Begin new seasons and new series on WETA UK this week! Introducing Lead Balloon to the Washington, DC area, WETA UK is full of surprises this week. Read on for more highlights and trailers, plus, don’t forget to mark your calendars!
Monday at 8:00pm tune in for the Foyle’s War season 2 kick-off! In the first part of the mystery titled, Fifty Ships, an American multi-millionaire, Foyle’s old love interest, and a mysterious Dutch refugee, are all implicated when a dead body is discovered on a beach. Sam looks for a new residence after her home is destroyed in a bombing raid. Foyle investigates a looting case when coins disappear from Sam’s ruined home.
Tuesday at 9:00pm get ready for season 2 ofRumpole of the Bailey. In this first episode of season 2, Rumpole and the Man of God, Rumpole defends a vicar who is charged with theft, but trouble arises when the distressed clergyman refuses to take the stand in his own defense. George Frobisher, the next Circuit Judge, joins the Rumpoles for dinner and introduces his new girlfriend who Rumpole remembers seeing in court.
Tuesday at 10:00pm start season 6 of MI-5 a.k.a Spooks. The award-winning, edge-of-your-seat spy drama is back with another white-knuckle ride through the perilous world of deadly terrorists, international cover-ups and treacherous double-agents.
Wednesday at 8:00pmInspector Morse takes on The Day of the Devil. In this mystery, a serial rapist and Satanist named John Barrie escapes from a mental hospital and demands that his therapist be turned over to him. A master of disguise, Barrie sets up an elaborate and deadly battle of wits with Morse. Part 2 airs next Wednesday at 8:00pm
Thursday at 7:30pm say hello to Keeping Up Appearances season 2! When it comes to snobbery, Hyacinth Bucket is in a class of her own. Award-winning actress Patricia Routledge plays the comic monster in a role which viewers have taken to their hearts. In season 2, Daddy goes missing again, Hyacinth drags Richard off for a weekend of golf at an executive golf club, in spite of the fact that he doesn't like the game, and, determined that the neighbors should see the van delivering her classy new three-piece suite, Hyacinth has parking cones placed outside the house, along with a special notice warning of an immediate delivery.
Friday beginning at 6:00pm begin all new seasons on WETA UK. First at 6:00pm, watch Waiting for God from the very first episode. Then at 8:30pm watch Rosemary & Thyme take on Memory of Water in the first episode of season 2. At 9:30pm get your full dose of laughs with Outnumbered season 4 episode 1, and kick off season 3 of Men Behaving Badly at 10:30. We’re not done just yet! At 11:30pm tune in for the British classic Allo, Allo as we begin season 4.
Saturday beginning at 8:00pm conclude season two of the WETA UK Event: The Complete Vera. Stay tuned to the Programmer’s Choice blog because we have a brand new WETA UK Event next Saturday!
Sunday at 9:00pm we’re proud to announce the WETA UK premiere of Lead Balloon! Written by and starring Jack Dee, one of the UK’s most successful stand-up comedians, you’re invited to enter the world of Rick Spleen… Rick Spleen is a disillusioned stand-up comedian and writer whose career has not gone the way he had planned. Worse still, he’s stuck with a lousy stage name that he chose 20 years ago. Rick combines a mass of neuroses and petty grievances with a terrible propensity for lying which is not a recipe for success. Along for the ride is his quick-talking American co-writer Marty, his unflappable partner Mel, and his incompetent daughter Sam. Join us this Sunday and every week for this brand new, modern British comedy, Lead Balloon!
This Earth Day, join WETA Kids and America’s favorite monkey for a new one hour Curious George special: Curious George Swings into Spring. From spring fever to spring cleaning, from a canoe ride to a hot air balloon journey, George and his friends get WETA Kids ready to explore the outdoors this Earth Day. Tune into WETA Kids Monday, April 22 for the premiere and throughout the week to swing into spring with George again, and again!
You know it must be springtime if a curious monkey named George is dancing on the balcony at sunrise! The Man with the Yellow Hat is sure that George has spring fever, so he takes George to the park to experience all the wonders of spring. George is so excited about spring that he wants Hundley the dog to have spring fever, too, but Hundley and the Doorman are busy trying to win the Mayor’s spring cleaning prize. When a broken water pipe floods the building, Hundley has to stay with George in the country, and George tries to make sure Hundley enjoys spring, too. Even blooming flowers, baby animals and a canoe ride can’t make Hundley love spring. What’s worse – Hundley gets lost in the country! Searching for his lost friend, George accidentally launches a hot air balloon rally and, piloting a balloon, sails over the countryside. Luckily George manages to grab Hundley from a hilltop along the way. Together they balloon triumphantly to the city. The Man with the Yellow Hat and the Doorman stage a daring rooftop rescue. Not only are George and Hundley saved, but they manage to win the coveted Spring Building Prize! Finally, to George’s delight, Hundley now has spring fever, too!
