Canadian TV Fall Preview: Getting set for the fall lineups

[Sal]

Now that the US upfronts are all done, the Canadian networks will be getting ready to introduce their own fall schedules later this month. The most interesting part will be to see which of the new US fall shows will be bought by CTV and Global as they join CBC to form their own primetime ratings war. The big prize should be "The X Factor" which looks to be the biggest new hit of the season and a real coup for whoever lands it. One new show I'm looking forward to seeing is "Once Upon A Time" , a blend of fantasy and reality that looked very promising based on the preview that I saw. One sure way to predict which new series will not last for a full season will be to see which ones don't get picked up at all by either CTV or Global. (As usual, CBC will go with an all-Canadian lineup.) Whatever they decide, I'll be letting you know by posting the schedules for the Canadian networks and specialty channels as soon as they're made official. Before that happens, there's a few things that I have to mention.

1. The most important news can be summed up in 3 letters: DTV. That means that Canada will soon be following the US's lead and permanently switch to all-digital TV transmission starting on August 31st. Expect many of the new schedules to begin on or around this date to take advantage of the big switch. After the transition period ends, I'll be interested to see what subchannels will be made available by the Canadian networks and which US channels you can get on your antenna. (Viewers who get their TV through cable or satellite will not be affected. It will be most noticeable if you watch with an old 'rabbit ears' or indoor antenna.) This may be the only way I'll ever get to see Antenna TV or ME-TV, if I'm lucky!

2. One channel you won't find in my previews will be SUN TV because it no longer exists. It has been renamed Sun News Network and it has been reformed into an all-news channel in the style of CNN and Fox News. It's only been on for a couple of months but so far it has turned into a colossal disaster. After a decent opening week which attracted around 35,000-40,000 viewers across Canada, its ratings have taken a gigantic tumble to the point where it now draws less than 4000 viewers on an average day. That's right, 4000! That is beyond pathetic that it just defies explanation. I think the Sun should stick to only making newspapers from now on!

3. The specialty and digital channels that I'll be focusing on more than the others will be the ones that try to fill their lineups with classic TV series, such as DejaView and Comedy Gold. I say try because no matter how hard they try, they can't seem to get it right. I'm not positive about this but I have a hunch that there may be some hope on the way for people like me who love their shows old and funny, in that order. Earlier this year, the CRTC, Canada's ultimate authority regarding radio and TV (much like the FCC in the US) gave the green light for the launch of several new specialty channels that should be starting up later in 2011. There's a couple of them that I'll be looking for that are supposed to specialize in classic TV series that will be called Gold and Epic TV. I don't know too much about them at this point, except to guess that Gold will probably launch under a new name to avoid confusion with Comedy Gold. I'm hoping they'll be better than what we have so far because Canadian viewers deserve it.

No matter what happens, keep it here for the full details!

[y2k3Joker]

Any updates Sal?

Always look forward to your Canadian Fall Previews .....

thx in advance!

[Sal]

Originally Posted by y2k3Joker

Any updates Sal?

Always look forward to your Canadian Fall Previews .....

thx in advance!

You're welcome Joker! Sorry for the long delay. I've been trying to enjoy the summer like everyone else and take advantage of the beautiful weather that has hit the East for the most part. Apparently, so have a few of the networks up here since many of them have been a little slow in finalizing their official fall lineups. But since September is almost here, the time is now right to see what lies ahead this fall. I'll start with the major networks and move on to the regional and specialty channels later this week.


Part 1 - The Major Networks

CBC


The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation will celebrate their 75th anniversary this season. It was Canada's first radio network, signing on in 1936, and moving to television in the fall of 1952. One of its first signature series in both mediums was Hockey Night In Canada and it will continue again this season beginning with a pair of pre-season games on Sept. 24 and Oct. 1 before the regular season begins for real on Thursday October 6. Some former NHL stars that used to appear on HNIC on a regular basis will come back to the ice to show their figure skating talents on the 3rd season of "Battle Of The Blades" premiering on Sunday Sept. 18, with the first "Results" show to follow the next night. Already confirmed to appear will be Bryan Berard, Wade Belak, Brad May, and former Canadian Olympic female hockey star Tessa Bonhomme. Other highlights to watch for include the return of "The Nature Of Things", "The Fifth Estate", "Dragons Den", "Rick Mercer Report", "This Hour Has 22 Minutes", and best of all, "Being Erica".

