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Revival season is in full swing in TV land, with classic shows like Will & Grace and Roseanne back on the air (okay, one of those has been a little more fraught than the other). Joining the ranks of these comeback kids is Murphy Brown, the two-time Outstanding Comedy Emmy winner that’s back on the beat on CBS and ready to take on fake news, Nazis, propagandists, and everyone currently acting super swampy.
Just like the original series, which ran from 1988 to 1998, the revival stars Candice Bergen as legendary journalist Murphy Brown. By her side once more is her old team, including Faith Ford as the bubbly anchor Corky, Joe Regalbuto as everyman investigative reporter Frank, and Grant Shaud as the panicked producer Miles. The old FYI team is reentering a world that’s way scarier than the one it left; doesn’t the Bill Clinton sex scandal seem quaint compared to everything in the news right now? Yikes, right?
But you may have some questions about how to watch this history-making moment, especially if you’re a cord-cutter with Thursday night plans!
When does Murphy Brown start?
Clear your schedule, because the first new episode of Murphy Brown in 20 years airs on Thursday, September 27 on CBS at 9:30 p.m. ET. The episode is a super-sized affair, too, running around 5 minutes longer than the normal half hour episode of TV. So if you don’t care about Murphy Brown but want to watch S.W.A.T., you’ll see five minutes of Murphy if you turn the TV on at 10. The new season is comprised of 13 episodes.
Can you watch Murphy Brown live online?
If you don’t have cable and also don’t want to mess with an antenna (who woulda thunk that antennas would still be a part of our lives? Oh, the woes of a cord-cutter), you can stream Murphy Brown live online as it airs–but you’re going to need a live TV account with a streaming service to do it. You’re all set if you have CBS All Access, which will let you stream your local CBS affiliate live. You can also stream CBS live if you have Hulu with Live TV, YouTubeTV, and/or DirecTV Now.
Can you stream Murphy Brown after it airs?
What do you do if you just can’t park it in front of the TV tonight and watch this moment, 20 years in the making? First of all, what else do you have going on?! Second, you can stream it after it airs, if you have a CBS All Access account. CBS All Access is the only streaming service that will have the revival season of Murphy Brown available to stream the morning after it premieres on CBS.
If you don’t want CBS All Access, you can outright buy the Murphy Brown revival season for $29.99 on iTunes. New episodes will be available to download on Tuesday mornings. So far this is the only season of Murphy Brown available in iTunes, too!
Is Murphy Brown on Hulu?
Nope, and that includes both the new and old episodes. Unlike ABC, NBC, and Fox, CBS shows don’t stream on Hulu the day after they air. That’s why you need CBS All Access. And because the original show used a whole lot of popular songs in inextricable ways, it’s super expensive to clear those music rights for it to be on DVD or streaming. So you can’t stream Murphy Brown on Hulu, Netflix, Prime Video, any of those services. CBS All Access is your one-stop shop.
Fortunately, CBS All Access has added 18 classic episodes of Murphy Brown to its library to commemorate the new season. They’re 18 episodes that are free of music rights hassles, but they’re a good overview of the show if you need an intro or a refresher.
Are Robert Pastorelli and Charles Kimbrough on the new Murphy Brown?
Sadly, the revival season will be without housepainter-turned-nanny Eldin, as Pastorelli passed away in 2004. Kimbrough, on the other hand, will have a recurring role on the show as anchorman Jim Dial. The 82-year-old will return, although the details about the extent of his involvement remain unclear.
Who plays Avery Brown?
Murphy’s son Avery, born in the original Season 4 finale way back in 1992, is now a full-grown adult. He’s played by your new sitcom crush Jake McDorman, who was previously seen on the short-lived shows Limitless and Are You There, Chelsea? He also had regular roles on Shameless and Greek, and appeared in last year’s indie-darling Lady Bird. Avery takes after his mother in that he’s also a highly-competitive journalist. Just one twist: he’s the token liberal anchor on the incredibly conservative and inflammatory Wolf Network (sound like a stand-in for anything?).
So to sum up: Murphy Brown premieres on Thursday, September 27 at 9:30 p.m. ET on CBS. You can stream the episode starting Friday on CBS All Access, or purchase it in iTunes.
