Diggstown is a Canadian legal drama television series created by Floyd Kane.[1] The first Canadian drama series to feature a Black Canadian woman as its lead character,[2] the series stars Vinessa Antoine as Marcie Diggs, a lawyer who leaves her high-powered corporate job to work for a legal aid clinic in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, after her aunt commits suicide.[3][4]
| Diggstown | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Legal drama |
| Created by | Floyd Kane |
| Directed by | |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| No. of seasons | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Production locations | Halifax, Nova Scotia and Martinique Beach Provincial Park, Nova Scotia |
| Running time | 44 min. |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | CBC |
| Release | March 6, 2019 – November 16, 2022 |
The first season premiered on CBC Television on March 6, 2019.[5] A second season was announced in May 2019, following the conclusion of the first season.[6][7][8] On June 21, 2020, the series was renewed for a third season which is set to premiere on October 6, 2021.[9][10] In early 2021, Fox picked up the series for distribution.[11]
The CBC announced in October 2022 that the show's fourth season would be its last, with the finale scheduled to air on November 16.[12]
Plot
editDiggstown follows Marcie Diggs (Vinessa Antoine), a star corporate lawyer who reconsiders her priorities and moves back home (to the greater Halifax-Dartmouth area) to work in a legal-aid office after her beloved aunt takes her own life following the pressures of a malicious prosecution.[11]
Cast
edit- Vinessa Antoine as Marcie Diggs
- Natasha Henstridge as Colleen MacDonnell
- C. David Johnson as Reggie Thompson
- Stacey Farber as Pam MacLean
- Brandon Oakes as Doug Paul
- Shailene Garnett as Iris Beals
- Tim Rozon as Constable Carson Myers
- Dwain Murphy as Avery Mueller
- Mpho Koaho as Percy Lincoln
- Kim Roberts as Ona Reeves
Episodes
edit| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 6 | March 6, 2019 | April 3, 2019 | |
| 2 | 6 | March 4, 2020 | April 1, 2020 | |
| 3 | 8 | October 6, 2021 | November 24, 2021 | |
| 4 | 6 | October 12, 2022 | November 16, 2022 | |
Season 1 (2019)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Canadian viewers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Willy MacIsaac" | Kelly Makin[3] | Floyd Kane | March 6, 2019 | 338,000[13] | |
|
We are introduced to Marcie Diggs, a former top corporate lawyer who has left her profession to return home (to the greater Halifax-Dartmouth area) and to work in a legal aid office. Marcie struggles with her anger towards the pastor whom she blames for her aunt Rolanda's suicide (the pastor banned her from her church and called her "filth"). Marcie represents a father who is charged with DUI. Pam represents a friend. | |||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Renee Joy" | Cory Bowles | Floyd Kane | March 13, 2019 | 291,000[14] | |
|
Marcie is representing Renee Joy, a girl strip-searched by police. But an activist lawyer, Percy Lincoln, pursues the matter as a human rights complaint, which could result in Renee not getting a much needed scholarship. | |||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Taisir Ahmed" | Lynne Stopkewich | Andrew Burrows-Trotman | March 20, 2019 | 296,000[15] | |
|
Taisir, one of Marcie's clients, is grabbed by secret police and being held with an accusation of terrorism (which will make him unavailable for upcoming appointment that he has to be at for getting his mother a visitor's visa). Marcie tries to find Taisir, but the authorities keep shuffling him around so his lawyer can't be present to represent him. Pam takes over case of one of Marcie's client who is in dispute with a slumlord and Pam works on getting client a new place to live. Doug Paul is concerned his daughter is being taken advantage of by her 'mentor'. | |||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Delroy Nelson" | Kelly Makin | Ellen Vanstone | March 27, 2019 | 279,000[16] | |
|
Matthew Clarke starts a bar fight (with Delroy) that ends with Matthew on ground and not breathing. Delroy starts to do CPR, but his action is misinterpreted and he is dragged away from patient. Skip to weeks later and deceased's mother is charge of media that are attacking Delroy's character. | |||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Nikki LeBlanc" | Cory Bowles | Lynn Coady | April 3, 2019 | 231,000[17] | |
| 6 | 6 | "Kim Bond" | Lynne Stopkewich | Floyd Kane | April 3, 2019 | 162,000[17] | |
Season 2 (2020)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Canadian viewers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | "Vince Hu" | Kelly Makin | Floyd Kane & Priscilla White | March 4, 2020 | 195,000[18] | |
|
A newly graduated RCMP patrolman is involved in a high-speed road traffic accident, where a mother of two dies at the scene. Marcie faces persecution from her neighborhood and friends when she tries to defend him. Some of his colleagues take matters into their own hands to bias the case, further hampering Marcie's work. | |||||||
| 8 | 2 | "Cheryl Battiste" | Cory Bowles | Lynn Coady & Priscilla White | March 11, 2020 | N/A | |
|
A young Miꞌkmaq woman stands accused of murdering a white teen after she and her friend are racially and physically attacked by the teen and his companion. | |||||||
| 9 | 3 | "Willy MacIsaac Redux" | Cory Bowles | Floyd Kane & Priscilla White | March 18, 2020 | 141,000[19] | |
| 10 | 4 | "Tanya Ivanova" | Sharon Lewis | Ellen Vanstone | March 25, 2020 | N/A | |
| 11 | 5 | "Vi Bayley" | Lynne Stopkewich | Lisa Codrington & Priscilla White | April 1, 2020 | N/A | |
| 12 | 6 | "Dani Ewing" | Cory Bowles | Priscilla White | April 1, 2020 | N/A | |
