BBC America Announces June Programming Highlights

From The Queen's Diamond Jubilee in June through the London Olympics in August, BBC AMERICA offers viewers a wide slate of live event coverage, comedies, documentaries, dramas and special features as part of BBC AMERICA's Summer of London.

THE QUEEN'S DIAMOND JUBILEE

On Sunday, June 3, in recognition of the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's reign on the throne, BBC AMERICA will present an entire day of specials and documentaries including live coverage of The Queen's Diamond Jubilee: Thames Pageant. Over one thousand boats of all shapes and sizes will assemble, beautifully dressed with streamers and Union Jacks, for a formal procession down the River Thames in preparation for Her Majesty The Queen. Premieres live Sunday, June 3, 8:30am ET.

The Diamond Queen - A new US premiere landmark documentary series from the BBC. Andrew Marr presents a definitive analysis of Queen Elizabeth II's reign with exclusive interviews with members of the Royal Family including Princes William and Harry, The Duke of York and The Princess Royal. Premieres Sunday, June 3, 8:00pm ET/PT.

The Queen's Diamond Jubilee: Service of Thanksgiving and Royal Procession? - On Tuesday, June 5, the celebration carries on with live Jubilee Day coverage including Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral. The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, together with other members of the Royal family, will attend a Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral, which will be followed by a formal carriage procession. Premieres live Tuesday, June 5, 4:15-8:00am ET and 8:30-10:45am ET. Twitter: #DiamondJubilee

THE BRIT LIST - WORLD PREMIERE

In three new specials, BBC AMERICA's pop culture correspondent Asha Leo (@ashaleo) counts down the 20 sexiest, coolest and baddest Brits. From Tom Hardy to the Cadbury Flake to the Aston Martin, The Brit List: 20 Sexiest ranks the hottest British models, actors, athletes, musicians and iconic elements of British pop culture. Premieres Tuesday, June 12, 10:00pm ET/PT. From Vivienne Westwood to Idris Elba, The Brit List: 20 Coolest looks at the effortless style, grace, energy and irreverence - in a word "cool" that is uniquely British. Premieres Tuesday, June 19, 10:00pm ET/PT. From Lord Voldemort to Johnny Rotten, The Brit List: 20 Baddest features the nasty and naughty who utterly demolish the stereotype of the polite Brit. Premieres Tuesday, June 26, 10:00pm ET/PT. Twitter: @ashaleo #BritList

DISCOVERING LENNON - US PREMIERE

Discovering Lennon shines a light on the bold and beautiful ideas of John Lennon, the artist. The avant-garde rock and roller is placed into today's context by his contemporaries and current pop culture and political commentators including Mark Ronson, Damien Hirst, Rankin and John Simm. Discovering Lennon premieres Tuesday, June 19, 9:00pm ET/PT. Twitter: #DiscoveringLennon

TWENTY TWELVE - US PREMIERE

As BBC AMERICA warms up for the London Olympics, the actors and creators of some of Britain's most iconic comedies come together for a new docu-comedy, Twenty Twelve. The BAFTA nominated series stars BAFTA nominee Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey), BAFTA nominee Olivia Colman (Peep Show), Jessica Hynes (Spaced), Amelia Bullmore (I'm Alan Partridge), Vincent Franklin (The Thick of It), and Karl Theobald (Green Wing) and is narrated by David Tennant (The Spies of Warsaw, Doctor Who). From executive producer Jon Plowman (The Office, Extras, Absolutely Fabulous) and writer John Morton (People Like Us), the series follows the team responsible for delivering the biggest show on earth: the London Olympics. Twenty Twelve premieres with three back-to-back episodes on Thursday, June 28 9:00pm ET and continues in its regular time slot on Saturday, June 30, 12:00am ET/ 9:00pm PT as part of the Ministry of Laughs. Twitter: #TwentyTwelve

DRAMAVILLE

INSIDE MEN - US PREMIERE

Inside Men, the next installment of BBC AMERICA's Dramaville, follows three security depot employees who plan and execute a multi-million pound cash heist. Every day they watch as millions of pounds worth of cash is counted, bound and stored in a vault. They see more money than they could ever dream of earning slowly pass them by. That is, until they decide to take it. Starring Steven Mackintosh (Luther), Warren Brown (Luther) and Ashley Walters (Outcasts), the Guardian called the drama: "A tense, knuckle-gnawing thriller, with a lovely stark industrial quality." Inside Men premieres Wednesday, June 20, 10:00pm ET/PT as part of Dramaville. Twitter: #InsideMen

SUPERNATURAL SATURDAY

MERLIN - SEASON 1 & 2 - BBC AMERICA PREMIERE

From the award-winning team of Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy (Hex, Sugar Rush), Merlin features a powerful ensemble cast including BAFTA Award-winner Richard Wilson (One Foot in the Grave, Demons), Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), John Hurt (Hellboy, Harry Potter) plus Colin Morgan as Merlin and Bradley James as Arthur Pendragon. The drama sees Merlin continue to fulfill his destiny to protect Prince Arthur, battling deadly assassins, magical monsters and the most powerful sorcerers Camelot has ever seen. Merlin Season I Marathon premieres Friday, June 8, 8:00pm ET/PT to Saturday, June 9, 10:00pm ET/PT. Merlin Season 2 premieres Saturday, June 9, 10:00pm ET/PT as part of Supernatural Saturday. Twitter: #Merlin

TOP GEAR

TOP GEAR - SEASON 2 - US PREMIERE

Catch the earliest days of the world's biggest car show. Irreverent, witty and unabashedly honest, the Top Gear team takes cars to the limit and beyond. In the season there's a Jaguar-themed episode, Jeremy Clarkson goes on maneuvers in a Hummer and Top Gear finds the driving 'Master of the Universe' when a Dalek, a Klingon, a Cyberman, Ming the Merciless, Doctor Who's Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) and Darth Vader go head-to-head on the track. Stars in the Reasonably Priced Car include Jamie Oliver, Starsky & Hutch legend David Soul, Patrick Stewart, comedian Alan Davies and Vinnie Jones. Top Gear Season 2 premieres Monday, June 11, 9:00pm ET/PT. Twitter: #TopGear

ONGOING PREMIERES

Other series that will continue to premiere new episodes during June include:

Mondays: Top Gear

Tuesdays: No Kitchen Required

Wednesdays: White Heat

Saturdays: The Graham Norton Show, The Thick of It, Katy Brand's Big Ass Show

BBC AMERICA delivers US audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including an Emmy(R), five Golden Globes(R) and ten Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on digital cable and satellite TV in more than 79 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online, www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist.