Video: Rick’s rant on the government shutdown
Everything about Rick Mercer Report, eh?
New Tuesday: Rick Mercer Report, 22 Minutes
Rick Mercer Report, CBC – season premiere
Tonight Rick goes Heli-Hiking atop British Columbia’s Mt. Nimbus and then rides in the Friday the 13th Motorcycle Rally in Port Dover, ON.
22 Minutes, CBC – season premiere
Minutes launches its 21st season with a few choice words about the Senate scandal, a PEI Witness News report from the Island’s film festival ‘red’ carpet, a farewell tribute to the Kingston Penitentiary, and a Heritage Minute with Body Break’s Hal and Joanne.
TV, eh?’s lost Rick Mercer interview
If I were told by the Canadian TV gods when I started this site that I could only ever interview one Canadian TV personality, it would be Rick Mercer. And yet I don’t think I’d ever asked for that interview, believing he’d be out of reach, knowing I’d be tongue-tied and awkward (more than usual, I mean).
But when he came to Vancouver last year for CBC’s fall media launch I eagerly signed up for my 15 minute slot. Besides diverting too much brain power to thinking “don’t gush Diane, for god’s sake don’t gush,” I loved the experience and gushed about it to everyone afterward (“He knows the site! He was nice to me!”)
And then, tragedy struck. Actually it really did, but also in the midst of a lot of traveling I lost the recorder before I’d managed to retrieve the interview from it.
I still hadn’t worked up the nerve to ask for another chance when en route to Iceland this month I found the recorder tucked in a hidden pocket of my carry-on — which I swear to the Canadian TV gods I searched thoroughly last year — and promptly transcribed the interview on the plane before I could lose it again in a geyser, lagoon, volcano, or backpack pocket.
So this will not be the most current interview with Mercer you’ll read this fall, but it may be the most gratefully bestowed and recovered. Keep in mind these thoughts are from spring 2012.
So a new season — what is there left for you to do?
Well that is the question, but that’s a question I’ve asked myself for 8 seasons now and we always seem to do just fine. It’s still a big country and there’s a lot of people in it, and they do a lot of interesting things so we always manage to find stories. It’s a tough question in that I can’t tell you what we’re going to do, but that’s because we never know what we’re going to do. [He mentions a few possibilities for last season.] All the balls are in the air and we don’t know what we’ll be doing from week to week.
Do you ever say no to some of the things they want you to do?
Oh sure. There’s a group of individuals who stand on horseback and do figure 8s and stuff while standing on horses. They’ve asked me to join them and I’ve said no, so they say “what do you have against us?” I say “I don’t have anything against you, but I’m terrified of standing on a horse. It frightens the shit out of me. I’m afraid I’ll die.” So I can’t do it. I’m too afraid. They were like, “but you’ve jumped out of a plane.” I was strapped to a soldier! I wasn’t standing on the back of a horse.
You have done scarier stuff though.
Everyone has their own line. I didn’t want to jump out of a plane, but I did jump out of a plane. Whereas my brother, who’s a pilot, says emphatically he’d never jump out of a plane. He’s said there could be someone with a gun and they could shoot him and he would not jump out of the plane. I’m talking with a parachute. He just would not jump out of a plane. So that’s his line. Me, I’m not standing on the back of a horse. And they’re all 12 year old girls too. That’s the other thing. Of course they are 12 year old girls, and I’m like, “I’m afraid,” and they don’t believe me.
Tell me about the charity work you do. You have Spread The Net and — other things.
Yeah, I don’t do much charity work. One of the advantages of being on TV I suppose is that you can sometimes leverage the fact that you’re on TV for good versus evil. I do evil most of the time but occasionally I do good. At the same time it can be embarrassing if there’s a perception that you do a lot of charity work because Canadians by and large are pretty charitable people. I just consider it volunteer work really. So instead of going down and helping work a table somewhere I get to promote something. But in terms of time it’s probably less than my parents did their entire lives while they were raising a family.
Spread The Net is something I’ve supported — well, I’m one of the cofounders — and I found a way to incorporate it into the show. We have this Spread The Net challenge every year and students across the country have raised millions of dollars which is tremendous. But again, the kids are the ones doing the heavy lifting — they’re the ones doing the fundraising. I just say “do it.”
