Tag Archives: T+E

Canada’s paranormal investigators visit world-famous haunts in new T+E series, History’s Most Haunted

From a media release:

Chasing the success of T+E’s original two-part documentary, Haunted Gold Rush, exploring ghostly mysteries along British Columbia’s historic Gold Rush Trail, paranormal investigators Corine Carey, Leanne Sallenback and Kelly Ireland return with History’s Most Haunted (6×60’; HD).

The all-new series follows the trio as they travel across North America meeting with real people who recount their intense, terrifying and emotional paranormal experiences. This time, the women are on a mission to unlock a deeper understanding of the hauntings that take place in the world-famous locations they visit including Montreal, Newfoundland, Salem, New Orleans, Charleston and San Antonio. History’s Most Haunted premieres Friday, September 8 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on T+E during the channel’s nationwide free preview event, running from September 4 to November 5, 2023. New episodes from the series will air every Friday leading into October and T+E’s highly-anticipated ‘Creep Week’ event.

In History’s Most Haunted, Corine, Leanne and Kelly are reaching out and connecting with historical figures, many of whom died through war, criminal sentences, diseases, and natural disasters. Featuring stylized, cinematic dramatizations of eyewitness accounts, coupled with rich context provided by experts, historians and locals, the series shows how paranormal investigations can enrich people’s understanding of history by giving voices to the spirits of those who lived it. Together, the trio will bridge the gap between past and present in a fresh new way.

History’s Most Haunted is produced by Small Army Entertainment. Sean De Vries (The Bachelor Canada, Border Security) and Stephen Sawchuk (Love it or List it Vancouver, Sidney) serve as Executive Producers. The series is directed by Garth Dyke, Michael Bodnarchuk, Sean De Vries and Stephen Sawchuk. Overseen by Sam Linton, VP, Production and Development, Global Media on behalf of Blue Ant Media. Blue Ant International oversees global distribution.

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Blue Ant Media ‘Makes it Right’ with its latest original slate for 2024, featuring Holmes on Homes: Building a Legacy

From a media release:

Announced today at Banff World Media Festival, international producer, distributor and channel operator, Blue Ant Media, announced its 2024 original slate for its Canadian specialty TV and global FAST offerings. The slate includes the brand new commission Holmes on Homes: Building a Legacy, featuring the original home renovation pioneer and TV personality, Mike Holmes, in a reboot of his original franchise, this time joined by his son Michael and daughter Sherry. The series will premiere on Cottage Life in Canada and also air on free streaming channel Homeful globally. Also starring on the slate is the new greenlight A Secret to Die For, commissioned for T+E and Total Crime, and Intervention Canada (Season 6), in partnership with A+E Networks, for Makeful. Rounding out the lineup are the two hit returning series, Haunted Hospitals and Mysteries from Above.

Blue Ant Media’s slate is overseen by Sam Linton, VP, Production and Development, Global Media. Blue Ant International will handle pre-sales and licensing opportunities worldwide for several of the original series in the slate.

“Our latest slate delivers on Blue Ant Media’s commitment to commission universally relevant and compelling original series for our Canadian speciality TV and global free streaming channels. Our new original series with Mike Holmes is a great example of home reno programming that will resonate with the extensive fanbase Mike has grown over the last 20 years,” says Carlyn Staudt, Head of Commissioning, Global Media, Blue Ant Media. “Banff is the perfect backdrop to announce these new projects, as we take great pride in working with our production partners to bring premium content to global audiences.”

Cottage Life/Homeful
Holmes on Homes: Building a Legacy (6×60’; HD)
Producer: The Holmes Group
World broadcast premiere scheduled for Cottage Life in spring 2024 during free preview. Series will also become available on Homeful in the US in 2024

After a lifetime of helping homeowners in need, Mike Holmes still has some unfinished business. Blue Ant’s new highly-anticipated original series will see Mike go back to his roots, alongside his son and daughter Michael and Sherry, to secure his legacy of ‘making it right’ in Holmes on Homes: Building a Legacy (6×60’; HD). From renovations gone wrong by crooked or incompetent contractors to worthy homeowners in need of a life changing renovation, each hour-long episode sees the Holmes trio roll up their sleeves and continue the work that cemented Mike as a household name across North America. Blue Ant International handles pre-sales and licensing opportunities worldwide.

