From a media release:
Today, AMI unveiled new and returning original series on AMI-tv and AMI+ to entertain and inform Canadians of all abilities in the coming months.
It all kicks off with The Kelly & Ramya Prime Time Special, which celebrates AMI’s long-running daily program. Additional new programming includes One More Time, starring stand-up comedian D.J. Demers; All-Access Comedy, hosted by D.J. Demers and featuring Canadian stand-up comedians from the disability community; and Season 1 and 2 of Push, which takes audiences into the inner world of the “Wheelie Peeps,” an unlikely group of friends and wheelchair users.
Returning programming includes Season 3 of Mind Your Own Business, where entrepreneurs in the disability community aim to take their businesses to the next level; and Season 4 of Dish with Mary, which finds home cook Mary Mammoliti, who is partially sighted, travelling across Canada where she chats with, and cooks alongside, this country’s hottest chefs.
December
The Kelly & Ramya Prime Time Special debuts Friday, December 29, at 8 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv, AMI-audio and on AMI+
Filmed before a live audience at The Great Hall in Toronto, The Kelly & Ramya Prime Time Special celebrates AMI’s landmark daily program with special guests, live music from The Lucas Haneman Express, a stand-up performance from Dan Barra-Berger and, of course, hosts Kelly MacDonald and Ramya Amuthan. The Kelly & Ramya Prime Time Special is produced by Apple Orchard Productions.
January
Mind Your Own Business returns Wednesday, January 3, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+
Hosted by Kevin Shaw and with the help of mentors, entrepreneurs in the disability community aim to take their businesses to the next level. Businesses featured in Season 3 include Liberty Co consultants, Glass Brothers Construction Inc., Friendly Roads Mobility Service and Country Fields Beekeeping Supplies. Mind Your Own Business is produced by Apple Orchard Productions.
Dish with Mary returns Thursday, January 4, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+
An all-new season of Dish with Mary finds home cook Mary Mammoliti, who is partially sighted, travelling across Canada where she chats with, and cooks alongside, this country’s hottest chefs. Among the chefs and locations Mary visits in Season 4 include Chef Sterling Marsh in Kamloops, B.C., Chef Marylyn Tan in Montreal, and Chef Jordanne Tait in in Saint John. Dish with Mary is produced by Frank Digital.
One More Time debuts Tuesday, January 9, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+
From creator and standup comedian D.J. Demers (The Tonight Show, Conan) and showrunner Jessie Gabe (Workin’ Moms, Mr. D), One More Time is a workplace comedy about a fictionalized and heightened version of D.J. (played by Demers) as the manager, who is hard of hearing, of a second-hand sporting goods store, and the team of “hard-working” employees he leads. D.J.’s optimistic, community-oriented outlook on life is challenged at every turn as he and his team struggle to keep the small independent shop alive. One More Time is a CBC original comedy series produced by Counterfeit Pictures in partnership with AMI.
Push, Season 1, debuts Monday, January 15, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv
Push is a CBC original unscripted series that takes audiences into the inner world of the “Wheelie Peeps,” an unlikely group of friends and wheelchair users, bonded by their shared experience of navigating life on wheels. They are former exotic dancers, mothers, concert pianists, self-proclaimed “rednecks” and more. Whether it’s growing a family, fighting social stigma, or jumping back into the dating pool, this determined group of friends is working together to prove that even though their mobility may be limited, their lives and dreams are most certainly not. Season 1 of Push is produced by Fenix Film & Television and Small Army Entertainment in partnership with CBC.
February
All-Access Comedy debuts Friday, February 9, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+
All-Access Comedy is a stand-up special like no other, with comedians from the disability community coming together to celebrate their unique outlook on life for a packed audience of all abilities delivered in a venue with technology making it inclusive for all. Hosted by D.J. Demers, this one-hour special features performances by Courtney Gilmour, Tanyalee Davis, Ahren Belisle and Ryan Lachance. All-Access Comedy is produced by Halifax Comedy Fest and Premiere Entertainment Group.
March
Push, Season 2, returns Monday, March 18, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+
Pulling back the veil on life as a wheelchair user, Push once again takes audiences into the inner world of the “Wheelie Peeps,” an unlikely group of friends bonded by their shared experience of life on wheels. From the logistics and stigmas of sex with a fellow wheelchair user, to navigating new motherhood as a “quad mom”, to facing the people and places who knew them pre-injury, Season 2 has the peeps confronting their past, facing their demons and supporting new members of the group through the early days of wheelchair life. Season 2 of Push is produced by Fenix Film & Television and Small Army Entertainment in partnership with CBC and AMI.