You did an It Gets Better video and then the rant [after Jamie Hubley’s suicide]. Do you feel a responsibility to the public ear that you have?Â
That one kind of hit me by surprise. I guess when I ranted about Jamie Hubley committing suicide I felt a responsibility. When I rant even about a serious subject I generally try to inject some humour, and that was the first time I didn’t attempt to. I guess because I was so angry and I didn’t feel like it was appropriate. So I knew it was a bit of a departure. I was heartened by the reaction and pleased at the reaction. But yeah for a while there I became the patron saint of gay teenagers with low self-esteem. That kind of took me by surprise.
(Laughs) There’s worse things you could be.
Yeah, and their poor mothers who are so worried about them. They’re emailing me and I’m like, I am not a psychiatrist.
I read an interview you did later that expressed surprise about how many times a person can come out in this country, because you were criticized for not mentioning yourself in the rant.
I felt it got hijacked a little bit but I’m loathe to talk about that because that’s not indicative of the overall response. In the gay community, as far as there is one — I mean, there’s a gay community but like any other community there’s lots of voices in it — I can certainly understand that some people feel I’m not out enough, and that was the criticism.
And I still don’t know, when it comes to that rant. Some people say “why didn’t you say you were gay in that rant?” I’m pretty bulletproof by saying well, because I’ve said I’m gay before. But I certainly know that any time it’s in the paper that I’m gay there’s all the comments following it: “I didn’t know he was gay.” And then a month later there’ll be a story in the same newspaper and: “I didn’t know he was gay.” So part of me thinks maybe I should have said it, but then part of me also knows that if I had, I’m going to become the story. And certainly that was not the story. So I honestly don’t know on that one. But I was heartened by the response.
Do you get frustrated when interesting political things are going on and you’re not on the air?
Oh sure, yeah, that can be frustrating. Although I’ve been lucky. The last federal election was called I think the day before I did my last taping, but then I went and covered the election for Maclean’s magazine. I got to go on the plane and cover the campaign. So if something’s happening there’s all sorts of venues. In this day and age you can just get an iPhone and start a YouTube channel.
That might not pay quite as well.
With the election I was just looking for a gig for someone to put me on that plane. I didn’t tell them at the time that I would have paid them to get me on the plane. Happily Maclean’s was willing to pay for it.
A new season of The Rick Mercer Report premieres October 8 on CBC.
CBC kicks off fall schedule on September 16
From a media release:
CBC IS HOME TO THE BEST CANADIAN TELEVISION THIS FALL
- Kicking-off on September 16, CBC-TV’s 2013 Fall Schedule Delivers Award-Winning Hits, Bright Stars, and Investigative Journalism That Matters
With gripping dramas, hilarious comedies, live events, award-winning news and investigative programs, CBC continues to be a leader in providing top-notch Canadian content this fall. The new schedule features the highly anticipated return of BATTLE OF THE BLADES, and the made-for-television movie, STILL LIFE: A THREE PINES MYSTERY. The season premiere of GEORGE STROUMBOULOPOULOS TONIGHT kicks off the fall schedule, which also features the return of hits MURDOCH MYSTERIES, DRAGONS’ DEN, REPUBLIC OF DOYLE, HEARTLAND, RICK MERCER REPORT, MARKETPLACE and HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA.
- BATTLE OF THE BLADES – The show Canadians fell in love with and embraced for three seasons is back! It returns with big Sunday night entertainment where anything is possible. This season of BATTLE OF THE BLADES promises to be the most interactive and innovative yet. CBC will kick off the digital campaign by announcing this year’s cast over one week in September, exclusively on the website and via social media. Visit cbc.ca/battle/ for more details. The season launches Sunday, September 22, at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). @CBCbattle
- Starring Canadian acting luminary Donald Sutherland, CROSSING LINES is an action-packed international crime drama about a new global FBI unit that specializes in cross-border crimes and brings intercontinental criminals to justice. It joins the prime-time lineup at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT) on Tuesday evenings, and premiering October 8.
