From Sadaf Ahsan of The National Post:
Love It Or List It sued by North Carolina couple for leaving their home ‘irreparably damaged’
Love it Or List It or lawsuit are the options today for the HGTV home renovation series that is finding itself in the middle of a legal battle with a North Carolina couple who claim the show left their house in shambles after a supposed makeover. Continue reading.Â
The home renovation show with the best twist on a TV title ever returns with one of the biggest prizes in Canadian TV. Season 2 of Game of Homes is back Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET/PT on W Network with resident judges Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan, host Dave Salmoni and four pairs of two looking to score one heck of a grand prize: a house, furniture inside the house and a plot of land to put it on.
Where Season 1 had the backdrop of Vancouver, the sophomore go-round is based just outside of Toronto, and eight weeks of toil turns into triumph for two people. Will it be Kim and Harry, who want to win the house for financial freedom and a chance to spend more time with their kids? Maybe best friends Domenic and Michael, hoping to move out of their parents’ home. There is also engaged couple Courtney and Tyler; and mother and son duo Shelley and Alex, looking to win the house to secure financial stability for Alex’s future. Regardless of who wins, the road is a bumpy one.
“When things happen and they realize, ‘Holy shit, I could win a house,’ that’s one reality,” says Salmoni during a break in filming. “Then there’s the reality of the first time they don’t enjoy being part of a TV show. ‘I’m having a first AD scream at me?’ ‘I have to do that again?’ There are a lot of things you don’t consider when you sign on to do a design show.” Salmoni, an animal trainer and host of such nature series as Rogue Nature and Into the Pride and heading up Mark Burnett’s adventure series Expedition Impossible, dispenses tough love to the competitors, who are challenged to renovate a room at a time in the run-down abodes they’ve chosen. At the end of each episode, McAllister, Ryan, a guest judge weigh in on whose room looks the best.
“Colin and I are very practical and there can only be one winner,” Ryan says. “But to get there, there is a big emotional journey. We have connected with the contestants, but we have to keep that barrier alive where we can be critical without offending.”
“I want them all to win, but I’m there for the rules,” Salmoni explains. “If you tell me you’re tired? Tough, this is what you signed on for. If you received some comments from the judges that you didn’t like? Tough, do better next time.” There’s a lot of that attitude—both from the judges and contestants—in Episode 1. The dazzle of being part of a television show quickly fades when hours stretch into days, ingenious ideas crumble and tempers flare. McAllister, Ryan and guest judge Todd Talbot pull no punches in their criticisms of the living room renovations and leads to bruised egos.
“The stress of it is expected for a show like this,” Salmoni says. “What I didn’t expect was the weather. It’s getting cold and there’s no heat in the houses. They’ve been struggling.” Luckily, the grand prize is worth it.
Game of Homes airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on W Network.
From a media release:
W Network puts a new twist on the internationally popular Love It or List It franchise with an all-new spin-off series, Love It or List It Vacation Homes premiering Monday, May 9 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Produced by Big Coat Productions, in association with W Network, Love It or List It Vacation Homes showcases vacation properties with unique architectural designs in Ontario and British Columbia. The series introduces designer, Dan Vickery (HGTV’s Design Star) and realtor, Elisa Goldhawke as hosts who face off against each other in an attempt to persuade vacation homeowners’ to either keep their renovated property or move to a new vacation home.
In Love It or List It Vacation Homes, the homeowners’ love affair with their vacation property has fizzled and they are faced with the dilemma of whether they should love it or list it. And so begins the rivalry between designer and realtor. It’s up to creative designer Dan, to renovate and re-design the homeowners’ current vacation property so that they will “love it†and stay. Whereas fearless realtor Elisa must pull out all the stops to find the homeowners a beautiful new vacation property that checks all the boxes on their wish list, persuading them to “list it†and put their current property on the market.
Each episode takes viewers on an emotional roller-coaster ride, as Dan and Elisa battle it out for the homeowners’ allegiance. Dan will have to overcome the hidden surprises that come with every reno, and deliver a breathtaking transformation. Meanwhile, Elisa will have to do everything in her power to find a beautiful vacation home for clients with high expectations and zero tolerance for failure. Whether Dan has to deal with a septic tank calamity or Elisa has to track down that perfect waterfront location, each episode ends with that all important question – will they love it or list it?
From a media release:
W Network’s biggest competition series Game of Homes returns for its second season with new host, Dave Salmoni and resident judges Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan. Season 2 takes place in Toronto and follows four teams renovating rundown homes as they compete for the prize of a lifetime – a house and a plot of land to put it on. Produced by Great Pacific Media in association with W Network, Game of Homes premieres Tuesday, April 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
Throughout the new season, Dave Salmoni guides four teams of skilled amateur home renovators as they compete for the chance to trade in their skills for their very own home. The teams save rundown houses from the wrecking ball and week-by-week revive them into dream homes, one room at a time. Each team works side-by-side, around the clock, to completely transform these dumps into show homes – while also living in them through the entire renovation. They will battle small budgets, tight deadlines, cramped quarters and each other for a chance to win a home and change their lives forever.
The teams include hard working married couple Kim and Harry, who want to win the house for more financial freedom and a chance to spend more time with their kids; best buddies Domenic and Michael, hoping to move out of their parents’ home; engaged couple Courtney and Tyler; and mother and son duo Shelley and Alex, looking to win the house to secure financial stability for Alex’s future.
Bringing their expertise to this season of Game of Homes, Colin and Justin will vote for their favourite room renovations based on design and workmanship, working alongside a stellar cast of celebrity guest judges including Kortney and Dave Wilson from Masters of Flip, and Jillian Harris and Todd Talbot from Love It or List It Vancouver. In the finale, both the judges and the public will casts their votes, and in the dramatic and life-changing conclusion, the winning team is awarded their spectacular new home.
Of all the things Hockey Wives cameras have recorded, there’s nothing more emotional than seeing a wife concerned about her husband’s future. That’s exactly what’s facing Ashley Booth when new episodes of W Network’s series resume on Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
While other couples like Dan and Taylor Winnik make the long drive to Toronto, where he’s been traded—Dan has since been moved to Washington—and Carey and Angela Price enjoy some white water rafting, David Booth’s career at the time of production was up in the air. After a year with the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, David was trying out for the Florida Panthers when cameras recorded he and Ashley’s uncertain status in North America. You can’t help but feel badly for the pair, and wonder if they’d regretted agreeing to cameras capturing that for TV.
“I watched the first season and I knew that Hockey Wives wasn’t all about drama and gossip, so I said yes,” Ashley said during a phone call to promote the remainder of Season 2. Though they don’t appear until next week’s episode, the duo make up for it with entertaining moments. Eagle-eyed viewers may be able to suss out the secrets to Ashley’s South of the Border dip or be in awe of David’s typical restaurant meal until the next step in his hockey career is decided: he signs with Admiral Vladivostok of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League. Viewers won’t see David’s exploits there, which is too bad, because everything is a contrast to North America.
“There’s so much that’s different, it’s too much to cover in one phone call,” he says. “Everything is different from the very beginning. The players all shake hands when they arrive in the dressing room. The coach goes around and shakes everyone’s hand. After a couple of games I was like, ‘Guys, we’ve already met!'” Ashley admits adapting to Russia was tough and her faith (and blog) were instrumental in getting her through tough times. As for what viewers can expect from the pair, Ashley offers up the following tease: “There’s something big that happens at the end of the season.”
Hockey Wives airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on W Network.
