The Beaver is back---plus more good news for Canadian TV fans!

[Sal]

One of the newest stations on the Toronto cable landscape is Toronto 1. It was launched to much fanfare in 2003, but it has encountered many problems in trying to attract viewers since then, so much so that it has been bought and sold three times in the last 2 years. This summer saw great budget cuts and staff layoffs, and now this fall it will start over with a vastly revamped schedule. At first glance, it doesn't sound like much, but wait until you see some of the goodies they have in store as described in the following article from today's Toronto Sun:

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Tue, June 21, 2005

Startin' over
Will new lineup make T.O. station the one to watch?
By BILL BRIOUX, TORONTO SUN




THE JOKE is starting to wear a little thin: Toronto1, viewers nothing.

The only new Toronto station in decades -- nicely positioned on Rogers' channel 15 -- launched with a lot of noise in the fall of 2003. Their live, opening night, on-air party was one of the biggest belly flops in the history of broadcasting. The stink is just now starting to clear at King and Parliament Sts.

Original owners Craig Media rode into town from Calgary like cowboys on a cattle drive. They went straight over the Scarborough bluffs. When the dust had settled, Toronto1 was road kill on the CTV Express.

In less than two years, the station has had three owners, bouncing from Craig to CHUM to Quebecor (the company that owns this newspaper).

Quebecor plans to rebrand the station, although they're still being coy about the new title. T1 was on their letterhead, but viewers might think channel 15 is now just for tax tips. (I say grab CFTO now that CTV has ditched it -- those call letters owned this town for 30 years).






Toronto1 v.p. Jim Nelles and new Global recruit Don Gaudet (general manager, programming) met with the Sun last week. Today in Toronto they announce their plans to advertisers for the 2005-06 season.

It is a modest schedule by CTV and Global standards, but it is a start, or at least an evolution, says Gaudet.

The station hopes to elbow back into the Toronto scene this fall with a handful of U.S. simulcasts, including one new comedy pick up: Freddie, a new sitcom starring Freddie Prinze, Jr., as a swingin' bachelor chef. George Lopez and Charmed are both in Toronto1's prime-time corner, as are Girlfriends and 60 Minutes.

DOWN IN FLAMES

The station's biggest scoop may be the first two seasons of 24, with back-to-back episodes airing Sundays in the fall, allowing viewers to squeeze Jack Bauer's first bad day into just 13 weeks.

"Not everybody will be watching Desperate Housewives," says Nelles.

Sunday nights at midnight, The Joan Rivers Position, a UK import deemed too irreverent for U.S. stations, should cause people to tawk. Rivers is at her caustic best, dishing sex advice a la Dr. Ruth. Yikes! Kathy Griffin: My Life On The D List (a reality series hosted by the edgy comic), could also break out Wednesdays.

Weeknights at midnight, Toronto1 answers the age old question "Is Jerry Springer still on?" Nostalgia rules at noon featuring shows like Leave It To Beaver, Family Affair and Barretta. See Robert Blake before he was declared innocent.
The station's too-ambitious morning and evening news showcases both went down in flames. The plan now is to build on Toronto1's one solid home-grown success: The A-List, their nightly entertainment magazine. A tight little band of seven people crank out a show that earns the ultimate viewer accolade -- it looks like an American series.

Toronto1 plans to expand it to an hour each night with more local coverage. "We want to be all over who is at the ACC or even the Shaw Festival," says Gaudet.

You'll probably see a few Sun scribes grabbing a little face time on Toronto1 this fall (sports reporter Steve Buffery hosted last weekend's Budweiser Boxing Series). Look for a few to turn up on Sports Talk TV, a nightly (10:30 p.m.) yakker.

Gaudet sees an opportunity to brand Toronto1 as more of a local voice in a crowded but mainly nationally-served market. "We're the only real local station now that CITY-TV is part of a network," he suggests.

(Re)start small, get big. Sounds like a plan.

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That's right, "Leave It To Beaver" is coming back and so is "Family Affair"! Now if only they can get "My Three Sons" back as well, I will be ecstatic! Toronto 1 can be seen on cable in the greater Toronto area, on channel 52 on UHF and Antenna 2, and on satellite on channel 213 on Bell ExpressVu and 326 for Star Choice. Enjoy your lunch hour folks!