October brings a full lineup of new and noteworthy programs to WNMU-TV PBS. Starting October 5, enjoy brand-new Masterpiece dramas that will keep you hooked all season long. In recognition of National Arts and Humanities Month, we’re sharing inspiring specials that celebrate creativity, culture, and the stories that shape us. The Ask the Experts series also continues this fall, beginning with the season's first Ask the DNR on October 2. And all month long, look for fun and festive Halloween specials, culminating on October 31 with World According to Polka and Theatre of the Mind delivering festive entertainment perfect for the season.
As always, your support makes these programs possible. When you contribute to WNMU-TV PBS, you help keep trusted, local public broadcasting strong in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Scroll down to explore the rest of this month’s featured programs. Shows are organized week by week. All programs air on 13.1 unless otherwise noted, and are also available to stream LIVE from our website, pbs.org, or the PBS app.
Young Xudum lionesses return north as Pobe faces tragedy, and Lediba struggles to feed her cub.
Wednesday, October 1st at 8/7c. Repeats 10/22 at 3/2c.
Discover how Homo sapiens outlasted Neanderthals – and how they helped make us who we are today.
Wednesday, October 1st at 9/8c. Repeats 10/02 at 3/2c.
Engineer Magdalena Machaca Mendieta explains how she builds lagoons to harvest rainwater.
Wednesday, October 1st at 10/9c
Ask the Experts
Personnel from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources visit WNMU-TV to answer questions submitted from viewers on topics including hunting, fishing, wildlife updates, and more.
Thursday, October 2nd at 8/7c. Repeats 10/03 at 3/2c.
Discover Grace Bumbry's rise to global opera fame in her signature role of Carmen.
Friday, October 3rd at 9/8c
Explore the story of writer Julia Alvarez, who blazed a trail for a generation of Latino authors.
Friday, October 3rd at 10/9c
Mozart's opera of marital discord is conducted by Met Music Director James Levine.
Saturday, October 4th at 1a/12c. Repeats 10/4 at 8/7c on 13.3PLUS.
Meet three young Hoosiers ready to find where they fit in their home state.
Saturday, October 4th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/06 at 3/2c.
Follow the roadtrippers as they explore careers in tech, urban farming, and more.
Saturday, October 4th at 8:30/7:30c. Repeats 10/06 at 3:30/2:30c.
Chart the last 5 years of the women's movement and its intersectional fight for equality.
Sunday, October 5th at 7/6c.
Brian Walden and Margaret Thatcher sit for one of the most famous interviews of all time.
Sunday, October 5th at 8/7c.
Benjamin Wainwright stars as Maigret in the contemporary adaptation of Georges Simenon's novels.
Sunday, October 5th at 9/8c.
Six armed men steal gold and scramble to find ways to dispose of the bullion.
Sunday, October 5th at 10/9c
Phil Sharp’s RNA breakthrough sparked a revolution in science, health, and biotech.
Monday, October 6th at 10/9c.
Frontline
An indelible look at the realities of growing up poor in America. Filmed over 14 years with kids from three families, from adolescents to adults with kids of their own, navigating an economy with more obstacles than opportunities.
Tuesday, October 7th at 10/9c.
A shy scientist finds himself in the spotlight of the fight to save our planet.
Tuesday, October 7th at 11:30/10:30c.
The Cat in the Hat takes Nick and Sally on a wild Halloween ride!
Wednesday, October 8th at 11:30a/10:30c. Repeats 10/20 at 10:30a/9:30c, and 10/29 at 1p/12c.
A new generation of lions, cheetahs, and leopards comes of age in Botswana’s Okavango Delta.
Wednesday, October 8th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/29 at 3/2c.
Follow ancient humans’ journey into an icy and perilous new land.
Wednesday, October 8th at 9/8c. Repeats 10/09 at 3/2c.
The spectacular arena showcasing Ancient Rome’s power also contributed to its downfall.
Wednesday, October 8th at 10/9c.
Ask the Experts
Area doctors answer viewer questions on General Health and Diabetes.
Thursday, October 9th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/10 at 3/2c.
Discover how King Records played a central role in shaping American popular music.
Friday, October 10th at 9/8c.
Explore the document that governs those who govern us: the American Constitution.
Saturday, October 11th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/13 at 3/2c.
AN OZARK MOUNTAIN SYMPHONY features an all star cast from the world of music and Broadway.
Sunday, October 12th at 7/6c
Nigel Lawson resigns, and a crisis-hit Maggie is interviewed by her old friend Brian.
Sunday, October 12th at 8/7c
As Maigret reels from his failure to protect Fumal, he also suffers a devastating personal blow.
Sunday, October 12th at 9/8c
The Gold
The criminals create a system to smelt the Brink's-Mat gold and sell it back into the market.
Sunday, October 12th at 10/9c.
POV
It's the poignant story of healing and forgiveness between a mother and her child.
Monday, October 13th at 10/9c.
Learn about Marlee Matlin, Oscar-winning actress and champion of the Deaf community.
Tuesday, October 14th at 9/8c
Discover the wildlife of Transylvania, a mysterious region hiding some of Europe’s last wilderness.
Wednesday, October 15th at 8/7c.
Discover how two revolutionary ancient inventions changed the course of humanity forever.
Wednesday, October 15th at 9/8c. Repeats 10/16 at 3/2c.
An unprecedented discovery could reveal new information about Cleopatra’s reign.
Wednesday, October 15th at 10/9c
Sing along with the Wild Kratts and all the creepy cool creatures of #Halloween!
Thursday, October 16th at 11a/10c. Repeats 10/22 at 1p/12c, and 10/29 at 9a/8c.
Attorneys answer viewers' legal questions.
Thursday, October 16th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/17 at 3/2c.
This Halloween is sure to be the spookiest ever for Arthur and his friends!
Friday, October 17th at 10:30a/9:30c. Repeats 10/17 at 10:30a/9:30c, 10/21 at 6a/5c, 10/28 at 12p/11c, and 10/31 at 6a/5c.
Discover how art can foster unity amid a world that often feels divided.
Friday, October 17th at 9/8c
Meet a few of the artists featured in Getty's 2024-25 Southern California art event, PST ART.
Friday, October 17th at 10/9c.
Three young people follow their passion for problem-solving to unexpected places.
Saturday, October 18th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/20 at 3/2c.
It's the chronicles of Virginia veterans present during Operation Urgent Fury.
Sunday, October 19th at 7/6c
Why is Cassandra Austen determined to find the letters her sister Jane wrote to her friend Eliza?
Sunday, October 19th at 8/7c.
Maigret
Maigret's case is derailed when ordered to investigate billionaire Ferdinand Fumal's death threats.
Sunday, October 19th at 9/8c.
The GOld
The task force surveils Noye, and a police raid ends in tragedy.
Sunday, October 19th at 10/9c.
Independent Lens
A bipartisan coalition continues a century-long fight to add gender equality into the Constitution.
Monday, October 20th at 10/9c.
An election story that aims to facilitate civil dialogue in an era dominated by polarizing debates.
Tuesday, October 21st at 9/8c
Frontline
The dramatic and controversial rise of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. How the scion of a storied dynasty endured tragedy and scandal, broke with the Democratic Party and his family, stoked conspiracy theories, and is reshaping government and public health.
Tuesday, October 21st at 10/9c.
In 1964, college students and Black activists joined forces in Ohio to fight as one.
Tuesday, October 21st at 11:30/10:30c.
Nature
Explore the walrus' evolutionary past and their ability to thrive through the ages.
Wednesday, October 22nd at 8/7c. Repeats 10/29 at 3/2c.
NOVA
Archaeologists investigate strange Stone Age megastructures in the Arabian desert.
Wednesday, October October 22nd at 9/8c. Repeats 10/23 at 3/2c.
See how secret letters written by Mary, Queen of Scots, were finally decoded.
Wednesday, October 22nd at 10/9c.
Ask the Doctors
Drs. answer viewers' cancer treatment & recovery questions.
Thursday, October 23rd at 8/7c. Repeats 10/24 at 3/2c.
Stories from Texas that deliver a more unexpected and nuanced vision of the state and the people who call it home.
Friday, October 24th at 9/8c
Enjoy a powerful and revealing look at legendary, larger-than-life Texas governor Ann Richards who enriched the lives of her followers, friends and family in this critically acclaimed play written by and starring Emmy Award-winner Holland Taylor.
Friday, October 24th at 10/9c.
Filmmaker Pablo Miralles takes a look at the perceptions and policies at his old high school.
Saturday, October 25th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/27 at 3/2c.
The most significant moments in zombie popular culture over the last two centuries are detailed.
Sunday, October 26th at 7/6c.
As Cassandra falls ill, her mind is flooded with memories of difficult times.
Sunday, October 26th at 8/7c
Maigret
As Maigret reels from his failure to protect Fumal, he also suffers a devastating personal blow.
Sunday, October 26th at 9/8c.
The GOld
Palmer discovers that he is wanted by the police.
Sunday, October 26th at 10/9c.
American Experience
Explore Kissinger’s life, from his childhood in Germany to architect of American foreign policy.
Monday, October 27th at 9/8c
The filmmakers discuss how the story of The American Revolution came together.
Monday, October 27th at 10/9c. Repeats 10/28 at 10/9c.
American Experience
Discover how Kissinger's anti-Communism would shape U.S. foreign policy, from Vietnam to the USSR.
Tuesday, October 28th at 9/8c
Nature
Discover the intricate relationships between mountain lions in Montana.
Wednesday, October 29th at 8/7c.
NOVA
Explore super floods. See why these floods are on the rise around the world.
Wednesday, October 29th at 9/8c. Repeats 10/30 at 3/2c.
Secrets of the Dead
Scientists track down the earliest known bubonic plague victims.
Wednesday, October 29th at 10/9c.
Ask the Lawyers
Attorneys join guest host Paul Sturgul to answer viewers' legal questions pertaining to elder law.
Thursday, October 30th at 8/7c. Repeats 10/31 at 3/2c.
Jake Kouwe takes you on a delightful jaunt into your favorite spooky season.
Friday, October 31st at 9/8c.
Classic stories are presented in the style of a 1940's radio play. “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving. “The Cats of Ulthar” by H. P. Lovecraft.
Friday, October 31st at 9:30/8:30c
A live radio plays of Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat" is presented by The Air Command."
Friday, October 31st at 10:30/9:30c.