- New set, new sizzle. Catch DRAGONS’ DEN in their new ominous den as the extraordinary deals continue to unfold. The season launches Wednesday, October 2 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). @CBCDragon
- Celebrating the 10th season of GEORGE STROUMBOULOPOULOS TONIGHT, George brings us the world’s most influential and fascinating actors, musicians, and newsmakers through his signature interview style. The season launches September 16 at 7 p.m. (7:30 NT). @strombo/@strombodotcom
- HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA returns for the 2013–14 NHL season with a full slate of games featuring the sport’s biggest stars and best NHL match-ups and marquee events. The season begins with Molson Canadian NHL Face Off from Montreal on Tuesday, October 1 at 6:30 p.m. ET/ 3:30 p.m. PT, as the Canadiens host their longtime rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs, followed by Winnipeg at Edmonton at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT. The Ontario township of Sterling-Rawdon plays host to Kraft Hockeyville on Saturday, September 14 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT as the Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals face-off in a pre-season match-up in Belleville, ON.@hockeynight
- This season on MARKETPLACE, Canada’s consumer watchdog goes all out to put the bite on wrongdoers and set things right. Undercover, online and on TV, Marketplace gets more bark for your buck with a revealing checkup on vet bills and goes on a nationwide hunt for Canada’s most frustrating packaging for the first-ever Wrap Rage Awards. The season launches Friday, October 4 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). @CBCMarketplace
- MURDOCH MYSTERIES – Canada’s number-one dramatic mystery provides a season full of surprises as Detective Murdoch continues to unravel the city’s most devious murder mysteries all the while elevating his romance with Dr. Julia Ogden to new heights. Fans can also get ready for a Web series that peeks behind the scenes of CBC’s hit mystery show, with an exclusive inside look at the making of season seven. Dive into the history, characters, inventions, costumes, props and storylines featured in the new season, including interviews with the cast, crew, writers and producers who bring the show to life. The season launches Monday, September 30 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). @CBCMurdoch
- REPUBLIC OF DOYLE – Like any family, the Doyles aren’t impervious to fracture, and they will find themselves pulled in dramatic new directions and facing big decisions that could forever affect their relationships — or change the trajectory of their lives — for good. REPUBLIC OF DOYLE brings you an all-new Web series featuring quirky ne’er-do-well Ned Bishop (Mark Critch), who is becoming more of a regular fixture in the life of the Doyles, whether Jake likes it or not. The season launches Wednesday, October 2 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT). @RepublicofDoyle
- STILL LIFE: A THREE PINES MYSTERY, airing Sunday, September 15 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). Based on Canadian author Louise Penny’s international best-selling novel, STILL LIFE focuses on a picturesque small town that becomes unraveled after a beloved community member is found dead and the investigation into her death reveals layers of deceit, rage and long-simmering resentments.
- With compelling in-depth stories and fast-reaction investigations of ongoing events, the fifth estate digs into things Canadians care about and gets results. This season Gillian Findlay discovers a hidden ingredient in most prepared food that is making us mighty sick — and asks â€Are we in North America eating ourselves to death?†Linden MacIntyre visits a village in Canada with a deadly secret. Bob McKeown delves into a mystery that certain institutions would prefer was kept silent. Mark Kelley encounters extortion in a menacing new form. And the fifth estate reveals a tragic human exodus in The Last Great Escape. The season launches Friday, October 4 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT). @CBCfifth
- Canada’s number one political satirist, Rick Mercer, is back for an 11th season of THE RICK MERCER REPORT with his weekly dose of political satire, ranting, funny takes on the week’s top stories, and lively cross-country adventures. Providing a unique viewpoint on Canada from coast to coast to coast, THE RICK MERCER REPORT returns with two of the most talked-about features of every show: Rick’s rant and his cross-country adventures. The season launches Tuesday, October 8 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). Fans can also get a daily dose of the show weekdays at 6:30 p.m. (7 NT). @rickmercer
OTHER CBC-TV FALL 2013 PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS:
- BEST RECIPES EVER, Canada’s most-watched daily food program returns to CBC this fall for its fifth big season with host and chef Christine Tizzard. The show has recently released its second cookbook, featuring the very best Canadian Living recipes from seasons three and four. The season starts Monday, September 23 at 3 p.m. (3:30 NT). @BestRecipesEver
