Based on the best-selling novels by Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables is a classic Canadian tale about an orphan girl, sent to an elderly brother and sister by mistake, who charms her new home and community with her fiery spirit and imagination.

Set in the turn of the century on beautiful Prince Edward Island, Matthew Cuthbert (Richard Farnsworth) and his sister Marilla (Coleen Dewhurst) decide to take on an orphan boy for help on their farm, known as Green Gables. The orphanage sends a girl instead: a mischievous, talkative redhead named Anne Shirley (Megan Follows), who the Cuthberts think will be no use at all. Marilla agrees to keep Anne on a trial basis, only if she can keep out of trouble. But trouble is exactly what Anne attracts!

As Anne falls into a series of scrapes, makes a bosom friend, and searches (and finds) several kindred spirits, Matthew and Marilla discover that their lives have become a great deal richer with Anne staying at Green Gables.

ZoomerMedia’s very own Marilyn Lightstone, actor, artist, author, the voice of VisionTV and host of Nocturne on the New Classical96.3fm, stars in both Anne of Green Gables and Road to Avonlea as Miss Muriel Stacey, Anne’s first teacher and source of inspiration.
Re-discover these Canadian classic films that won numerous awards (including a Gemini and Primetime Emmy) during their original releases in the 1980s.

PHOTO GALLERY (click on any thumbnail to open to full size)
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EPISODE SCHEDULE
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ANNE OF GREEN GABLES – PART 1
Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Joe Wiesenfeld

“My name is Anne Shirley. Anne spelled with an E.”

An orphan since she was a baby and transferred from foster home to foster home, Anne Shirley is an intelligent, precocious child prone to flights of fancy and imagination. At 12-years-old and living unhappily with the Hammond family, Anne is made to believe she’s the cause of tragedy and falls deeper into a dream world where romantic tales in books come to life and an imaginary ‘window friend’ keeps her company. Back at the orphanage, Anne’s dream of having a loving home and family becomes tangible once again when she’s sent to Prince Edward Island where “two families want two little girls”. Much to Matthew Cuthbert and his sister Marilla’s surprise and initial dismay, Anne is not the boy they thought they would be taking in and her future at their picturesque farm, Green Gables, is instantly in question. Still, even though she steps out of line with their nosy gossip of a neighbour, Anne’s inquisitive and imaginative nature and her sheer wonderment and joy at the prospect of finally having a forever home look like they might be starting to win good-hearted Matthew and crusty, buttoned-down Marilla over.

“My greatest wish, apart from staying at Green Gables, would be to have a bosom friend.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES – PART 2
Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2016
Monday, Oct. 23, 2017
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Joe Wiesenfeld

“That’s the one good thing about me. I never do the same wrong thing twice.”

Anne is settling in to Green Gables and as such, starts to take innocent liberties with the things around her, including a piece of jewelry that is very near and dear to Marilla’s heart. Anne’s future at Green Gables looks short until Matthew’s sharp eyes intervene. Anne meets her ‘bosom friend’ Diana Barry and a lifelong friendship is born at the starting line of a three-legged race. Anne also meets schoolboy Gilbert Blythe and he learns how a redhead can have a quick temper when he calls Anne, “Carrots.” Anne’s efforts to change her hair colour end up in disaster but, the pall is soon lifted with news from Marilla. Anne and Diana’s misadventures, under the watchful and longing eye of Gilbert, continue through the school year culminating in a case of drunken mistaken identity when a decanter of currant wine stands in for raspberry cordial. Will this spell the end of Anne and Diana’s friendship?

“I thought nothing could be as bad as red hair. Green is ten times worse!”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES – PART 3
Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Joe Wiesenfeld

“Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it.”

