BBC AMERICA - OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS

LUTHER - U.S. PREMIERE

A brilliant detective tormented by the darker side of humanity, Luther shines a light into the hearts and minds of psychopaths and killers, and the shadowy spaces of his own soul. A BBC AMERICA co-production starring The Wire's Idris Elba (Russell 'Stringer' Bell), Luther is a gripping, psychological thriller driven by a brilliant and emotionally impulsive detective. A self-destructive near-genius, Luther might just be as dangerous as the depraved criminals he hunts. In each episode, the murderer's identity is known from the start, focusing the drama on the psychological duel between predator and prey.

Luther is created and written by Neil Cross, the acclaimed suspense novelist and one of the lead writers on MI-5. Elba, who is also an associate producer on the mini-series, is joined by an all-star cast: Ruth Wilson (The Prisoner, Jane Eyre) is Alice Morgan, beautiful, extraordinarily intelligent and a key witness in Luther's first investigation; Steven Mackintosh (Criminal Justice) is Detective Chief Inspector Ian Reed and Luther's loyal friend and work colleague; Indira Varma (Rome) is Zoe Luther, who's had the strength to walk away from the man she still loves; Paul McGann (Withnail and I) is Mark North, unafraid to compete with Luther for Zoe's love; Saskia Reeves (Bodies) is Detective Superintendent Rose Teller, Luther's risk-taking boss and Warren Brown (Occupation) is Detective Sergeant Justin Ripley, Luther's loyal, awestruck new partner. Luther premieres October 17, 10:00p.m. ET/PT.

I'LL DO ANYTHING - U.S. PREMIERE

Following on the heels of last year's How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria and Any Dream With Do, I'll Do Anything again brings together the dream team of Graham Norton and Andrew Lloyd Webber to find new talent for the roles of Nancy and a total of three youthful proteges to play orphan Oliver in the West End production of the much-loved musical Oliver!

To help choose their Nancy and mentor the hopeful aspiring Olivers, Norton and Weber are joined by Torchwood star John Barrowman, Broadway and West End leading lady Denise Van Outen, producer Cameron Mackintosh and, for the first time, actor and star of musical theatre Barry Humphries, who has appeared in several productions of Oliver! both in the West End and on Broadway. I'll Do Anything premieres Wednesday, October 27, 9:00p.m. ET/PT.

THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW- SEASON 8- U.S. PREMIERE

Now in its eighth season, The Graham Norton Show continues to entertain with everything you won't see on the news - from celebrity guests' anecdotes and sillier stories buzzing on the wires to the unique quirks and obsessions of the studio audience. The show is truly based on the people, trends, stories, and aspects of celebrity culture that interest Norton most. And as always, expect Norton's trademark comedy monologues, celebrity chat, and eccentric stories. The Graham Norton Show premieres Saturday, October 30, 10:00p.m. ET/PT.

STUNT: GHOUL BRITTANIA

All month long leading up to Halloween, tune in for special programming and a series of movies starring some of entertainment's scariest and most vile monsters, both human and alien - including the network television premiere of Johnny Depp in Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Plus, every week viewers have the chance to vote on what they deem the scariest shows in the BBC AMERICA library, and we'll put the winners on the air.

STAR TREK FIRST CONTACT - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

When Captain Picard discovers that every man, woman, and child on Earth has somehow been assimilated into the Borg, the Enterprise must travel hundreds of years back in time to ensure that human history reverts back to normal. Star Trek First Contact airs Saturday October 2, 9:00p.m. ET/PT.

CLASH OF THE TITANS - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

British acting royalty Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Ursula Andress, and Clare Bloom star in this epic film adaptation of Greek mythology. Perseus, son of Zeus, must battle terrifying creatures like Medusa, sea monsters, witches, two-headed dogs, and giant scorpions in his quest to rescue his love, the princess Andromeda. Clash of the Titans airs Saturday, October 2, 11:30p.m. ET/PT.

SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET - NETWORK TELEVISION PREMIERE

Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter star in Tim Burton's imaginative retelling of the classic musical thriller. Depp plays Sweeney Todd, an English barber who finishes off his haircuts by slitting the throats of his clients with a straight razor. With the assistance of his partner in crime, Mrs. Lovett (Bonham Carter), the duo process their victims' remains into meat pies for sale to unsuspecting customers at Mrs. Lovett's shop. Sweeney Todd: The Demon of Fleet Street airs Sunday, October 3, 8:00p.m. ET/PT.

THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

Young FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) is pursuing a dangerous serial killer. To get inside the mind of a psychopath, Clarice is sent to a high-security prison to interview Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a psychiatrist turned homicidal cannibal. Hannibal and Clarice develop a relationship of curious and morbid mutual fascination, but when Hannibal escapes, will Clarice be safe? The Silence of the Lambs airs Sunday, October 17, 7:30p.m. ET/PT.

