This first showing was on November 1st 98.
The decision has been made to go ahead and produce the series, but production has moved from Scotland to New Brunswick in Canada and it is not yet known how this will affect Gareth's participation. he wants to continue in the part and his performance got a good reaction.
The series also stars Merlin is played by Jason Connery and Deborah Moore.
The series will be made by Segull productions a part of Kaleidoscope Media Group in conjunction with Wynn Entertainment.
Out of date press release and pictures by Kaleidoscope Media Group. (None of Gareth)
Note from the director David Winning.
Presumably they mean that's when it will be broadcast in the US. I hope someone will copy it for me. Gareth looked lovely in the stills I've seen.
Whether it will ever get made into a series is anyone's guess. It's been a saga of ups and downs and even if it does get to be a series, there's no guarantee that they'd keep the original cast.
The following is courtesty of the sci fi channel website: (and gives slightly different dates from those previously mentioned)
The Kaleidoscope Media Group announced:
that its two-hour TV pilot Merlin: The Magic Begins will air in syndication between Oct. 19 and Nov. 15. The show has so far been cleared in 59 markets, which represent approximately 62 percent of U.S. TV households, including both CBS and NBC owned-and-operated stations.Footnote from Judith - Kaleidoscope have promised things about a series before and they didn't come to pass, so I'd take this announcement with a large pinch of salt. There's also no guarantee at all that Gareth will retain his part if the series does come to pass. Last time I spoke to Gareth, he'd had no news regarding 'Merlin' for a long time.Merlin stars Jason Connery, the son of Sean Connery, and Deborah Moore, the daughter of Roger Moore, in a story based on the King Arthur legend. In this version of the Arthur tale, Merlin is a young man who must learn to control his blossoming magical powers while fighting to protect the benevolent forest people against the black magic of the evil Rengal.
Kaleidoscope plans to follow the Merlin movie with a syndicated one-hour TV series that is expected to premiere in the fall 1999.
There is an excellent review by Ruth Kenyon on her website.
Each expands to a larger image
This last picture comes in two versions, the one above and this one which was actually shown:
As a disclaimer, I have not seen it and have seen little info on it, but it has been in the works for a year or so with occasional mentions in the British TV Magazines like TV Zone and Dreamwatch. It is of interest to fans because of the involvement of Jason Connery and Gareth Thomas and I believe it is mainly a British production.
Director: David Winning
Cast: Jason Connery, Deborah Moore, Gareth Thomas, Graham McTavish, Fiona Kempin, Gordon Hall, John Woodford, Chick Allen, Finn Begbie, Peter Begbie, Rosie Begbie, Katrina Boyd, Michael Boyd III, Andy Bryden
Station List
The following is a list of US stations and the specific dates and times they will be airing Merlin: The Magic Begins.
This list came from one provided by KMG. If noted as "Airdate Unknown", that station will be airing it sometime before the end of November. If noted as "11/15/98-11/29/98", that station will be showing it sometime during those dates. These may not be accurate, so check your local listings or an online listings service such as www.tvquest.com. For example, the info I was given about the Chicage station was wrong. What is listed here is correct (according to the tvquest site).
| City | Station | Date Time |
| WEB-TV | 100+ | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| AIN | 11/18/98 9:00pm 11/22/98 12:00pm | |
| AMERICA ONE | GE-3/TR 24 | 11/20/98 8:00pm 11/20/98 2:00am |
| ALBANY, GA | WFXL | 11/18/98 12:00pm |
| ATLANTA | WSB | 11/14/98 1:30pm |
