British Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Father Brown Joins British Detectives on WV PBS

Set in the 1950s in the heart of the beautiful English countryside, Father Brown stars Mark Williams as the Catholic priest who also has a talent for solving crimes. See the series Saturdays at 9 p.m. on West Virginia PBS.

Based on the short stories by G K Chesterton, Father Brown follows the kindly cleric as he solves crimes in his community. It is a quintessentially English world: drawing rooms in large country houses, miles of countryside, village halls and secret gardens, as well as country fairs, railway stations and rural parish churches.

Each episode sees the enigmatic priest investigate a crime in his own particular way, using intuition and psychology. Father Brown discovers the truth of a crime by looking into the truth of the soul – the passions, dark secrets, hidden desires. Many years spent hearing his parishioners’ confessions have given him an uncanny insight into the origins of evil and the workings of the criminal mind. But the stories
are not concerned with judgement – Father Brown is more interested in saving souls than in bringing the
guilty to justice.

WV PBS Brings British Drama Fans the Original "House of Cards"

House of Cards, Sundays beginning February 2 at 7 p.m. on West Virginia PBS

House of Cards is a delicious tale of greed, corruption and burning ambition. At its core is a black-hearted villain with a smiling face, who shares his sardonic humor and innermost thoughts with the viewers.

Chief Whip Francis Urquhart schemes his way into Number 10 Downing Street by systematically demolishing all rivals, including the Prime Minister, all of whom trust him implicitly. He is innocently aided by eager young journalist Mattie Storin, who thinks he is her “Deep Throat,” not realising that “cut-throat” is a far more apt description. Urquhart uses her to leak damaging stories to undermine anyone who stands in his way to the top. To Mattie, Urquhart is her “Daddy,” a lover and a father-figure who is helping her in her career. A “Daddy” who has too much to lose if she ever stumbles upon the truth.

Michael Dobbs, who wrote the original story, spent many years in top British political circles, including a stint as a former aide to Margaret Thatcher.

Unlock the Secrets of the Tower of London

Standing guard over its city for nearly 1,000 years, the Tower of London has been a royal castle, a prison, a place of execution and torture, an armory and the Royal Mint. Over the centuries it has gone from a symbol of imperialism and tyranny to a national treasure–the protector of the crown jewels and many other historic British traditions. In Secrets of the Tower of London, PBS goes behind the tower’s ancient walls, exposing its stories, unlocking doors to rooms never before seen on television, talking to the people who do stealth jobs in the edifice and revealing little-known facts about this English icon.

Watch Secrets of the Tower of London, Sunday, October 27 at 8 p.m. on West Virginia PBS.