BBC Canada will premiere Alan Clark Diairies and Trading Up In The Sun and will feature new episodes of The Kumar’s At No. 42 and Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares.

New Series

Alan Clark Diaries (North American Premiere) (6 x 30’)
Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET, beginning July 6

John Hurt stars as Alan Clark, one of Britain’s most colourful politicians from the 1980s and 90s. Charming, flamboyant, outspoken and vain, Alan Clark was one of the most controversial figures in modern politics, a maverick and a philanderer who, during his heyday, was as notorious for his love affairs and gaffes as for his High Tory views. Adapted from his best-selling diaries, Clark lays bare personal and political landmarks of the time with unique wit and candour, from his first lowly ministerial appointment in 1983, through the glorious rises and the disgraceful falls, scandals and affairs. Julia Davis (Nighty Night) stars as Jenny Easterbrook, Clark’s frosty secretary

Trading Up In The Sun (North American Premiere) (8 x 30′)
Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. ET, beginning July 8

Design duo Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan test their talents in foreign territories when they swap the streets of rainy Britain for the sunny climes of Spain and France to find the ideal homes for British buyers. Craig Phillips lends a hand with the building work.

New Episodes Of Returning Series

The Kumar’s At No. 42, Season 6 (Canadian Premiere) (6 x 30’)
Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET, beginning July 11

The Kumars are back with another hilarious season. This typical (albeit exaggerated) Indian family living in London have bulldozed their backyard and erected a state-of-the-art TV studio, where they host their own chat show. The son, Sanjeev, pops the questions while his mother Madhuri, his father Ashwin, and his mischievous granny Sushila sit and interrupt from a nearby sofa. In the sixth season, the guests, prominent celebrities, including Alice Cooper, Jane Seymour, Elvis Costello and David Hasselhoff, all sportingly accept the ridiculing.

Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, Season 2 (Network Premiere) (8 x 60’)
Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET, beginning July 6

He’s back! Michelin-star chef and cookbook author Gordon Ramsay — the explosive, foul-mouthed black sheep of Britain’s culinary scene — unleashes his wrath on struggling restaurants in this reality series. Ramsay prescribes drastic measures and doesn’t mince his words as he visits a different kitchen in each episode with the aim of transforming the floundering eatery within one week.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Park yourself with BBC CANADA every Sunday in July for the best of the Bard. Celebrate the genius of Shakespeare and the actors who brave his works.

Slings and Arrows (Network Premiere) (6 x 50’)
Sundays at 8 p.m. ET, beginning July 9

Go behind the scenes with a Shakespearean theatre troupe. After the sudden death of his mentor, Geoffrey Tennant, played by Canadian Paul Gross (Due South, Men With Brooms), takes over as director of a production of Hamlet — the play that once drove him to a nervous breakdown. He must contend with an American action star as his leading man, an aging prima donna as his leading lady, a scheming general manager and a ruthless corporate raider. However, the show must go on! Also stars Rachel McAdams (The Notebook, Wedding Crashers) and Canadian stage greats Stephen Ouimette and Martha Burns.

ShakespeaRe-told (Encore Presentation) (4 x 90′)
Sundays at 9 p.m. ET, beginning July 9

Featuring stellar casts, four Shakespearean classics have been inventively updated for a modern audience.

The Taming Of The Shrew
Sunday, July 9 at 9 p.m. ET

Shirley Henderson (Bridget Jones’s Diary, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) plays Kate to Rufus Sewell’s (A Knight’s Tale, Tristan & Isolde) Petruchio in Sally Wainwright’s version of The Taming of the Shrew. It’s a tale of relationships against the backdrop of politics as Kate, an opposition MP, is instructed to find a husband to make her more electable.

Macbeth
Sunday, July 16 at 9 p.m. ET

Peter Moffat’s Macbeth is transposed to the enclosed and heated world of a top London restaurant kitchen as James McAvoy (Shameless, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe) stars as an arrogant chef driven to murder by the scheming Keeley Hawes (Tipping the Velvet, Spooks) as Ella Macbeth.

Much Ado About Nothing
Sunday, July 23 at 9 p.m. ET

David Nicholl’s Much Ado About Nothing is pure romantic comedy set in a regional newsroom. Sarah Parish (Blackpool, Cutting It) stars as Beatrice, a popular evening regional news presenter whose ex-lover and arch enemy Benedick, played by Damian Lewis (Band of Brothers, The Forsyte Saga) is hired as her co-anchor. Billie Piper plays weathergirl Hero.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Sunday, July 30 at 9 p.m. ET

Peter Bowker sets A Midsummer Night’s Dream during a surreal weekend away at a holiday park featuring four warring couples, a donkey’s head and a gaggle of fairies. Starring Imelda Staunton (Vera Drake), Bill Paterson (Doctor Zhivago, Wives and Daughters) Johnny Vegas (Ideal, The Libertines) and Sharon Small (The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, About a Boy).

For more information about BBC CANADA programming visit www.bbccanada.com