Marketplace, CBC – “Too Good to Be True”
Marketplace looks back at products and services that were too good to be true, and asks whatever happened to them?

The Fifth Estate, CBC – “The Life and Death of Gloria Taylor”
Diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Gloria Taylor’s fight for her life was futile: she said she was only seeking a ‘dignified ending’. Over the past year, Linden MacIntyre spoke with Taylor many times as she experienced the ravages of the disease. But that was only one of her struggles. Taylor was also trying to win the legal right to a physician-assisted death should her life become unbearable. She agreed to let the fifth estate document that struggle, the private highs and lows, and the personal indignities. the fifth estate was there throughout it all, chronicling her perseverance, her unprecedented victory in court, and the battle by a determined government to reverse that decision.

From a media release:

JIM TRELIVING AND ARLENE DICKINSON ARE BACK TO HELP MORE CANADIAN SMALL BUSINESSES SURVIVE HARD TIMES

• CBC stars help entrepreneurs across the country in six new episodes of THE BIG DECISION premiering Tuesday, October 16 at 9 p.m. on CBC-TV

On the heels of its successful debut season, entrepreneurial icons Jim Treliving and Arlene Dickinson return to rescue floundering businesses across Canada in all-new episodes of THE BIG DECISION beginning Tuesday, October 16 at 9 p.m. on CBC-TV.

Faced with a volatile economy, mounting competition and strapped for cash, each one-hour episode features two Canadian businesses desperate for a lifeline. Jim Treliving and Arlene Dickinson could be their last hope. Grueling deadlines, pressure cooker challenges and family clashes come to a head as business owners try to prove that they have what it takes to turn things around. In the end, Jim and Arlene must decide whether they’ll invest in one, both or neither of the companies vying for their cash.

On the Big Decision, the stakes are high. No hand-outs. No charity.

When you’re somebody’s last hope, it’s never just business.

Best-known as the chairman and owner of Boston Pizza, Jim Treliving is one of Canada’s most respected businessmen. The Franchise giant’s billion dollar empire includes investments in real estate, sports and Canadian oil change retailer Mr. Lube. Jim is also a Dragon on Canada’s favourite unscripted program CBC’s DRAGONS’ DEN. Jim speaks candidly about his new book and business success on GEORGE STROUMBOULOPOULOS TONIGHT airing October 16 at 7 p.m. ET (7:30 NT).

One of Canada’s most-renowned marketing communications entrepreneurs, Arlene Dickinson, is CEO and owner of Venture Communications. She continues to be known as one of the country’s most powerful business leaders. Arlene is also a Dragon on Canada’s favourite unscripted program CBC’s DRAGONS’ DEN.

This Season on THE BIG DECISION:

Tuesday, October 16 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

In the season premiere, Jim visits a family-owned business in Mississauga, ON selling a unique brand of concrete, being buried by a mountain of demand and unfilled orders. Later, in Belle River, ON Jim stops by a family-owned and operated building store suffering from the recession and its undesirable location.

Tuesday, October 23 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

Arlene heads to St-Laurent, QC to meet a family-owned corrugated box and display manufacturer struggling to compete with increasing competition. Meanwhile, a formerly successful whitewater rafting business in Ottawa, ON struggles to get back on its feet after a series of unfortunate events.

Tuesday, November 6 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

A ravaged business, specializing in custom solutions for advanced technologies of “The Big Three” automakers, based in Belle River, ON looks to Jim for help as it transitions to a product-driven business for global manufacturers. Later, he visits St. Thomas, ON where a piglet-birthing centre and nursery needs funds to rebuild after a devastating fire.

Tuesday, November 13 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

An “100% Canadian made” clothing manufacturer in Scarborough, ON wants Arlene’s marketing advice to help overcome the influx of stiff competition. Meanwhile across the country in Victoria, BC, a footwear company attempts to get a grip on their evolving product line.

Tuesday, November 20 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

A chartered seaplane business in Prince Rupert, BC, hopes Jim will invest and buy out its sole competitor, in hopes of taking control of its niche market. Plus, Jim checks in on an Edmonton-based sporting retailer, who has been in over his head since taking over the business five years ago.

Tuesday, November 27 at 9 p.m. ET (9:30 NT)

Arlene travels to Vancouver, BC to stop by a restaurant/butcher that embodies salvation for many residents, but is challenged by its ineffective internal infrastructure and buried in debt. While in town, Arlene visits a retail and custom flag manufacturer that went downhill after its original owner left. Now she’s returned and wants to once again make the company successful, not just in Canada, but across North America.

From a media release:

Uncovering What’s Underneath: STRIP THE CITY Bares All, Oct. 26 on Discovery World

• Original Canadian co-production strips major cities of their steel, concrete, ocean, and bedrock to explore their hidden infrastructure and solve key mysteries surrounding their origins, geology, weather, and engineering

How does Toronto’s CN Tower stay protected from frigid -32 C weather and savage snowstorms? What stops Dubai’s super-tall skyscrapers – balanced on unstable sand – from toppling over? And how can San Francisco survive – sitting on the edge of a major earthquake fault? What lies beneath major metropolises is revealed when STRIP THE CITY peels back their buildings, roads, and rivers to explore the secret technology and infrastructure that keeps them running. Premiering first on Friday, October 26 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery World, this six-part original-Canadian series uses stunning CGI animation to go beneath Toronto, London, Rome, Dubai, Sydney, and San Francisco. Then later, Discovery Channel presents an encore run of the series beginning Sunday, November 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Layers are peeled back to reveal a geological universe normally hidden under tarmac and concrete in STRIP THE CITY, Oct. 26 on Discovery World

