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Amazing Race Canada, Featured

Bad moves and bad weather on The Amazing Race Canada

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The first episode of a new season of The Amazing Race Canada is always tough, because you’re just getting to know the teams, figure out who seems to work well together and decide who to cheer for. That first hour shows the competitors adjusting to the team dynamic as well, sussing out their strong and weak points.

But the producers offered the Season 4 contestants no mercy, throwing them into a terrifying Road Block—crawling under a cable car hundreds of feet in the air—that cued tears for more than one competitor and a bunch of penalties for the rest. Not every team took a penalty for deciding not to participate, but inclement weather on Jasper’s SkyTram meant those that didn’t complete the test or leave with a penalty hanging over them were forced to wait for a determined amount of time before moving to the next stage. It had all started so swimmingly: the 10 teams bolted into the trees around Yellowknife’s legislature at the top of the hour, seeking the translation to a First Nations greeting.

Former Big Brother Canada players Jillian and Emmett broke the code first and departed for the airport, where they quickly devolved into a bickering twosome. Jillian’s yelling and crying from the back seat clearly frustrated Emmett, though they still managed to land spots in the first airplane to Jasper. And though she groused at him the entire Leg, the pair still landed in first place at Pyramid Lake, scoring a trip for two to London, England. Jillian and Emmett are certainly strong players who boast strength for physical challenges (Emmett aced crawling under the SkyTram car in his first shot), but a lack of patience getting to locations could derail them.

Dating couple Steph and Kristen scored second place thanks to physical prowess (Kristen turned a hand slip on the tram into a success thanks to well-placed feet), confidence and support that should serve them well down the stretch.

Husband and wife Julie and Lowell are an inspiration already. Lowell has just a pinhole of sight remaining, and it’s going too, and Julie is determined he sees as much of Canada and the world as he can before he loses his sight completely. How can you not cheer for them?

As for the rest of the teams, it’s really too soon to tell which ones will be in the hunt for the $250,000 prize, cars and title, but it won’t be Anthony and Brandon, the two friends from Windsor, Ont., who opted to skip the SkyTram challenge just before the rest of the teams were halted due to weather. If the weather had held, the move would likely have paid off. Instead, they could only watch helplessly as slower teams completed the leg, leaving them up for elimination.

Would you have gambled like Brandon and Anthony did, hoping other teams would finish behind them? Comment below.

Here’s how the teams finished:

  1. Jillian and Emmett
  2. Steph and Kristen
  3. Stéphane and Antoine
  4. Joel and Ashley
  5. Julie and Lowell
  6. Frankie and Amy
  7. Rita and Yvette
  8. Anne and Tanya
  9. Kelly and Kate (four-hour penalty)
  10. Anthony and Brandon (four-hour penalty, eliminated)

The Amazing Race Canada airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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Amazing Race Canada, Motive

CTV Unveils its Summer 2016 Schedule

From a media release:

CTV “is in it to win it” as Canada’s most-watched network unveiled its Summer 2016 schedule today, including the announcement of four new programs and four returning hits, all joining star-studded music celebrations THE 2016 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS and THE 2016 IHEARTRADIO MUCH MUSIC VIDEO AWARDS.

With the starting line now within eye shot, Canada’s most-watched summer series for three years in a row hits the road for a brand new Season 4 of THE AMAZING RACE CANADA (June 28). All-new seasons of summer favourites also make their triumphant return including the scandalous season premiere of MISTRESSES (May 30); award-winning chefs Gordon Ramsay (MASTERCHEF JUNIOR) and Christina Tosi (CHOPPED) welcome 40 new home cooks into the MASTERCHEF kitchen for Season 7 (June 1); last summer’s biggest event series is back with a special two-hour season premiere of ZOO (June 28); and CTV’s original hit crime drama MOTIVE concludes its final season episodes with riveting all-new investigations (July 5). Plus, CTV doesn’t skip a beat, delivering a tandem of star-studded celebrations of music with THE 2016 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS, featuring a tribute to Prince by Madonna (May 22), and THE 2016 IHEARTRADIO MMVAs, hosted by international supermodel Gigi Hadid, and featuring performances by singer-songwriter Alessia Cara, multi-platinum recording artist Nick Jonas, and pop supergroup Fifth Harmony (June 19).

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19-2, Amazing Race Canada, Awards, Big Brother Canada, Blackstone, Degrassi, Dragons' Den, Featured, Industry News, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Masterchef Canada, Mohawk Girls, Motive, Mr. D, Orphan Black, Rookie Blue, Schitt's Creek, Spun Out, Still Standing, Strange Empire, Vikings, X Company, Young Drunk Punk

19-2 and Schitt’s Creek lead 2016 Canadian Screen Award TV nominations

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Bravo’s gritty cop drama 19-2 and CBC’s high-profile comedy Schitt’s Creek topline the nominations for the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards. Announced Tuesday morning in Toronto at TIFF Bell Lightbox by Lyriq Bent (The Book of Negroes) and Aislinn Paul (Degrassi), 19-2 captured 12 nominations, including Best Dramatic Series and Best Performance nods for supporting cast and leads Jared Keeso and Adrian Holmes; Keeso and Holmes recorded a video to mark the occasion (check it out below).

