June had a stellar lineup of shows on PBS, but July is going to be comparatively quiet on that front. To be sure, there are still new shows to enjoy, including the season premieres of British dramas Cobra and Hotel Portofino. There’s also the fourth season of the condensed version of one of PBS’ greatest hits: Antiques Roadshow Recut. That show edits down previously broadcast episodes of Antiques Roadshow into tight 30-minute installments.
PBS does have another strong lineup of documentaries in July, including Gods of Tennis, a look back at the iconic players from the ’70s and ’80s. Frontline and Nova both have a number of documentary specials throughout the month. PBS also has non-partisan coverage of the 2024 Republican National Convention. But that might be more for hardcore political junkies than a mainstream audience.
If you missed the best shows on PBS from June, you can still stream those online. But you will have to wait for the premiere dates listed below to catch everything coming to PBS in July.
POV — Hummingbirds
Premieres: Monday, July 1
In Hummingbirds, Silvia and Bebatell their own coming-of-age story, transforming their home town on the Texas border into a wonderland of creative expression and activist hijinks. Filmed collaboratively over the final summer of their fleeting youth, their cinematic self-portrait celebrates the power of friendship and joy as tools of survival and resistance.
A Capitol Fourth 2024
Premieres: Thursday, July4
Celebrate our country’s 248th birthday live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol with all-star musical and patriotic performances from pop, country, R&B, classical and Broadway artists. Joined by the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of premier pops conductor Jack Everly, America’s biggest birthday party features the greatest display of Independence Day fireworks anywhere in the nation lighting up the iconic D.C. skyline.
POV — Is There Anybody Out There?
Premieres: Monday, July 8
Born with a rare disability, filmmaker Ella Glendining wonders if there is anyone who can share the experience of living in a body like hers. This simple question–one which nondisabled people take for granted, leads to a journey to not only others who live like her–but to the realization that meeting them changes how she views herself in the world, as well as many surprises along the way.
Voces — From Here / From There (De Aquí/De Allá)
Premieres: Tuesday, July 9
Meet Luis Cortes Romero, the first undocumented attorney to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. An immigration attorney as well as a DACA recipient, Luis joins a powerful and highly visible legal team, including unlikely conservative ally Ted Olson, to fight the rescinding of DACA. Although the Supreme Court ruled in their favor in 2020, the future of DACA recipients is still in doubt.
PBS News Special: Republican National Convention
Premieres: Monday-Thursday, July 15 –18
Live special coverage of the Republican National Convention will air on PBS stations and stream on PBS NewsHour‘s digital and social platforms, beginning on Monday, July 15 through Thursday, July 18. Co-anchored by Amna Nawaz and Geoff Bennett in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, coverage will include reporting from NewsHour Capitol Hill correspondent Lisa Desjardins and senior correspondent Judy Woodruff, and analysis from Washington Post opinion writer Jonathan Capehart, New York Times op-ed columnist David Brooks, and editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report Amy Walter, among others.
Gods of Tennis
Premieres: Tuesday, July 23
This fascinating series revisits a golden age of tennis during the 1970s and 1980s that changed the sport forever. Framed through the world-famous Wimbledon tournament, it features memorable archive from some of the most famous moments in tennis, as well as revealing interviews from the greatest players to have ever graced center court: John McEnroe, Billie Jean King, Arthur Ash, Bjorn Borg, Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. These were heroes who not only produced some of the best matches in the history of sport, but who broke boundaries and drove significant change away from the tennis courts.
Frontline — Two American Families: 1991-2024
Premieres: Tuesday, July 23
Filmed over 34 years, two families struggle to survive in a changing American economy. Through hard times, falling wages, and loss of manufacturing jobs, the continuation of Bill Moyers’ chronicle of perseverance as the American dream slips away.
Sea Change: The Gulf of Maine, A Nova Special Presentation
Premieres: Wednesday, July 24
This series is about a body of water that is warming 99 percent faster than the global ocean. What happens in this body of water – for the animals, the jobs dependent upon it, and the millions of people along its shores – is likely to happen worldwide.
Nova Special — Sea Change, a three-part special presentation of NOVA, is an epic story blending science, exploration, stunning natural history, and stories of human experience past and future, providing a fascinating tale about a
regional location with profound global implications. Encounter the spectacular wilderness and wildlife that still teem in these waters filled with jeopardy, wonder, and promise. Track the stories of the scientists, Native Americans, fishers, and entrepreneurs – all working to reveal its complex history in understanding what role the ocean plays in our lives.
Cobra Season 3
New Season Premieres: Thursday, July 25
Prime Minister Robert Sutherland is plunged into chaos when an environmental demonstration meets with grave consequences, just as his popularity is plummeting in light of a controversial police-protest bill. As an investigation gets underway, the PM is forced to reckon with the possibility that the most dangerous rebellion has come from within.
Antiques Roadshow Recuts Season 4
New Season Premieres: Friday, July 26
America’s favorite treasure hunt Antiques Roadshow presents a bite-sized way to enjoy the show. Antiques Roadshow Recut features a new season of thirty-minute episodes, packed full of favorite finds and paced for maximum entertainment. Season 4 features episodes recut from the show’s 2022 visits to Filoli in Woodside, CA and Idaho Botanical Garden in Boise, ID.
Hotel Portofino Season 3
New Season Premieres: Sunday, July 28
Starring Natascha McElhone and Mark Umbers, Hotel Portofino season 3 is an exhilarating period drama about a British family who runs a hotel for upper class travelers on the magical Italian Riviera during the glamorous ‘Roaring 20s’ but also under the dark cloud of Fascist Italy. Bella is preparing for her father and sister’s arrival but is thrown when Cecil appears requesting divorce. Over the weeks, Bella must decide her future as well as avoiding fascist leader Danioni. But with the Wall Street Crash, things get worse as Bella and Cecil lose everything. Dark secrets are exposed during another adventure on this sun-soaked 1920s Italian drama.
POV — Against the Tide
Premieres: Monday, July 29
Bombay fishermen Rakesh and Ganesh are inheritors of the great Koli knowledge system–away to harvest the sea by following the moon and the tides. Rakesh has kept faith in traditional methods while Ganesh has embraced technology. Against the Tide is a tale of deep friendship and rising resentment between two men against the backdrop of an adoring sea, now turning hostile through climate change.
Frontline — Germany’s Enemy Within
Premieres: Tuesday, July 30
Inside the rise of far-right extremism in Germany. Tracing the increasing threat to democracy from the far right, its connections to extremist ideas and plots, with accounts from intelligence officials, politicians and the far right itself.
