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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

First Dates gets messy for Slice (and Global)

Update: Season 1 of Slice’s First Dates is being re-broadcast on Global starting this Sunday at 7 p.m. ET. Here’s what I wrote about the show when it debuted last September on Slice.

There’s a wall-sized sign on the wall in the restaurant where First Dates is filmed. The sign says: Things Can Get Messy, and it’s a pretty apt discription of Slice’s latest original series.

Filmed in one of Earls’ Vancouver locations, First Dates uses Big Brothers setup of filming with a multitude of cameras and microphones that capture every step—and misstep—single Canadians make on the dating scene.

Tuesday’s debut focuses on a trio of blind dates that run the gamut from success to bona fide train wreck. This being a nice Canadian production, however, there are no tears and screaming when a match isn’t made, though you can tell from Billi-Ann’s body language she just isn’t feeling it with Charles. Perhaps it’s his penchant for speaking in the third person, or his intimate knowledge of drinks with college-level amounts of booze in them. Regardless, it doesn’t take long for viewers to realize this HR dude by day, party guy by night, is no match for Billi-Ann.

Shaw Media

Much more successful are Denai and Edward, who flirt their way through dinner, aided by her numerous comments about his cuteness, his endless muscle flexing and a shocking moment where he undoes his pants during the appetizer course. Is this the way the kids act during dates nowadays? Are they at the point where twenty somethings throw caution to the wind and flash some skivvy to attract attention? Apparently.

That’s not to say First Dates isn’t highly enjoyable. It is, if you’re looking for pure guilty pleasure entertainment. First Dates the perfect show to sit and watch with friends so that you can laugh, poke fun at—and perhaps commiserate—along with for an hour.

First Dates airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET on Global.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Timber Kings returns for Season 3 of incredible log home builds

Log homes are a work of art unto themselves, but what the team from Pioneer Log Homes of B.C. create are truly works of art. Bryan Reid Sr., founder and owner certainly thinks so.

“It’s truly like an orchestra,” he says on the line from Vancouver Island. Reid Sr.’s voice is filled with pride as he talks about his veteran crew being able to build homes with nary a word, communicating through hand signals—voices would be lost under the scream of crane hydraulics—as logs are guided into place and homes are created.

Reid Sr., and his artists return for Season 3, Sunday, Jan. 3, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV, with bigger projects and more laugh-inducing hijinks. Sunday’s return has a little bit of both, as Reid and Joel Roorda jet to Russia to put the finishing touches on an 82,000-square foot home—it more like a compound—boasting an Olympic-size pool and 13 sets of stairs; the log veterans teach a team of Russian builders how to construct the steps on their own.

Timber_Kingd

“Every time I went over there, the homeowner would pull me aside and tell me, ‘Bryan, I use your company as an example in my company, as the way to treat a customer,'” he recalls. “He didn’t have to do that. He didn’t even have to show up on the site, but he was there almost every day. He loved his home and what we did.” The massive home outside of Moscow is in sharp contrast to the challenge Peter Arnold takes on: creating a log raft—complete with motor and barbecue—that will triumph over white water rapids … with predictable soggy results.

Also on tap for Season 3? Projects see members of the team head to Germany, Philadelphia and the aforementioned Vancouver Island where Reid Sr., is creating something a little off-the-wall that will be shown later on this season.

“We’re building a log car,” he says with a chuckle. “It’s going to be electric, with a turbine. I’ve always wanted to do some kind of log car and now it’s a reality. It’s probably the craziest thing I’ve ever done.”

While much of Timber Kings is spent focusing on the homes being built, HGTV turns the tables on the guys with Under the Hard Hat. The six-part special, beginning March 13, provides in-depth peeks at each of the cast members, exploring their most impressive builds and over-the-top pranks unleashed on their co-workers.

Timber Kings airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV.

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Masterchef Canada, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Link: Women Behind Canadian TV: Cathie James

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Women Behind Canadian TV: Cathie James
“I’m not trying to make any kind of statement in my hiring, but I have found in this business, that for this kind of television, on the story side of it, I think women just have a greater affinity for shaping this material. We are dealing with real people and a lot of our job is just listening to them and getting them to tell us, in the most honest and compelling way, their stories. I hate to generalize but that is just something that female culture is more in tune to. We are listeners. I’ve found that sometimes when I’ve put men in those roles they just aren’t as interested in the material.” Continue reading. 

