Beverly Hills, Calif.—Bio Channel is aggressively expanding its original programming slate this year by adding four new original series in primetime, including a talk show hosted by William Shatner, and bringing back two others, officials said Wednesday.
The network’s investment in original programming will nearly double original content in prime compared to last summer, when Bio Channel refreshed its brand.
“Bio is all about telling true stories about fascinating people and as the fastest-growing network in cable, it has turned into quite a story itself” Bob DeBitetto, president and general manager of A&E Network and Bio Channel, said in a statement.
“This aggressive programming slate will maintain the level of quality our viewers have come to expect from the network,” he said. “We will continue to focus first and foremost on alluring people and their true stories in a fresh, honest and entertaining voice –stories you just cannot make up.”
Illustrating its commitment to HDTV content, all new Bio Channel productions will be shot in HD. The upcoming slate draws on the network’s current schedule and includes the following new original series in development:
-- Shatner’s Raw Nerve—The star has his own edgy and off-beat celebrity interview series, with a hook - in each episode Shatner will attempt to probe his guest's most sensitive subjects and touch upon a Raw Nerve by unearthing his guests' strange and unknown stories that are most surprising, revealing, funny, touching or bizarre. It premieres Aug. 19.
-- The Chris Isaak Hour—Hosted by the popular singer, this live performance and interview show will explore the lives of mainstream musical artists by allowing them to tell their life stories through the music they've created, the songs and artists that inspired them and the relationships they forged along their path to success.
-- Female Forces—Viewers will ride shotgun with a police department's female officers and get an in-the-squad car view of what it's like to be a female crime fighter.
-- Why I Ran—For the first time on television, viewers will hear from the actual people who have led the police on some of the most dangerous high-speed pursuits ever. Up-close and personal, viewers will be along for the entire ride with gritty, unfiltered stories... all of them true.
Bio Channel’s returning series are I Survived…and Biography.
For more coverage of the Televison Critics Association's summer press tour, click here.