Meanwhile, Schitt’s Creek does battle in the comedic categories, with co-stars Eugene and Dan Levy facing off for Best Performance and the Tuesday night comedy fighting off fellow CBC series Mr. D, Mohawk Girls, Young Drunk Punk and Tiny Plastic Men for Best Comedy Series.

Space’s Orphan Black did well too, snagging 13 nominations including performance acknowledgements for Ari Millen and Tatiana Maslany, though it was shut out of the Dramatic Series list. Global’s final season of Rookie Blue was recognized by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, as Missy Peregrym and Ben Bass received nominations.

The nominees in the key television categories are listed below. Who do you think deserves to win? The two-hour Canadian Screen Awards gala airs Sunday, March 13, at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role

  • Gerry Dee, Mr. D
  • Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Daniel Levy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Dave Foley, Spun Out

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role

  • Adrian Holmes, 19-2
  • Jared Keeso, 19-2
  • Ari Millen, Orphan Black
  • Ben Bass, Rookie Blue
  • Aaron Poole, Strange Empire

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role

  • Brittany LeBorgne, Mohawk Girls
  • Annie Murphy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
  • Belinda Cornish, Tiny Plastic Men

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role

  • Kristin Lehman, Motive
  • Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
  • Megan Follows, Reign
  • Missy Peregrym, Rookie Blue
  • Jennie Raymond, Sex & Violence

Best Dramatic Series

  • 19-2
  • Blackstone
  • Motive
  • Saving Hope
  • X Company

Best Comedy Series

  • Mr. D
  • Mohawk Girls
  • Schitt’s Creek
  • Tiny Plastic Men
  • Young Drunk Punk

Best Reality/Competition Program or Series

  • The Amazing Race Canada
  • Big Brother Canada
  • Dragons’ Den
  • Game of Homes
  • MasterChef Canada

Best Animated Program or Series

  • Endangered Species
  • Numb Chucks
  • Rocket Monkeys
  • Slugterra

Best Children’s or Youth Fiction Program or Series

  • Annedroids
  • Degrassi
  • Full Out
  • Max & Shred

Best Factual Program or Series

  • Emergency
  • Ice Pilots NWT
  • Jade Fever
  • Million Dollar Critic
  • Still Standing

Best International Drama

  • Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
  • Vikings

Best Lifestyle Program or Series

  • Buy It, Fix It, Sell It
  • Carnival Eats
  • Income Property
  • Masters of Flip
  • Survivorman Bigfoot

Best TV Movie or Limited Series

  • The Book of Negroes
  • First Response
  • Forget and Forgive
  • Kept Woman
  • Studio Black!

The rest of the television categories can be seen here.

As previously announced, comedian Norm Macdonald will host the 2016 event. Wendy Crewson—currently starring on CTV’s Saving Hope—will receive the Earle Grey Award for acting and Martin Short will be honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Canadian Screen Awards air Sunday, March 13, at 8 p.m. on CBC.

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Amazing Race Canada, Big Brother Canada, Book of Negroes, Featured, Rick Mercer Report, Vikings

TV Top 10: What Canadians Watched in 2015

Bell Media has released a series of top 10 lists of most-watched shows in Canada and according to their numbers, Canadian contenders include:

  • Amazing Race Canada -  number one regularly scripted series and competition reality series
  • Rick Mercer Report - 10th most-watched comedy
  • Book of Negroes – 9th most-watched new series
  • Big Brother Canada – 8th most-watched competition reality series
  • Juno Awards - 9th most-watched entertainment TV event
  • Vikings – 3rd most-watched specialty series
  • Canada’s Worst Driver – 8th most-watched specialty series
  • Highway Thru Hell  – 9th most-watched specialty series

From the Bell media release:

As 2015 comes to a close, 12-month data from Numeris highlights what Canadians have been watching on television over the past calendar year. Once again, live television events are the most-watched, led by sports championships and awards broadcasts. Among sports tournament broadcasts, we love American and Canadian football, junior and pro hockey, baseball and soccer – but curling and golf too. For regularly scheduled programming, while we wholeheartedly embrace competition series, we prefer dramas over comedies. On specialty, Justin Bieber roasts, red carpet pre-shows, and all things zombie rank high, along with fantasy and historical dramas (and yet more competition series). Meanwhile, the television program Canadians watch the most is an original production showcasing our country.