Links:

CBC Homepage

Full Episodes Videos



CTV

Canada's 2nd TV network will also be celebrating their past in a big way as they begin their 50th year this fall. They may be #2 in age, but in the past few years they have been #1 in the ratings, thanks to a strong primetime lineup that will again include such major hits as "American Idol", "Dancing With The Stars", "Grey's Anatomy", "CSI", "Hot In Cleveland", the last season of "Desperate Housewives", and Canada's #1 most watched sitcom "The Big Bang Theory". A couple of new US imports that will also bear watching will be "Pan-Am" and the highly anticipated "X-Factor" starting Sept. 21.

Homepage

Bell TV --- Full Episodes of CTV series


Global

Like CTV, Global's primetime lineup also contains an impressive number of hit US imports. Returning for another season will be "Survivor", "Glee", "House", and perennial favourites "Family Guy" and "The Simpsons". New series premieres will include "How To Be A Gentleman", "I Hate My Teenage Daughter", and "Allen Gregory". Global will also carry the new TV Land sitcom "Happily Divorced" starring Fran Drescher.


Homepage

Full Episode Videos

TV Classics (including "Facts Of Life", "Good Times", "One Day At A Time", "Silver Spoons", "Married With Children", and more)


CTV Two


After competing with CTV for many years as A-Channel and later simply A, the newly-named (as of this week) CTV Two will now act as a companion network. A great example of this is "The X-Factor", which I mentioned earlier. It will join CTV's lineup on Wed. Sept. 21 and the next day's "Results" show will air on CTV Two, where it will stay for the whole season. Another example of this new arrangement will involve 2 other new series, "Up All Night", and "Free Agents", which will also premiere on CTV before moving permanently to CTV Two the following week. One highlight to watch for among the returning series will be seeing Ashton Kutcher's first season on "Two and a Half Men" with the premiere scheduled for Sept. 19.

Homepage

CITY-TV

The last and smallest of the major networks, CITY-TV, will be making the biggest changes to its lineup, inserting as many as 8 new series into their primetime schedule, including "The Playboy Club", "2 Broke Girls", "New Girl", "Terra Nova", and "Suburgatory". There are still a few hits scattered among the returning series, with the most prominent being "How I Met Your Mother", "The Biggest Loser", "America's Got Talent", (and coming soon, "Canada's Got Talent"), "The Middle", and "Modern Family". CITY-TV will also be the new Canadian home for "Raising Hope" and "Private Practice", which had been seen previously on other networks. It will likely be the only battle they figure to win.

Homepage

Full Episode Videos

[Marvo301]

I hadn't heard that A Channel was changing it's name to CTV Two. Thanks for the heads up!

[Zebra 3]

CBC

As always will continue to watch my fave current TV series Battle of the Blades. The Game On taped episode airs Sep 18, the live competition begins Sep 25 w/ results Sep 26. Sadly, ex-NHLer, competitor Wade Belak passed away recently.

CTV

Probably skip Dancing with the Stars since there's no "stars" for me to root for. May watch some American Idol, and X-Factor.

Citytv

I'm watching some America's Got Talent, and may watch Canada's Got Talent.

[tbswatcher]

I've always wondered why more canadian shows don't air here in the United States since Canada gets almost all of our shows. I only know of 3 that air on US Television; Degrassi, Heartland and Being Erica. 18 to Life aired on The CW for a short while last summer.

[Sal]

[QUOTE=Zebra 3]CBC

As always will continue to watch my fave current TV series Battle of the Blades. The Game On taped episode airs Sep 18, the live competition begins Sep 25 w/ results Sep 26. Sadly, ex-NHLer, competitor Wade Belak passed away recently.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
That's correct, and it's simply awful news. Wade Belak was a quality individual known for his upbeat personality and wicked sense of humour who was hoping to get involved in TV broadcasting after having retired last June. A show like "Battle Of The Blades" was made for him and he will be deeply missed. My heart and sympathy goes out to his family, friends, and many fans.

