BBC Worldwide and PBS have decided that it's time for a new 'Sherlock Holmes.' The 1984 series, which ran ten years and 41 episodes, had Jeremy Brett as Sherlock and is still widely regarded as the best Holmes since Basil Rathbone's incarnation in the movies, but after the success of Guy Ritchie's kinetic Robert Downey Jr. version last Christmas, the people in a position to make things happen are ready to give us a 21st century variation on Holmes and Watson and 221B Baker Street.

Thus far the casting is promising. Martin Freeman, who is best known as the British version of Jim in the UK 'The Office,' will play Dr. Watson. In the role of Sherlock, the actor chosen is named Benedict Cumberbatch. That's a great name for an actor cast as Holmes; it just sounds so British. But Benedict also has the look of a Holmes, and he was in 'Atonement' and was nominated for a BAFTA playing Stephen Hawking in a BCC drama.

On the heels of yesterday's cancellation of 'The Unit,' CBS is now saying goodbye to 'Without a Trace' and 'Eleventh Hour.'

'Eleventh Hour' ran for one season in the network's 10PM slot, which will now be filled by ratings juggernaut 'The Mentalist,' according to Variety.

Meanwhile, the Ausiello Files says 'Without a Trace''s cancellation came down to the wire. 'Trace' battled 'Numb3rs' for the network's final spot, but lost out because 'Numb3rs' is reportedly "less expensive to produce."

• At 8, NBC has an ER Retrospective, followed by the ER series finale.
• CBS has a new Survivor at 8, then new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• ABC has a new In The Motherhood, followed by a new Samantha Who?
• FOX has new episodes of Bones and Hell's Kitchen.
• There's a new Smallville on The CW at 8, then a new Supernatural.
• AMC has It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World at 8.
• Discovery has two new episodes of Destroyed In Seconds at 8, then a new Treasure Quest.
• Also at 8: Nickelodeon has a new Penguins of Madagascar.
• At 9, Spike has a new TNA Wrestling.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes.
• The Biography Channel has a new Chris Isaak Show at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

'ER'
(9PM, NBC) series finale
The Emmy, Golden Globe and Peabody-winning series closes out its 15-season run with an appropriate send-off that will give fans updates on their favorite characters.

More 'ER' friends – Eriq LaSalle, Alex Kingston, Sherry Stringfield, Laura Innes and Thandie Newton – return to the hospital tonight to support John Carter (Noah Wyle) as he opens his new medical center.

Meanwhile, the new crew gets some final screen time, too, as John Stamos' Gates treats a teen whose boozy games have led to alcohol poisoning, and Carter helps a new intern (Alexis Bledel) whose pregnant patient is about to deliver twins. Hmmm, a 'Gilmore Girl' in the ER? Sounds like spin-off potential to us ...

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, then new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
• CBS has a new Survivor at 8, followed by new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• FOX has new episodes of Bones and Hell's Kitchen.
• The CW has a new Smallville at 8, followed by a new Supernatural.
• At 8:30, NBC has the season finale of Kath & Kim, then new episodes of The Office, 30 Rock, and ER.
• At 9, Spike has a new TNA Impact.
• At 10, Biography has a new Chris Isaak Hour.
• Discovery has a new Treasure Quest at 10.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• Also at 10: VH-1 has a new Sober House.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty.
• CBS has a new Survivor at 8, then new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• NBC has new episodes of My Name Is Earl, Kath & Kim, The Office, 30 Rock, and ER.
• FOX has a new American Idol at 8, followed by a new Hell's Kitchen.
• At 9, Spike has a new TNA Impact at 9.
• Cartoon Network has a new League of Super Evil at 9.
• At 10, USA has a new Burn Notice.
• A&E has a new episode of The Beast at 10.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• MTV has the season finale of Randy Jackson Presents: America's Best Dance Crew at 10.
• Also at 10: Discovery has a new Treasure Quest.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, followed by new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
• CBS has the season premiere of Survivor at 8, then new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• NBC has new episodes of My Name Is Earl, Kath & Kim, The Office, 30 Rock, and ER.
• FOX has the NAACP Awards at 8.
• Discovery has a new HowStuffWorks at 8.
• At 9, Spike has a new TNA Impact!
• Sci-Fi is showing the movie Serenity at 9.
• At 10, USA has a new Burn Notice.
• There's a new episode of The Beast on A&E at 10.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• Discovery has a new Treasure Quest at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 8, FOX has a new American Idol, then the season premiere of Hell's Kitchen.
• The CW has a new Smallville at 8, followed by a new Supernatural.
• Discovery has a new HowStuffWorks at 8.
• At 9, CBS has a new CSI, then a new Eleventh Hour.
• Spike TV has a new TNA Impact at 9.
• At 10, ABC has a new Private Practice.
• USA has a new Burn Notice at 10.
• A&E has a new episode of The Beast at 10.
• Discovery has a new Treasure Quest at 10.
• TruTV has two new episodes of The Principal's Office at 10.
• VH-1 has a new Sober House at 10.
• Also at 10: Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• At 8:00, the major networks and the news channels will have President Bush's address to the nation.
• The CW has new episodes of Smallville and Supernatural starting at 8.
  