Episode descriptions for STRIP THE CITY include:

STRIP THE CITY – “Ancient City – Rome”

Friday, October 26 at 9 p.m. ET/PT

At its zenith, 2,000 years ago Rome was the biggest city in the world. Today, it has survived better than any ancient city on earth and is home to three-million citizens. This episode strips the “Eternal City’s” most famous icons bare to reveal the inner workings and the ingenious technology behind the Pantheon, Coliseum, Trevi Fountain, and Via Appia. Roman engineers’ mastery of constructing buildings, roads, and viaducts set the city on course to become the greatest Empire the world had ever seen.

STRIP THE CITY – “Earthquake City – San Francisco”

Friday, November 2 at 9 p.m. ET/PT

San Francisco is standing on the brink of disaster on top of one of the world’s most infamous earthquake hotspots – the San Andreas Fault. How does the city’s buildings and infrastructure survive the onslaught of a destructive earthquake? Engineers and geologists reveal the secrets inside San Francisco’s skyscrapers, what protects the city from raging fires, and what keep residents safe during the deadliest quakes.

STRIP THE CITY – “Desert City – Dubai”

Friday, November 9 at 9 p.m. ET/PT

Dubai is a gleaming metropolis, grown from the desert sands in just a few decades – yet it sits in one of the driest places on Earth, is pummelled by raging sandstorms, and its skyscrapers are resting on top of sand. This episode looks beneath the city’s skin to discover what keeps Dubai’s buildings standing, protects them from desert storms, and keeps residents alive in the searing heat.

STRIP THE CITY – “Harbor City – Sydney”

Friday, November 16 at 9 p.m. ET/PT

Sydney is home to a fifth Australia’s entire population and is trapped between the Blue Mountains and the ocean, sitting on the driest inhabited continent on Earth, and surrounding one the planet’s largest natural harbours. This episode uncovers what is inside Sydney’s buildings and beneath its streets that allow the city to function – from the concealed contours of the harbour that allow super-sized ships to sail into the heart of the city, to the underground caverns that store its water.

From a media release:

Head Back to the Highway One More Time When New Special HIGHWAY THRU HELL: AFTER THE CRASH Premieres Oct. 30 on Discovery Channel

• Chat live during the special with members of the cast and crew of HIGHWAY THRU HELL as they answer viewer questions about the series via Twitter and Facebook

As HIGHWAY THRU HELL prepares to wrap its eight-episode inaugural run, Discovery Channel announced today new plans to air a follow-up special for the breakout hit series. Premiering Tuesday, October 30 at 10 p.m. ET/PT, HIGHWAY THRU HELL: AFTER THE CRASH joins series producer and host of the one-hour special, Mark Miller, as he takes viewers to the legendary “Barn” in Hope, BC, to join Jamie Davis and his crew for a season wrap-up “Beer O’clock.” Here, no topic is off limits as Jamie, Adam, Kevin, Bruce, and Samy trade stories from this season of working on the mountain.

A monster hit with critics and viewers alike – the series debut of HIGHWAY THRU HELL had the highest premiere audience in Discovery Channel history! – fans aren’t ready to leave the mountain quite yet. Produced by Vancouver’s Great Pacific TV, viewers have climbed into the cabs alongside Jamie Davis and his heavy rescue crew in British Columbia’s Cascade Mountains. Riding along, they have experienced the steep hills, lethal drop-offs, killer rockslides, and brutal weather that characterize the mountain passes east of Vancouver, known as the Highway Thru Hell. These are some of the most economically important, most travelled – and most inhospitable – trucking routes in North America. Plagued by winter storms, truckers spin out and smash up, and during the worst, the big wrecks can come as often as every 12 hours. In a place where closure is not an option, the call goes out for heavy rescue, and the big trucks must roll.

HIGHWAY THRU HELL: AFTER THE CRASH catches up with the heavy rescue crew as they reflect over the highs and lows on the mountain last winter. In between highlight clips, showing some of the best and worst times they had the over the season’s eight gripping episodes, the guys talk about their toughest wrecks, worst injuries, stormiest weather, tense moments on the team, and why they stick it out despite it all. Jamie talks about being prepared for anything and how his amazing fleet of heavy rescue trucks helps him tackle it all. Ken, the new guy from the city, stops in for a beer and recounts his struggles adjusting to life on the mountain. Brandon, Jamie’s 17-year-old stepson and last winter’s rookie, takes some heat for his work ethic but isn’t afraid to throw it back. As things are heating up, an unexpected visit from arch-rival Al Quiring brings out some serious barbs from Adam. Then Mark turns the tough questions on Kevin, Adam, and the boss himself, Jamie. It all ends with a surprise when Mark invites the guys to see the Coquihalla, and the majestic mountains surrounding it, from an angle they’ve never experienced: from­ mid-air in a helicopter.

Viewers can chat live during the special with members of the cast and crew of HIGHWAY THRU HELL as they answer questions about the series via Twitter and Facebook. Join the conversation on Discovery’s Social Screen, using hashtag #HWYThruHell. Download the Discovery Canada app free from the App Store.