Everything about Featured, eh?

Preview: British Columbia: An Untold History is a crash course in the province’s diverse story

I’m always up for furthering my knowledge of Canadian history, especially when it comes to the provinces west of Ontario. And, thanks to the appropriately titled Knowledge Network, I can do that with British Columbia.

Debuting Tuesday at 9 p.m. PT on Knowledge—and available to stream for free on the channel’s website—the four-episode British Columbia: An Untold History digs deep to trace Canada’s most western land. Written and directed by Kevin Eastwood, whose excellent “Humboldt: The New Season” was broadcast on CBC Docs POV in 2019, the four-parter is a dramatic retelling of the province’s history, warts and all.

“As a settler who has lived their whole life in B.C., and went to school and university here, I thought I knew a lot about this place, but making British Columbia: An Untold History taught me I didn’t really know that much,” Eastwood said in a press release in support of the show’s debut. He notes that over 70 people contributed to it through interviews with authors, historians, knowledge keepers, elders, families, and descendants of historical figures. Indigenous, Chinese, Japanese, Punjabi, Black, and European stories are complemented by archival photography, film artifacts and footage to make for a fascinating series.

Tuesday’s debut, “Change + Resistance,” traces the Indigenous resistance to oppression in British Columbia. With the gold rushes and establishment of the new colony, Indigenous leaders resisted settler laws and challenged unsanctioned expansion into First Nations territories, only to be forced onto reserves. First Nations endured more losses when the federal Indian Act and residential schools criminalized Indigenous culture.

British Columbia: An Untold History airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. PT on Knowledge Network. It can be streamed on Knowledge Network’s website.

Image courtesy of Kevin Eastwood.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

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.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Preview: Murdoch Mysteries, “Blood on the Tracks”

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving to those who are celebrating. CBC is doing their part to mark the holiday by serving up a plateful of drama and laughs on Murdoch Mysteries. Yes, we do meet Higgins and Ruth’s baby, as the above image suggests, but there is a lot more to the episode than that.

Here is the CBC’s official synopsis for “Blood on the Tracks,” written by Noelle Girard and directed by Yannick Bisson.

When their train derails, Ogden and Brackenreid suspect it was sabotage to hide a murder.

And, as always, a few notes from me after I watched a screener of the episode.

Hitting the rails
Last week’s instalment, “Manhunt,” (a great episode, by the way), brought Louise Cherry, Miss Hart, Julia and Effie to the volleyball pitch, with Inspector Brackenreid as their coach. This week, the ladies are on their way back from a match on the train when the aforementioned blood on the tracks occurs.

A sumptuous set
I am constantly impressed by what the team at Murdoch Mysteries is able to create. This week, entire train cars were built to tell the A storyline (alongside exteriors filmed in Tottenham, Ont.). All I can say is, wow. Also, Shanice Banton doesn’t get to show the wry, sarcastic side to Violet Hart often; she gets a few nice jabs in on Monday night. And, look for a fun sight gag behind Brackenreid while he and Julia are inspecting the crime scene.

A new invention
In Monday’s instalment, it’s a Sunday in Toronto, and William heads to the office to work on his latest creation. I won’t give away what it is; let’s just say MM continues to hint that it is the precursor to the things we enjoy today. Also? It’s because of a new-fangled holiday that Higgins has brought his daughter to the office leaving William with his hands full.

Watts goes on a date
Jack and Watts head to the horse track to place some bets, and an offhand comment from Watts reveals a nugget of backstory.

Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Bachelor in Paradise Canada’s Claire Freeland: “You leave having been impacted by the experience”

For the most part, reality TV gets a bad rap. At best, it’s described as a guilty pleasure. At worst, it’s simply dismissed. But look a little deeper into a series like Bachelor in Paradise Canada, and you realize something. These people are putting themselves out there to find love, on-camera and sharing things most would only tell their closest friend.