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Industry News, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Jade Fever, Mayday and Cold Water Cowboys return to Discovery

From a media release:

Fresh on the heels of December’s “Holiday Bash” schedule filled to the brim with premiere programming, Discovery today unveiled the network’s 2016 winter schedule. Canada’s most-watched primetime entertainment specialty network rings in the New Year with an abundance of fresh hit programming, including the season premieres of ALASKAN BUSH PEOPLE (Jan. 4), RAILROAD ALASKA (Jan. 5), and MAYDAY (Jan. 15) right out of the gate, along with HOW IT’S MADE (Feb. 22), JADE FEVER (Feb. 23), and COLD WATER COWBOYS (March 8),  premiering through the winter. Also set to debut in January is a slew of new episodes from current seasons of hit series, including GOLD RUSH (Jan. 5),MOONSHINERS (Jan. 6), and ALASKA: THE LAST FRONTER (Jan. 10). Viewers can also catch up on full episodes of Discovery series live and on demand on the Discovery GO app and at Discovery.ca.

Also in January, Discovery raises a glass for a special goodbye toast to Co-Hosts Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage as they stage their final gonzo experiments during the concluding season of the perenial favourite, MYTHBUSTERS, beginningSunday, Jan. 10 at 7 p.m. ET. Additionally, Discovery’s jam-packed winter schedule also features the  previously announced “Future Tech Week” on DAILY PLANET(Jan. 4-8), followed by returning Canadian turbo favourites VEGAS RAT RODS andMEGASPEED headlining Thursday nights,beginning Jan. 7.

Discovery’s full suite of top entertainment brands also features extensive winter schedule highlights and happenings beginning Jan. 5, including:

Free Previews:

Viewers are invited for an extended stay in Animal Planet’s backyard jungle to explore the extraordinary relationship between humans and animals. Viewers are also welcome to park in Discovery Velocity’s lot – Canada’s only home for Factual Turbo programming – for all things automotive, as well as diverse travel, survival, and cultural world content. In the holiday spirit of giving, Discovery today announced a nationwide 36-day free preview from Jan. 20 – Feb. 24 of both Animal Planet andDiscovery Velocity, available to subscribers of participating television service providers.

Animal Planet winter highlights:

Animal Planet brings in the New Year with an all-star, all-adorable cast returning on Super Bowl Sunday for Animal Planet’s pup-culture phenomenon PUPPY BOWL. Viewers can expect a winning combination of terrier tackles, canine touchdowns, puppy penalties, and Fido first downs on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT. The canine entertainment continues with live coverage of WESTMINSTER KENNEL CLUB 140TH ANNUAL DOG SHOW, Feb. 15 and 16 at 8 p.m. ET. New series 100 MILES FROM NOWHERE (Jan. 24) and AFRICA (Feb. 14), make their debut. Returning favourites ALASKA MONSTERS (Jan. 5), RUGGED JUSTICE (Jan. 5),NORTH WOODS LAW (Jan. 7), ICE LAKE REBELS (Jan. 8) premiere. TANKED(Jan. 6), REDWOOD KINGS (Jan. 6), TREEHOUSE MASTERS (Jan. 6), FINDING BIGFOOT (Jan. 7), and PIT BULLS AND PAROLEES (Jan. 8) return with all-new episodes.

Discovery Velocity winter highlights:

Discovery Velocity buckles up, leaves last year in the dust, and takes off to Scottsdale, Arizona for BARRETT-JACKSON, the world’s greatest collector car auctions, Jan. 26-31. Additional turbo programming takes a spin with all-new seasons of HOW IT’S MADE: DREAM CARS (Jan. 5), BITCHIN’ RIDES (Feb. 4), GEAR HEADS (Feb. 5), CAR FIX (Jan. 4), WHEELER DEALERS USA (Jan. 4), and new episodes of CHASING CLASSIC CARS (Jan. 4).

