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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Scott McGillivray takes control of his Property

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Scott McGillivray has built an empire with a handful of shows surrounding home renovation and property investment. Now he’s adding another segment to his realm with his own production company, McGillivray Entertainment. The longtime host of Income Property figures this was the natural evolution of his brand. After increasing involvement in the HGTV hit—he’s been an executive producer for the last four seasons—McGillivray decided to start McGillivray Entertainment not only to manage new projects starring himself, but fostering new talent as well.

“You become this conduit,” he says from behind the wheel of his truck. “I’ve got this great group of talented individuals that I’ve been working with and there are a lot of possible opportunities. I’m always looking to fill that opportunity gap. When you have a brand, and a branding team and you have sponsors, it’s a lot easier to get a show. And when you have your own production company, it’s easier to spin that out to people as well.” McGillivray has already got two projects put to pilot by HGTV in the U.S. and a third project in development. And while that trio is still in the beginning stages, McGillivray Entertainment’s first series is already filming.

“It’s not the Kardashians.”

Moving the McGillivrays—set to air in 2016 on HGTV Canada—spotlights Scott, wife Sabrina and daughters Myah and Layla as they not only build a dream home for themselves but he constructs a home for a family in need. Cameras are currently rolling on Episode 2 of the 10-parter. Die-hard fans of McGillivray can get a regular dose of Sabrina and kids via his YouTube series Good to Grow, but a television show is a totally different beast. Just ask Bryan Baeumler’s wife, Sarah, who has acquired a fair number of detractors who don’t like the way she acts in the House of Bryan series.

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“Sabrina has been hands-off on the television thing since Day 1,” he says with a laugh. “We’ve been in our current house for eight years and have seen a lot of change during that time with having kids. I said, ‘We could make a show about this!’ and she said, ‘Please don’t.'” She relented, but McGillivray stresses Moving the McGillivrays will be authentic and show who his family really is (“It’s not the Kardashians,” he says.). McGillivray notes anything he posts showing his private life garners a lot of attention from fans, so the project is a logical move. And with the success of series like Income Property, All American Handyman, Canada’s Handyman Challenge and Holiday Battle on the Block, his popularity doesn’t show any signs of erosion.

Next up following Moving the McGillivrays is a full season of Income Property: On Vacation. Something he’s been wanting to feature in the mothership series for ages, On Vacation shows people who own getaways how to make a buck from them.

“I grew up with a cottage and you’re just a different person when you’re there,” he says. “Even if you’re working, it’s not the same as being in a basement in the city during a snowstorm.”

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Link: Alan Thicke endorses pot in Season 2 of Unusually Thicke

From Melissa Hank of O.Canada.com:

Alan Thicke endorses pot in Season 2 of Unusually Thicke
As a wise woman once sang, haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. And, with their 28-year age difference, Alan Thicke and Tanya Callau are used to that Swiftian sense of injustice. The second season of the married couple’s reality show, however, will take those haters to task. Continue reading.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

History hunts for Frozen Gold in British Columbia

It has all the makings of a great drama. A prospector reports of finding a fortune in gold but dies before digging it all out, and anyone who has gone looking for the treasure since has gone missing. But this tale is true, and is the focus of History’s latest documentary.

Like The Curse of Oak Island does for the east coast of Canada, Curse of the Frozen Gold does for the west. Debuting Wednesday night, Curse of the Frozen Gold retraces the tale of Slumach, a Native Canadian man who, in 1891, was hanged in New Westminster, B.C, for murdering Louis Bee. A decade after his death, word began to circulate Slumach had discovered a mine of gold in the Pitt Lake area worth billions. The tale—spread word-of-mouth from prospectors, treasure hunters and others—has continued to today without losing steam. The story has fascinated Adam Palmer for years. The mountaineering veteran is a member of B.C.’s alpine search and rescue team, and along with fellow climber and friend Evan Howard, signed on to seek out Slumach’s riches.

“It’s not just the legend of gold, it’s a legend of paranormal activity,” Palmer says. “You’ve got the legend of the curse, UFOs, Sasquatch and prospectors who have gone missing and it’s all wrapped up into one legend. The fact that it’s a legend with historical significance and missing prospectors—like Volcanic Brown—is what keeps me motivated.” (Robert Allan Brown, a.k.a. Volcanic Brown, disappeared in 1930 without a trace while searching for Slumach’s mine.)

