From Jessica Smith of Metro Toronto:

• Bomb Girls actress honoured to salute women like one she portrays on TV
  Growing up studying history, Charlotte Hegele learned all about the men who fought the Second World War. It was only years later, reading the script of Bomb Girls, that she really learned about the women. “I think a lot of young people blur history together and they don’t realize that there are specific pockets of time where extraordinary things happened,” said Hegele. “It’s so important that we tell women’s stories.” Read more.

From a media release:

SPECIAL GUEST STAR ROSIE O’DONNELL AS “DOTTIE” IN BOMB GIRLS SEASON 2

• Multiple Emmy Award Winner, Rosie O’Donnell Signs On for Upcoming Episode in Global’s Critically Acclaimed Original Series
• Bomb Girls Returns with All-New Episodes in Early 2013

With a new season of Bomb Girls in the works and fans already brimming with anticipation, Global proudly announces the addition of the talented and incomparable Rosie O’Donnell as a special guest star in Episode 209, currently shooting in Toronto.

For six years, Rosie O’Donnell was America’s best friend. For an hour each day she served as host and executive producer of the critically acclaimed and Emmy Award winning nationally syndicated talk/variety series “The Rosie O’Donnell Show.” In her first season on the air, she won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host. She continued her success for five consecutive seasons by winning Daytime Emmy’s for both Outstanding Talk Show Host and Outstanding Talk Show. Rosie was also seen on daytime television as moderator on the tenth season of ABC’s “The View,” and hosted the satellite radio show, “Rosie Radio” on SiriusXM. She returned to television hosting in the fall of 2011 with “The Rosie Show” on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network through spring 2012.

“Bomb Girls revolves around an incredible time in our country’s history and the empowerment of women during World War II. We’re so excited to have Rosie O’Donnell help us tell this story,” said Barb Williams, SVP, Content, Shaw Media.

An encore presentation of Bomb Girls Season 1 airs Fridays at 9pm ET/PT on Global.

Bomb Girls is produced by Muse Entertainment and Back Alley Film Productions Limited in association with Shaw Media.

From a media release:

GLOBAL’S BOMB GIRLS BEGINS SEASON 2 PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY

• THE WWII DRAMA STARS MEG TILLY AND JODI BALFOUR
• MICHAEL SEATER JOINS THE CAST

Shaw Media announced the start of production on Season 2 of Bomb Girls, currently shooting 12 X 1-hour episodes in Toronto now until mid-December 2012. Last season, Bomb Girls made its indelible mark as the #1 new Canadian series, and the program will return to Global Television in the new year (date to be announced).

The critically acclaimed series stars Academy Award® nominee Meg Tilly (Agnes of God, The Big Chill) and Jodi Balfour (The Sinking of the Laconia). Gemini award-winner Michael Seater (Life with Derek) is joining the cast as Ivan, a gregarious factory worker and object of interest of the girls working the assembly line at Victory Munitions.

This season Bomb Girls takes us back to 1942 – the war is in full swing, and it seems the Axis forces are winning every battle. With the demand from the Allies increased due to bombed-out factories abroad, folks at Victory Munitions are busier than ever – both inside the plant and out of it.

For shift matron Lorna Corbet (Tilly), something has got to give. The demands of her job, family and her own burgeoning need to define herself stirs things up at home and at work. Meanwhile, Gladys Witham (Balfour) is tiring of living under the shadow of her powerful family. Working at Vic Mu has fed her desire for independence, but she learns that making her own decisions doesn’t guarantee she’ll get what she wants.

Marco Moretti, played by Antonio Cupo (L’Ombra del destino), faces the challenges of his Italian heritage at a time when Canada is at war with Italy. He wants to do his part for the war effort, but confronts hostility from the powers-that-be. Betty McRae, played by Ali Liebert (Hellcats), searches for home both literally and figuratively, grappling with her identity, working to feel safe in her world. And what of Kate Andrews? Played by Charlotte Hegele (Murdoch Mysteries), can she return to the world and its promise of freedom, or will the shackles of her past overwhelm her? Still learning to live a life where her beauty is no longer the most outstanding asset, Vera Burr, played by Anastasia Philips (Skins), braves a world-view where her smarts can be just as important as her looks.

Bomb Girls is produced by Muse Entertainment and Back Alley Film Productions Limited in association with Shaw Media. The executive producers are Michael Prupas (The Kennedys, Pillars of the Earth), Janis Lundman (Durham County), Adrienne Mitchell (Durham County) and Michael MacLennan (Flashpoint, Queer as Folk). Mitchell is director on the first two episodes and is co-showrunner of the series along with Michael MacLennan who is also head writer. The show is distributed worldwide by Muse Distribution International.

From a media release:

Global is proud to offer a wealth of new and returning Canadian original programming on the schedule this fall. Award-winning newsmagazine series 16×9 will move into a primetime slot on Friday nights while Saturday evenings gain a new documentary series, Close Up. Close Up is a series of one-off POV documentaries that chronicle the extraordinary and unusual world outside our door – remarkable people on the outskirts of what is deemed normal, hidden worlds, personal obsessions and unique subcultures.

Also on the originals slate is the much anticipated 2012 Canada’s Walk of Fame Awards which will be broadcast this fall from Toronto’s historic Elgin Theatre. The annual star-studded gala event will feature top tier talents being honoured by their colleagues with inspirational performances and heartfelt words. A list of inductees will be announced in the coming weeks.

Reality series Recipe to Riches is back with a new crop of Canadian home cooks competing to have their original recipes become a President’s Choice product.

Finally, Bomb Girls, the drama profiling the Canadian women who risked everything to build bombs for the Allied forces fighting on the European front, returns with all-new episodes in 2013. Shot on location in Toronto, Bomb Girls stars Meg Tilly (Caprica), Jodi Balfour (Supernatural), Charlotte Hegele (Murdoch Mysteries) and Ali Liebert (Health Nutz).

From C21 Media:

• Bomb Girls land in Netherlands
  The distribution side of Muse Entertainment has sold its fledgling drama Bomb Girls into the Netherlands and the Balkans following its recent second-season order from Canada’s Global TV. Read more.