A new school year brings a new teacher: the patient, encouraging but firm Miss Muriel Stacey. Anne discovers another kindred spirit in Miss Stacey but longs for the return of her bosom friendship with Diana. Anne’s capacity for imagination is easily matched by her growing book smarts and academic opportunities soon arise. A family emergency brings Anne and Diana back together when Anne shows considerable resolve and lifesaving courage. Then, after much persuasion and Matthew’s intervention, Anne and Diana are allowed to go to the Christmas Ball together. Anne finally in the dress she dreamt of with puffy sleeves. Anne and Diana run afoul of Diana’s formidable Aunt Josephine but Anne saves the day again with her penchant for being a charming chatterbox, ensuring that Diana can continue to pursue her dreams. Year end exam time also becomes a time for bittersweet goodbyes as Anne anticipates whether or not she’ll beat Gilbert with her scores while secretly wishing for his affection.

“I know I chatter on far too much but, if you only knew all the things I want to say and don’t.Give me some credit.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES – PART 4
Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Joe Wiesenfeld

“It doesn’t matter how I grow or how I change. I will always be your Anne. Anne of Green Gables.”

When Anne’s re-enactment of the Tennyson poem The Lady of Shalott goes awry and starts taking on water, Gilbert comes along just in time to be her rescuer. Try as he might, Gilbert is still having a hard time getting Anne to forgive transgressions long past. Time eventually does fade Anne’s old bruises and she and Gilbert start to grow closer. This is not a welcome development for some and Anne is encouraged to focus on her bright future and not to let anything, or anyone, hold her back. Anne’s lifelong love for storytelling and getting lost in romantic tales pays off at a poetry recital and soon, she’s tearfully saying goodbye as she begins a new adventure away at school. In between studies, Anne returns to Avonlea to be met with loss and heartache and the potential loss of her beloved childhood home. How will this alter Anne’s course and what role will Gilbert play in it?

“Gilbert did say that being smart was better than being pretty.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE SEQUEL – PART 1
Thursday, Oct. 26, 2017
Directed and Written by Kevin Sullivan

“This has taught me a lesson not to stake my word of honor on cows.”

It’s two years hence and Anne Shirley is now a full-fledged teacher whose dreams are still much bigger than her life’s circumstances and surroundings. She wants to be a writer and she’s chasing that dream as far as she can take it. A big manila envelope arrives registered mail for Anne, underscoring her ambitions to reach beyond Avonlea. Anne and Gilbert are still dancing around the unspoken romantic bond they share and Diana’s life is moving on to a new stage. Anne’s efforts are soon rewarded and there’s reason to celebrate her writing talents with a surprising twist thanks to Diana. Cow chasing and mud baths aside, Anne isn’t entirely happy about her good fortune and the circumstances surrounding it. Marilla is doing better, opportunities are cropping up away from Avonlea and her friendship with Gilbert is straining at the seams. Should Anne follow a path away from Avonlea?

“I feel as though someone’s handed me the moon… and I don’t exactly know what to do with it.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE SEQUEL – PART 2
Monday, Oct. 30, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan

“Let’s not change, Gil. Let’s just go on being good friends.”

Anne Shirley’s journey from precocious adolescence to the beginnings of assured adulthood continues after she rebuffs Gilbert and tells the soon-to-be-married Diana that she’s “definitely decided on a career over marriage.” For Anne, her relationship with Gil is a friendship, nothing more, and after two-years of “flirting”, even she’s beginning to wonder about her convictions. Gil’s embarrassment and hurt becomes anger and the two of them drift ever further apart. Also, an uncomfortable chance encounter with Captain Harris on a dark night will come back to haunt Anne later. With Diana about to marry Anne knows everything will change and she decides to leave Avonlea for a teaching position in Kingsport, Nova Scotia, where things aren’t as unfamiliar as she might have thought. When the smiling, beloved Miss Stacey shows up to meet Anne as she arrives, she wastes no time filling her in on the local family that rules the town, the Pringles, not to mention the formidable school principal Katherine Brooke. It’s not long before Anne’s good natured rebelliousness runs afoul of Miss Brooke and her students try to get her goat, especially the privileged Pringle girls. However, Anne finds a young ally in the kind, bookish Emmeline Harris, the frequent object of Jen Pringle’s bullying. Can Anne maintain control of a bunch of unruly, spiteful girls, help Emmeline rise above and keep her new found independence above all odds?