VIEWERS' CHOICE SATURDAY NIGHTS

For three Saturday nights in October, BBC AMERICA turns over the schedule to the viewers. Each week, they'll have the opportunity to vote online at BBCAMERICA.COM as to which programs or monsters are the scariest, with only the most evil content making it onto the air. First off, we want to know which show is more frightening, Demons or Primeval? Tune in Saturday, October 9, for a six-episode marathon of the viewers' choice. Next, viewers will have to choose the scariest creatures from Torchwood, with the winners featured in a countdown on Saturday, October 16. And finally, the audience will get to pick the most awful aliens everyone's favorite Time Lord has ever encountered, for a Doctor Who marathon on Saturday, October 23. Viewers' Choice Saturday Nights begins Saturday, October 9, 9:00p.m. ET/PT.

STAR TREK HALLOWEEN PARTY

If there's one thing that Picard, Riker, LaForge, Worf, and the rest of the crew of the Enterprise have learned while travelling across the universe, it's that aliens sure do look funny. This Halloween, BBC AMERICA is inviting you to log on and tell us which Star Trek aliens would make the best Halloween costumes back here on Earth. Beginning Monday, October 25, tune in each night at 8:00p.m. ET/PT as we count down to viewers' top five choices with one episode each night. The winner will be announced on Friday, October 29. Star Trek Halloween Party begins Monday, October 25, 8:00p.m. ET/PT.

BEING HUMAN HALLOWEEN

This Halloween, BBC AMERICA invites you to spend some quality time with the supernatural in the form of George, Mitchell and Annie. Whether it's transforming into a werewolf, acting on vampire urges, or living as a ghost, the everyday lives of these three are sure to get you in the Halloween spirit. Don't miss the chance to see each and every episode from both seasons of Being Human in this all-day marathon. Being Human Halloween airs all day Sunday, October 31.

MOVIES

K-19: THE WIDOWMAKER - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

Academy Award winning director, Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) directs Liam Neeson and Harrison Ford in this thriller based on a true story. The K-19 is the Soviet Union's first nuclear ballistic missile submarine, but a series of fatal accidents during its construction has left it with the nickname, �The Widowmaker.� Things get no better on its first mission, when a malfunction in the nuclear reactor threatens not only the submarine, but the fate of the entire world. K-19: The Widowmaker airs Friday, October 1, 8:00p.m. ET/PT.

BRIDESHEAD REVISITED - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

In this new adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's classic novel, Matthew Goode plays Charles Ryder, an impressionable middle-class art student who becomes fascinated with the posh lifestyle of his Oxford schoolmate, Sebastian Flyte (Ben Whishaw). Charles spends the summer with Sebastian's well-off family at their majestic estate, Brideshead Castle, where he falls in love with Sebastian's sister, Julia. Over the course of two World Wars, Charles is immersed in the self-indulgent world of the Flyte family, and all the forbidden love and heartbreaking loss of innocence that involvement brings. Brideshead Revisited airs Sunday, October 24, 3:00p.m. ET/PT.

BBC EARTH SUNDAY

Breathtaking natural history programming from BBC EARTH presents an afternoon of some of the scariest creatures and environments around:

JUNGLE: UNDERWORLD - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

The forest floor is perhaps the most inhospitable place on Earth - dark, damp and full of potentially dangerous wildlife, and nowhere is more forbidding than the original heart of darkness, the Congo. To survive here almost everything has to struggle for light. From walls of impenetrable poisonous plants, to killer ants, diseases, and toxic snakes and spiders, you can't sit down without being bitten. And at night, it's even more frightening, full of strange sounds and even stranger creatures. Jungle: Underworld premieres Sunday, October 10, 5:00p.m. ET/PT.

LIFE IN THE FREEZER: THE BIG FREEZE - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

Midwinter in the Antarctic brings complete darkness and the worst weather anywhere on the planet. The hostile landscape seems completely devoid of life, but under the ice life abounds. Ghost-like white fish are kept alive by anti-freeze in their blood and giant sea spiders patrol the sea bed. Most astonishing of all are the weddell seals, which scrape breathing holes through ice up to two meters thick and hunt to depths of 600 meters to find fish, all in the midst of some of the most extreme conditions on Earth. Life in the Freezer: Big Freeze premieres Sunday, October 24, 7:00p.m. ET/PT.

ONGOING PREMIERES

Other series that will continue to premiere new episodes during October include:

Mondays: Top Gear

Tuesdays: Come Dine With Me (Season 1 will be extended to 22 episodes.)

BBC AMERICA brings audiences a new generation of award-winning television featuring news with a uniquely global perspective, provocative dramas, razor-sharp comedies, life-changing makeovers and a whole new world of nonfiction. BBC AMERICA pushes the boundaries to deliver high quality, highly addictive and eminently watchable programming to viewers who demand more. It is available on digital cable and satellite TV in more than 67 million homes.