Canada's Citytv Picks Up Warner Bros.' 'Mike & Molly'

TORONTO – Canada’s comedy-heavy Citytv network has acquired Chuck Lorre’s Mike & Molly series to complete CBS' Monday night sitcom block on its schedule.

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Parent Rogers Media picked up the Bill Gardell and Melissa McCarthy-starrer from Warner Bros. Domestic Television to air on its Citytv stations from January 2013.

Citytv already has How I Met Your Mother and 2 Broke Girls in its stable, so snagging Mike & Molly away from rival CTV makes it easier to keep its Monday night audience intact.

Citytv also airs the Fox comedy block on Tuesday nights, including New Girl and The Mindy Project, and a two hour ABC comedy block on Wednesday nights, anchored by Modern Family.

CTV put Mike & Molly back into the market after it faced scheduling clashes with popular reality competition series like The Voice and Dancing With the Stars.

The top-rated Canadian network is also making room on its schedule for upcoming series like Fox's The Following.

CTV retains the syndication rights to Mike & Molly.

The CBS Monday night comedy block launched The Big Bang Theory, which remains Canada’s top rated TV comedy on CTV.