Oprah Winfrey’s OWN cable channel unveils five new series
New Years’ Eve this year will be particularly celebratory for Oprah Winfrey fans. They can get ready for the Jan. 1 launch of OWN, Winfrey’s new cable TV channel that will feature the wildly popular daytime host in prime time.
Winfrey unveiled five new original series Thursday during the channel’s presentation to advertisers in New York City. The new shows are in addition to 10 series that were previously announced.
“My vision for OWN is to create a network that inspires our viewers and makes them want to be who they are on their best day,” Winfrey said.
The highlight from the programming slate is clearly “Oprah’s Next Chapter,” a one-hour show that the network said would showcase Winfrey as she conducted “riveting conversations” in various locations around the globe ranging from “her beloved oak tree” to the Taj Mahal.
Another show the cable network has high hopes for is “Visionaries: Inside the Creative Mind.” Among the personalities scheduled to appear are director James Cameron, musician Lady Gaga and photographer Annie Leibovitz.
Other shows are “Your Own Show: Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star,” from reality show mogul Mark Burnett, in which contestants vie for the chance to host their own show; “Why Not? With Shania Twain,” featuring the country singer’s life after her painful divorce; and “Gayle King Live,” a televised version of the radio talk show hosted by Winfrey’s best friend.
In November, Winfrey announced she would be leaving her show for good in September 2011 -- a move, many experts believe, that could signal the beginning of the end for the daytime syndicated talk show, a staple of television for almost four decades.
Previously announced shows on the network include “Oprah Presents: Master Class,” in which Winfrey chooses a prominent celebrity to give life lessons; a female prison show titled “Breaking Down the Bars”; “Enough Already” with de-cluttering expert Peter Walsh; the sex and relationship series “In The Bedroom with Dr. Laura Berman”; and “The Miracle Detectives,” in which a skeptic and a believer are pitted against each other in their exploration of “an amazing event.”
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