“Have you girls no propriety? This is not a Turkish bazaar!”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE SEQUEL – PART 3
Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan

“My dear Anne. If you want to win the game, you have to understand the players.”

As this chapter opens up in Muriel Stacey’s office, Anne is facing a very uncertain future in Kingsport with all of the most influential family in town gunning for her early retirement. Miss Stacey proves to be as wily as she is wise, hatching a plan to put Anne and the school back on the right path with the imperious Pringles leading the way. The plan is a play and the town will be required to pay richly for watching their Pringle girls shine on stage. An ancient diary written by town’s founder stirs up potential trouble for Emmeline’s starchy grandmother and Anne finds herself mentoring Emmeline once again, who shows a burgeoning talent for the arts. As Anne gets drawn in closer to Emmeline’s aunt and grandmother’s lives, she learns about secrets and long held, protected beliefs. On one beautiful autumn day, Anne throws open caution on a day’s picnic, ignoring the protests of Grandmother Harris and bringing forth some smiles from her stoic face. When Captain Harris returns amidst the happy chaos, he and Anne lock horns over misunderstandings and things left unsaid. Then, when the planned performance is almost derailed by the Pringles’ scheming, Anne’s acting protégé, Emmeline, pitch hits for an evening’s triumph that puts the final crowning glory on a plan with the best of intentions, leaving only an irreversibly bitter Miss Brooke outside its afterglow.

“Prepare to join the ranks of cold, uninteresting spinsters who have chosen professional career, Anne Shirley.””

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE SEQUEL – PART 4
Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017
Directed by Kevin Sullivan
Written by Kevin Sullivan

“Congratulations on your success Carrots, from your old chum.”

Fresh from the triumph of Mary Queen of Scots, Anne’s future career in Kingsport looks as bright as can be. Morgan Harris invites Anne to travel with his family to Boston and she becomes an unwitting witness to an argument that lays the groundwork for a change in her relationship with Morgan. Back in Kingsport, Anne has a chance meeting with Gilbert but her happiness to see him again is overshadowed by surprise news and an all too short visit. From some of the old gossips in Kingsport, Anne learns something even more unsettling about Morgan. On the career side, things are looking up for Anne with some of her short stories started to entice publishers. At a Kingsport hospital fundraiser, what’s unspoken between Anne and Morgan comes out in the open and Anne is forced to recognize her true desires. Anne succeeds in securing Pauline Harris’ future happiness and even manages to crack Miss Brooke’s impervious and prickly exterior. Back home for the summer, Anne learns devastating news about Gil, rushes to see him. Her presence and the chance to tell her his true feelings pulls Gil back to wellness again and perhaps the chance of a future together.

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE CONTINUING STORY – PART 1
Directed by Stefan Scaini
Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Laurie Pearson
Anne returns to Avonlea for the first time since Marilla’s death and steps off the boat to a joyous welcome from Diana but a not so joyous visit to Green Gables, now rented out and in disrepair. Her romantic reunion with Gilbert provides a life-changing surprise and leads to a relocation to New York. In the big city, Anne efforts to sell her manuscript lead to a new job with Winfield Publishing where she finds little room for a woman in a man’s publishing world. Gil’s career as a surgeon is taking off but internal hospital politics compromise his principles and threaten his future. Anne is determined to be the first woman published by Winfield and crosses paths with dashing, successful writer Jack Garrison Jr., who’s on the Winfield payroll. Jack requests Anne to be his personal editor and she’s flattered but wary of his charms. Jack and Anne hatch a plan to work together to further both their careers but Jack has other plans.

“I wanted to work with you. I admire you. I’m in love with you.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE CONTINUING STORY – PART 2
Monday, Nov. 6, 2017
Directed by Stefan Scaini
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Laurie Pearson

“I’m home now. This is my house.”

