HomeFeatureBET’s First Ever Miniseries ‘Book of Negroes’ Set to Air During Black History Month admin Monday, January 12, 2015 Feature, Film & Television, The Script, Tune In As we approach Black History Month, television networks have begun scheduling specific programming that will celebrate the historical contributions of Black people and the stories that follow them. For instance, the BET Network will premiere its very first miniseries, “THE BOOK OF NEGROES” on Monday, February 16, 2015 at 8PM ET/PT. The six-part miniseries will be based on Lawrence Hill’s award-winning novel, Someone Knows My Name. In three consecutive nights, viewers will get an opportunity to travel along the life’s journey of Aminata Diallo “THE BOOK OF NEGROES” depicts the extraordinary life journey of West African slave, Aminata Diallo, which is being played by actress Aunjanue Ellis (Ray, The Help). According to the official press release… Kidnapped by slave traders in West Africa and subsequently enslaved in South Carolina, Aminata must navigate her way through the American Revolution in New York, the isolated refuge of Nova Scotia and the treacherous jungles of Sierra Leone before ultimately securing her freedom in England at the dawn of the 19th century. The miniseries also stars Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jerry Maguire, A Few Good Men), Oscar and Emmy winner Louis Gossett Jr. (An Officer and a Gentleman, Roots, Boardwalk Empire), Lyriq Bent (Rookie Blue), Oscar nominee Jane Alexander (The Cider House Rules), Ben Chaplin (The Thin Red Line) and Allan Hawco (Republic of Doyle). Conquering Lion Pictures, Out of Africa Entertainment, Entertainment One (eOne), and Idlewild Films are producers of the project, along with executive production credits by Damon D’Oliveira (What We Have), Clement Virgo (“The Wire”) who also served as co-writer & director, Carrie Stein and Margaret O’Brien. The Book of Negroes is a historical document which records names and descriptions of 3,000 African-American slaves who had to work for the British army during the American Revolution in order to qualify for their freedom and were evacuated by the British by ship to points in Nova Scotia. The book was assembled by Samuel Birch under the direction of Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester. African Americans who escaped to the British during the American Revolutionary War became the first settlement of Black Canadians. Other Black Loyalists were transported to settlements in several islands in the West Indies and some to London. Recorded in 1783, this 150-page document is the only one to have ever recorded Black Americans in a large, detailed scope of work. Learn more about this seminal document from the author Lawrence Hill at http://www.bet.com/video/the-book-of-negroes/2014/exclusives/what-is-the-book-of-negroes.html. For more information on THE BOOK OF NEGROES go to bet.com/bookofnegroes. Join the conversation on Twitter by using the hashtag #bookofnegroes.