Below is a closer look at the most-watched TV broadcasts and programs Canadians watched in 2015:

Canada’s Most-Watched Canadian Series*

Rank Series Network Audience
1 THE AMAZING RACE CANADA CTV 2.54 million
2 MASTERCHEF CANADA CTV 1.66 million
3 THE BOOK OF NEGROES (NEW) CBC 1.63 million
4 ROOKIE BLUE Global 1.59 million
5 SAVING HOPE CTV 1.35 million
6 MOTIVE CTV 1.24 million
7 BIG BROTHER CANADA Global 1.12 million
8 MURDOCH MYSTERIES CBC 897,000
9 VIKINGS History 850,000
10 ASCENSION (NEW) CBC 736,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Entertainment Television Events

Rank Broadcast Network Date Audience
1 THE 87th ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS® CTV 2/22/2015 5.53 million
2 THE 72ND ANNUAL GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS® CTV 1/11/2015 3.30 million
3 THE 57TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS® City 2/08/2015 2.87 million
4 THE SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE 40TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL Global 2/15/2015 2.68 million
5 AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS® CTV 11/22/2015 2.17 million
6 ADELE LIVE IN LONDON CTV 11/25/2015 2.14 million
7 67th EMMY® AWARDS CTV 9/20/2015 1.85 million
8 PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS Global 1/07/2015 1.45 million
9 THE 2015 JUNO AWARDS (CAN) CTV 3/15/2015 1.43 million
10 THE 2015 BILLBOARD AWARDS CTV 5/17/2015 1.27 million

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Sports Tournament Broadcasts

League/Tournament Broadcast Network Date Audience
NFL SUPER BOWL XLIX CTV 2/1/2015 8.26 million
IIHF World Junior Championship Gold Medal, Canada vs. Russia TSN 1/5/2015 5.95 million
MLB ALCS Game 6, Toronto vs. Kansas City Sportsnet 10/23/2015 5.08 million
CFL 103rd GREY CUP TSN 11/29/2015 4.06 million
NHL Playoffs Round 1, Montreal vs. Ottawa CBC 4/26/2015 3.77 million
FIFA Women’s World Cup Quarterfinal, England vs. Canada CTV 6/27/2015 2.97 million
Pan Am Games Opening Ceremonies CBC 7/10/2015 1.66 million
IIHF World Championship Gold Medal, Canada vs. Russia TSN 5/17/2015 1.35 million
Curling – Brier Final TSN 3/8/2015 1.25 million
Golf – Masters Final Global 4/12/2015 1.19 million

Canada’s Most-Watched Regularly Scheduled Television Programs

Rank Program Network Audience
1 THE AMAZING RACE CANADA (CAN) CTV 2.54 million
2 THE BIG BANG THEORY CTV 2.48 million
3 SURVIVOR Global 2.22 million
4 QUANTICO (NEW) CTV 2.17 million
5 NCIS Global 2.01 million
6 MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. CTV 1.93 million
7 CSI: CYBER (NEW) CTV 1.924 million
8 NCIS: NEW ORLEANS (NEW) Global 1.923 million
9 MARVEL’S AGENT CARTER (NEW) CTV 1.921 million
10 TWO AND A HALF MEN CTV 1.88 million

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Dramas

Rank Program Network Audience
1 QUANTICO (NEW) CTV 2.17 million
2 NCIS Global 2.01 million
3 MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. CTV 1.93 million
4 CSI: CYBER (NEW) CTV 1.924 million
5 NCIS: NEW ORLEANS (NEW) Global 1.923 million
6 MARVEL’S AGENT CARTER (NEW) CTV 1.921 million
7 BLINDSPOT  (NEW) CTV 1.817 million
8 THE FLASH CTV 1.816 million
9 HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER CTV 1.77 million
10 CODE BLACK (NEW) CTV 1.74 million

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Comedies

Rank Program Network Audience
1 THE BIG BANG THEORY CTV 2.48 million
2 TWO AND A HALF MEN CTV 1.88 million
3 THE ODD COUPLE (NEW) CTV 1.65 million
4 THE GOLDBERGS CTV 832,000
4 MIKE & MOLLY City 832,000
6 2 BROKE GIRLS City 826,000
7 MODERN FAMILY City 710,000
8 THE MCCARTHYS CTV 700,000
8 LIFE IN PIECES (NEW) City 700,000
10 THE RICK MERCER REPORT (CAN) CBC 654,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Competition Series

Rank Series Network Audience
1 THE AMAZING RACE CANADA (CAN) CTV 2.54 million
2 SURVIVOR Global 2.22 million
3 MASTERCHEF CTV 1.82 million
4 THE AMAZING RACE CTV 1.69 million
5 MASTERCHEF CANADA (CAN) CTV 1.66 million
6 BIG BROTHER Global 1.36 million
7 AMERICA’S GOT TALENT Global 1.32 million
8 BIG BROTHER CANADA (CAN) Global 1.12 million
9 HELL’S KITCHEN City 977,000
10 SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CTV 961,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched New Series of 2015