Cottage Life
Mysteries from Above, Season 3 (8×60’; HD)
Producer: Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media company

World broadcast premiere is scheduled for spring 2024 on Cottage Life in Canada during the channel’s nationwide free preview.

Renewed for a third installment is Cottage Life’s popular original series, Mysteries from Above. The series takes to the skies to unlock Earth’s greatest mysteries and dramatically change how we see the world. From the vantage points of drones, satellites, and aerial photography, the series explores unique buildings and structures — both natural and man-made, curious creatures and lost ancient civilizations, revealing fascinating insights and never-before-seen footage to the viewers. Mysteries from Above, Season 1 was one of spring 2022’s top 10 primetime series with total viewers, as well as Cottage Life’s core demographic of adults 25-54 and women 25-54. Season 2 is currently airing on Cottage Life. Blue Ant International handles pre-sales and licensing opportunities worldwide.

T+E/HauntTV
Haunted Hospitals, Season 5 (8×60’; HD)
Producer: Sphere Media

World broadcast premiere scheduled for spring 2024 on T+E in Canada during the channel’s nationwide free preview

Scheduled to air on HauntTV in the US, UK and Australia in 2024

Fan-favourite paranormal series Haunted Hospitals is back for a fifth season, recounting the chilling stories of paranormal activity inside hospitals and medical facilities. In each episode, nurses, health care workers and hospital support staff give first-hand accounts of the supernatural encounters. As these personal testimonies unfold, the mysteries behind the troubled souls and hauntings reveal a terrifying reckoning. Season 5 of Haunted Hospitals follows the success from Season 4, which ranked as one of fall 2022’s top 10 primetime series on T+E and outpaced the primetime average with total viewers. Blue Ant International handles pre-sales and licensing opportunities (for Season 5) worldwide.

T+E/Total Crime
A Secret to Die For (10×60’; HD)
Producer: Blue Ant Studios

World broadcast premiere scheduled for fall 2024 on T+E in Canada

Scheduled to rollout on Total Crime in the US at a later date

The series investigates how a person’s secret life can end up costing them their own. A Secret to Die For peels back the layers of the victim’s seemingly happy life to reveal new, dark secrets that family and friends would never have believed. As the missing pieces of the victim’s life come together, new interviewees offer an entirely fresh perspective, concluding with the dramatic revelation of a secret explaining why the victim was killed and identifying the murderer. Blue Ant International handles pre-sales and licensing opportunities worldwide.

Makeful
Intervention Canada, Season 6
Producers: Open Door Co./Insight Productions

Canadian broadcast premiere scheduled for winter 2024 on Makeful in Canada

Blue Ant Media has partnered with A+E Networks to greenlight the sixth season of Intervention Canada, a one-hour documentary series from Open Door Co. and Insight Productions. Based on the critically acclaimed A&E Network series, Intervention, the Canadian format provides an unflinching glimpse at addiction from all sides – including the addict as well as the dreadful toll the addiction takes on their families and friends. Each episode culminates in a dramatic intervention led by a prominent interventionist in which the addicts featured must decide whether or not to accept an offer for a clear path to recovery in one of Canada’s top addiction treatment facilities.

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Blue Ant Media unveils new greenlights for its Canadian TV platforms

From a media release:

Blue Ant Media announced today three new greenlights and one renewal set to air across its homegrown Canadian specialty TV platforms: Cottage Life, T+E and Love Nature. The new wave of greenlights reinforces Blue Ant Media’s ongoing commitment to creating premium, engaging content with global reach and scale. Overseen by Sam Linton, VP, Head of Original Content, Canadian Media, Blue Ant Media, the originals lineup includes a mix of world broadcast and Canadian premieres with all four series available for licensing globally by Blue Ant International.

Love Nature’s commitment to creating emotional connections between its audience and the natural world is realized once again through its latest original series, Cub Camp (World Broadcast Premiere), which introduces passionate animal lovers to the orphaned cubs at Black Bear Rescue Manitoba. Produced by Merit Motion Pictures, the six-part series offers audiences the unique opportunity to follow adorable orphaned black bear cubs, from the moment they’re rescued to the day they’re released into the wild. Cub Camp is a Love Nature global commission slated to air in Canada and roll out worldwide on Love Nature’s branded linear and streaming platforms. Filming begins spring/summer 2023.