- Â The Psych Crimes Unit is back with CRACKED, more unified and stronger than before, with a new female lead along with David Sutcliffe, and Brooke Nevin (from Chicago Fire, Breakout Kings). This season, CRACKED brings you The Tenants, an eight part Web series building up to the season two finale. A corrupt property manager is found murdered and there’s no shortage of suspects. . . over the course of eight weeks, we’ll flash-forward to an assortment of characters who are somehow connected to a brutal case that will be solved in the thrilling finale. The season launches Monday, September 30, at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT). @CrackedonCBC
- DOC ZONE returns to enlighten and entertain with another season of thought-provoking documentaries. This fall, look for stories about Canada’s Not Criminally Responsible laws and the Condo Game in Toronto and Vancouver. The season launches Thursday, October 3 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT). @CBCDocs
- Season seven of HEARTLAND brings a new way to watch Canada’s favourite family drama: The Heartland Companion app. The app works on your tablet or smartphone and syncs to the live (or PVRed) broadcast, serving up a wide range of HEARTLAND companion content — from extra scenes and elements that extend the story even further, to behind-the-scenes extras, and even a nationwide HEARTLAND Trivia Challenge where viewers can win great prizes from the show. The season starts Sunday, October 6 at 7 p.m. (7:30 NT). @HeartlandonCBC
- IN THE KITCHEN WITH STEFANO FAITA is back for a third season of all-new recipes, guests and fun this fall. The first official IN THE KITCHEN… cookbook, featuring the most popular recipes from seasons one and two, will be released in October 2013. The season starts Monday, September 23 at 3:30 p.m. (4 NT). @CBCinthekitchen
- STEVEN AND CHRIS remains the hottest daytime destination for all things lifestyle — continually bringing more fun and fabulous content to weekday viewers. The fun starts Monday, September 23 at 2 p.m. (2:30 NT). @stevenandchris
- THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES, Canada’s longest-running political satire, returns to take on big issues and small-minded politicians. 22 Minutes a week is not enough! The intrepid news team behind THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES brings you a new Web series: The 22 Minutes Update. It’s a bite-sized version of the show you know and love, a 2.2 Minute mid-week update that delivers (and sends up) the very, very, very latest news with exclusive newsdesk stories, field pieces, and more. The season launches Tuesday, October 8 at 8:30 p.m. (9:00 NT). @22_Minutes
- THE NATURE OF THINGS, Canada’s longest-running science series, presents an ambitious new season: from invasive carp and zombie ants, to decoding the “gay gene†and David Suzuki’s very personal quest to understand Alzheimer’s. And starting on March 13, 2014, Wild Canada, a stunning four-part series in the style of Planet Earth: it’s Canada as you’ve never seen it before, an epic story through time and across the vast scale of the Canadian landscape. The season launches Thursday, October 3 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). @CBCDocs
CBC-TV FALL 2013 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE:
MONDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight
7:30 p.m. (8 NT) – Coronation Street
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – Murdoch Mysteries
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Cracked
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
TUESDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight
7:30 p.m. (8 NT) – Coronation Street
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – Rick Mercer Report
8:30 p.m. (9 NT) – This Hour Has 22 Minutes
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Crossing Lines
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
WEDNESDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight
7:30 p.m. (8 NT) – Coronation Street
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – Dragons’ Den
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Republic of Doyle
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
THURSDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight
7:30 p.m. (8 NT) – Coronation Street
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – The Nature of Things
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Doc Zone
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
FRIDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight
7:30 p.m. (8 NT) – Coronation Street
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – Marketplace
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – the fifth estate
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
SUNDAY
7 p.m. (7:30 NT) – Heartland
8 p.m. (8:30 NT) – Battle of the Blades
9 p.m. (9:30 NT) – Dragons’ Den
10 p.m. (10:30 NT) – The National
CBC-TV FALL 2013 DAYTIME PROGRAMMING
MONDAY – FRIDAY
2 p.m. (2:30 NT) – Steven and Chris
3 p.m. (3:30 NT) – Best Recipes Ever
3:30 p.m. (4 NT) – In the Kitchen with Stefano Faita
Examining the fall season of CanCon
Broadcasters have had their upfront presentations and announced their fall primetime seasons, so now we can get the microscope out to look at their Canadian offerings. (In the case of Global, an electron microscope may be needed.) I am, as usual, only including scripted and reality shows, so excluding news, sports, newsmagazines, specials, movies, documentary series or infotainment series.