Rank Series Network Audience
1 QUANTICO CTV 2.17 million
2 CSI: CYBER CTV 1.924 million
3 MARVEL’S AGENT CARTER CTV 1.921 million
4 BLINDSPOT CTV 1.82 million
5 CODE BLACK CTV 1.74 million
6 SUPERGIRL Global 1.67 million
7 THE ODD COUPLE CTV 1.65 million
8 THE BOOK OF NEGROES (CAN) CBC 1.63 million
9 LIMITLESS Global 1.61 million
10 HEROES REBORN Global 1.23 million

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Entertainment Specialty Events & Pre-Shows

Rank Broadcast Network Date Audience
1 THE ROAST OF JUSTIN BIEBER (NEW) Comedy 3/30/2015 1.19 million
2 2015 MTV VMAs*** Much & MTV 8/30/2015 856,000
3 2015 MUCH MUSIC VIDEO AWARDS (CAN) Much, MTV, M3 & MTV2 6/21/2015 405,000
4 MTV VMA PRE-SHOW Much 8/30/2015 391,000
5 THE JUSTIN BIEBER ROAST PRE-SHOW (NEW) Comedy 3/30/2015 389,000
6 LIVE FROM THE RED CARPET: THE 2015 GRAMMY AWARDS® E! 02/08/2015 306,000
7 MMVA RED CARPET (CAN) Much 6/21/2015 298,000
8 NICKELODEON KIDS’ CHOICE AWARDS YTV 3/28/2015 292,000
9 LIVE FROM THE RED CARPET: THE 2015 ACADEMY AWARDS® E! 2/22/2015 275,000
10 LIVE FROM THE RED CARPET: THE 2015 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS® E! 1/11/2015 219,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Regularly Scheduled Specialty Series

Rank Series Network Audience
1 THE WALKING DEAD AMC 1.64 million
2 FEAR THE WALKING DEAD (NEW) AMC 1.14 million
3 VIKINGS (CAN) History 850,000
4 DOCTOR WHO Space 702,000
5 GOLD RUSH Discovery 695,000
6 THE CURSE OF OAK ISLAND History 692,000
7 BETTER CALL SAUL (NEW) AMC 684,000
8 CANADA’S WORST DRIVER (CAN) Discovery 602,000
9 HIGHWAY THRU HELL (CAN) Discovery 587,000
10 TALKING DEAD AMC 583,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Regularly Scheduled Pay TV Series 

Rank Series Network Audience
1 GAME OF THRONES HBO Canada 1.40 million
2 TRUE DETECTIVE HBO Canada 486,000
3 GIRL MEETS WORLD Family 319,000
4 THE NEXT STEP Family 308,000
5 LAST WEEK TONIGHT WITH JOHN OLIVER HBO Canada 273,000
6 BALLERS (NEW) HBO Canada 258,000
7 THE BRINK (NEW) HBO Canada 241,000
8 DISNEY K.C. UNDERCOVER Family 234,000
9 DISNEY AUSTIN & ALLY Family 225,000
10 SILICON VALLEY HBO Canada 215,000

 

Canada’s Most-Watched Late-Night Talk Shows

Rank Series Network Audience
1 THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART CTV 426,000
2 THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH (NEW) CTV 407,000
3 THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT (NEW) Global 258,000
4 THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON CTV Two 215,000
5 THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART Comedy 203,000
6 THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH (NEW) Comedy 195,000
7 LATE NIGHT WITH SETH MEYERS CTV 191,000
8 THE NIGHTLY SHOW WITH LARRY WILMORE (NEW) Comedy 100,000
9 @MIDNIGHT MUCH 93,000
10 THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN OMNI 2 71,000

 

Source: Numeris (BBM Canada), Jan 1 – Nov 29, 2015, Top 10 Programs based on most-regular timeslot for series defined by greatest number of telecasts

* Excluding News Programming

** Special event broadcasts includes Championship finals and special events

*** Based on 9-11:30PM daypart audiences

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Link: Critics Vote: Top 10 Canadian Shows of 2015

From The TV Junkies:

Critics Vote: Top 10 Canadian Shows of 2015
In this time of Peak TV there are countless viewing options out there for television fans. With so many choices it’s harder than ever to prioritize what to watch, let alone narrow down the Top 10 Canadian Shows of 2015. But that’s exactly what we’ve tried to do here with the help of 15 television critics and writers from across Canada. We asked them to put together a list of their top 10 Canadian television shows from the past year. We gave 10 points for No. 1, 9 points for No. 2, 8 points for No. 3 and so on. The overall list was then determined by the cumulative point total for each show. Continue reading.

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