The second greenlight is American Doomsday (wt) (Canadian Broadcast Premiere), slated to air on Cottage Life alongside an existing roster of successful extreme weather and survival series. The new three-part documentary series examines Mother Nature’s sheer power of destruction in an in-depth analysis on weather phenomena and natural forces and its effects on humans and the geology of our planet. Renewed for Cottage Life is the hit original investigative series, Mysteries from Above (Season 2; World Broadcast Premiere) which will land on the channel in summer 2023. The second installment comes off the back of Season 1’s success, which currently sits as the #1-rated new series on Cottage Life this year. The series captures breathtaking, aerial footage from modern sites to remote and untouched locations across the globe, revealing fascinating insights and never-before-seen footage to the viewers.

Finally, on T+E, Canada’s home to paranormal programming, Blue Ant Media has greenlit the original series Haunted Lost and Found (wt)(World Broadcast Premiere), a treaty co-production between Singaporean producers Beach House Pictures, Momo Film Co. and Vancouver-based De Vries Production. The new six-part series features first-hand accounts from unlucky individuals who purchased, found or were gifted an item, only to discover their newfound possessions were haunted or cursed. Each episode features three mysterious and chilling stories, ranging from items found on the dark web to those discovered in dark alleys.

For a full list of original programming highlights, please see below.

LOVE NATURE

Cub Camp (6×60’; HD)
World Broadcast Premiere
Producer: Merit Motion Pictures
Cub Camp gives viewers an inside look at the Black Bear Rescue Manitoba rehabilitation program, a unique centre that rescues and rehabilitates black bear cubs left orphaned as a result of losing their mothers due to human encroachment on their territories and natural disasters. The cameras follow adorable orphaned cubs, from the moment they’re rescued to the day they’re big enough to be released back into the wild. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

COTTAGE LIFE

American Doomsday (wt) (3×90’; HD)
Scheduled for spring 2023 • Canadian Broadcast Premiere
Producer: Wildflame/Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media company
A three-part documentary series that looks at how the epic rise of super weather phenomena and natural forces and how it could devastate those living in New York, Miami and the entire west coast. The series provides fascinating insights and grave predictions, which include New York City underwater by 2050, the entire city of Miami sinking into the sea, and a mega-earthquake poised to hit the west coast from California to Canada. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

Mysteries from Above, Season 2 (8×60’; HD)
Scheduled for summer 2023 • World Broadcast Premiere
Producer: Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media company
Mysteries from Above takes to the skies to offer Canadian audiences a chance to see the world from fresh and exhilarating perspectives. The series explores remote, hard-to-reach locations as drones explore strange geological occurrences, unique man-made structures, curious creatures and lost civilizations, revealing fascinating insights and never-before-seen footage to the viewers. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

T+E

Haunted Lost and Found (wt) (6×60’; HD)
Scheduled for spring 2023 • World Broadcast Premiere
Producers: Beach House Pictures, a Blue Ant Media company, Momo Film Co. and De Vries Production
Haunted Lost and Found explores what happens when a found, purchased or gifted object brings terror into the lives of those who acquired it accidentally without knowing its sinister past. The six-part documentary series features first-hand accounts and dramatic reenactments of those whose lives took a horrific turn as a result of their newfound possessions being haunted or cursed. Each hour-long episode features three chilling stories ranging from items found on the dark web to those discovered in dark alleys. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

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Blue Ant Media greenlights two new original productions and orders four renewals for its Canadian TV platforms

From a media release:

Producer, distributor and channel operator Blue Ant Media announced today from Prime Time two new greenlights and four renewals set to debut in 2022 and 2023 across its Canadian specialty TV platforms: Cottage Life, T+E and Love Nature. The new additions reinforce Blue Ant Media’s commitment to create compelling, diverse and scalable series that offer a unique voice and perspective. Overseen by Sam Linton, VP, Head of Original Content, Canadian Media, Blue Ant Media, the originals lineup includes a mix of Canadian and world broadcast premieres with several series available for licensing globally by Blue Ant International.

To mark Cottage Life’s 35th anniversary this year, Blue Ant Media has greenlit the new documentary special Loons: A Cry from the Mist (wt)(World Broadcast Premiere), which chronicles a year in the life of the common loon. The beloved Canadian bird, synonymous with cottage country, has been the long-standing icon for the Cottage Life brand. Returning to Cottage Life is Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet (Season 2), a Blue Ant and APTN co-production that has been renewed for a second season. The series profiles rural Alberta-based veterinarian Dr. Savannah Howse-Smith as she rescues and rehabilitates animals while also exploring her newly-discovered Métis heritage.

