Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce
Tuesday, 10 p.m., Bravo
This week Abby McCarthy (Lisa Edelstein) and her estranged husband, Jake Novak (Paul Adelstein, who also wrote the episode), decide to finally define their relationship status by spending a weekend at home without work, friends or their kids. But things are more hectic at the home of her divorced pal Jo Hernandez-Frumpkis (Alanna Ubach), whose daughter returns from a visit with her father and his new wife in Kentucky.
Playing Frumpkis’ (Maury Sterling) Southern spouse is Megan Hilty (“Smash”), one of Season 2’s new guest stars, along with Retta (“Parks and Recreation”) as a rival editor at SheShe, and Mark Valley (“Boston Legal”) as a TV personality who pursues Abby.
Hilty, on a break from rehearsing her new Broadway play “Noises Off,” talks to The Post about joining the cast.
Tell us about your character, Charlene. She’s described as a Southern belle.
She’s from Kentucky and she comes from money. I think she really enjoys that she’s from the South so she wants everybody to know it … To say that [Jo and Charlene] butt heads is probably an understatement. I don’t make life easy for her.
What’s harder, Broadway or TV?
There’s nothing harder than eight shows a week. There’s also nothing more rewarding. Even the longest day on set isn’t as hard as a live show and maintaining your energy throughout the day for it.
As a fan of the show, what would you like to see happen with Abby?
I’m rooting for her to feel fabulous whether she’s in a relationship or not. It’s not like, ‘Oh I need you to get back with [your ex]’ or ‘Oh, I need you to find something new.’ I hope she just finds her groove again. She’s not far from it.
Did you get to interact with any of the other guest stars?
No. My scenes were mostly with Frumpkis and Jo, which were great … [Alanna is] one of my favorite actresses [from “Legally Blonde” and “Meet the Fockers”]. She has small parts, but she makes them so memorable because she makes such great choices. I tried not to geek out on her on set, though!
— Andrea Morabito
WHAT ELSE TO WATCH THIS WEEK:
Christmas in Connecticut
Thursday, 2:15 p.m., TCM
In this holiday chestnut, Barbara Stanwyck stars as Elizabeth Lane, a successful columnist who pretends to be a happy housewife. Compelled to take in Navy hero Jefferson Jones (Dennis Morgan) for the holidays as part of a gimmick concocted by her publisher Alexander Yardley (Sydney Greenstreet), Elizabeth must deal with the reality that she doesn’t own the country home she writes about, can’t cook, and isn’t married. In desperation, she convinces lounge lizard John Sloan (Reginald Gardiner) to play her hubby, rents a rustic house, and brings in a chef (S.Z. Sakall) to cover up her own inadequacies.
Black Mirror: “White Christmas”
Friday, Netflix
Jon Hamm and Rafe Spall star in this special based on the British sci-fi series. Although Matthew (Hamm) has been miserable, holed up during an endless snowstorm with Joe (Spall), he wants to make Christmas dinner. Two distinct horror stories unfold: We learn what Matthew and Joe are doing living together and the exact nature of Matthew’s former job.
The Affair
Sunday, 10 p.m., Showtime
A startling admission causes Noah (Dominic West) to withdraw from his new life. Meanwhile, Alison (Ruth Wilson) is honest with Noah and herself; a dispute between Cole (Joshua Jackson) and Scotty (Colin Donnell) is followed by tragedy; and a turn in Noah’s trial results in a shocking event.
The Great Christmas Light Fight
Monday, 8 p.m., ABC
This week, the “Light Fight” focuses on four families. The Ziemkowskis of Sherman Oaks, Calif. have a tree featuring thousands of lights and music with synced video. The Koosmans of Willmar, Minn. go all out with a synchronized fireworks show that draws thousands of visitors to their home. The Sokols of Orlando, Fla., have a display that includes a jumping dolphin with two projectors that simulate shimmering water. Lastly, the Davises of Longview, Texas, live in a house that features more than 1 million lights, a laser show, six dancing trees 45 feet high, and a handmade pond and river of blue lights. Carter Oosterhouse and Taniya Nayak are the judges.
I Love Lucy Christmas Special
Wednesday, 8 p.m., CBS
Classic TV is in order this holiday season as CBS broadcasts two episodes of “I Love Lucy.” “The Christmas Episode” finds the Ricardos and Mertzes decorating Lucy (Lucille Ball) and Ricky’s (Desi Arnaz) tree and reminiscing about how their lives have changed since the arrival of Little Ricky (Keith Thibodeaux). In the uproarious “Lucy Does a TV Commercial,” Lucy connives to land a job doing the commercial on Ricky’s TV variety show. Little does she know that the health tonic she is asked to sell, the infamous Vitameatavegamin, contains 23 percent alcohol.
A Christmas Carol
Friday, 5 p.m., FXX
A first-rate adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic about Ebenezer Scrooge (Alastair Sim), a wealthy London miser who treats his sole employee, Bob Cratchit (Mervyn Johns), as an indentured servant. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his business partner, Jacob Marley (Michael Hordern), and then by three more spirits, an experience that changes his life.L
The Andy Griffith Show Christmas Special
Friday, 8 p.m., CBS
Nostalgia is like crack at CBS. They can’t get enough of their old programs. Once the “I Love Lucy” Christmas special became a fixture, programmers exhumed episodes from “The Andy Griffith Show” to presnt during the holidays. This year we will see “Christmas Story,” originally broadcast Dec. 19, 1960, an episode which finds Andy and Barney (Don Knotts) planning a holiday at home, only to have the town Scrooge insist that Andy lock up one of the community’s drunks and baby-sit him. If Andy cannot be home for Christmas, maybe Christmas can come to Andy. In “The Pickle Story,” originally broadcast Dec. 18, 1961, Aunt Bee (Frances Bavier) whips up a batch of homemade pickles that have no flavor. Not wanting to hurt her feelings, Andy and Barney secretly switch her pickles with the store-bought variety. Everyone raves, and Bee soon decides to enter a jar in the competition at the county fair.