Murtz LIVE At Shaw Media / Global TV Upfront 2011: Shaw Media & Global Announce New TV Schedule

Features, News

TORONTO – Why buy a flashy new sports car when you can stick with the reliable minivan that gets better miles and isn’t broken?

That was the theme of Shaw Media’s upfront on Tuesday, emanating from the Sony Centre that was stressed to advertisers and media alike as being Shawsome while not providing any major Shawkers.

The smooth presentation stressed the idea that while their competitors were forced (either by choice or by necessity) to insert new shows into their lineups, Global’s didn’t really need to overhaul a schedule that was already working. Speaking to reporters, Shaw Media’s senior vice-president of content Barbara Williams further emphasized the stand-pat strategy.

“At the end of the day, what we focused on was that we weren’t going to take something off the schedule that was still performing so strongly,” she said. “So no matter how much I might have loved the show, it wasn’t worth taking Survivor off or NCIS off so we really feel that we selected was the right compliment to the strength we have.”

The twinkle in Williams’ eye could not go unnoticed. She genuinely seemed comfortable with the stability of the lineup and seemed to be speaking from a realistic perspective.

“This year we had such strengths in the stuff coming back that it’s why we just handpicked a few,” she said. “We’ll see what works. 80 percent of them don’t… we know that too.”

With some exceptions, Global’s new schedule does look quite familiar.

On Mondays, the network dealt with FOX moving House to 9 p.m. by pre-releasing NCIS at 8 p.m. Hawaii Five-0 will return for its sophomore season to round out the night.

Tuesdays also look the same with Glee and NCIS: Los Angeles, but in one of the bigger announcements of the day, the network said that it had picked up Parenthood from its closest rival, Citytv.

Wednesdays feature the return of the best show on television, Survivor followed by Harry’s Law which was also renewed and then a pre-release of Kitchen Nightmares.

Thursdays were highlighted by the Shawsome announcement that Global would pre-release The Office ahead of NBC’s feed at 9 p.m. and then following it with two of their new pick-ups, sandwiched between Bones at 9 p.m. How To Be A Gentleman at 8:30 p.m. features David Hornsby (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) playing Andrew Carlson, an etiquette columnist whose adherence and devotion to ideals from a more civilized time has led to a life detached from society. As a result, his boss forces him to put a new and sexy twist on his column or be fired.


Prime Suspect

At 10 p.m. is the show that Global was the most excited about. Prime Suspect. Described as the “must-see drama” of the new season, the show was inspired by the U.K. version starring Helen Mirren and centers around Maria Bello’s portrayal of Jane Timoney, a police detective who is transferred to a new, male-dominated precinct.


The Ringer

Fridays on Global featured the biggest changes with completely fresh programming. At 8 p.m., the network will debut A Gifted Man starring Patrick Wilson. It’s about a surgeon whose wife starts giving him advice from beyond the grave.


Happily Divorced

Then it’s a pair of comedies starting with Jaime Pressly’s I Hate My Teenage Daughter at 9 p.m. and then Fran Drescher’s Happily Divorced. The show that looks interesting is Sarah Michelle Geller’s return to television with The Ringer at 10 p.m. which centers around a woman who assumes the identity of her estranged twin sister in order to avoid jail.


Napolean Dynamite

Really, it’s Global’s mid-season shows that look like they can’t miss, specifically the animated version of Napolean Dynamite which shockingly features the voices of the entire original cast of the movie! It will slide nicely into the network’s Sunday animation night and it’s almost guaranteed to be a sure-hit. Are You There Vodka, It’s Me Chelsea, The Finder, The Firm and The 2-2 all look good.

The upfront itself was highlighted by appearances from Glee castmembers Matthew Morrison, Iqbal Theba, and Dot Marie Jones. Since they were taking questions while the presentation marched forward, you’ll have to wait for my take on the new shows until after I screen the pilots.


The Morning Show

Other major announcements of the day included Global adding The Talk to its daytime lineup and the launch of The Morning Show which will be hosted by Liza Fromer, Kris Reyes and Dave Gerry. In an already crowded breakfast market, this was the biggest coup for the network as the dynamic between Fromer and Reyes is a natural fit and with a new studio being built specifically for the show, I believe this to be the new staple of the morning.

Murtz Jaffer is the world's foremost reality television expert and was the host of Reality Obsessed which aired on the TVTropolis and Global Reality Channels in Canada. He has professional writing experience at the Toronto Sun, National Post, TV Guide Canada, TOROMagazine.com and was a former producer at Entertainment Tonight Canada. He was also the editor at Weekendtrips.com.