets Canadian kids with exceptional talent; BROAD APPEAL: LIVING WITH E'S, featuring 80-somethings Mrs. Eulalia (Mary Walsh) and Mrs. Enid (Cathy Jones) as they inadvertently give frank advice to young people: KEEP CALM AND DECOLONIZE, profiling Indigenous artists who are embracing Buffy Sainte-Marie's call to decolonize following Canada 150; and QUEER (SELF) PORTRAITS, featuring 10 LGBTQ+ artists who tell their stories while finger-painting a self-portrait.

CBC’s award-winning CBC SHORT DOCS will also launch an extensive new slate of immersive and intimate original digital docs in 2017-18 including CALL ME OLLY (Jordan Molaro and Tyson Anderson), capturing the power that a name can hold over an individual striving to be uninhibited; DECLUTTER (Madison Thomas), exploring the filmmaker’s revelation about her mother and why she is always cleaning; and TWILIGHT DANCERS (Theola Ross and Paola Marino), focusing on how young people from Pimicikamak Cree Nation use square dancing to cope with the youth suicide epidemic in their community.

With more than 100 million downloads over the past year**, CBC RADIO builds on its podcasting success with a slate of new original series including ALONE: A LOVE STORY (fall 2017), a memoir about love and the fallout of cheating; THE FRIDGE LIGHT (September 2017), a deeply nerdy and fascinating look at the hidden stories of food, hosted by food critic and writer Chris Nuttall-Smith; ON DRUGS (June 2017), exploring our complicated relationship with drugs; and SEAT AT THE TABLE (June 2017), a weekly talk show hosted by Montrealers Isabelle Racicot and Martine St-Victor as they tackle what’s brewing in media, politics and pop culture. David Ridgen, the host of CBC’s breakout hit podcast SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING with more than 20 million downloads to date, also returns in fall 2017 with SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING CASE FILES: MISSISSIPI COLD CASE and GREAVETTE CASE, focusing on two new cold cases. Podcast series will launch at cbc.ca/podcasts and also air concurrently on CBC Radio One.

Additional new CBC RADIO programming includes RECLAIMED (July 2017 on CBC Radio One and CBC Radio 2) hosted by Cree/Dene artist and storyteller Jarrett Marrineau, who will explore the many worlds of contemporary Indigenous music; and ROAD TRIP RADIO (June 2017 on CBC Radio One), a new series from the This Is That team mixing comedy and documentaries, with each episode focusing on one province or territory. NEW FIRE also returns this summer (June 2017 on CBC Radio One), featuring host Lisa Charleyboy as she travels from remote reserves to bustling cities, going to the heart of conversations that are important to Indigenous youth.​

As Canada's Olympic Network, CBC will provide the compelling coverage and storytelling that Canadians have come to expect leading up to, during and after the OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES PYEONGCHANG 2018 across all platforms from February 9-25, 2018. In addition to Olympic Games coverage, CBC SPORTS will continue to connect Canadians with high-performance athletes each week through ROAD TO THE OLYMPIC GAMES on CBC, cbcsports.ca and via the CBC Sports app. Some of the major international events on the CBC Sports schedule in 2017-18 include the 2017 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) in Toronto July 16-23, the FINA World Aquatics Championships July 14-30, the IAAF World Track & Field Championships August 4-13, and the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Montreal October 2-8.

The CBC 2017 fall primetime television schedule is as follows:

MONDAY

8 p.m. (8:30 NT) - Murdoch Mysteries *NEW SEASON*

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) - Alias Grace *NEW SERIES*(Sept)/Frankie Drake *NEW SERIES*(Nov)

TUESDAY

8 p.m. (8:30 NT)- Rick Mercer Report *NEW SEASON*

8:30 p.m. (9 NT) - This Hour Has 22 Minutes *NEW SEASON*

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) - Kim’s Convenience *NEW SEASON*

9:30 p.m. (10 NT) - Mr. D *NEW SEASON*

WEDNESDAY

8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – The Great British Baking Show/The Great Canadian Baking Show *NEW SERIES*

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) - The Durrells *NEW SERIES*(Sept)/Top of the Lake: China Girl *NEW SERIES*(Oct)

THURSDAY

8 p.m. (8:30 NT) - Dragons’ Den *NEW SEASON, NEW NIGHT*

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) - The Detectives *NEW SERIES*

FRIDAY

8 p.m. (8:30 NT) - Marketplace *NEW SEASON*

8:30 p.m. (9 NT) - Interrupt This Program *NEW SEASON*(Oct)/The Stats of Life *NEW SERIES* (Nov)

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) - the fifth estate *NEW SEASON*

SATURDAY

Daytime: Road to the Olympic Games

6:30 p.m. ET - Hockey Night in Canada

SUNDAY

Daytime: Road to the Olympic Games

7 p.m. (7:30 NT) - Heartland *NEW SEASON*

8 p.m. (8:30 NT) - The Nature of Things *NEW SEASON, NEW NIGHT*

9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Firsthand *NEW SEASON, NEW NIGHT*

*Source: Ipsos The Most Influential Brands in Canada 2017

**Source: Sumo Logic (Apr 16-Apr 17)

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About CBC/Radio-Canada

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada’s trusted source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also provide international news and information from a uniquely Canadian perspective. In 2017, CBC/Radio-Canada will at the heart of the celebrations and conversations with special 2017-themed multiplatform programming and events across Canada.

For a complete overview of CBC's programming on all platforms, and more information including series synopses, press releases, hi-res images, video clips and bios, please visit the CBC Media Centre at cbc.ca/mediacentre.

For further information, please contact:
Elizabeth Reid - publicist, CBC
elizabeth.reid@cbc.ca
416-205-2665