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TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Republic of Doyle

Link: Republic of Doyle drives into the sunset

From Bill Brioux:

O yeah! Doyle drives off into the sunset after six seasons
This was a series that was easy to embrace for me right from the beginning. For one thing, it wasn’t another formulaic, procedural, Canadian cop show mimicking a formulaic, procedural, American cop show. It screamed St. John’s, Newfoundland, in all that city’s pink and green glory. It paid homage to the great detective shows of the ’70s, especially The Rockford Files, so there was a retro coolness about it. It was a welcome hour of crime-bustin’ action in an era when dark, anti-hero edginess was starting to feel, for me at least, a tad overplayed. Given the choice between riding shotgun in Jake Doyle’s GTO, or astride a Harley with the Sons of Anarchy dudes, I’ll take the bench seat in the Pontiac, thanks. Continue reading.

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Uncategorized

Thunderbird Films acquires Great Pacific Media

From a media release:

Thunderbird is pleased to announce the acquisition of Canadian production company Great Pacific Media. The addition of Vancouver-based Great Pacific and their team to the Thunderbird group of companies will accelerate the growth of Thunderbird’s presence in the unscripted television space.

Great Pacific is a global leader in factual television. Started in 2010 by TV veterans Blair Reekie and Mark Miller, their programs are seen in more than 170 countries. Their number one hit, Highway Thru Hell shattered audience records when it premiered on Discovery Canada and now, in its fourth season, the series is amongst the highest rated programs on National Geographic Channel Europe, Africa and Asia and The Weather Channel USA.
2015 is going to be another record-breaking year for Great Pacific with two brand new series rolling out.

In January Discovery Canada will launch Airshow, a documentary series that goes behind the scenes in the dangerous and emotionally charged world of Airshow performers. March will see the premiere of Game of Homes on W Network (Corus) where four couples compete to save four houses from the wrecking ball. The team that does the best renovation keeps their home, making it the biggest prize in Canadian cable television history.

Tim Gamble, CEO of Thunderbird said “We are so excited to be growing our company with Mark, Blair and the Great Pacific team. We admire their accurate, honest and compelling style of storytelling and look forward to working together to produce content that is attractive to our domestic and international broadcasters.”

Mark Miller, CEO of Great Pacific continued “We have known and worked with Thunderbird for many years and have a shared vision to fuel our growth through the creation of world class content. This makes a lot of sense.” Blair Reekie, President of Great Pacific added, “We’re excited to join the Thunderbird team as we work together to grow our division in factual, lifestyle and formats for the international market.”

“Mark is a terrific writer/producer/showrunner who, together with Blair, has built an enviable business in a relatively short period of time. Mark will be a great addition to the Thunderbird Board of Directors, where he will help us chart our next stage of growth” said Thunderbird Executive Chair Ivan Fecan.

Today’s announcement follows the recent announcement of Thunderbird’s pending acquisition of London-based theatrical distributor Soda Pictures, as well as the acquisition of Reunion Pictures completed in 2013.

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Republic of Doyle, Saving Hope

Tonight: Republic of Doyle series finale, Saving Hope

Republic of Doyle, CBC – two-part series finale
“Judgement Day” – Jake’s murder charge is front and centre, while Leslie faces her own life-changing events with her job on the line. Des finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and Tinny is caught between her family and her job. And in the midst of everything, the Doyles have 48 hours to solve a complicated case before their world changes forever.
“Last Call” – The battle for the Republic is on. Jake and Leslie fight for their lives as powerful enemies close ranks. The Doyles pull out every trick to protect their own and get help from an unexpected ally. Everything comes down to the wire as they hunt for the evidence they need to clear Jake’s murder charge and secure freedom in the City of Legends.

Saving Hope, CTV – “The Other Side of Midnight”
Dr. Zach Miller (Ben Ayres) pulls together a ‘polytrauma team’ to save the life of Nathan “The Rocket” Stewart (Peter Valdron, Backlash) after his latest race track injury, causing Dr. Alex Reid (Erica Durance), Dr. Joel Goran (Daniel Gillies), Dr. Shahir Hamza (Huse Madhavji), and Dr. Maggie Lin (Julia Taylor Ross) to tag in and out of the marathon surgery to fix the driver. When Alex and Joel butt heads over the best course of treatment for the patient, they can’t help but reflect on their own bumps in the road as “the right team.” It’s Dr. Charlie Harris’ (Michael Shanks) day off – and his expectations of a quiet morning are interrupted with the arrival of a beautiful woman passing time in the hotel bar. Charlie contemplates a romantic life without Alex…until an emergency has him rushing back to the hospital. The episode also guest stars Lauren Lee Smith (THE LISTENER) as Astrid Rae and Rebecca Dalton (SPUN OUT) as Nora.

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