But as they say, the show must go on, and it will go on as scheduled, just like last year when, ironically enough, former competitor Bob Probert died and the entire season was dedicated to him. Expect another classy tribute in Belak's honour to follow this time around.

Also of note this week, on Thursday, Lloyd Robertson, a Canadian broadcasting legend for 60 years on radio and TV, gave his last newscast on CTV during Thursday's 11 pm newscast. You can read more about his outstanding career on CTV's website which includes his touching final on-air speech:

Lloyd Robertson --- Career Highlights


Lloyd Robertson's final newscast sign-off --- Sept. 3, 2011


I'll be back tomorrow with more news.

[kk-likes-tv]

http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories...wscast-110901/

Correct link above for the Floyd...er, Lloyd Robertson signoff video.
Just having an SCTV flashback there.

[Sal]

Tomorrow is Labour Day. For me, that means 2 things. Since this weekend traditionally means the Jerry Lewis telethon is on TV, I'll be looking elsewhere to watch one of his movies. "The Nutty Professor" is still my favorite!

Labour Day is also when many Canadian stations begin their fall schedules and from what I've seen, there's not a lot if anything to get excited about. For example, Comedy Gold returns with pretty much their entire lineup intact, except they've foolishly removed "The Andy Griffith Show", the last link to their past life as TV Land Canada, and have only added a couple of new series: "The Super Dave Osborne Show" and "The David Steinberg Show", neither of which should be worth your time. Returning to the network are such classics as "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "Rhoda", "Designing Women", "Full House", "Fresh Prince", "Night Court", and both of Bob Newhart's sitcoms running back to back. The full schedule can be seen here:


Comedy Gold


Comedy Gold's main competitor on the digital dial is DejaView, who got a jump on their rivals by beginning their fall schedule a week earlier on August 29, the same as one of their 'sister' stations, TVTropolis, which I'll get to next. Joining their lineup for the first time is "The Rockford Files". New sitcoms added are "Charles in Charge", (Why??), "Married With Children", and "Archie Bunker's Place", which is running just before "All In the Family". Gone for now are "The Facts Of Life", "Silver Spoons", "Maude", and "Good Times".


DejaView


TVTropolis also began their new schedule on Aug. 29 and it is heavy with reality series, yet it still found space to add sitcoms "Roseanne", "The Golden Girls", "That 70s Show", and "Everybody Loves Raymond" between 1-6 pm. In prime time, it's a different lineup each night which includes the above series as well as "King Of Queens", "Friends", and "Frasier". On weekends, all of these shows are rerun again and again until you start to get tired of them, which should take about a couple of weeks.


TVTropolis

For a little channel, CTS made some big changes for their fall lineup. The most noticeable will be the departure of Michael Coren, who took his popular talk show to the Sun News Network (formerly SUN TV) in hoping to boost their pathetic ratings. They also wiped clean all of their sitcoms from both the 12:30 and 7:30 pm time slots. The new simpler, more consistent lineup will feature the debut of "ALF" at 7:30 pm, one of my favourite shows from the '80s that I haven't seen in ages. Also of note will be the 6:30 pm slot, which is listed on their website as having "Really Cool Classic TV". I think what that means is that every week a different classic show will be featured so expect a few surprises now and then. This month, it's "The Andy Griffith Show", which had previously been seen on Comedy Gold up to now, but should find more success here.


CTS

And now, the best for last: Teletoon Retro! I've mentioned many times how much I love this channel and how great their lineup is and this fall is no different. I wrote a big post about it last July on the Animation and Cartoons section and I've moved it here so you can see it again or if you missed it before. The new shows I'm looking forward to are "Looney Tunes", "Felix The Cat" and "Batman". More details here:

Teletoon Retro

Teletoon Retro Website


Still to come soon: The Comedy Network and the OMNI channels

[Sal]

Today I'll feature one last group of channels that I haven't mentioned yet but first I have a quick update on Comedy Gold. I found a better link than the one I posted earlier which clearly lists the full official fall schedule for 2011-12. This should give you a better idea of how bad this channel has become and why scrapping TV Land Canada was a stupid idea.