WETA’s Start with a Bookoffers adults engaging ideas for getting kids into books and reading. The free resources from Start with a Book build on topics that children already like — dinosaurs, building, animals, sports, superheroes and music — so that parents, camp counselors, and others can have fun and interact meaningfully with children while helping to strengthen their reading skills.
In conjunction with the WETA Kids special episode Curious George Swings into Spring, WETA’s Start with a Book has three resource topics that relate to the show:
Grab the popcorn or set your DVRs, because the documentaries featured this Saturday night on WETA TV26 & HD are guaranteed to open your eyes to lands near and far. First we delve into American culture with POV to discover a female role model in comic books and the way modern food is produced. Next, we head overseas with Independent Lens to learn about a city filled with trash and the feuding land of Kashmir. Tune in to WETA TV26 & HD this Saturday for these inspirational movies beginning at 11:30pm.
Meet Wonder Woman, a Superheroine who has been featured in comic books since the 1940s. Learn about the history of super power and the inspiration she’s been for generations of women. Watch the trailer!
POV’s Food, Inc. investigates how mass production of livestock and genetically modified crops are putting independent farmers out of business. Be sure to tune in for this food-film if you believe in the saying, “you are what you eat”. Watch the trailer!
Cairo, the largest city in the Middle East and Africa, has no sanitation service and its trash piles up in outlying towns. Here we meet three teenage boys in Zaballeen, whose lives depend on collecting other people’s waste. Watch the trailer!
Project Kashmir was made by two filmmakers, one Hindu and one Muslim, who snuck their cameras into Kashmir. Join us for a unique look at the land plagued by religious tension and war for over 50 years. Watch the trailer!
Spring has sprung and we're in the mood to celebrate! Check out our weekend event highlights in DC, Maryland, and Virginia for April 19 - 21 below, you're sure to find something you'll like.
Tito Puente (April 20, 1923 – June 1, 2000) was a prestigious Latin jazz and salsa composer and a remarkable musician. Known as “The King of Latin Jazz” and “The King of the Timbales,” Tito Puente made an extensive impact in the music world for 50 years. This Saturday, the Anacostia Community Museum hosts Metro Mambo: Tito Puente: The Definitive Celebration! Hosted by Jim Byers from 89.3 FM’s Latin Flavor, this celebration of the legendary Tito Puente includes un-released recordings, personal insights, and rare memorabilia from former Puente band members and Puente’s biographer, archivist, and best friend of over 40 years, Joe Conzo. Get excited, there will be a dance party featuring one of the region’s top bands!
Now that the sun is finally shinning and the flowers are beginning to bloom, why not spend the weekend outdoors? This weekend, the City of Alexandria will host the 20th Annual Alexandria Earth Day and Arbor Day. The event will consist of a variety of activities such as the Arbor Day tree planting, visual and performing arts events from Alexandria City Public School students, the Annual Earth Day Tree Sale, and music from Woven Green, an eco-friendly band. Also included will be the display of a new hybrid DASH bus, a hybrid trolley and other vehicles to educate families of the importance of going green. So get on your bike, jump on the bus, or walk to Alexandria’s Annual Earth Day Celebration.
“To be, or not to be: that is the question” and we have an answer! This Sunday, you need to “be” at William Shakespeare’s Birthday Open House hosted by the Folger Shakespeare Library. This free celebration will feature fun activities for the whole family, like a Shakespeare portrait contest, fortune telling, Elizabethan crafts, stories from 16th Century England, a scavenger hunt, and poetry contests. Sunday is also the only day the Reading Rooms are open to the public so take a tour inside and then head out on a docent-lead walk through the Elizabethan Garden. This event is rain or shine, be sure to get there in for the cake-cutting ceremony on the lawn at 3:30pm.
Sunday, 12 to 4pm
Cost: Free
Folger Shakespeare Library 201 East Capitol Street, SE Washington, DC 20003
Read the full article to watch our WETA Around Town film discussions from this week, share your impressions of the movies in the comments below! Reviewed: Trance & 42
In Performance at the White House: Memphis Soul airs on WETA tonight at 8:00pm! This show honors the soul-infused music from the mid-to late-1960s that came from Memphis, Tennessee and renowned labels such as Stax-Volt Records, which featured artists like Al Green, Ben Harper, Alabama Shakes, Mavis Stables, and more. This exciting evening in the White
House’s East Room pays tribute to Memphis. Though Memphis was a segregated city in the 1960s, blacks and whites came together to make soulful music with a mix of gospel and rhythmic grooves, which is known today as “Memphis Soul.”
