PBS Masterpiece releases their 2014 summer schedule

The PBS (Public Service Broadcasting) Summer 2014 schedule has been released and there are some real crackers for our American chums wanting some quality British telly.

If you’re a Bit and wondering what PBS is, it’s similar to the BBC, broadcasting quality programming to America without commercial interruption. But unlike the BBC, it’s not funded by a licence fee and has to take sponsorship and viewers donations to continue. It’s a much-needed and (mostly) loved channel (although some people really hate that fact it does receive public money. It’s a long story, but not all Americans are keen on limited arts funding.)

They often co-produce shows like Downton Abbey and feature the cream of the crop of many British shows.

Here is the list of shows….

THE ESCAPE ARTIST
Sundays, June 15-22, 2014, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET
David Tennant (Former MASTERPIECE Contemporary host, Doctor Who) stars as a brilliant defense lawyer with a storybook family and a potent nickname, “The Escape Artist,” for his ability to spring the obviously guilty. Then he gets a trial that changes his life forever. This gripping legal thriller costars Sophie Okonedo (Hotel Rwanda) as the hero’s rival, along with a courtroom full of ambitious attorneys and one very unnerving defendant.

ENDEAVOUR: Season 2
Sundays, June 29 to July 20, 2014, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET
Before INSPECTOR MORSE, there was the rookie Constable Morse. Shaun Evans returns for a second season with four all-new mysteries as young Endeavour Morse, before his signature red Jaguar…but with his deductive powers already running in high gear.

HERCULE POIROT: Season 12
Sundays, July 27 to August 3, 2014, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET
David Suchet returns in his signature role as suave Belgian super-sleuth Hercule Poirot in two new mysteries, The Big Four and Dead Man’s Folly, based on the novels by Agatha Christie. Whether he’s on holiday abroad, taking a countryside break or simply going about his business, Poirot exercises his “little grey cells” by helping police investigate crimes and murders — whether they ask for his help or not.

BREATHLESS
Sundays, August 24 to September 7, 2014. 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET
In this stylish and compelling new medical drama set in London in 1961, Jack Davenport (Smash, Pirates of the Caribbean) stars as a brilliant surgeon who believes he can make a difference in women’s lives.