TV, eh?

From the Toronto Star:

• ‘Mosque’ fails to win Gemini nomination
  “The hugely successful CTV sitcom Corner Gas will compete against Royal Canadian Air Farce and This Hour Has 22 Minutes at this year’s Gemini Awards, but the much-discussed Little Mosque on the Prairie failed to make the cut for best comedy series.” Read more.

From the Hollywood Reporter. the news about Falcon Beach being cancelled and Robson Arms renewed, plus a roundup of other recent cancellations, renewals, and question marks:

• Falcon beached by CanWest
  “CTV re-upp[ed] two teen dramas of its own from Epitome Pictures: “Instant Star” and “Degrassi: The Next Generation.” Both series air stateside on the N. CTV also has renewed its hit comedy “Corner Gas” for a fifth season. The broadcaster has not yet decided whether to renew the homegrown comedy “Jeff Ltd.,” from Seymour & From Prods. and S&S Prods., for a third season.

From Tod Maffin at Inside the CBC:

• Terrorism drama among list of new CBC TV shows; Venture and Opening Night cancelled
  “Shows coming back to air include: Little Mosque on the Prairie, Test the Nation, Canada’s Next Great Prime Minister, The National (duh), Marketplace, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, The Rick Mercer Report, The Royal Canadian Air Farce, Dragons’ Den. Curiously absent from the list of returning shows is Intelligence, but a CBC spokesperson tells me it’s not an omen — talks with the independent producer are still continuing.”

From Playback:

• Jozi-H producer slams CBC’s promotional efforts
  “The new regime was going to let Jozi-H go away silently on a Friday night, which is very sad,” [Alfons Adetuyi] says, but adds, “We managed to survive.”
  

From Jim Bawden of the Toronto Star:

• Hot Box: Television to talk about
  “”Get set for the season finale of Jozi-H and hope the CBC drama set in South Africa gets a more friendly time slot if it returns for a second season. The finale, titled ‘Foregiveness,’ looks at a quarantine situation and secrets uncovered in the Nyoka family history (CBC at 9).”
  “The third new episode of Little Mosque on the Prairie slipped just a bit, good news for CBC, which repeated episodes the week before. Its Wednesday at 8 rating was still a dazzling 1.085 million viewers. So most fans are staying with it, making this one CBC’s biggest series hit in years.”

From CBC:

A mysterious case forces a quarantine, bringing life and death decisions for Mike and Lizzie. Zane and Ingrid discover old feelings are not forgotten.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From CBC:

9 p.m.
Jozi-H
Love in the Time of AIDS: A hostage taking threatens the trauma unit. L. Scott Caldwell (Lost) makes a guest appearance.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

Friday 9 p.m.
Rites of Passage: Three young boys are rushed into the hospital with severe wounds from illegal circumcisions.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From Lee-Anne Goodman of the Canadian Press:

• Success abroad, online viewing, CBC troubles dominated Canadian TV in ‘06

(The Blogcritics post referred to in that article is here: Canadian television embracing irrelevance?)

From Lee-Anne Goodman of the Canadian Press, includes Rick Mercer Report, Intelligence, Corner Gas, Jozi-H:

• Television on both sides of the border shone in 2006 

From Playback:

• Programmer Layfield on CBC’s fall ratings 

From CBC:

Paramedic Rocky Naylor (Anthony Bishop) brings in his daughter after a freak accident, placing her life in Doctor Russell Monsour’s (Vincent Walsh) hands.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From CBC:

Episode 5: Lightening

This episode deals with revelations resulting either from medical trauma or from personal experiences. Zodwa, a talented violinist, is admitted following a motor vehicle accident that results in her fingers being crushed. Consequently, she will never be able to play the violin again. The admission of Minister Albert Mzobe raises the question of preferential treatment for high-profile officials. Dr Jenny Langford receives the results of her HIV/Aids test and Sipho continues his efforts to attract Jenny’s attention.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From CBC:

Episode 4: Brother’s Keeper

This episode introduces new relationships and furthers existing ones and highlights their ever-changing dynamics. An old debt owed to his brother, King, resurfaces for Dr Zane Jara. Dr Leonard September treats an unlikely patient for wife-bashing and this abusive sub- plot is further expanded with the involvement of his own wife, Charmaine. Dr Greg Nash is introduced to a young boy, Kwame who requires a knee operation; but it’s soon discovered that Kwame actually suffers from something much more fatal. Dr Jenny Langford’s earlier public denouncement of HIV/Aids and the indiscrete exposure of two young Aids victims, comes back to stab her.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From Playback:

• Small audiences for CBC’s Intelligence, Jozi-H

From CBC:

Set in Johannesburg, South Africa, JOZI-H is about the personal struggles faced by a varied team of international doctors, surgeons and nurses, dedicated to saving lives at the world’s highest profile emergency medicine facility-Johannesburg Metropolitan Hospital. Filled with complex characters and intriguing storylines, the series is set in an intense crucible of culture clashes that sets it apart from any medical series ever produced. In tonight’s episode, Jenny Langford plays judge and jury when she discovers the real cause of a drive-by shooting, while Greg Nash has to break some very bad, and unexpected, news.

