Meredith’s Must-Sees for September 2025

Whether you are in the mood for history, mystery, arts, food, science, nature, or even animation, the KQED September television lineups have you covered. We will go back-to-school with a brand new PBS KIDS series from legendary weatherman Al Roker called Weather Hunters, and a love letter to early educators in the child care system with the Bay Area-based documentary Make a Circle. We also celebrate Latinx Heritage Month with films including American Masters: Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It and Voces American Historia: The Untold History of Latinos. Food lovers will rejoice at new seasons of America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Country, Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television, and Pati’s Mexican Table. Broadcast and streaming information for these and more must-sees are below so you can mark your calendars and plan your fall viewing with KQED!

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On a spring afternoon 100 years ago, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb were affluent teenagers when they challenged themselves to commit “the perfect crime.” Driving around their Chicago neighborhood, they abducted Loeb’s 14-year-old cousin Bobby Franks, ruthlessly murdered him, and hid his body in a culvert. This captivating documentary takes us back in time as the coverup unraveled and, once convicted of the killing, legendary defense attorney Clarence Darrow arrived to try to keep Leopold and Loeb from the gallows. After my initial screening, I spent at least an hour at the dinner table talking nonstop about this film until my family agreed to watch it with me. It was just as harrowing in the second viewing (and also fascinating watching their faces as events unfolded!).

Airs on KQED PLUS Thursday, September 4 at 8pm. Streaming on the PBS App now.

From KQED Presents and an award-winning local filmmaking team, Make a Circle follows a group of child care providers who are determined to change a system in which “parents can’t afford to pay and teachers can’t afford to stay.” The film takes viewers inside child care centers in West Oakland, Berkeley and San Jose, as well as to the lawmakers’ doorsteps in Sacramento as the caregivers fight for better working conditions, all with a mix of humor, outrage, and passion. Part of the filming happened to coincide with the 2020 pandemic lockdown, which was a time when my own daughter was in a Berkeley preschool that had to make very tough choices to keep providing the care that my family, along with so many others, relied on. Make a Circle perfectly captured that time and how the cracks in the fragile ecosystem were exposed, and illuminated for many how much more work is needed to keep the magic of this time alive for families and caregivers, and especially for kids.

Airs on KQED 9 Friday, September 5 at 8pm; Saturday, September 6 at 6pm and Monday, September 8 at 9pm. Also airs on KQED PLUS Wednesday, September 10 at 2pm. Streaming on the PBS App starting September 1. (Broadcast is 60 minutes, streaming is 90 minute version.)

Living in the Bay Area, we may not always have as many opportunities to talk about the weather as people living in more extreme climates, but it’s still a fascinating and complex topic. And for little kids, it’s massive! So I’m super excited for the newest addition to the PBS KIDS line-up, an animated series for ages 5–8 created by Emmy-winning weatherman and host from Today, Al Roker, that is designed to support children’s understanding of weather through adventure and comedy. The main character is 8-year-old Lily Hunter, a weather detective who shares her investigations with her family, including dad Al Hunter, voiced by Roker. The series will help further young viewers’ interest and knowledge of Earth science and meteorology, both key building blocks of climate education.

Airs on KQED 9 Monday–Saturday at 7:30am starting September 8, and on the PBS KIDS channel weekdays at 4:30pm and daily at 6:30pm. Streaming on the PBS KIDS App starting September 8.

Icon and legend are not powerful enough words in my book to describe longtime Berkeley resident Rita Moreno. Over a career spanning more than 70 years, Moreno defied intense racism and humble beginnings to rise to extraordinary heights as a celebrated and award-winning actor. This American Masters film explores her rich, decades-long career using vérité footage of Moreno herself, archival footage of her roles and appearances, reenactments of her childhood, animation and interviews with Moreno and those close to her. It’s a treat to hear from other legendary performers that Moreno influenced, including Gloria Estefan, Morgan Freeman, Mitzi Gaynor, Whoopi Goldberg, Eva Longoria, Justina Machado, Terrence McNally, Karen Olivo, as well as Norman Lear and Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also executive produced the project. But the best parts of the film are with Moreno herself, as she shares details about her past and shows how strong and inspirational she truly is.

Airs on KQED PLUS Thursday, September 18 at 8pm.

