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TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
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In the news: The Pillars of the Earth reviews and interviews

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I can’t keep up with all the Pillars of the Earth press today so I’m trying to catch only the Canadian media:

From Bill Brownstein of the Montreal Gazette:

  • Buckle up for 12th-century roller coaster
    “The Pillars of the Earth is so scrambled that many may require architectural blueprints and a map to figure out who’s who and why most seem to want to lop the heads off of the others.” Read more.

From Bill Brioux of TV Feeds My Family:

  • Pillars of The Earth: Swords, Sandals and Sex
    “More than 30 years after Roots, there’s plenty of rooting and rutting in aptly named Pillars. It’s happening up against walls, in Sherwood forest, where ever. Don’t be fooled by ads showing old pros Donald Sutherland, Gordon Pinsent and Ian McShane as the bearded stars of this $50 million miniseries. They’re all there, and excellent as usual. Much of the story, however, centres around Tom Builder, played by terrific Rufus Sewell.” Read more.

From Larissa Liepins of Postmedia News:

  • ‘You don’t retire in our business’
    “Playing the Archbishop of Canterbury is veteran actor Gordon Pinsent, one of two Canadian stars (the other is Donald Sutherland) who round out the talented cast. Pinsent recently spoke about the experience from Toronto.” Read more.

From CBC:

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A day in the life of TV, eh? at Wipeout Canada auditions

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Crushing Dreams At Wipeout Canada Auditions

By Diane Wild

There was a swordfight. An ex-BC Lions player. A male model. A female wrestler. An Olympic medalist. A guy in diapers. Some nervousness. And a LOT of giant egos and tight Spandex.

Thursday, I was invited to be one of the guest judges at the Vancouver audition callbacks for Wipeout Canada. I’d never want to be a contestant, but crushing potential contestants’ dreams as a judge sounded like the perfect kind of fun for me.

With 44,000 applications received, the producers had already narrowed the field. Our job was to shortlist the short list. We had to suss out what kind of character the contestant would play on Wipeout, what their shout-out at the top of the course would be, their victory dance, and what they’d do with the $50,000 they’d get as winner (“Hookers and blow” said one woman. “Bigger boobs” said an already big-fake-breasted beauty queen.)

The dirty little “secret”, of course, is that contestants aren’t chosen just for whether they have a shot at winning. We were looking for personality, people who could provide drama, or fodder for ridicule, or who represented a type like normal guy, wacky grandma, etc. Some of those who walked away from our table seemed to think they’d failed, but some had failed in a way that guaranteed a callback. Some seemed sure they’d be selected, but it took more than being a freak to stand out. You had to be an entertaining freak. (Tip: when you’re auditioning and someone asks you what your victory dance would be? DO THE DANCE. Don’t talk us through it.)

My dream of crushing dreams was crushed when I discovered we weren’t making decisions in front of the contestants that day. We discussed our yes or no vote after each one, but producers will sort through the entire results to determine who to call back – so some of our yeses might not make the cut if we have too many goofy young guys (and believe me: we do) and some of our nos might get called if we don’t have enough goofy old guys. So: my lips are sealed. And this was a one-time gig for me — bribery will get you nowhere.

The Sidhucer

The Black Noodle
Wipeout 001
Guest judges Drew Savage of Virgin Radio (left) and Mike Shaeffer of QMFM
Wipeout 006
Shaeffer, co-host Ennis Esmer (The Listener), Savage, and me
Wipeout 008
Canwest PR gurus Jessica Gold (left) and Adrienne Kakoullis
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New tonight: The Pillars of the Earth on TMN/Movie Central – season premiere

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THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH (CANADIAN ORIGINAL MINISERIES)

Premieres Friday, July 23 at 9 p.m. (day-and-date with Starz in the U.S.)

Based on Ken Follett’s bestselling masterpiece, this eight-hour television event tells the fictional tale of the rising of a magnificent cathedral in Kingsbridge, England. Set against a backdrop of war, religious conflict, power struggles and human drama, Follett weaves love-stories and clashes between heroes and villains to masterfully depict the political turmoil of 12th century England. Executive produced by Tom and Ridley Scott and directed by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan, and starring Ian McShane, Donald Sutherland, Rufus Sewell, Matthew Macfadyen, Hayley Atwell, Eddie Redmayne, Gordon Pinsent, and Alison Pill.

PROGRAMMING NOTE: On Monday, July 26, the two-hour special will repeat at 9 p.m., the miniseries’ regular timeslot. For the following four weeks, new one-hour episodes will premiere Monday nights at 9 p.m., and the miniseries will conclude with a special two-hour finale on Monday, August 30 at 9 p.m.

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Degrassi

In the news: Ben Lewis of Degrassi

From the TV Addict:

  • Spotlight on Ben Lewis: DEGRASSI’s Latest Bad Boy
    “Lucky for this TV Addict, Bobby’s portrayer, Ben Lewis, is nothing like the abusive boyfriend he plays on the wildly-addictive teen sudser. In fact, it turns out he’s a downright nice guy who was thrilled — and maybe even a little surprised — to finally land a role on the show that has become something of a right of passage for young Canadian thespians.” Read more.
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