Investigation Discovery winter highlights:

New Year’s resolutions for 2016: less crime and more justice? Investigation Discovery’s fresh start includes new seasons of FATAL ENCOUNTERS (Jan. 5),TRUE NIGHTMARES (Jan. 9), DISAPPEARED (Jan. 13), HOUSE OF HORRORS: KIDNAPPED (Jan. 14), NIGHTMARE NEXT DOOR (Jan. 15), and new episodes of HOMICIDE HUNTER: LT. JOE KENDA (Jan. 5).

Discovery Science winter highlights:

Questioning everything in the New Year, Discovery Science dives deep into 2016 with new series ALL-AMERICAN MAKERS: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? (Jan. 4), season premieres of HOW THE UNIVERSE WORKS: EXPANDED EDITION (Jan. 5), MONSTERS INSIDE ME (Jan. 22), STRIP THE CITY (Jan. 27), STRIP THE COSMOS (Feb. 15), and new episodes of HOW DO THEY DO IT? (Wednesdays) and GHOST STALKERS (Fridays).

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Season 2 of Proper Television’s Vegas Rat Rods set for January 7

From a media release:

It’s turbo speed ahead as Steve Darnell and his Welder Up’ gang return to Sin City for a second season of VEGAS RAT RODS, featuring 10 killer new vehicles that are bold, bitchin’, and definitely badass. Premiering Thursday, Jan. 7 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery, the 10-part original Canadian series from Toronto’s Proper Television (CANADA’S WORST DRIVER and MASTERCHEF CANADA) follows Darnell and his crew at their custom car shop as they create rolling works of art from everyone else’s junk. This season showcases builds created in the spirit of rat rods that are bigger, badder and breaking the mold. Sometimes the best action in Vegas happens off the strip!

In the Season 2 premiere of VEGAS RAT RODS, “Wagon Rod” (Thursday, Jan. 7 at9 p.m. ET/PT), Darnell is asked to transform a Chevy wagon into something faster and meaner, complete with a corvette suspension, a new LS3 engine, and all the modern conveniences any family man could ask for. The Welderup crew makes this Wagon Rod a kind of Jekyll-and-Hyde creation: badass to the eye, but comfortable enough to throw in the kids and dog for a weekend of adventure. Twiggy takes on a new responsibility as “parts girl,” but Steve puts a wrench in her first assignment. And new guy Grant is brought on board to help with the heavy workload, and naturally the crew initiates him. Click HERE for a sneak peek of VEGAS RAT RODS.

Also, on Thursday Jan. 7 on Discovery, MEGASPEED, produced by Bell Media’s own Exploration Production Inc., returns for a third season at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT. A six-episode documentary series, the Canadian original circuits the globe from Jamaica to Iceland and Belgium, profiling personalities from the world’s most iconic motorsports events.

This season features a wide variety of dreamers and schemers, including a visit to the home of Craig Jackson, CEO of Barrett Jackson, for a private tour of his extensive vehicle collection and one-of-a-kind garage. When Jackson isn’t running his world famous Barrett Jackson car auctions, returning to Scottsdale Jan. 23-31 (airing on Discovery Velocity), he’s out driving rare, exotic cars.

In the Season 3 premiere of MEGASPEED, “Rolex 24” (Thursday, Jan. 7 at 11 p.m.ET/8 p.m. PT on Discovery and Saturday, Jan. 9 at 7 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT on Velocity), Wayne Taylor Racing is the underdog heading into The Rolex 24 At Daytona, the first auto race on the North American racing calendar. The race, two times around the clock, is a test of endurance, perseverance, and mental toughness with 67 cars sharing the narrow, high-banked tri-oval of the Daytona International Speedway. And later, viewers get a behind-the-scenes look at the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Flat Track Championship, and meet a Hollywood fabricator who makes hot rod dreams come true. Click HERE for a sneak peek ofMEGASPEED.

VEGAS RAT RODS is produced for Discovery by Toronto’s Proper Television. The series is executive produced by Guy O’Sullivan. Jennifer Scott is the Series Producer. For Discovery, Ken MacDonald is Vice-President and General Manager, Discovery. Tracey Pearce is Senior Vice-President, Specialty and Pay, Bell Media.

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