On T+E, Canada’s home to paranormal programming, the horror anthology series Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost Ruined My Life (Season 2; Canadian Broadcast Premiere) has been renewed for a second season. Executive produced by the award-winning film director, producer, writer and actor Eli Roth (Inglourious Basterds, Hostel, The Last Exorcism) and Cream Productions, the Blue Ant Media and discovery+ co-production debuted to much success on T+E last October. To keep up with the paranormal demand, T+E’s original hit series, Haunted Hospitals (Season 4; Canadian Broadcast Premiere), returns for a fourth installment this fall 2022. The hit franchise saw Season 3 wrap as a top 10 primetime series on T+E. Finally, the all-new T+E eight-part docu-series Mission: Unexplained (Season 1; Canadian Broadcast Premiere) follows military veterans as they share the terrifying, unexplained events they witnessed on the front lines. The greenlight is part of the Blue Ant Media and Content Catalyst Fund (CCF) joint venture that backs women-led creatives in unscripted content, from development to production and distribution, for the Canadian and global marketplaces.

Returning to Love Nature, the 12-part documentary series Battle of the Alphas (Season 2; Canadian Broadcast Premiere) offers audiences an in-depth look at animal conflict, competition and the battle for supremacy. Season 2 of Battle of the Alphas is a Love Nature global commission, slated to air in Canada and roll out worldwide on Love Nature’s branded linear and streaming platforms in 2023.

Alongside the new original commissions, Blue Ant Media announced from Prime Time two current projects in development for Blue Ant Media’s Canadian broadcast channels, with the potential for licensing both series to other content companies via Blue Ant International. The projects, Haunted Goldrush (working title) and Expedition Great White, are unscripted, original documentaries that span the paranormal, wildlife and nature genres. Haunted Goldrush, executive produced by Sean De Vries, follows paranormal investigators Corine Carey, Leanne Sallenback and Kelly Ireland as they make their way up British Columbia’s historic and mysterious Gold Rush Trail. The route which runs through the famed Fraser Canyon up to the gold rush town of Barkerville was a bustling, wild and often violent place in the 1800s. But as soon as the gold was gone, so were the people. However, many locals believe some never left. On the east coast, Expedition Great White examines the dramatic rise of great white sharks spotted in Nova Scotia waters during the fall and summer months. The documentary is produced by Edward Peill, Tell Tale Productions (The Curse of Oak Island) and Ken MacDonald, former Vice President and General Manager for Discovery Channel in Canada. Overseen by Sam Linton, both development projects underpin Blue Ant Media’s commitment to work with regional producers across Canada and invest in high-quality, distinctive programming that resonate with audiences coast to coast.

For a full list of original programming highlights, please see below.

COTTAGE LIFE

Loons: A Cry from the Mist (wt) (1×60’; HD)
Scheduled for fall 2022 • World Broadcast Premiere
Producer: Yap Films
Loons: A Cry from the Mist (wt) chronicles a year in the life of Canada’s iconic bird, the common loon. Through the lens of cottagers, citizen scientists and bird experts, the documentary special examines the perils impacting the loon population—from global warming to boat traffic and big wakes disturbing their habitat. The special spotlights how Canada’s beloved loon is under threat. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

Dr. Savannah: Wild Rose Vet, Season 2 (13×30’; HD)
Scheduled for spring 2023
A Blue Ant Media and APTN Co-production • Producer: Wapanatahk Media in partnership with Great Pacific Media
The series picks right back up at Alberta’s Rocky Rapids Veterinary Service, where mixed animal practitioner, Dr. Savannah Howse-Smith, rescues and rehabilitates a wide range of household pets and exotic wildlife. Dr. Savannah oversees new animal emergencies everyday at work, while also trying to learn more about her recently-discovered Métis heritage in her personal life.

T+E

Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost Ruined My Life, Season 2 (8×60’; HD)
Scheduled for fall 2022 • Canadian Broadcast Premiere
A Blue Ant Media and discovery+ Co-production • Producer: Cream Productions
Executive produced by award-winning film director, producer, writer and actor Eli Roth, the original horror anthology series unveils shocking stories of real-life hauntings that have left emotional (and sometimes physical) scars on those unlucky enough to have experienced them. Horrific and evocative, each hour-long episode exposes viewers to the stories of survivors who have been dragged through hell and back and now struggle to rebuild their shattered lives.