• Discovery has a new HowStuffWorks at 8.
• Also at 8: TCM has The Naked City.
• At 8:30, NBC has a new episodes of My Name Is Earl, The Office, 30 Rock, and ER.
• At 9, ABC has a new Grey's Anatomy, followed by a new Private Practice.
• FOX has a new Kitchen Nightmares at 9.
  
• Hallmark has the movie Ladies of the House at 9.
• There's a new TNA Impact! on Spike at 9.
• At 9:15, CBS has a new CSI, then a new Eleventh Hour.
• At 10, A&E has the series premiere of The Beast.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• VH-1 has the series premiere of Sober House at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show s.

Today's news that CBS ordered five more episodes of Eleventh Hour is not a big surprise. A big surprise would have been if the network didn't give the freshman drama a re-order. The Jerry Bruckheimer production has been in the most-favored nation position at CBS -- meaning whatever Jerry wants, he usually gets.

The network enjoys a very fruitful/profitable relationship with the TV/filmmaker. Together, CBS and Jerry share Cold Case, CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Without A Trace and The Amazing Race. They're thinking of changing the initials CBS to Columbia Bruckheimer System. (Kidding!)

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, then new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Life on Mars.
• CBS has a new Survivor, followed by new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• NBC has new episodes of My Name Is Earl, Kath & Kim, The Office, 30 Rock, and ER.
• FOX has a new Kitchen Nightmares at 8.
• The CW has a new Smallville at 8, then a new Supernatural.
• TBS has four great episodes of Friends starting at 8.
• TCM has 1925's Phantom of the Opera at 8, followed by 1923's Hunchback of Notre Dame.
• Also at 8: Cartoon Network has a new Chowder.
• At 9, PBS has a new Live From Lincoln Center.
• Food Network has another Dear Food Network: Thanksgiving special at 9.
• HGTV has a new Rate My Space at 9.
• At 10, FX has the season finale of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia at 10, followed by a new Testees.
• There's a new Tim Gunn's Guide To Style on Bravo at 10.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Sarah Silverman Program.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show listings.

A lot of people would say FOX's Fringe. A lot of people would say CBS's The Mentalist (it's also the #1 new show ratings-wise). Some might even say CBS's Worst Week, though a lot of people wouldn't. It's actually been kind of a blah year for new shows.

The Boston Herald, a newspaper I used to write for many TV seasons ago, says one of the best new shows is actually on The CW, and it's Privileged. Amy Amatangelo says that Privileged is "that rare show...that gets better every week." She's even really specific when comparing it to other shows. If you like Brothers & Sisters you'll like parts of the show, and if you're a fan of How I Met Your Mother, you'll like other parts of it (the show is about a Yale grad who is hired by a cosmetics millionaire to tutor her kids). She compares it to Gossip Girl too.

So this go me thinking: what do you think is the best new show of the year? I haven't seen Privileged yet, so I'd probably have to go with either The Mentalist or Fringe. Poll is after the jump.

Last night's second episode of ABC's new drama Life on Mars, the American version of the British hit, took a precipitous drop in the ratings. This is really bad news because Life on Mars may be the best new show of the season, unless you're in love with The Mentalist, which I am not, or maybe The Eleventh Hour or My Own Worst Enemy has tickled your fancy.

What's clear is that ABC is trying to build a solid Thursday with Grey's Anatomy, Ugly Betty and Life on Mars, but Ugly Betty is off to a rocky start, Grey's isn't the powerhouse it once was, and the pressure is on Mars to keep Grey's lead and improve on it.

The show got off to a good start in the premiere, but last night was off 25%. That's not good.

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, then new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Life on Mars.
• CBS has a new Survivor at 8, followed by new episodes of CSI and Eleventh Hour.
• FOX has a new Hole in the Wall at 8.
• NBC has new episodes of My Name Is Earl, Kath & Kim, The Office, SNL Thursday Weekend Update, and ER.
• There's a new Smallville on The CW at 8, then a new Supernatural.
• TBS has the Red Sox/Rays game at 8.
• At 8:30, HGTV has a new Myles of Style, followed by a new Rate My Space.
• At 9, Spike has a new TNA Impact.
• Bill Maher is the guest on a new Larry King Live, at 9 on CNN.
• Discovery has a new Destroyed In Seconds at 9.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes.
• Bravo has a new Tim Gunn's Guide To Style at 10.
• Also at 10: Sundance has the season premiere of Iconoclasts.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Sarah Silverman Program.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show listings.

• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, then a new episode of Grey's Anatomy and the series premiere of Life On Mars.
• CBS has a new Survivor at 8, followed by the season premiere of CSI and the series premiere of Eleventh Hour.
• NBC has a new My Name Is Earl at 8, then the series premiere of Kath & Kim, then a new episode of The Office, then the series premiere of SNL Thursday Weekend Update, and a new ER.
• FOX has Game 1 of the National League Championship, the Dodgers vs. the Phillies at 8.
• The CW has new episodes of Smallville and Supernatural.
• At 8:30, HGTV has a new Myles of Style, followed by a new Rate My Space.
• At 9, History Channel has a new Modern Marvels.
• TLC has a new American Chopper at 9.
• At 10, FX has a new It's Always Sunny..., then the series premiere of Testees.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has another new episode of The Sarah Silverman Program.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk show listings.