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Acorn TV’s fan-favorite crime drama Whitstable Pearl returns with all-new episodes on Monday, October 21, in the US, Canada, UK (including Northern Ireland), Australia, and New Zealand. Additional episodes of the six-episode Acorn TV Original series will drop weekly on Mondays.

Based on the beloved novels The Whitstable Pearl Mysteries by Julie Wassmer, Season 3 sees the return of Kerry Godliman (After Life) in the lead role of Pearl Nolan and Howard Charles (Top Boy) as Detective Chief Inspector (Dci) Mike McGuire.

The other returning cast members include Frances Barber (The Chelsea Detective) as Dolly, Robert Webb (Peep Show) as Tom Grant, Isobelle Molloy (EastEnders) as Ruby Williams, and Sophia Del Pizzo (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) as Detective Sergeant (DS) Nikki Martel.

In Whitstable Pearl, sleuthing restaurant owner Pearl (Godliman) continues to build her private detective business and finds herself involved in more diverse investigations, including reopening an infamous local...

Exclusive: Whitstable Pearl has been greenlit for a third season by AMC streaming platform Acorn.

The British crime drama stars After Life‘s Kerry Godliman in the lead role and is based on the mystery novels by Julie Wassmer.

In Season 3 of the show from Crime producer Buccaneer, Godliman returns to build her private detective business, finding herself involved in more diverse investigations, including reopening an infamous local cold case and the death of a famous food critic. She’s aided and abetted by her outspoken, feisty mum Dolly and still going strong with boyfriend Tom, but it’s navigating her complex relationship with Dci Mike McGuire that still proves Pearl’s most challenging case

Howard Charles returns as Dci Mike McGuire and other returning cast members include Frances Barber as Dolly, Robert Webb as Tom Grant, Isobelle Molloy as Ruby Williams and Sophia del Pizzo as DS Nikki Martel.

Gentle is the most fitting word to describe the aura of “The Last Bus,” Gillies MacKinnon’s placid travelogue of a movie about an ailing Englishman on a heartrending mission. Sadly, the filmmaker’s road trip errs on the side of excessive gentleness. For a tender movie that follows an old man on a long and demanding multi-bus excursion to honor his late wife’s wishes, the placid affair has curiously little emotional range, and an even narrower sense of stakes.

Playing the retired engineer Tom, the British gentleman in question, a believably aged Timothy Spall gives the character his all, infusing him with a palpable sense of countryside dignity, but perhaps leaning a bit heavily on an exaggeratedly old speech pattern mostly made up of breathy mumblings. Respectably clad and holding onto his deceased wife Mary’s ashes for dear life, Tom leaves his John o’ Groats home — a...

Celsius Entertainment is handling international sales.

Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired US rights to Gillies McKinnon’s The Last Bus starring Timothy Spall and Phyllis Logan from UK sales outfit Celsius Entertainment.

The film has just screened at the Bari International Film Festival, run by ex-Venice chief Felice Laudadio earlier this month. Spall picked up the international award for best leading actor at the event.

The North American premiere took place at the Mill Valley Film Festival.

Thierry Wase-Bailey’s Celsius has also closed new deals with Portugal (Films4you), Korea (Cineline World) and airlines (Horizon).

DEA Planeta released The Last Bus...

Regional fund established in response to Covid-19 crisis.

The UK’s Liverpool Film Office (Lfo) has revealed the first 15 projects to benefit from a new fund, created in response to the Covid-19 crisis.

More than £158,000 worth of funding has been awarded to a mix of established producers in the region as well as projects from burgeoning female and Bame-led companies. The money comes from the Lfo’s Film and TV Development Fund, which was set up a month into lockdown, using resources from Liverpool City Region’s (Lcr) strategic investment fund.

The projects include the first foray into TV drama for Hurricane Films,...

British stars Timothy Spall and Phyllis Logan, last seen on screen together in Mike Leigh's acclaimed 1996 drama Secrets & Lies, have reunited for Hurricane Film's The Last Bus.

Directed by Gillies MacKinnon (Hideous Kinky) and produced by Sol Papadopoulos and Roy Boulter (A Prayer Before Dawn, A Quiet Passion), the film — now in production — was written by Joe Ainsworth (Holby City), and centers on widower Tom (Spall). When his wife Mary (Logan) passes away, he uses his free bus pass to travel the length of Britain, from John O'Groats in Scotland to Land's End ...

British stars Timothy Spall and Phyllis Logan, last seen on screen together in Mike Leigh's acclaimed 1996 drama Secrets & Lies, have reunited for Hurricane Film's The Last Bus.

Directed by Gillies MacKinnon (Hideous Kinky) and produced by Sol Papadopoulos and Roy Boulter (A Prayer Before Dawn, A Quiet Passion), the film — now in production — was written by Joe Ainsworth (Holby City), and centers on widower Tom (Spall). When his wife Mary (Logan) passes away, he uses his free bus pass to travel the length of Britain, from John O'Groats in Scotland to Land's End ...

Exclusive: A Quiet Passion producer is working on an Emily Dickinson documentary.

Hurricane Films, the UK production company behind Terence Davies’ Emily Dickinson biopic A Quiet Passion, which is premiering in Berlin today (Feb 14), has revealed details of its forthcoming slate.

To accompany A Quiet Passion, Hurricane is now preparing Phosphorescence, a documentary about Dickinson to be directed by Solon Papadopoulos, the co-owner and founder of Hurricane Films.

Another Hurricane project is The Route, the first feature project from TV writer Joe Ainsworth, which is in advanced development.

The film is about an elderly man who makes an epic journey from John O’Groats, the most northerly point of mainland Britain, to Land’s End, the most westerly point.

The man travels by public buses all the way, using his old age pensioner pass. “It’s a beautifully observed piece about old age but also about the country,” observed Hurricane’s other co-founder Roy Boulter.

The company...

ITV1′s serial killer drama Appropriate Adult leads this year’s Arqiva British Academy Television Awards nominations with 4 including lead actor for Dominic West and lead actress for Emily Watson. BBC One’s Sherlock with Benedict Cumberbatch is also among the top mentions, scoring nods for the acting duo of Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. Downton Abbey, however, came up with only one nomination: for Dame Maggie Smith who plays the formidable Dowager Countess. Us shows that received nods include Modern Family and The Killing The ceremony will take place in London on May 27. Nominees in the major categories follow; full list to come: Leading Actor Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock BBC One Dominic West, Appropriate Adult ITV1 John Simm, Exile BBC One Joseph Gilgun This Is England ’88 Channel 4 Leading Actress Emily Watson, Appropriate Adult ITV1 Nadine Marshall, Random Channel 4 Romola Garai, The Crimson Petal And The White BBC Two Vicky McClure,...