I am determined to spend more time in the kitchen this fall, and the new season of America’s Test Kitchen is coming at the perfect time. The recipes, tips, cookbooks, and recommendations from the ATK team have traditionally been my go-to staples in every category, and the new season will kick off with a “Make-Ahead Masterclass,” which is going to be extremely timely as I juggle a new school year and household demands. (Make-Way-Ahead Dinner Rolls are calling my name!) I’ll be taking notes, and also tuning in to more food fun as new seasons begin for Cook’s Country (Thursday, September 25 at 7pm), Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television (Wednesday, September 10 at 7:30pm), and Pati’s Mexican Table (Tuesday, September 30 at 7pm). We will all have an abundance of options for masterclasses in cooking from these iconic programs and cooks. It’s going to be a delicious September!

Season premiere airs on KQED 9 Monday, September 22 at 7pm; Saturday, September 27 at 11am; and Sunday, September 28 at 12pm. Also airs on KQED PLUS Sunday, September 28 at 7am. Streaming on the PBS App with KQED Passport starting September 20.

Nominated for the 2025 Academy Award® for Best Documentary Feature and winner of the Grand Jury U.S. Documentary Award at the Sundance Film Festival (2024), Porcelain War is a prime example of why the POV documentary series is one of the jewels in the public television schedule. Set against the brutal backdrop of war-torn Ukraine, the film follows artists Slava Leontyev, his wife Anya Stasenko, and their collaborator Andrey Stefanov— ceramicists who make the radical decision to stay behind in their home city of Kharkiv while war rages around them. Armed with cameras, clay, and for the first time in their lives, guns, they confront violence not only with force, but with creativity and a unique kind of beauty.

Airs on KQED 9 Monday, September 29 at 10pm. Streaming on the PBS App starting September 29.

Season 23 sees us back in the fictional picturesque English county of Midsomer. Each episode follows DCI Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) and his trusty sidekick, DS Jamie Winter (Nick Hendrix), as they endeavor to solve perplexing crimes while also exploring the quirks of this delightful yet deadly county.

Season premiere airs on KQED PLUS Wednesday, September 3 at 8pm and Friday, September 5 at 9:30pm.

Explore the life and legacy of the nation’s first African American Supreme Court justice. The film follows Justice Marshall, known as “Mr. Civil Rights,” from his legal career with the NAACP to his 1967 appointment to the nation’s highest court.

Airs on KQED 9 Tuesday, September 9 at 10pm and Friday, September 12 at 8pm. Streaming on the PBS App starting September 9.

A team of local and international wildlife filmmakers uses the latest technology to follow a group of African big cats in Botswana’s awe-inspiring Okavango Delta, day and night for six months, revealing their lives like never before.

Season 2 premiere airs on KQED 9 Wednesday, September 10 at 8pm. Streaming on the PBS App starting September 10. Season 1 streaming now with KQED Passport.

In this stunningly cinematic five-part series, paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi traces the surprising story of human origins.

Airs on KQED 9 Wednesdays starting September 17 at 9pm. Streaming on the PBS App starting September 17.

In this three-part series, John Leguizamo takes viewers on a captivating journey, delving into both well-known and lesser-known stories of Latino history, spanning thousands of years, from the Ancient Empires to the present, and shining a light on the rich and often overlooked history of Latinos.

Airs on KQED 9 Fridays at 8pm starting September 19. Streaming now on the PBS App with KQED Passport.

In late 1950s Madrid, the golden age of haute couture, there is one place everyone would like to shop at least once in their lifetime: the Galerias Velvet.

Season 2 premiere airs on KQED PLUS Tuesday, September 30 at 9:45pm. Seasons 1–3 streaming now on the PBS App with KQED Passport.

Editor’s Note:

You may see inconsistent use of terms in some places (for example, Latinx versus Latinos) in the above article. In most cases, we’ve used language that we feel best represents our audiences, but some language reflects the categories recognized by the federal government or those recognized by a specific program. Additionally, we would like to acknowledge that the discourse around terminology is complex and evolving. Every person has the right to use the term that captures who they are and that feels the most welcoming to them.

Looking for more programs to watch? Find past recommendations from Meredith:

August 2025
July 2025
June 2025
May 2025
April 2025
March 2025