| BALTIMORE | WMJF | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| BATON ROUGE | WBTR | 10/31/98 8:00pm 11/15/98 8:00pm |
| BIRMINGHAM | WVTM | Airdate Unknown |
| BOISE | KTVB | 11/15/98 12:00pm |
| BOSTON | WNDS | 11/29/98 12:00pm |
| BOWLING GREEN | WGRB | 10/25/98 9:00pm |
| BUFFALO | WNYO | 11/25/98 4:00pm |
| CHARLOTTE | WAXN | 10/25/98 3:00pm 11/07/98 2:00pm |
| CHICAGO | WCIU | 10/26/98 7:00pm 10/31/98 4:00pm |
| CLEVELAND | WAOH | 11/14/98 - 11/28/98 |
| COLORADO SPRINGS | K0AA | Airdate Unknown |
| COLUMBUS, OH | WCLL | 11/22/98 8:00pm |
| DALLAS-FT.WORTH | KXTX | 11/04/98 7:00pm |
| DAVENPORT | KWQC | Airdate Unknown |
| DAYTON | WMVC | 10/24/98 3:30pm |
| DENVER | KTVD | Airdate Unknown |
| DES MOINES-AMES | WHO | 10/25/98 1:30pm |
| DERRY, NH | ???? | 10/24/99 9:00pm 11/11/98 8:00pm |
| DETROIT | WADL | 11/02/98 9:00pm |
| EL PASO | KTSM | Airdate Unknown |
| EUGENE | KEVU | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| EVANSVILLE | WCJT | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| FLORENCE | WWMB | 10/23/98 7:00pm 11/13/98 1:00pm |
| FORT MYERS | WBBH | 11/01/98 1:00pm |
| FT. SMITH | KSBN | Airdate Unknown |
| GREEN BAY | WACY | 11/15/98 2:00pm |
| GREENSBORO | WXIV | 10/24/98 9:00pm (repeat TBA) |
| GREENVILLE | WYFF | 11/01/98 2:00pm |
| HARTFORD | WTNH | 10/23/98 8:00pm |
| HUNTSVILLE | WYLE | 10/26/98 9:00pm |
| HOUSTON | KHTV | Airdate Unknown |
| INDIANAPOLIS | WISH | Airdate Unknown |
| JACKSON, MS | WBMS | 10/30/98 9:00pm |
| JACKSONVILLE | WTLV | 11/22/98 1:00pm (repeat TBA) |
| JOHNSTOWN | WNPA | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| KNOXVILLE | WBXX | 11/07/98 3:00am |
| LAFAYETTE, LA | KATC | 11/14/98 12:30pm |
| LAS VEGAS | KCNG | 11/01/98 8:00pm 11/15/98 8:00pm |
| LEXINGTON | WYMT | Airdate Unknown |
| LITTLE ROCK | KASN | 11/28/98 4:00pm |
| LOS ANGELES | KTLA | 11/08/98 9:00pm 11/15/98 12:00pm |
| KCAL | Airdate Unknown | |
| LOUISVILLE | WBNA | 10/29/98 8:00pm 10/31/98 3:00pm |
| MEMPHIS | WBII | 11/07/98 8:00pm |
| MIAMI | WFOR | 10/31/98 12:00pm |
| MINEAPLS-ST. PL | WCNM | 11/15/98 - 11/29/98 |
| MOBILE-PENSCOLA | WFGX | 10/31/98 3:00pm 11/29/98 12:00pm |
| NASHVILLE | WTVF | 10/23/98 2:30am |
| NEW ORLEANS | WHNO | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| NEW YORK | WABC | 11/08/98 2:00pm |
| NORFOLK | WAVY | Airdate Unknown |
| ORLANDO | WFTV | Airdate Unknown |
| PALM SPRINGS | KPSP | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| PADUCAH | KQTV | 10/31/98 8:00pm 11/15/98 2:00pm |
| PHILADELPHIA | WGTW | 11/08/98 7:00pm 11/11/98 9:00pm |
| PHOENIX | KUSK | 11/15/98 - 11/29/98 |
| PITTSBURGH | WBPA | 11/15/98 - 11/29/98 |
| PORTLAND, OR | KWBP | 10/24/98 8:00pm 11/15/98 2:00pm |
| RALEIGH-DURHAM | WKFT | Airdate Unknown |
| RAPID CITY | KOTA | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| RENO | KOLO | 11/22/98 11:30pm |
| RICHMOND | WUPV | Airdate Unknown |
| ROANOKE | WRDL | Airdate Unknown |
| ROCHESTER | WBGT | 10/25/98 1:00pm |
| SACRAMENTO | KBTV | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| SALT LAKE CITY | KUWB | 10/30/98 7:00pm |
| SAN ANTONIO | KJRG | 11/15/98-11/29/98 |
| SAN FRAN-OAK-SJ | KICU | 11/01/98 12:00pm 11/14/98 12:00pm |
| SANTA BARBARA | KSTV | 11/07/98 8:00pm |
| SAVANNAH | WJCL | 11/14/98 1:30pm |
| SEATTLE-TACOMA | KTZZ | Airdate Unknown |
| SHREVEPORT | XCVS | 10/31/98 7:00pm 11/04/98 7:00pm |
| SOUTH BEND | WSBT | 10/31/98 12:00pm |
| SPOKANE | KALY | Airdate Unknown |
| SPRINGFIELD, MO | KOJQ | 11/14/98 3:00pm 11/21/98 8:00pm |
| ST. LOUIS | KPLR | 10/29/98 2:00am |
| TALLAHASEE | WGVP | 10/30/98 12:00pm |
| TAMPA | WWWB | 10/23/98 2:00am 11/07/98 2:00pm |
| TOLEDO | WNTG | 11/07/98 4:00pm |
| TUCSON | KVOA | 11/14/98 12:00pm |
| WASHINGTON, DC | WJAL | 11/07/98 12:00am |
| WEST PALM BEACH | WTCN | 11/07/98 12:00pm 11/21/98 9:00pm |
Last updated on 30th of December 2003.