Q: I’ve found it interesting that John Dickerson basically followed the path of George Stephanopoulos in becoming a morning-show host after serving as a political reporter. Did he have any previous experience for that?

— Tom Lawrence, via email

A: It depends on how you look at it. Though it admittedly didn’t involve as many entertainment celebrities, Dickerson did lots of interviewing during his tenure as anchor on CBS’ “Face the Nation” … and, for that matter, also in his earlier career as a writer on politics for the magazine Slate.

You could say that Dickerson has come by his current role naturally. His mother, Nancy Dickerson, was a journalist who worked for CBS (where she was, in fact, an associate producer of “Face the Nation”) and NBC. John wrote a book about her life and career, the tellingly titled “On Her Trail.”

Q: Why was Julie Andrews not included in Carol Burnett’s 50th anniversary special? I thought they were great friends.

— Peg K. Smith, Palm Coast, Florida

A: They are. Per the agent the two entertainment legends share, Andrews’ schedule did not permit her to be in Los Angeles when Burnett taped the special last October, thus her absence from the CBS program.

However, their agent also notes that Andrews recorded a congratulatory message to Burnett that didn’t make it into the telecast because of time; it will be included, along with other celebrity testimonials that weren’t broadcast, in a forthcoming home-video edition of the show.

Q: Is the young girl Nicky on “Blue Bloods” played by the same actress who has played the part over the years? She just looks different with long hair.

— Margaret Copson, Naperville, Illinois

A: Well, that happens. Sami Gayle has had the role of Nicky Reagan — daughter of prosecutor Erin (Bridget Moynahan) — since the CBS police drama began. The series is in its eighth season, and that fact also can account for the changing appearance of someone who’s been on the show that long, particularly a young person who literally has grown up in front of the audience.

Q: I’ve been enjoying Jenna Coleman’s portrayal of Queen Victoria on “Masterpiece.” I know she was on “Doctor Who,” but what else has she done?

— Sharon Hill, Steubenville, Ohio

A: The actress started her career in a couple of British series, “Emmerdale” and “Waterloo Road,” then made a big step into movies with a role in “Captain America: The First Avenger.” After that came several miniseries including a 2012 version of “Titanic,” as well as “Dancing on the Edge” (first shown by Starz, then by PBS, in the U.S.) and “Death Comes to Pemberley” (a PBS “Masterpiece Mystery!” offering in America).

More recently, Coleman was featured in the film “Me Before You,” and she’s set to star in a British drama series based on Australian author Helen FitzGerald’s novel “The Cry.”

Q: I’ve heard that producer Ryan Murphy based the show “9-1-1” on an actual emergency he had. What were the circumstances?

— Robin Bryant, via email

A: We’ll let Murphy tell it himself, in the way he explained it to attendees — including this writer — of last month’s Television Critics Association winter press convention, while he and such cast members as Angela Bassett, Connie Britton and Peter Krause represented the Fox show (which has been renewed for a second season).

“I had a newborn baby,” said Murphy. “My son Ford was 11 months old and, in the middle of the night, stopped breathing. So we called 911. Obviously, we were in a panic, and we were doing CPR. And they showed up, at 2:00 in the morning. There were four responders, and they were incredibly calm and nurturing. And one of them forced me to leave the room to get the situation under control, which is not a shock to anybody who knows me.

“And then, they brought him back to life. They only allowed one parent to ride with the child in the ambulance, so my husband David went because we had another child upstairs. Three of the officers and responders stayed to get a report from me, so I had an experience of sitting with them and talking to them, and they really kind of talked me off a ledge. And I was very struck by what great people they were and how strong they were. So from that moment on, I was really interested in the inner lives of these people, and how they’re sort of forced to show up and be such a ballast for so many different sorts of people.”

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