• Official show site
• More TV, Eh? posts on Jozi-H

From CBC:

Ancient customs and medical science collide

OZI-H is a gripping medical drama about the personal struggles faced by an international band of doctors, surgeons and nurses dedicated to saving lives at one of the world’s highest profile emergency medicine facilities – Johannesburg Metropolitan Hospital.

In tonight’s episode, Canadian neurosurgeon Russ Monsour and American surgeon Greg Nash flip a coin to see who operates first on the same patient.

JOZI-H also stars Billoah Greene, Thami Ngubeni, Neil McCarthy, Tumisho Masha and Hlomla Dandala.

• Official show site

From the Victoria Times Colonist:

• Canada-South Africa drama no ER, but good

From CBC:

Ancient customs and medical science collide
Series Premiere. JOZI-H is gripping medical drama about the personal struggles faced by an international band of doctors, surgeons and nurses dedicated to saving lives at one of the world’s highest profile emergency medicine facilities – Johannesburg Metropolitan Hospital.

In the premiere, Canadian neurosurgeon Russ Monsour (Vincent Walsh) finds a cool welcome when he refuses to remove a bullet from the brain of a criminal, while pediatrician Jenny Langford (Sarah Allen) takes care of a baby born in a tree and rescued by helicopter.

JOZI-H also stars Billoah Greene, Thami Ngubeni, Neil McCarthy, Tumisho Masha and Hlomla Dandala.

• Official show site

Series debuts for the week of Oct. 8. Check local listings for exact times in your area.

Monday, Oct. 9

Rumours, CBC: Rumours offers a modern look at high urban living through the eyes of the staff at a Toronto-based women’s magazine. Wild and wickedly funny, the show explores sex, love, friendship, family, and business and how the lines between these things blur, fall apart, and get smashed to pieces. Airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on CBC. Official show site.

The Hour, CBC: The Hour brings viewers a different take on the news. It’s not a newscast. And It’s not a magazine show. It’s 1/24th of a day through the lens of George Stroumboulopoulos and company. All news shows cover the issues of the day. The Hour covers them in an unconventional way. Whether it’s interviewing Canadians in The Hour’s dubious panel van, setting up the current climate in a political hot zone, or interviewing a past-his-prime rock star in all his spandexed glory, George is there, guiding you seamlessly between politics and pop. Airs Mondays – Thursdays at 11 p.m. on CBC. Official show site.

Tuesday, Oct. 10

Intelligence, CBC: Intelligence is the story of opposite sides of the law coming together to serve themselves and each other. It is a cat and mouse game of exploitation and cover-up, as each camp uses intelligence agents to build up their enterprises. As the season begins, third generation gangster Jimmy Reardon and Director of Vancouver’s Organized Crime Unit Mary Spalding have made deals with the devil; that is, Jimmy has made the deal to work with Mary Spalding as a star informant, and Mary has made the deal to provide Reardon with protection from prosecution. Each will attempt to use the other without getting caught in the act. Airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC. Official show site.

Thursday, Oct. 12

October 1970, CBC: The eight-hour mini-series October 1970 is a detective thriller, a hostage drama and a political nail-biter. On October 5, 1970, the political landscape of Canada was changed forever when terrorists from the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped British diplomat James Cross from his Montreal residence. Five days later, another FLQ cell snatched Pierre Laporte, Québec’s Minister of Labour. By October 17th, Laporte had been killed, the police were overwhelmed, the city was in chaos, and the army, in full battle gear, patrolled the streets. Ottawa invoked The War Measures Act suspending civil liberties in Canada. Airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Friday, Oct. 13

Jozi-H, CBC: Set in a socially turbulent, violent, yet undeniably modern city, JOZI H is a gripping medical drama about the personal struggles faced by an eclectic, international band of Doctors, Surgeons and Nurses, dedicated to saving lives at one of the world’s highest profile emergency medicine facilities – “Johannesburg Metropolitan Hospital”. The result is enthralling, compelling viewing in a series filled with complex characters and intriguing storylines, based on universal themes, yet ready to tackle hot issues. JOZI H is a hard-hitting series that combines cutting-edge medicine with riveting drama. Airs Fridays at 9 p.m. on CBC. Official show site.

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