CBC-TV reveals fall 2014 primetime lineup

Maggie Gyllenhaal'shit spy thriller The Honourable Woman, gritty western dramaStrange Empire and sci-fievent seriesAscension help kick off CBC Television's fall 2014 primetime lineup.

• Tricia Helfer to star in new CBC series: Ascension
• CBC unveils expanded 2014-15 programming slate

Thepublic broadcaster unveiled its seasonal scheduleMonday outliningwhen Canadians can expect to see five newshows and eleven returningCBCfanfavourites.

Season kicks off in September

The season starts off with new episodes of CBC's flagship daytime lifestyle seriesSteven and Chrisweekdays at 2 p.m. (2:30 NT) starting Sept. 22.

The mood gets darkwhen the sun goes down on Mondays. Armchair sleuths can get theirMurdoch Mysteryfix when the show returns to its8 p.m.(8:30 NT)time slot. The edgy frontier dramaStrange Empirefollows, but in this western all the men have disappeared and thewomen are in charge.

Jokes and dramaTuesdays

Comedy fans can count on one hour of laughs on Tuesdays with CBC favouritesThe Rick Mercer Report and This Hour Has 22 Minutesreturning with new episodes starting Oct. 7.

MaggieGyllenhaall will bring hercritically-acclaimed project The Honourable Womanat 9 p.m. (9:30 NT). The series makes its premiereon Monday Sept. 29 before settling into its Tuesday time slot.

The 1960ssci-fi drama Ascension, starring Battlestar GalacticaactressCanadianTriciaHelferandCougar Town's Brian Van Holt joins CBC primetimeTuesdaysstarting Nov. 25.

New Dragons and refreshed favourites

AllanHawcolaunches the final season of Republic of Doyleon Wednesdays starting Oct. 15. Then, it's deal time in theDragon's Den featuringtwo new dragons:Vikram Vij and Michael Wekerlewho are replacing Kevin O'Leary andBruce Croxon.

• Michael Wekerle, VikramVijjoin CBC's Dragons' Den
• Hawcoconfirms end ofRepublic of Doyle

Other shows returning this fall to CBCprimetime:Doc Zone,the fifth estate,Heartland,Marketplace, andThe Nature of Things.

How smart are you?

The search for the nation's brightest kicks off on Sept. 28 withCanada's Smartest Person. HostsJessi Cruickshank and Jeff Douglas returneach Sunday at8 p.m. (8:30 NT) for one-hour of high-impact television testing the intelligence of Canadians.

CBC Selects follows with the premiere of Australian legal drama Janet King beginning Oct. 5.

VisitFALLforCBC.cafor a full schedule and exclusive behind-the-scenes videos of CBC's fall prime-time series.