TVSquad

It looks like David Tennant had no problem finding additional work now that his run on Doctor Who is ending. He has been signed to host Masterpiece Contemporary (the contemporary version of Masterpiece Theatre) on PBS. It's likely that for this role he will be returning to his native Scottish accent.

There is some mild irony at the fact that in the old days before cable TV, Doctor Who used to be shown ad infinitum on PBS and became the only place for American audiences to enjoy the show. There is even more irony at the fact that Masterpiece Contemporary will be more easily accessible to American audiences than Doctor Who.

Tennant seems a little young to host, but when I think of Masterpiece Theatre (and not it's modern versions), I keep thinking of those SNL sketches from the 70's with Dan Aykroyd as Leonard Pinth-Garnell. But that's probably more an issue with me.

• At 7:45, Showtime2 has David Duchovny in The TV Set.
• At 8, CBS has a new Million Dollar Password.
• Disney has a new Hannah Montana at 8, then a new Wizards of Waverly Place.
• At 9, NBC has a new Dateline.
• PBS has a new Masterpiece Theatre at 9.
• There's a new Law and Order: CI on USA at 9, followed by a new In Plain Sight.
• TLC has a new Singing Office at 9.
• HGTV has a new Design Star at 9.
• Food Network has a new Iron Chef America at 9, then a new Next Food Network Star.
• HBO has The Simpsons Movie at 9.
• Also at 9: Nickelodeon has a new Nick News Special.
• At 10, Lifetime has a new Army Wives.
• Spike has a new episode of Factory at 10.
• At 11:30, Showtime has a new I Can't Believe I'm Still Single.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

• The Ambassador - Series 2
• Backyard Habitat - Best Of: Vol. 1
• Cartoon Commercials
• Friday Night Lights - Season 2
• House of Venus - Season 2
• Laverne & Shirley - Season 4
• Masterpiece Theatre - Mill on the Floss
• Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! - Season 1

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

• Alien Nation - The Ultimate Movie Collection
• American Dad - Vol. 3
• College Hill: Interns
• The Goldbergs - Best Of
• How The Earth Was Made
• Jupiter Moon - Set 3
• Masterpiece Theatre - Room with a View
• Melrose Place - Season 4
• SpongeBob SquarePants - Pest of the West
• The Woody Woodpecker Show - Woody Woodpecker and Friends Classic Cartoon Collection Vol. 2

... Gillian Anderson!

Yup, the X-Files star will host the new and improved version of Masterpiece Theatre when it debuts on PBS on January 13. The show is going to be split into three different versions in 2008. Anderson will host the Masterpiece Classics, which will feature new adaptations of classic novels and stories, and then, in the summer, a new host will be at the helm of Masterpiece Mystery, the new name of the Mystery! series. In the fall, we'll have Masterpiece Contemporary, which will be modern novels and stories filmed for the small screen.

Anderson is also about to start film the new X-Files movie, along with David Duchovny, Amanda Peet, and Billy Connolly.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Evel Knievel: He was the most famous motorcycle stunt artist, and he seemed to be on ABC's Wide World of Sports every other week in the 70s. His most famous jumps were his Caesar's Palace jump and his Snake River Canyon jump in a rocket. Though he made more than he missed. He died of complications from diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis at age 69. Oddly, just two days ago he settled a lawsuit with Kanye West.

• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes, then new episodes of The Amazing Race, Cold Case, and Shark.
• NBC has a new Football Night In America at 7, followed by the Patriots/Bills game.
• The CW has a new CW Now at 7.
• At 8, FOX has a new Simpsons, then new episodes of King of the Hill, Family Guy, and American Dad.
• ABC has The American Music Awards at 8.
• PBS has a new Nature at 8, followed by a new Masterpiece Theatre.
• There's a new Life is Wild on The CW at 8.
• At 9, Food Network has a new Iron Chef America, featuring the winner of Next Iron Chef.
• Showtime has a new Dexter at 9, then a new Brotherhood.
• At midnight, Cartoon Network has a new Metalocalypse, followed by new episodes of Xavier: Renegade Angel and Tim and Eric's Awesome Show, Great Job.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes, followed by the season premiere of The Amazing Race and new episodes of Cold Case and Shark.
• The CW has a new CW Now at 7.
• At 7:30, ABC has a new America's Funniest Home Videos., followed by new episodes of Extreme Makeover, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters.
• At 8, FOX has a new Simpsons, then two new episodes of Family Guy and a new American Dad.
• The CW has a new Life is Wild at 8.
• There's a new Nature on PBS at 8, then a new Masterpiece Theatre.
• TBS has Lindsay Lohan in Herbie: Fully Loaded at 8 (then again at 10). Please insert your own "Lindsay Lohan/Fully Loaded" joke here.
• Food Network has a new Challenge at 8, followed by a new Next Iron Chef.
• Also at 8: Nickelodeon has a new Zoey 101, then a new Unfabulous.
• At 9, HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me, followed by a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• Showtime has a new Dexter at 9, then a new Brotherhood.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken, then a new Metalocalypse.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• G4 is running a Heroes marathon all day and night.
• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes.
• ABC has a new America's Funniest Home Videos at 7, followed by new episodes of Extreme Makeover, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters.
• The CW has a new CW Now at 7.
• At 8, FOX has Game 4 of The World Series.
• The CW has a new Life Is Wild at 8.
• There's a new Nature on PBS at 8, then a new Masterpiece Theatre.
• The Cartoon Network has the new movie The Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It at 8.
• Food Network has a new Challenge at 8, then new episodes of The Next Iron Chef and Iron Chef America.
• At 9, CBS has a new Cold Case, followed by a new Shark.
• HGTV has the special What's With That Haunted Halloween House at 9.
• HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me at 9, then a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• Also at 9: Showtime has a new Dexter, followed by a new Brotherhood.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes, then new episodes of Viva Laughlin, Cold Case, and Shark.
• ABC has a new America's Funniest Home Videos at 7, followed by new episodes of Extreme Makeover, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters.
• NBC has a new Football Night In America at 7, then the Steelers/Broncos game.
• There's a new epiosode of The CW Now on The CW at 7.
• At 8, FOX has the Red Sox/Indians game.
• Nick has a new Zoey 101 at 8, followed by a new Nick News.
• At 9, PBS has a new Masterpiece Theatre.
• Food Network has a new Next Iron Chef at 9, then a new Iron Chef America.
• HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me at 9, then a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• Also at 9: Showtime has a new Dexter, followed by a new Brotherhood.
• At 10, VH-1 has a new Hogan Knows Best.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes, followed by new episodes of The Amazing Race, Cold Case, and Without A Trace.
• NBC has a new, two hour Dateline at 7, then new episodes of Deal Or No Deal and The Apprentice.
• At 8, ABC has a new Extreme Makeover, then new episodes of Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters.
• The CW has a new 7th Heaven at 8.
• Discovery has two new episodes of Planet Earth at 8.
• Food Network has a new Emeril Live at 8, then a new Iron Chef America and a new Challenge.
• At 9, PBS has a new Masterpiece Theatre, "The Wind in the Willows."
• There's a new Sopranos at 9 on HBO, then a new Entourage.
• At 10, Lifetime has a new Blood Ties.
• Comedy Central has a new Mind of Mencia at 10, then a new Reno 911.
• Showtime has a new ep of The Tudors at 10.
• Also at 10: Sci-Fi has a new Dresden Files.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Hey there, X-Files fans! Do you miss Dana Scully? Me too. And Mulder. They may be reuniting sometime in the future, but in the meantime you can get your Gillian Anderson fix soon on PBS. And it may be your last chance to see her in a television series. In interviews for this new six-part, Masterpiece Theatre program called Bleak House, Anderson says she's happy with her career in London as a stage and film actress (she lives there with her husband and daughter, Piper, who is now eleven!). In London, she says, she's considered an actor. She's done a lot of theatre there since leaving The X-Files in 2002. In America, she says, people think of her as a one-hit wonder.

Say you're a distinguished essayist, broadcaster, and the host of one of public television's most successful shows. You live to a ripe old age and pass away quietly. All things considered, it sounds like it was a pretty nice way to go, right? Well, apparently for Alistair Cooke's family, all hell started breaking loose right after the host of Masterpiece Theatre died in March of 2004. According to this New York Daily News article, Cooke's bones were surgically removed right before he was cremated and sold to two tissue processing compaines for transplanting purposes.

The most horrific part of this story is that Cooke died of bone cancer; the body-snatching ring's leader, Michael Mastromarino, actually doctored Cooke's medical records so that the bones would be bought by those processing companies. So, not only were Cooke's and other people's bodies stripped of their bones, but people are walking around with Cooke's 95-year-old, cancer-filled bones inside them. Yipes.