News

Trisha Mann-Grant plays one of the most intriguing characters on the upcoming CBS soap Beyond the Gates. The description for Dana “Leslie” Thomas includes words and phrases like “not wrapped all that tight,” “charming,” and “unsettling.” The actress will undoubtedly have fun with the role.

The Early Days

Trisha Mann-Grant is a Chicago native who is a former beauty queen and print model. In fact, she was once crowned Miss Black Chicago. She told the “I Love Me Project” that she basically always wanted to act.

As a little girl, she appeared in church plays and performed skits with her sister. But there was a teacher who inspired her to achieve more.

“When I was a freshman in high school, there was a teacher named Sister Dorothy who helped bring me out of my shell. She took the time to talk to me about myself and how amazing I was.

CBS has added 10 new cast members for upcoming daytime soap opera “Beyond the Gates.”

Joining the show are: Brandon Claybon, Timon Durrett, Sean Freeman, Marquita Goings, Maurice Johnson, Trisha Mann-Grant, RhonniRose Mantilla (Broadway’s “Harmony the Musical”), Ambyr Michelle, Colby Muhammad (Broadway’s “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”), and Arielle Prepetit.

Full character descriptions can be found below.

The new additions join previously announced cast members Tamara Tunie, Daphnee Duplaix, and Karla Mosley. “Beyond the Gates” was originally picked up to series at CBS back in April. As previously reported, the show was developed under CBS Studios’ content partnership with the NAACP. The show will begin production in November and will premiere in early 2025.

The official logline for the series states:

“‘Beyond the Gates’ is set in a leafy Maryland suburb just outside of Washington, D.C., and in one of the most affluent African American counties in the United States.

Riley and Mandla are back for a brand new Christmas romance! “A Royal Christmas Surprise,” the sequel to 2022’s “A Royal Surprise” is coming to BET+ on Thursday, Nov. 30. Riley has grown used to the shock of her fiancé’s royal origins, but when his family and hers come together to plan their wedding, it creates a whole new mess to clean up! You can watch A Royal Christmas Surprise with a 7-Day Free Trial of BET+.

How to Watch ‘A Royal Christmas Surprise’ When: Thursday, November 30, 2023 Where: BET+ Stream: Watch with a 7-Day Free Trial of BET+. 7-Day Free Trial$9.99+ / month bet+ via amazon.com About ‘A Royal Christmas Surprise’

Riley and Mandla have settled into their lives in Los Angeles, and are anxiously awaiting their upcoming nuptials. When Riley’s Aunt Priscilla and Uncle Leon invite the pair to their gorgeous Kentucky estate to host an engagement party for them at Christmastime,...

It’s not just about those repeats of A Christmas Story on TNT anymore.

Multiple linear channels and streamers are getting into the holiday spirit this month and next by dropping original Christmas movies, as well as old favorites and one-off holiday specials. As usual, Hallmark has wall-to-wall flicks planned until the end of the month, but Great American Family, Lifetime and BET have their own original slates as well to help ring in the new year.

And if the classics are all that you are looking for, there are still airings of It’s a Wonderful Life, Elf, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Home Alone, The Santa Cause, The Wizard of Oz and Miracle on 34th Street scheduled for the boomers and Gen Xers.

And yes, on the big days, several channels have do have marathon programming events.

Check it all out below.

November 9

Christmas Angel (BET)

November 10

Everything Christmas...

BET’s streaming platform BET+ has unveiled 12 new projects marking the holiday season this year. The releases will be a mix of films spanning musical dramas and romantic comedies, and TV specials, including a standalone holiday episode of the streamer’s popular sitcom The Ms. Pat Show directed by Debbie Allen.

Allen is among a dynamic roster of Black writers, directors and actors who were brought on to create this year’s slate, including Jasmine Guy who stars in the family drama A Wesley Christmas Wedding and Vivica A. Fox who appears in the suspense thriller Sworn Justice: Taken Before Christmas. Additionally, Robin Givens wrote, executive produced and stars in the rom-com Christmas Rescue and directed the faith-based drama Favorite Son Christmas. Tami Roman is also executive producer of the romance drama Whatever It Takes, which she stars in, in addition to So Fly Christmas and The Ms. Pat Show holiday episode “Father Christmas.