[Televisionary]

It's no surprise that in these somewhat crazy end times that exploring the sometimes chance connections between people seems like such a zeitgeisty thing right now. Take a look at films like Paul Haggis' Crash or television series like Six Degrees , Lost , The Nine , or Heroes . It seems like each of us is aching, in an age of instant messages, obnoxious cell phone calls, and endlessly frayed nerves, for some real contact with one another. While American television has responded with glossy dramas, hostage flashback sagas, and epic tales of possibly haunted islands with a string of linked-by-fate characters, British television has taken the opposite tack, investigating the quotidian and average in its series The Street from creator Jimmy McGovern, best known for television fare like Cracker and The Lakes as well as his feature work, Priest and Liam . Arguably a linked drama anthology series, it revolves around the residents of one painfully average street in the north of E

BBC America has finally set a street date for its new drama series, The Street . From creator Jimmy McGovern ( Cracker , Liam , Priest ), The Street is set in the north of England and can boast an all-star cast including Jim Broadbent ( Iris, Bridget Jones' Diary, and about a zillion other film credits), Jane Horrocks ( Absolutely Fabulous ), Sue Johnstone ( Waking the Dead ), and Timothy Spall ( Secrets and Lies ). Each segment will focus on a different house on the same street. (The series, which aired on BBC One in the UK earlier this year, will return next year with a second season.) Digital cabler BBC America announced the acquisition back in June but has now revealed that the series will premiere on Tuesday, October 3rd at 10 pm. Considering the pedigree of both the creator and the actors, I'm setting my TiVo now and urge you to do the same...