Tag Archives: CTV

Seeing red on MasterChef Canada

After taking over Claudio’s Origin in Season 1 and Michael’s Canoe in Season 2, it was Alvin’s turn to hand the keys to his restaurant to the Top 6 during Sunday’s instalment. The episode title, “Demon at the Pass,” certainly lived up to its name as Chef Leung barked orders to the Red and Blue teams as they cooked at Toronto’s R&D restaurant, launched by Season 1 winner Eric Chong (Rebel) and Leung (Demon).

And by the end of the episode, it was Dr. Shawn who surrendered his apron (and signature ball cap) and exited the competition. But back to the Restaurant Takeover for a second, where the Demon Chef lived up to his name by barking orders and refusing to mince words when plates delivered by the Red and Blue teams weren’t up to par. I felt badly for the Top 6, who not only had to learn and execute complex Asian dishes but served them to former MasterChef Canada competitors. Mary’s Red team of Veronica and April Lee gutted it out against Jeremy’s Blue squad of Matthew and Shawn and everything appeared to be evenly matched … until a second plate of wonky chow mein was sent back to the Blue kitchen. That spelled their defeat and sent the men to the Pressure Test.

Kudos to MasterChef Canada‘s producers for coming up with increasingly difficult challenges for the home cooks; making a Charlotte cake in just one hour seemed impossible and created some especially tense moments as Matthew’s glaze bled down the sides of his cake and Shawn’s lady fingers were chunky and child-like. The former edged out the latter when it came to taste, however, eliminating the good doctor from the competition.

MasterChef Canada airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET on CTV.

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Canada AM’s Jeff Hutcheson announces retirement

It’s the end of the road for Jeff Hutcheson. The longtime sports reporter, weather guru and Canada AM co-host announced during Friday’s broadcast that he is retiring following one final remote tour across the country.

Canada AM followed up Hutcheson’s on-air reveal with the following Facebook post:

“This morning, Jeff shared the news that he is retiring next month. Of course, we’ve been heartbroken since he told us his decision last June… but his wife is thrilled. Since they met twelve years ago, Jeff and Heather have spent 2,600 nights apart, with his work in Toronto and her work and life in PEI. As we get ready to say farewell, Jeff is heading out on one last Canadian tour, visiting some of his favourite places and remembering some of his favourite moments. If you’re near Niagara-on-the-Lake next Wednesday, May 11th, please come out and join us. If you have any retirement messages or advice for Jeff, you can share it with us here, or email us at canadaam@ctv.ca”

“I am humbled and overwhelmed by all your well wishes…thank you very much,” Hutcheson posted on his Twitter page soon after. “Looking forward to my last six weeks..it’s been my pleasure.”

Hutcheson has been with Canada AM since 1998, and has created several trademark segments for the show, including remote broadcast tours that have taken him to points in Canada and around the world and “Things I Learned on the Internet Today.” He began his broadcast career in 1976 as a college student on Toronto’s CFRB 1010 radio before being hired by Kitchener, Ont.’s CKCO-TV after graduating. The next two decades were spent at CKCO-TV as a sports anchor, reporter, producer, writer and program host before making his final move to Canada AM.

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Astronaut Chris Hadfield blasts on to MasterChef Canada

The devil is, as they say, in the details. And, on a night when the home cooks were flying high after a visit from Colonel Chris Hadfield, it was Terry who came crashing down to earth and exited MasterChef Canada.

Terry was humble in his defeat, admitting fault after he and Shawn mixed up the filling in one hors d’oeuvre, and tearfully said goodbye. It was unfortunate to see Terry eliminated that way because it was a plating issue rather than one of taste. And Terry’s elimination was another instance of a plan backfiring on the contestant who set it up. Matthew stunned everyone (including himself, I think) by winning the Mystery Box challenge after Col. Hadfield and the resident judges deemed his smoked salmon parfait to be the best of the bunch constructed of space age ingredients. Matthew, who was awarded immunity for the week, paired up his competitors, putting Jeremy with Mary to slow her down and Shawn with Terry to help them out. Instead, Jeremy and Mary won the tag team and the other two faltered.

I must say it was pretty cool to see Col. Hadfield appear in Sunday’s new episode “Out of this World.” Not merely there for his star power, Hadfield helped taste and judge the plates and interacted with the home cooks while offering insight into how meals are prepared in space: a needle injects lukewarm or hot water into the plastic packets to rehydrate the contents.

As for the Elimination Challenge, I was impressed the home cooks were able to plate all 15 bites, let alone anything that would taste good. There were miscues when it came to mirroring the example set out by the judges, but nothing major. At least, not until the wrong filling was put in Terry and Shawn’s coronets. Now, with just six homes cooks remaining, it really is anyone’s season to win now that Terry is not longer in the hunt.

Next week, Mary and Jeremy are team captains for a Restaurant Takeover that, if evidenced by Alvin’s yelling, is tough for everyone.

MasterChef Canada airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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Remedy’s Sara Canning guests on Motive

It’s hard to believe Motive‘s final ride is almost over. Yet Tuesday’s new instalment, “Interference,” represents Episode 6 out of 13. It’s been a pretty wild ride so far, with the stops pulled out on stories and great work done by the regular cast and guests appearing. Tonight’s episode is no different; read on for some non-spoiler teases.

Sara Canning alert!
Fans of the cancelled-way-too-soon Remedy get their fix of Sara Canning, who guest-stars as Tracy, a suburban mom who is dispatched in a most memorable—and gruesome—way. She’s not your typical victim either….

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Walking Dead guest star alert!
I was wracking my brain trying to figure out where I’d seen Alicia Witt recently when it dawned on me: she played Paula on The Walking Dead. Anyway, she’s Cindy, tagged as the murderer in “Interference,” and her story takes a turn involving Tracy’s son, Owen. Witt brings a lot of humanity to Cindy and by the time you learn her backstory, you can’t help but feel badly for her.

Lucas goes over a line
Good guy Lucas is always by the book—he even ended a budding relationship because the woman was a murder witness—and he definitely crosses a line on Tuesday. His heart is in the right place, but it’s the wrong move nonetheless.

Mazur confides in Angie
Something has been going on with Paula Mazur for the past couple of weeks—whispered phone calls and rushing to change the subject—but all becomes clear … and complicates matters for everyone.

Shout out to Vij’s
There is a nice mention of Vikram Vij’s iconic Vancouver restaurant. Now I want to have dinner there. Or at the very least the bacon doughnut Angie was eating.

Motive airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on CTV.

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Link: Saving Hope writers sign LGBTQ fan pledge

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Saving Hope writers sign LGBTQ fan pledge
“Some friends and I got together to discuss the controversy surrounding Lexa’s death on The 100, and the pile up of queer female TV character deaths that followed close after. Michelle Mama who’s a writer, producer, director, as well as a queer activist, introduced me and Sonia Hosko (Saving Hope producer) to Gina Tass who’s a behavioural therapist who works a lot with youth. Gina was paying very close attention to what young fans were saying online, and was aware that some of them were upset and self-harming.” Continue reading. 

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