Haunted Hospitals, Season 4 (10×60’; HD)
Scheduled for fall 2022 • Canadian Broadcast Premiere
Producer: BGM Inc., a Sphere Media company
Haunted Hospitals recounts the chilling stories of paranormal activity inside hospitals, nursing homes and morgues. In each episode, nurses, medical support workers and patients give first-hand accounts of the supernatural, such as deceased patients who return from the grave, ghost children who stalk medical staff and territorial spirits who lay claim to hospital hallways. As these personal testimonies unfold, the mysteries behind the troubled souls and hauntings become more alive than ever.

Mission: Unexplained, Season 1 (8×60’; HD)
Scheduled for spring 2023 • Canadian Broadcast Premiere
Blue Ant Media and Content Catalyst Fund (CCF) joint venture • Producer: Blue Ant Studios
Mission: Unexplained follows military veterans as they share the terrifying, unexplained events they witnessed on the front lines. From mystifying lights to vanishing civilians, frightful apparitions to mechanical mysteries and more, the series gives audiences a front row seat to the action as veterans recount their harrowing experiences. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

LOVE NATURE

Battle of the Alphas, Season 2 (12×30’; HD)
Scheduled for 2023 • Canadian Broadcast Premiere
Producer: Yap Films
The battle of the alphas happens across the planet every day: babies compete for their mother’s milk, adolescents play-fight and adults become aggressive when their leadership is challenged or when they’re in search of a mate. From friendly competition to territorial battles, the all new season delves into the science behind animal conflict. Distributed by Blue Ant International.

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T+E’s Bathsheba: Search for Evil serves up a history lesson with its scares

Anyone who visits this site already knows I love paranormal programming. I’m especially fond of the series that delves into the true tales behind the spookiness, marrying fact with what some regard as myth.

T+E has knocked out out of the park with scary series before, but the two-part documentary Bathsheba: Search for Evil, debuting Monday on the specialty channel, has reached another level.

Airing as part of its “Creep Week,” event programming, Bathsheba explores the true story behind The Conjuring. The 2013 feature film, starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as demonologists Lorraine and Ed Warren, was a box office smash. Now, Bathsheba pulls back the curtain on the Perron family—and the house—at the centre of the story. The entire Perron family was terrorized by an evil paranormal presence, a 19th-century ghost believed by many to be a witch named Bathsheba Sherman, who allegedly haunted generations of families that had taken residence within her remote grounds. Anchored by first-hand accounts from the living Perron family members and paranormal investigator Erin Goodpipe (APTN’s The Other Side), Bathsheba separates fact from fiction, with disturbing results.

“The original camera operator had nightmares for several days and quit the project,” series producer and director Sunny Grewal says. “They had done the first batch of interviews and were supposed to visit and film on-site, and they basically said, ‘Sorry, not sorry.'” The interviews are pretty intense stuff. Regardless of whether you personally believe in ghosts, hauntings and the paranormal, something happened to the Perron family in what was named the Old Arnold Estate.

Investigator Erin Goodpipe

The odd stuff isn’t contained to behind-the-scenes either. In Monday’s premiere, something happens behind Goodpipe that is, luckily, captured on camera. There was, Grewal says, no explanation for the occurrence.

Aside from intimate interviews with members of the Perron family—sisters Cindy, Christine, Andrea, Nancy and father Roger all participate— and current homeowners Cory and Jennifer Heinzen, Bathsheba gets to the heart of the woman the documentary is named after.

Bathsheba Sherman, born in 1812, was a farm wife, but rumours swirled. Myths claimed she was malicious. Townspeople hated her, believing she killed a baby with a sewing needle and sacrificed it to the devil in exchange for eternal youth and beauty. Bathsheba attempts to get the facts right, and credit goes to Grewal and her team for being respectful in their storytelling of the living and the dead.

“One of the things I am most happy about is, it’s essentially a very female story, between [the late] Carolyn [Perron] and the sisters and then Bathsheba herself,” Grewal says. “Bathsheba was a real person, who has been collateral damage in some respects.”

Bathsheba: Search for Evil airs Monday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on T+E.

Images courtesy of Blue Ant Media.

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