Tag Archives: Discovery Channel

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Comments and queries for the week of June 29

1 Comment

I grew up loving What Will They Think of Next? Then along came Daily Planet and I looked forward to is so much so it was the only show I had set on the PVR. I thought we were on a summer break or something but I decided to see when it was coming back. Just found out it was canceled. I’m very sad today. It was such an adventure and it was real! Please bring it back. —Carl 

Very disappointed, the only show on television I watched on a regular basis. Poor Bell Media can’t support the only informative series on television. It must be a struggle trying to survive on millions of dollars a day profit. When is the CRTC going to put these guys in check? In Canada we pay more for these services than anyone else on earth. When I pay a good portion of my hard earned money I expect to get something useful in return. —Paul

Just found out about [InnerSpace‘s] cancellation. Sad news indeed. InnerSpace was probably one of my favourite shows to watch after my work day and get caught up on news that are of interest to my geeky heart. While I can empathize with some of the opinions stated above that it was perhaps too focused on Ontario and could have benefited from sourcing stories from across Canada, it still is a slap in the face to crew at InnerSpace and all its dedicated fans both within Canada and abroad to be treated in such a manner. I guess the further dumbing-down and all so essential Bell promotions run ad nauseam are more important. It was an original show, as was Discovery and now with both gone the Space Channel no longer has anything I wish to watch any further. I was going to be revising my channels anyways with with my provider, so this will be an easy decision to make. I have never supported Bell and now, with this lame excuse of a decision, I can safely say I never will. —Cory

I only wish that CBC had not cancelled The Goods. It was an entertaining show. I used to record it every day. —Joanne

 

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or via Twitter @tv_eh.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Simcha Jacobovici and James Cameron seek a lost city in Atlantis Rising

I’ve been fascinated with things like Bigfoot, UFOs and the pyramids of Egypt from a young age. The same goes for Atlantis, thanks to an episode of Leonard Nimoy’s In Search Of and a little series called Man from Atlantis, starring a pre-Dallas Patrick Duffy.

So I was excited to check out Atlantis Rising, as Simcha Jacobovici and James Cameron join forces to find out if the city of myths really existed. I’ve watched Jacobovici in other series like The Naked Archaeologist and The Lost Tomb of Jesus; the latter being pretty controversial. As for Cameron, well, when he’s not directing, he’s exploring the deep sea, most notably the Marianas Trench. The dude knows where and how to explore ocean depths.

The one-hour special Atlantis Rising—broadcast Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Discovery Canada—is an adventure combining ancient texts and cutting-edge technology to tell an entertaining search for a frustratingly elusive target. Jacobovici provides the backdrop to what we know about Atlantis: the Greek philosopher Plato wrote about it in 4th century AD; he and Cameron get to work on where in the world to dive for the Atlanteans’ port city of land and sea set in three rings.

The quest begins in Santorini, a Greek island that seems to fit the description; the island looked very different during the Classical Age but was ravaged by a volcanic eruption, not the earthquake and tsunami Plato says destroyed Atlantis. Jacobovici speaks to experts in the archaeological field, relating information and discussing the chances of different locations being the lost city. He delivers everything in a calm, measured tone that makes it easy for viewers to understand and come to their own conclusions. And, after winnowing his list of spots down, he presents his findings to Cameron and the diving begins.

I won’t ruin the conclusion for you, but I can say the journey to get there is a lot of fun.

Atlantis Rising airs Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Discovery Canada.

Image courtesy of Bell Media.

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Don’t Drive Here host puts his life on the line

I’m guessing it’s pretty safe to say no one yells “Shotgun!” when Andrew Younghusband is behind the wheel of an automobile. At least anyone who has watched him on Don’t Drive Here.

The lanky Newfoundlander stars–and writes and produces–the Discovery series, navigating the roads of the world’s most dangerous driving towns in the world. Younghusband could be pulling a cart of vegetables along a muddy thoroughfare, biking exhaust-choked roundabouts or guiding a city bus alongside a busy market. Season 2 finds the Canada’s Worst Driver host (he tells us Season 10 has been shot) visiting six more cities: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; La Paz, Bolivia; Rome, Italy; Sao Paolo, Bazil; and Monday’s first stop, Nairobi, Kenya.

Younghusband once again literally puts his life on the line all in the name of entertainment, and has had some very close calls along the way.

“I love it,” he exclaims. “There is a lot at stake, but at the same time the show was created around it because I like this kind of foolishness. So getting to go to these exotic places and living the way locals live and meeting all these people that do these jobs I find endlessly fascinating and I’m thrilled to be back making the show. But it’s incredibly stressful for my mother.”

Nairobi was a huge challenge for Younghusband; the sheer number of people who walk where they need to go means other modes of transportation are battling pedestrians for space on the roadways. That leads, viewers learn, to countless injuries, maimings and an average of five deaths every day. Though surprising, Younghusband says those statistics were’t the most shocking part of the African city.

“The most shocking thing is that a guy who pulls a handcart 20 kilometres a day for less than 10 bucks is happier than I probably am,” he admits. “That guy [in the episode] Harrison is loving life and that to me, in my Western ways, was the most shocking to me.”

Those glimpses of humanity are something Younghusband strives to include in each episode , spotlighting the people who do these dangerous jobs as well as the gigs themselves. Younghusband says he has a skeleton crew of five with him on production, a few handlers on the ground in each city. Each seven-day shoot is a guerrilla-style affair of research, interviews and recording done at a brisk clip to keep costs down.

Have the skills Younghusband acquired for survival on the planet’s most dangerous roads primed him for driving in Toronto? Absolutely.

“I drive a bicycle in Toronto and I’m constantly weaving in and out of traffic going , ‘This would be a great shot!'” he says with a laugh. “I do bring a lot of these skills from this and Worst Driver. What I do bring home from Don’t Drive Here is how easy we have it here. When people are upset I kind of roll my eyes at them.

“And when a cab driver from India honks his horn, I realize that it’s culturally appropriate for them to do that.”

Don’t Drive Here airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery.

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