In Performance at the White House: Memphis Soul is the tenth In Performance at the White House program during President Barack Obama’s administration. This edition features a wide array of classic songs performed by impressive artists: “I’ll Take You There” performed by Mavis Staples, “Soul Man” performed by Sam Moore and Joshua Ledet, “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay” performed by Justin Timberlake and Steve Cropper, “Knock on Wood” performed by Eddie Floyd, “Born Under a Bad Sign” performed by Alabama Shakes, Steve Cropper, and Booker T, “You Don’t Miss Your Water” performed by William Bell, “I Can’t Stand the Rain” performed by Queen Latifah, “I’m In I’m Out And I’m Gone” performed by Charlie Musselwhite and Ben Harper, “Try A Little Tenderness” performed by Cyndi Lauper and Charlie Musselwhite, and “In the Midnight Hour” performed by the full cast.
In Performance at the White House: Memphis Soul airs on WETA Tuesday, April 16 at 8:00pm, Wednesday at 4:00pm, Thursdays at 1:00pm, and Friday at 9:00pm. Don’t miss out on these fantastic, soulful performances!
season 2, Rumpole and the Man of God, Rumpole defends a vicar who is charged with theft, but trouble arises when the distressed clergyman refuses to take the stand in his own defense. George Frobisher, the next Circuit Judge, joins the Rumpoles for dinner and introduces his new girlfriend who Rumpole remembers seeing in court.
snobbery, Hyacinth Bucket is in a class of her own. Award-winning actress Patricia Routledge plays the comic monster in a role which viewers have taken to their hearts. In season 2, Daddy goes missing again, Hyacinth drags Richard off for a weekend of golf at an executive golf club, in spite of the fact that he doesn't like the game, and, determined that the neighbors should see the van delivering her classy new three-piece suite, Hyacinth has parking cones placed outside the house, along with a special notice warning of an immediate delivery.
for God from the very first episode. Then at 8:30pm watch Rosemary & Thyme take on Memory of Water in the first episode of season 2. At 9:30pm get your full dose of laughs with Outnumbered season 4 episode 1, and kick off season 3 of Men Behaving Badly at 10:30. We’re not done just yet! At 11:30pm tune in for the British classic Allo, Allo as we begin season 4.
by and starring Jack Dee, one of the UK’s most successful stand-up comedians, you’re invited to enter the world of Rick Spleen… Rick Spleen is a disillusioned stand-up comedian and writer whose career has not gone the way he had planned. Worse still, he’s stuck with a lousy stage name that he chose 20 years ago. Rick combines a mass of neuroses and petty grievances with a terrible propensity for lying which is not a recipe for success. Along for the ride is his quick-talking American co-writer Marty, his unflappable partner Mel, and his incompetent daughter Sam. Join us this Sunday and every week for this brand new, modern British comedy, Lead Balloon!
This Earth Day, join WETA Kids and America’s favorite monkey for a new one hour Curious George special: 
a remarkable musician. Known as “The King of Latin Jazz” and “The King of the Timbales,” Tito Puente made an extensive impact in the music world for 50 years. This Saturday, the Anacostia Community Museum hosts Metro Mambo: Tito Puente: The Definitive Celebration! Hosted by Jim Byers from 89.3 FM’s Latin Flavor, this celebration of the legendary Tito Puente includes un-released recordings, personal insights, and rare memorabilia from former Puente band members and Puente’s biographer, archivist, and best friend of over 40 years, Joe Conzo. Get excited, there will be a dance party featuring one of the region’s top bands! 
the weekend outdoors? This weekend, the City of Alexandria will host the 20th Annual Alexandria Earth Day and Arbor Day. The event will consist of a variety of activities such as the Arbor Day tree planting, visual and performing arts events from Alexandria City Public School students, the Annual Earth Day Tree Sale, and music from Woven Green, an eco-friendly band. Also included will be the display of a new hybrid DASH bus, a hybrid trolley and other vehicles to educate families of the importance of going green. So get on your bike, jump on the bus, or walk to Alexandria’s Annual Earth Day Celebration. 
“be” at William Shakespeare’s Birthday Open House hosted by the Folger Shakespeare Library. This free celebration will feature fun activities for the whole family, like a Shakespeare portrait contest, fortune telling, Elizabethan crafts, stories from 16th Century England, a scavenger hunt, and poetry contests. Sunday is also the only day the Reading Rooms are open to the public so take a tour inside and then head out on a docent-lead walk through the Elizabethan Garden. This event is rain or shine, be sure to get there in for the cake-cutting ceremony on the lawn at 3:30pm. 
House’s East Room pays tribute to Memphis. Though Memphis was a segregated city in the 1960s, blacks and whites came together to make soulful music with a mix of gospel and rhythmic grooves, which is known today as “Memphis Soul.”