Comedy Gold --- Updated Fall Schedule


Comedy Gold is part of the CTV family of specialty channels as is The Comedy Network, which acts like a Canadian version of Comedy Central, from which they get many of their shows, including "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report". Their sitcom lineup features mainstays like "The Simpsons", "South Park", "Corner Gas", and "The Big Bang Theory". In prime time, look for the debuts of "Up All Night", "Free Agents", and "Whitney". This Monday should be an interesting, and much anticipated, occasion, as the channel will feature the Comedy Central roast of Charlie Sheen on the same night that "Two and a Half Men" begins their new season. I'll be trying to watch them both!



Comedy Network


Next is the OMNI group which specializes in multilingual programs from many different languages. Their English-language shows vary from reality, talk and game shows in the daytime and primetime reruns from current hits like "The Simpsons", "How I Met Your Mother", "Two and a Half Men", "The Office", and, starting this fall, 5 nights a week of "30 Rock" starring Tina Fey. The lineups are different for each region of Canada so I will list each channel separately:

OMNI 1

OMNI 2

OMNI BC

OMNI Alberta


Looking back at this entire group of channels that I've written about for the last month and a half, I have to say that I'm not very impressed. If I had to choose who has the best lineup, it would definitely be Teletoon Retro (for the 3rd year in a row!) and nobody else is even close! I've said it before and it bears repeating until someone gets the message. What Canada needs is a good classic TV channel like Antenna TV, ME-TV or when we had PRIME, CTS, and TV Land Canada each with a few scattered classic favorites from the 60s and 70s that anybody could enjoy. The US is going through a bit of a Retro Revival right now with a lot of great old shows from different eras gaining new life on different channels, some of which are just starting. In this area, Canada has been left way behind, with no sign that they're ready to catch up. Thank God hockey season is almost here so I'll have something fun and interesting to watch. Between games, it looks like I'll have to fire up the antenna and hope for the best. That concludes my fall preview. I hope you liked it!

[DSfan]

Super Dave Osbourne on Comedy Gold......

Like seriously, of all the shows you could add. I remember it used to air on PRIME or maybe DejaView in 2003ish. I remembered thinking how dumb it was.

[Sal]

And now some good news for a change for all you Classic TV lovers courtesy of CTS TV Canada:


Michael Coren's departure to SUN News has opened up the CTS schedule and they've taken advantage of it in a big way! First, at 8:30 pm, "Gilligan's Island" has replaced "Fresh Prince" starting this week, with the rare pilot episode "Marooned" airing last night and the official debut "Two on A Raft" set to go tonight. The best part is that it will be on every night instead of twice a week like they had it before. Also, I've figured out what they've done with the 6:30 slot. In September, they used it to show "Andy Griffith" but only the so-called 'public domain' episodes were seen. I guess they figure that instead of going to your local Walmart or Zellers and getting a cheap DVD with poor picture quality and laughable theme music, you can watch them for free on TV the way they were originally made. It doesn't matter to me at all. It just gives me another option in case I don't feel like seeing the DVDs. This month, we get the "Beverly Hillbillies" (including the real theme at the beginning and ending!) and it will have 55 episodes from the first 2 seasons in black and white and that will last until mid-December. Now it gets interesting. The week before Christmas will feature public domain episodes of "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "Dusty's Trail", Bob Denver's post-Gilligan sitcom. Then, starting on Boxing Day, Dec. 26, CTS lands a huge TKO:

The Adventures Of Ozzie and Harriet, at least 60 episodes worth, running weeknights at 6:30, until March 23!

All I can say is: Merry Christmas, Canada!!!

Gilligan's Island

CTS Classic TV

CTS Schedule

Where To Watch CTS

[Zebra 3]

Originally Posted by Sal

This month, we get the "Beverly Hillbillies" (including the real theme at the beginning and ending!) and it will have 55 episodes from the first 2 seasons in black and white and that will last until mid-December.

I'm watching this TV classic (CTS), and Battle of the Blades (CBC).