Fast-forward to last summer, and the duo had paired with four others for the eight-week expedition. Along for the ride as TV cameras captured it all were Palmer and Howard with Don Waite, who has devoted over 40 years to seeking the gold; Fred Braches, who has separated fact from fiction on his Slumach website; Daryl Friesen, a Slumach enthusiast; and Danny Gerak, a local who knows the area well.

Much of Wednesday’s first episode of six is spent introducing the players and their personalities. Everyone is pumped to be heading into the brush in search of riches, but it doesn’t take long for impatience, frustration and perceived backstabbing to derail the proceedings. Turns out that, unbeknownst to the other guys, Friesen staked a claim in the search area; if Slumach’s gold is there, he owns it.

“Everyone has their own theory of where this gold is and everyone is bringing their own maps and clues,” Palmer explains. “Everyone is a detective working on their own case. I was angry we were stuck in a canyon for two weeks looking for the gold when I thought we should be on a glacier taking advantage of the nice weather. I’m not looking to sit in a creek and pan for gold.”

Curse of the Frozen Gold airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on History.

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Slice sets debut date for First Dates

From a media release:

Slice™ dives into the dating game with the new Canadian series First Dates, premiering Tuesday, September 1 at 10pm ET/PT on Slice. Filmed on location in Vancouver, the endearing series captures all of the awesome and the awkward moments of first encounters as a restaurant filled with single people are paired up for real first dates. With the cameras catching everything from the heartache to the heartwarming, First Dates airs back-to-back new episodes Tuesdays at 10 pm and 10:30 pm ET/PT on Slice. 

First Dates brings viewers a compelling look at the attractions, the heartaches, the connections, and the stakes of a first date. Each episode showcases a restaurant of singles who have been paired up for a real first date with someone they’ve never met. The restaurant is fitted with more than 30 fixed-rig cameras capturing every moment, including awkward small talk, flirtatious glances, outrageous faux pas, and subtle, or sometimes forced, smiles. Each episode features three of the hand-matched couples as the cameras record their dates. At the end of the night, each single is interviewed solo, dishing on the best and worst moments of their date. The couples are then reunited side by side to reveal whether there will be a second date…or not.

For some daters there is an instant, and very apparent, attraction, but for others it’s clear that there will not be a happy ending. First Dates gives viewers a fly-on-the-wall look at the hope, charm, awkwardness, heartfelt humour and potential spark of a first date with smiles, tears and everything in between. Honest and observational at its core, each First Dates date is real-life playing out in front of the cameras.

Slice.ca boasts exclusive First Dates extras including a series of “Top 10 Dos and Don’ts for a First Date” and videos of beloved TV celebrities answering burning questions about love and dating. These fun First Datesvideos are available at slice.ca/first-dates/video.

Based on the hit format from Warner Bros. International Television Production, First Dates is a co-production between Force Four Entertainment and Remedy Canada Productions, in association with Shaw Media and Slice.

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

AMI’s Access Unlimited returns for second season

From a media release:

Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) announced today that Access Unlimited, the series that explores the accessibility of Canadian cities from coast to coast, will return for a second season.

The four-part special is produced in partnership with Summerhill Media Inc. and travels across the country with stops in Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Calgary. Each 30-minute episode follows three local residents and examines their daily routine – everything from their commute to work, to visiting local attractions, to participating in their favourite sport or pastime. Those featured in the episodes are living with either vision loss or mobility restriction that can present a unique set of challenges when navigating their respective city. Episodes will also feature interviews with experts and decision makers including transit officials, politicians and accessibility innovators.

In keeping with AMI’s mandate of making accessible media for all Canadians, the series will feature embedded described video, integrating natural environmental sounds while interviewees describe actions and surroundings as needed. AMI hopes the series will continue to inform residents of accessibility initiatives or lack thereof, inspire those living with a disability to travel and engage in their community, and encourage cities across Canada to be innovative and conscientious in terms of accessibility.

From August 24 to 27 Access Unlimited will air every night at 7 p.m. beginning with the Niagara Falls episode, followed by Ottawa, Winnipeg and Calgary. Episodes will also be available with the AMI-player on AMI.ca one week after the initial air date. AMI-télé will air the series in French under the name Villes Accessibles at a later date. All four episodes from the first season of Access Unlimited are currently available to watch online.

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