CBC
I wanted to write a post about CBC’s 2013/14 season when they launched it, but it would have been nearly identical to what I wrote for 2012/13: this isn’t the public broadcaster I want. The upcoming year shows minimal risk, aiming for middle-of-the-road appeal, a renewal of everything that moves despite ratings, no new scripted series, and a foreign import for prime time — more egregiously, they felt the need to import a cop show when those comprise a large percentage of Canada’s gross domestic product.
However, what I said last year is more true this year: CBC is in a difficult place financially and politically (Executive Director for commissioned and scripted programming Sally Catto gave us a candid interview about how the budget cuts have affected programming). And some of their mid-season TV movies and mini-series seem promising. And at least their slate of CanCon is visible to the naked eye.
CanCon scripted and reality series for fall primetime:
- Battle of the Blades (1 hour)
- Cracked (1 hour)
- Dragons’ Den (1 hour)
- Heartland (1 hour)
- Murdoch Mysteries (1 hour)
- Republic of Doyle (1 hour)
- Rick Mercer Report (1/2 hour)
- 22 Minutes (1/2 hour)
Total: 7 hours
City
With less market penetration than the others, City is often the poor cousin in terms of Canadian series as well. This year, their fall season has more than the other private networks if you count those that will air first on specialty network OLN. Which I don’t quite, except maybe half marks for effort. They gave Seed a surprise renewal for 2014 — the ratings didn’t entirely justify it, but perhaps they’ll experiment with a different timeslot or find other ways to grow the audience that shrank last year — and have Mother Up and Meet The Family on the horizon for mid-season.
I have mixed feelings about the scheduling of their one true original fall show, Package Deal. The premiere date has been pushed back more than once; they seem to have landed on airing it on June 24 as last announced but then delaying the rest of the season for a fall run. They used the “because, hockey” excuse for two delays, which make them seem like the only Canadians unaware of the playoffs. But I do admire them for breaking away from the model of summer season being the safe season for CanCon, and for putting their new multi-camera comedy between two US multi-camera comedies (single-cam Seed’s old spot between How I Met Your Mother and 2 Broke Girls, but without the draw of a Big Bang Theory rerun at the same time to pilfer viewers).
CanCon scripted and reality series for fall primetime:
- Package Deal (1/2 hour)
- The Liquidator (OLN first run – 1 hour)
- The Project: Guatemala (OLN first run – 1 hour)
- Storage Wars Canada (OLN first run – 1/2 hour)
Total: 1/2 hour or if I’m generous, 3 hours
CTV
As CTV bragged in their 2013/14 launch media release, “In total, CTV’s fall schedule features 17.5 hours of simulcast programming weekly, more than any other Canadian network.” So you know the CanCon news isn’t great. Apparently Bell Media president Kevin Crull has said he can see a time soon when in-season primetime will be 25% Canadian, but that time is not now. The network has announced one CanCon series launching in fall this year — Played (I will imagine your surprise that it’s another cop show) — while MasterChef Canada was announced for mid-season (I’ll imagine your surprise that it’s another Reality Show X Canada format) and Motive is renewed for a second season.
CanCon scripted and reality series for fall primetime:
- Played (1 hour)
Total: 1 hour
Global
Coming off their cancellation of Bomb Girls, Global announced two new scripted series slated for mid-season: hospital drama Remedy and comedy Working the Engels. But alone among the major networks, they have no Canadian scripted or reality shows added to their fall schedule.
CanCon scripted and reality series for fall primetime:
- Nothing (0 hours)
- Yup, apparently really nothing (0 hours)
- They do have Walk the Walk on Saturday nights — a documentary series about Canada’s Walk of Fame — but I’m not including anyone else’s documentary series (or Saturday nights as primetime) so this shouldn’t count. But I’m throwing them a bone.
Total: 0 hours. No I’m not generous enough to include Walk the Walk‘s 1 hour here.
For an at-a-glance chart of Canadian networks’ fall season, check out The TV Addict’s Definitive Fall 2013 Primetime TV Schedule (Canadian edition).
Photo by Cameron Archer
