G4 TV, a cable network for video gamers, will begin airing Star Trek: The Next Generation on January 8, 2006, and will start running the Original Series later in the year.

Launched in April 2002, G4 features programming themed around the videogame culture. But Trek will be part of an effort by owner Comcast Corp. to reposition the channel brand of G4 in a broader play for young male viewers, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A name change is also being considered.

TNG will continue to air on Spike TV, but restrictions will keep the show from running in the same timeslot on the two networks. Spike will also continue to run Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The Original Series — which is no longer shown on the Sci-Fi Channel — will begin on G4 in the second quarter of 2006, the Reporter says. The full article is available at this link.

Ron D. Moore Signs Rich New Deal

Ronald D. Moore — formerly writer/producer for TNG, DS9 and Voyager and currently executive producer of Battlestar Galactica — has signed a deal to continue working with NBC Universal Television Studio for two more years, and to create and develop new series with an emphasis on science fiction.

He has already set up two new shows, a fantasy for NBC called Pen and the Sword and an adventure/comedy for the Sci-Fi Channel called Warehouse 13. Pen revolves around a young man who discovers the building he works in is a portal to a medieval alternate universe. Warehouse is about a pair of government officials at a storage facility in North Dakota where the artifacts they catalog have a supernatural backstory, pulling them into fantastic adventures.

The deal will allow Moore to continue as one of the show-running executive producers of Galactica, which kicks off the second half of its second season on January 6 on Sci-Fi (owned by NBC Universal).

"NBC Universal has been an incredibly supportive home for the past two years and I'm very happy to be staying," Moore said. Angela Bromstad, president of the studio, said, "This is a major coup for us to partner with Ron Moore, whose prolific work is recognized throughout the industry for its wit and creativity."

Trek Documentary on BBC Radio 2

We have learned that BBC Radio 2 will broadcast an audio documentary about Star Trek on January 10. We don't have a title or the exact topic, but it is part of the station's ongoing documentary series on entertainment subjects, including the recent "Doctor Who: Regeneration." For seven days after broadcast, you can listen to the show online — go to www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/ and click on "Listen Again" (or if there's a promo for the documentary, click on that). That's January 10-17.

Blalock to Get Lost?

Rumors are floating about that Jolene Blalock ("T'Pol") will soon appear in the smash hit Lost. She will reportedly play a part in the backstory of Sawyer (Josh Holloway). Apparently she was originally set to guest star in the second episode of the current season, but that storyline was swapped for another character's flashback. Lost airs Wednesday nights on ABC.

Solows at Writers Conference in France

Herbert F. Solow — executive in charge of production on the Original Series — and his wife, Yvonne Harrison Solow (aka Yvonne Fern) — author of "Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation" and an award-winning short story writer — will be giving a series of lectures at a getaway for writers this summer in France. They will be part of the Abroad Writers Conference the week of July 30-August 6, 2006, at the 900-year-old Royal Abbey of Fontevraud in the Loire Valley. For more information visit www.abroad-crwf.com.