Other Exclusive March U.S. Premieres include:
The newest season of smash hit British mystery series MIDSOMER MURDERS,
New Martin Clunes documentary ISLANDS OF AUSTRALIA
and British comedy ASYLUM
Silver Spring, MD, February 8, 2017; Following the exclusive premieres of critically acclaimed Acorn TV Originals Agatha Christie’s The Witness for the Prosecution, Agatha Raisin, and Close to the Enemy, world-class TV streamer Acorn TV announces the exclusive U.S. Premiere of its next Acorn TV Original Series, Irish legal drama STRIKING OUT, on St. Patrick’s Day, Friday, March 17, 2017 (International Trailer). Its recent Irish premiere was hailed as “a roaring success” (Irish Independent) and the series quickly became Ireland’s #1 new drama. Amy Huberman (The Clinic), Neil Morrissey (Grantchester, The Night Manager), and Rory Keenan (War & Peace, Peaky Blinders) star in the four-part drama. Huberman plays Tara Rafferty, a successful Dublin lawyer who, after discovering her fiancée having an affair, abandons her wedding plans and job and starts an unconventional private practice. Additional March premieres include the newest season of smash hit British mystery series MIDSOMER MURDERS, Series 19 (Mar. 6), new Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) documentary ISLANDS OF AUSTRALIA (Mar. 13, Trailer), and British comedy ASYLUM (Mar. 27, Clip) about a CIA whistleblower being forced to live in an eccentric embassy. Throughout March, Acorn TV is also adding the new season of JACK TAYLOR starring Iain Glen (Game of Thrones, Downton Abbey), International Emmy®-winning British sitcom Fresh Fields, the first season of hit Australian legal comedy-drama Rake, and genre-defining Britcom Men Behaving Badly starring Martin Clunes and Neil Morrissey, as well as three fascinating documentaries.
President of Acorn Brands at RLJ Entertainment Mark Stevens noted, “After the breakout success of January’s Acorn TV Original Movie Agatha Christie’s The Witness for the Prosecution with both critics and fans, we’re thrilled to offer our subscribers an all-new Acorn TV Original Series with first-rate legal drama Striking Out. Ireland’s #1 new drama features a stellar cast led by Amy Huberman and a charming script, which is sure to delight our subscribers. Additionally, March includes the newest episodes of Acorn’s best-selling series Midsomer Murders, which continues to entertain fans across the world with its witty and intriguing mysteries. The month also features four fascinating documentaries, British sitcoms, a hit Aussie legal dramedy, and the return of Iain Glen as rugged Irish private investigator Jack Taylor.”
Acorn TV’s international partners are DRG for Martin Clunes’ Islands of Australia; All3Media for Midsomer Murders and Asylum, and Acorn Media Enterprises, RLJ Entertainment’s development arm for the Acorn brand, for Striking Out.
March Acorn TV Calendar
Monday, March 6
Midsomer Murders Series 19 Part 1 (Exclusive U.S. Premiere)
The beloved British mystery and Acorn’s top-selling series returns with four new feature-length episodes set in England’s most murderous county. The capable Detective Chief Inspector John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon, Life of Riley) investigates the cozy villages of Midsomer’s most sinister secrets, including a murder in a ghost village, the death of a star cricketer, and a body found covered in rabbits at a local pet show.
Monday, March 13
Martin Clunes' Islands of Australia (Exclusive U.S. Premiere) (Trailer)
In this gorgeously shot new documentary, Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) is on a quest to discover the islands of Australia. There are over 8,000 to choose from, and Martin visits 16 that offer a cross-section of island life. Along the way, he learns about the diversity, history, and challenges of island life Down Under.
Friday, March 17 (St. Patrick’s Day)
Striking Out (Acorn TV Original Series, Exclusive U.S. Premiere) (International Trailer)
Tara Rafferty (Amy Huberman, The Clinic) is living the good life: she’s a successful Dublin lawyer engaged to a fellow solicitor. But Tara’s life is turned upside down after she discovers her betrothed in bed with a colleague. Abandoning her wedding plans (and her job), Tara strikes out on her own, starting an unconventional private practice. Hailed as “a roaring success” (Irish Independent), this legal drama charmed audiences across the pond, quickly becoming Ireland’s #1 new drama. Neil Morrissey (Line of Duty, Grantchester, The Night Manager) and Rory Keenan (War & Peace, Peaky Blinders) co-star.