Season 3 (2021)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | "Nina Francis" | Cory Bowles | Floyd Kane | October 6, 2021 |
| 14 | 2 | "Jojo Carvery" | Cory Bowles | Lynn Coady | October 13, 2021 |
| 15 | 3 | "Percy Lincoln" | Cory Bowles | Lakna Edilima & Ellen Vanstone | October 20, 2021 |
| 16 | 4 | "Enter Vivian Jefferson" | Lynne Stopkewich | Floyd Kane | October 27, 2021 |
| 17 | 5 | "Ivy Maloney" | Juanita Peters | Lynn Coady & Amber-Sekowan Daniels | November 3, 2021 |
| 18 | 6 | "Miles Jones" | Lynne Stopkewich | Floyd Kane & Motion Brathwaite | November 10, 2021 |
| 19 | 7 | "Christian Spry" | Shamim Sarif | Ellen Vanstone & JP Larocque | November 17, 2021 |
| 20 | 8 | "Riley Seaver" | Robert Adetuyi | Floyd Kane & Lynn Coady | November 24, 2021 |
Season 4 (2022)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title [20] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [20] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 1 | "Larissa Crooks" | Cory Bowles | Floyd Kane | October 12, 2022 |
| 22 | 2 | "Basil Allen" | Rama Rau | JP Larocque & Caleigh Bacchus | October 19, 2022 |
| 23 | 3 | "Donald Kitpu Christmas" | Cory Bowles | Ellen Vanstone & Roxann Whitebean | October 26, 2022 |
| 24 | 4 | "Trudy Willis" | Shamim Sarif | Floyd Kane & Lakna Edilima & James Battiston | November 2, 2022 |
| 25 | 5 | "Marcie Diggs" | Shamim Sarif | Lynn Coady | November 9, 2022 |
| 26 | 6 | "Cruz Diaz" | Floyd Kane | Floyd Kane | November 16, 2022 |
International release
editBET+ acquired U.S. streaming rights to the series in April 2020.[21] Fox acquired the U.S. television broadcast rights for the series in January 2021, however this never occurred and the show wasn't aired on the network during the 2021-22 television season.[11] BET later on started airing the series on linear television in the US in January 2024.
Reception
editThe series has received at least one positive review. The Globe and Mail called the series "a charming, no-glitz legal drama".[22]
References
edit- ^ David, Greg (21 August 2018). "Additional Casting Confirmed for New CBC Original Legal Aid Drama Diggstown as Production Begins". TV, Eh?. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
- ^ "Diggstown's Vinessa Antoine is the face of change as first Black woman to star in prime-time TV drama" Archived 2019-03-04 at the Wayback Machine. Toronto Star, March 4, 2019.
- ^ a b Ryan, Haley (1 October 2018). "Halifax legal drama bringing Black stories to life in our own backyard". StarMetro Halifax. Archived from the original on 25 March 2019. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
- ^ Wong, Tony (2 June 2018). "In casting a new crime show, CBC is looking for Canada's Kerry Washington". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 25 March 2019. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
- ^ Greg, David (1 November 2018). "CBC ANNOUNCES WINTER 2019 PREMIERE DATES FOR HEARTLAND, SCHITT'S CREEK, WORKIN' MOMS, KIM'S CONVENIENCE AND MORE". TV, Eh?. Archived from the original on 25 January 2019. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
- ^ CBC, Diggstown on (2019-05-29). "It's official! #DiggstownCBC will be back for SEASON 2 on @CBC in 2020! Stream full episodes of season 1 right now on #CBCGem! #Season2 #CBCUpfront @CBCTelevisionpic.twitter.com/pA2UpvDjWA". @DiggstownCBC. Archived from the original on 2021-05-16. Retrieved 2019-07-01.
- ^ "Season 2 Premiere of Diggstown is Slated for Winter 2020". premieredate.news. Archived from the original on 2019-07-01. Retrieved 2019-07-01.
- ^ Eades, Chris (2019-05-30). "Vinessa Antoine's Primetime Series Renewed for Season Two". ABC Soaps In Depth. Archived from the original on 2019-07-01. Retrieved 2019-07-01.
- ^ "CBC Renews Original Legal Dramas "Burden of Truth" and "Diggstown"". The Futon Critic. July 21, 2020.
- ^ CBS, Diggstown [@DiggstownonCBC] (June 2, 2021). "And we now have a premiere date! See you all on OCTOBER 6 for the #DiggstownCBC season three premiere on @cbc and @cbcgem" (Tweet). Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b c White, Peter (January 26, 2021). "Fox Picks Up Canadian Legal Drama 'Diggstown'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ David, Greg (October 6, 2022). ""MARCIE DIGGS' FIGHT FOR JUSTICE TO END IN SEASON 4 OF DIGGSTOWN"". TV, eh?. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 8, 2019). "NUMBERS IN CANADA: Strong start for Big Brother; Diggstown under the Legal limit". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 15, 2019). "NUMBERS IN CANADA: Mon, Tues & Wed overnights". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 21, 2019). "NUMBERS: Good start for Jann". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on March 22, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 29, 2019). "FRIDAY NOTES: Canadian viewers turning into bankers". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ a b Brioux, Bill (April 5, 2019). "NUMBERS IN CANADA: Jann slips in overnights". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 5, 2020). "The tribe has spoken with Survivor still a top draw in Canada". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on March 28, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Brioux, Bill (March 22, 2020). "News numbers, Survivor and Grey's big winners in Wednesday, Thursday overnights". Brioux.tv. Archived from the original on March 28, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- ^ a b "Diggstown". Zap2it. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
- ^ Barraclough, Leo (April 23, 2020). "BET Plus Acquires Legal Procedural 'Diggstown' From Entertainment One". Variety. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ "CBC's Diggstown is a charming, no-glitz legal drama". The Globe and Mail. March 5, 2019. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2019.