Anne’s spirit is broken after being duped by Jack Garrison and Winfield Publishing. Gil is ready to throw in the towel at the hospital. What’s left but to decide to go home? When Anne and Gil arrive back in Avonlea, one of Anne’s most heartfelt dreams is realized thanks to Gil. Running into the still acid-tongued Josie and a visit to the local convalescent home makes Gil start to re-think his decision about practicing in Avonlea. Diana’s Fred has enlisted, leaving her heartbroken and amid Anne’s worry that Gil will go to war too, another near tragedy occurs. The day Anne and Gil have waited for all of their lives arrives as Gil leaves to serve his country. When Fred goes missing in action and Anne’s letters to Gil come back unopened, Anne knows what she must do. On a train in France, Anne’s determined path to find her husband crosses with someone she certainly thought she’d never see again. In danger and despe
rate to find Gil, how will this chance meeting change her future forever?

“You can do what the rest of us only dream of doing, Anne.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE CONTINUING STORY – PART 3
Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2017
Directed by Stefan Scaini
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Laurie Pearson

“I’m going to get you home, Fred. I’m going to get you home. I saw their faces when you went missing. I’m going to get you home to your children.”

Amongst the horrors of war, Anne’s search to be reunited with Gil continues as bombing raids attack the field hospital where she has been left to care for Colette’s baby, Dominic. A twist of fate reunites Anne with Diana’s Fred, who has been gravely injured but is still alive. Another bombing attack sends them all for cover and Anne resolves to get Fred safely back home to Avonlea while taking care of little Dominic. Back in London and moving into Jack Garrison’s apartment, Anne tries to find work and watches over Dominic and Fred while he waits for passage back to Canada, all while London is being bombed all around them. Anne, still unable to locate Gil, receives a very upsetting telegram that threatens to dim her hopes. In the dark of night, Jack mysteriously returns and shares a secret with Anne. Just as mysteriously, she is offered a writing job at the dispatch that catapults her into a world of espionage, danger and covert affairs. Who can she trust and will she go through with the dangerous task she’s been given for the sake of finding Gil?

“We’re a thrown together family, Fred. Maybe this is it. Maybe you two are all the family I’ll ever know but I’m going back to try and find Gil if I can.”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE CONTINUING STORY – PART 4
Thursday, Nov. 8, 2017
Directed by Stefan Scaini
Written by Kevin Sullivan and Laurie Pearson

”I don’t even know who the devil I am anymore. We’ve all been swept up in some tidal wave, keeping on the surface for fear we’ll drown.”

Anne has decided to undertake the dangerous mission Jack has requested of her and sets off for Belgium amid protests from Frank. A well-timed tip saves Dominic from falling into sinister hands and Anne’s perilous undercover journey is underway. After meeting up with two American actresses making their way to the front, a moment’s rest and her guard let down finds Anne arrested and momentarily separated from Dominic. Always inventive and ingenious, Anne blasts her way out of trouble to make the hard final part of the journey to Jack and hopefully, to safety. The real danger is only beginning as she and Jack take precious, valuable cargo back from Belgium. Along the way, Jack has a surprise for Anne that begins to restore her hope of reuniting with her husband. Then, as they travel through France amidst the chaotic and uncertain last days of the war, false starts, dead ends and empty leads abound. Anne and Jack are always one or two steps behind satisfying their quest, hanging on to shreds of hope and both propelled by love. Will Anne ever find Gil again and if she does, what will become of Jack and Dominic?

“You know that every day, I would pick a different memory I had of you and I would play it over and over and over again in mind until every detail, every hair, every freckle, every part of you was exactly as I’d remembered?”

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: A NEW BEGINNING – PARTS 1, 2 and 3
Monday, Nov. 12 – Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2017
Produced, Written and Directed by Kevin Sullivan
It’s the mid 1940s, and the war in Europe is winding down. Anne Shirley – now a successful, middle-aged writer – has returned to Prince Edward Island for an extended visit. On a whim, she’s agreed to write a play for theatre producer and friend, Gene Armstrong; a play that will be performed as part of the White Sands Hotel 1945 summer stock season.