“This is a show that dives deep into feelings,” executive producer Claire Freeland says. “What you want for your life, what you want for your life partner. A lot of these people leave transformed and having learned things about themselves. Whether or not you leave Paradise, The Bachelor or The Bachelorette with a life partner, you leave having been impacted by the experience.”

Freeland’s Good Human Productions brought The Bachelor Canada and The Bachelorette Canada to viewers years ago. Now they’re back with Bachelor in Paradise Canada.

Debuting Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Citytv, Bachelor in Paradise Canada (followed by The Bachelor After Show: After Paradise Canada at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT with Deepa Prashad and Daryn Jones) is distinctive for a couple of reasons. First, it’s in northern Ontario in a camp setting very different from the U.S. version fans are used to. And, secondly, the cast of 26 participants is made up of Canadian Bachelor alumni, U.S. Bachelor alumni and members of the Bachelor Nation—Canadian fans of the franchise—a series first. Freeland, a fan of the franchise overall, has grown to love Paradise because it gives her the opportunity to check on a bunch of relationships rather than just one.

“We always knew we wanted to do a Canadian version of Paradise, but there was always the conundrum about how to attack it,” Freeland says. “And I feel like we’ve cracked the nut.”

Familiar names from the Canadian series include Bianka Kamber, David Pinard and Stacy Johnson, while the U.S. franchise offers up Caitlin Clemmens, Alex Bordyukov and Brendan Scanzano. Guiding the ship is host Jesse Jones (featured image) and serving up drinks and advice to these love-lorn folks? Kevin Wendt.

“We’ve remained friends with Kevin over the years,” Freeland says. “When we thought about who could be the bartender, but also be a symbol of this process working, it was pretty easy that we arrived at Kevin.

“When that guy is on the beach, on the other side of the bar, and you’re looking for someone to give you some advice or share your feelings with, Kevin is the ultimate person.”

Bachelor in Paradise Canada airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Citytv.

Images courtesy of Rogers Media.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Preview: Hudson & Rex returns for Season 4 with a new look and feel

I like Hudson & Rex for a few reasons.

First, its cast is top-rate. From John Reardon, Mayko Nguyen, Kevin Hanchard and Justin Kelly to Diesel vom Burgimwald on down, everyone on the call sheet is enjoyable to watch. Secondly, the writing team is truly gifted. Led by showrunner Peter Mitchell, they craft stories that are believable, have real dramatic stakes and a pinch of humour thrown in. And third, that stellar Newfoundland setting and the crew that works it. Every episode is a love letter to that part of Canada, no matter how dark the crime may be.

Returning Thursday at 8 p.m. Eastern on Citytv, here’s the official synopsis for “Sid and Nancy,” written by Peter Mitchell and directed by Gary Harvey:

When two hikers are discovered murdered near a remote coastal trail, the team is on the hunt for a fugitive duo wanted in a series of grisly campsite murders.

And here are some non-spoilery notes from me after watching a screener of the episode.

A new setting…
As I mentioned above, all the main players are back in Season 4. But, there is a big change within minutes of Episode 1. The Major Crimes team is on the road and reporting out of a mobile unit.

“It keeps all of us together and takes us out into the field more and in the office less,” Reardon says in the Season 4 press kit. “Having the team together adds a new element of storytelling and it showcases Newfoundland even more than we have in the past. I think it makes the show more dynamic because we’re all in communication with each other, we’re responding in real-time, and solving the case in real-time instead of regularly coming back to the office to regroup.”

… and a new vibe
I totally agree with Reardon’s statement. There is an energy, sometimes frantic, in Thursday’s return, that has been added to Hudson & Rex. It just feels like there is more at stake and more opportunity for conflict between local police forces that don’t appreciate the big-city unit rolling onto their turf.

A little spark?
Over the past three seasons, Hudson & Rex has faintly hinted at an emotional connection between Charlie and Sarah. Judging by a scene on Thursday, the needle may be headed into “strongly hinting.”

Hudson & Rex airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on Citytv.

Images courtesy of Derm Carberry for Shaftesbury and Pope Productions.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail