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TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Dramas and Comedies, Featured, Industry News

TV, Eh? Industry Roundup – Beywheelz, CRTC, eOne, NSI Canada

Beywheelz debuts in North America

Beywheelz, a spinoff of the Beyblade series, is formally announced by Nelvana. Beywheelz is one of Nelvana’s MIPTV offerings, which include Trucktown, two seasons of Detentionaire, Franklin and Friends‘ second season, and Mr. Young‘s second season.

According to I Miss Bionix, Beyblade: Metal Fury is an English-language adaptation of d-rights’/Nelvana’s Metal Fight Beyblade 4D, which saw its Japanese episode length halved in 2011, after 26 episodes. This was to accommodate Cross Fight B-Daman, leaving Nelvana with 39 half-hour episodes of Beyblade: Metal Fury. Beywheelz combines with Beyblade: Metal Fury, to make a 52-episode order.

In 2002, Nelvana gained wide-ranging North and South American, Oceanian, as well as most European, rights to Beyblade. The Beyblade toy was successfully reintroduced in North America by Nelvana, in 2009.

Beywheelz, by the way, are small “battling” tires. I wish I could sell that concept better, but then, Beyblades are small “battling” tops.

Continue reading TV, Eh? Industry Roundup – Beywheelz, CRTC, eOne, NSI Canada →

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Spelling Night in Canada airs April 1 on CBC

From a media release:

ACTION, SPEED AND SPLIT-SECOND DECISIONS UNDER PRESSURE – SPELLING NIGHT IN CANADA RETURNS TO CBC!

  • Twenty-one bright minds compete for the crown of Canada’s best speller Sunday, April 1 at 7 p.m. (7:30 NT)

They’ve worked hard to get here, and they are about to battle against the best of their peers at the biggest competition of the year. This is not the NHL Playoffs, this is Postmedia Canspell 2012: Spelling Night in Canada – a one-hour prime-time event that will celebrate excellence in our young people and keep viewers on the edge of their seats. Spelling Night in Canada airs Sunday, April 1 at 7 p.m. (7:30 NT) on CBC Television.

Open to students from Grade 4 to Grade 8, the 8th annual Postmedia Canspell competition began when a quarter of a million young Canadians took part in school spelling bees in January. From there, 21 finalists from schools across the country are squaring off for Spelling Night in Canada.

CBC Radio host Brent Bambury (Day 6) will join returning host and hockey broadcasting veteran Jim Hughson of CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA along with colour commentary from renowned expert Paul Loeffler (Scripps National Spelling Bee). Spelling Night in Canada takes the spelling bee format to the next level – with a fast-paced game-show style, celebrity hosts and commentators. CBC Books is partnering with Canspell 2012 to provide editorial content for the competitors.

New to this year’s broadcast, the audience will have the chance to play along to find out if they can spell better than an eighth grader. To engage live, viewers can log into their Twitter accounts, listen to the words on television and reply to @SpellingNight with the correct spelling of the word. The person who spells the most words correctly during the course of the broadcast will win a prize. Players will also be able to see how many words they spelled correctly, and how they measure up against the rest of Canada.

Similarly on Facebook, leading up to the Spelling Night in Canada broadcast, over a thousand of the real words that are used in the competition will be released. Users are encouraged to play the Facebook Spelling Game to find out how many words they are able to spell correctly, while challenging friends to compete. Each round will generate a new set of 10 words, so competitors can keep learning and improving as they play.

The winning super-speller will receive a $7,500 education award, courtesy of Egg Farmers of Canada. The second and third place spellers will receive $5,000 and $2,500 respectively, also courtesy EFC. All three top spellers will go to represent Canada and their hometowns internationally at the renowned Scripps Bee in Washington, D.C. in June.

The 8th annual Postmedia Canspell National Spelling Bee Final takes place on Wednesday, March 28 at the Canadian Broadcasting Centre in downtown Toronto where it will be taped in front of a live studio audience. Canadians can witness the edge-of-your-seat competition by tuning into Spelling Night in Canada on April 1 at 7 p.m. (7:30 NT).

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Arctic Air, Ratings

Arctic Air boasts record season for CBC

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From a media release:

ARCTIC AIR’S DEBUT SEASON REACHES RECORD HEIGHTS ON CBC TELEVISION

  • Arctic Air is the most-watched debut season for a CBC drama series in 15 years 

ARCTIC AIR, the blockbuster CBC adventure drama about a Yellowknife-based maverick airline and the extended family of unconventional people who run it, notched record ratings in its first season, with an audience of almost one million viewers along for the ride throughout the show’s 10 action-packed episodes. From its premiere to 1.229 million Canadians on January 10 to the season finale on March 13, an average audience of 965,000 tuned in to ARCTIC AIR, making this the largest audience to follow the first season of a CBC Television drama series in 15 years. The show beat North of 60, the sub-arctic drama (also starring ARCTIC AIR’s Adam Beach) whose first season was a ratings hit 20 years ago, with an average audience of 962,000.

“In an increasingly competitive and fragmented TV landscape, achieving this level of success in 2012 is a huge accomplishment, and a testament to the skill and hard work of ARCTIC AIR’s production team,” said Kirstine Stewart, Executive Vice-President, CBC English Services. “It’s exciting to see so much viewer interest in a drama that’s for, by and about Canadians. Along with the recent success of shows like MR. D, the huge popularity of ARCTIC AIR proves once again that Canadians really do want to watch quality Canadian programs.”

“Canadians make a lot of great television, but we all know that doesn’t always translate into great ratings,” said ARCTIC AIR director-producer Gary Harvey. “To have ARCTIC AIR reach these heights, on the wings of great production values and strong promotion, is a testament to how Canadian shows can succeed when producers and broadcasters get it right.”

ARCTIC AIR features the star power of Adam Beach (Cowboys and Aliens, Flags of our Fathers, Law & Order: SVU), Pascale Hutton (Fringe, Rookie Blue, Sanctuary) and Kevin McNulty (The Killing, End Game, Battle Star Galactica).To catch up on Arctic Air visit cbc.ca/arcticair

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Little Mosque on the Prairie, Podcast

TV, eh? podcast episode 87 – “Too Kitsch for Kitsch”

Zaib Shaikh of Little Mosque Mondays 830 pm on CBC TV HighRes

Diane talks to Little Mosque on the Prairie star Zaib Shaikh about the show’s legacy heading into its final episodes. But first, Anthony and Diane chat about the Canadian TV news of the week:

Episode 87: Listen or download here or subscribe via iTunes or with any other program via the TV, Eh? feed

Your hosts

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Dramas and Comedies, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary, Rick Mercer Report, This Hour Has 22 Minutes

New tonight: Rick Mercer Report, 22 Minutes, Just for Laughs, Saw Dogs

Mulcair and Critch

Rick Mercer Report, CBC
Rick is in Quebec City to check out the annual Crashed Ice Championship Race that is skated at breakneck speeds down winding streets. Then he is at the General Motors Automotive Centre of Excellence in Oshawa, ON. where new cars are tested for safety and durability in all climate conditions.

22 Minutes, CBC
Mark Critch travels to Toronto for the NDP leadership convention and shares a toast with newly-elected leader, Thomas Mulcair, The Queen (Cathy Jones) shows up unannounced in Ottawa looking for her Jubilee party, and we have exclusives from the creator of the “Ultimate Dog Tease” viral YouTube video.

Just For Laughs, CBC – “Modern Love”
A hysterical line-up of comedians with host Eric Stonestreet. The show will explore and tackle every relationship out there. Featuring Bob Marley, Tim Minchin, Debra DiGiovanni, Robert Kelly, Fiona O’Loughlin.

Saw Dogs, OLN – “Masquerave”
A popular hangout in a top ski resort commissions a sensuous sculpture for their annual over-the-top party. The guest carver for the project is Chris Foltz, who is not only an award-winning wood carver, but also an acclaimed ice carver and executive chef. Meanwhile, Steve has embarked a very different project: two nuns from a nearby monastery have asked for a religious themed carving for a new church they are building. The carvers must balance the sacred and the secular, as they deal with tight budgets and short timelines.

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