Monday, March 27
Asylum (Exclusive U.S. Premiere) (Clip)
This British comedy series stars Ben Miller (Death in Paradise, I Want My Wife Back) as whistleblower Dan Hern, a man forced to seek asylum in the El Rican embassy after leaking sensitive information about CIA cover ups. Once an international cause célèbre, a year trapped in the embassy has left Hern fading into obscurity and desperately bored. Hern’s increasingly irritating presence manages to unite his El Rican hosts, MI6, and the CIA, all of whom want nothing more than to lure him out of the embassy so that he can be extradited.
Throughout March, Acorn TV is also adding Jack Taylor, Set 3, starring Iain Glen (Game of Thrones, Downton Abbey) as a former cop turned private investigator; Fresh Fields, Series 1-4, the International Emmy®-winning British sitcom starring Julia McKenzie (Marple) and Anton Rodgers (May to December); Rake, Series 1, a hit Australian legal comedy-drama starring Richard Roxburgh (Moulin Rouge!); Men Behaving Badly, Series 1-7, a genre-defining Britcom starring Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) and Neil Morrissey (Line of Duty); The Ivy, unique culinary documentary narrated by Rupert Everett (My Best Friend’s Wedding); Four in a Bed, Series 1, an intriguing behind-the-scenes peek at bed and breakfast culture in the United Kingdom; Empire of the Tsars: Romanov Russia, a fascinating documentary about the Romanovs, the all-powerful dynasty who ruled Russia for more than three centuries.
Acorn Media Enterprises is the exclusive U.S. partner for several Acorn TV Originals, including 2016’s Agatha Raisin, a fun mystery series starring Ashley Jensen (Catastrophe); star-studded, wartime drama Close to the Enemy; and British thriller The Level. In 2017, in addition to Striking Out, Acorn TV Originals include the critically-acclaimed new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s A Witness for the Prosecution, ITV murder mystery drama Loch Ness starring Laura Fraser (Breaking Bad), and Irish thriller Acceptable Risk, among others to be announced.
From RLJ Entertainment (NASDAQ: RLJE), Acorn TV currently features the exclusive premieres of critically-acclaimed French drama series The Disappearance; “Acorn’s superior legal drama” (TV Guide)Janet King; BBC period drama The Secret Agent; award-winning, must-see Canadian cop drama 19-2, Aussie crime thriller Deep Water starring Yael Stone (Orange is the New Black); Caitlin Moran’s raunchy British comedy Raised by Wolves; Acorn’s most popular new series A Place to Call Home; New Zealand detective series The Brokenwood Mysteries; hit period mystery series Murdoch Mysteries, Season 10; and Australia’s #1 drama 800 Words, Season 2. February premieres include the newest season of British sitcom Birds of a Feather and legal drama Crownies, the prequel series to Acorn TV’s hit series Janet King starring Marta Dusseldorp (A Place to Call Home) on Feb. 13, as well as British police drama Code of a Killer, based on the true story of the first time DNA fingerprinting was used to catch a murderer and starring John Simm (Life on Mars) and David Threlfall (UK’s Shameless) on Feb. 27.
Emmy®-nominated Acorn TV adds exclusive new programs every week and features a deep library of mysteries, dramas, and comedies with no set end dates. Subscribers can stream many of their favorite international series and discover new and classic programs previously unavailable to U.S. audiences. Acorn TV is available via Apple TV, Roku, iOS, among many other devices and offers a free trial and thereafter is just $4.99/month or $49.99/year. Facebook: OfficialAcornTV - Twitter @AcornTV
WATCH: March’s exclusive premieres will be posted on the press watch site, https://acorn.tv/press (mirror to your TV via Apple TV or Chromecast) with DVDs available upon request.
Acorn TV Press Contact: Chad Campbell, ccampbell@RLJEntertainment.com
