CBC Revenue Group

NEW PROGRAMS FOR SUMMER 2012

Jun 18, 2012

New shows exploring what scares us, drives us, gets us off the sofa and other facets of Canadian life join familiar favourites

CBC Radio One today announced a wide variety of intriguing new programs for the 2012 summer season, along with the return of some familiar favourites. One new program sees CBC Radio 3 host Grant Lawrence joining the network with THE WILD SIDE, a look at stories from Canada's great outdoors.

"This summer, CBC Radio One presents a collection of compelling programs that explore the unique and diverse experience of Canadians today," said Chris Boyce, executive director of Radio and Audio, English Services, CBC. "We're excited for audiences to hear from a range of interesting personalities on a wide variety of topics that make for compelling conversations, whether you're enjoying your summer in the garden or on a drive to the cottage."

The summer 2012 schedule kicks off on CBC Radio One on Monday, June 25.

New offerings include:

BABEL (Mondays at 11:30 a.m. and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.) is a show about the new Canada, where as many as one in five Canadians don't speak English as a first language.  BABEL collides with old ideas about English, and celebrates the glorious and uniquely Canadian linguistic mash-up that results. Host Mariel Borelli takes us to the street, the classroom and the boardroom to explore our ever-evolving language.

THE WILD SIDE (Tuesdays at 11:30 a.m. and Fridays at 7:30 p.m.) is a half hour, interactive program hosted by Grant Lawrence that shares exciting, energizing, and engaging stories of life in Canada's great outdoors, as Canadians walk, run, hike, swim, kayak, climb, canoe, skydive, ski, snowshoe and skate across our country.  Why? Because it's our nature.

FEAR ITSELF (Mondays at 7:30 p.m. and Thursdays at 9:30 a.m.) goes into the realm of our most profound terrors by exploring why we are both drawn to and repulsed by fear.  Host Christy Ann Conlin lives in the world of what makes us afraid, both as someone who has to face her own fears and as a writer of horror and ghost stories.

INVISIBLE HAND (Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. and Saturday at 11 a.m.) offers a non-dismal take on the "dismal science" of economics.  Whether we like it or not - and mostly we like to ignore it - every choice we make is an economic choice.  Life is about how we chose to spend our limited time, limited money and limited information - and, as host Matthew Lazin-Ryder will show, what we THINK we know about those choices is often dead wrong.

METAMORPHOSIS (Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.): From Jesus Christ to Ebenezer Scrooge, from Franz Kafka to The Biggest Loser, the world has always been captivated by tales of transformation, epiphany and redemption.  METAMORPHOSIS tells the story of 10 men and women who undergo life-altering experiences leading to profound, fundamental personal transformation.

Other new programs on the Radio One summer schedule built on familiar series and specials include:

VINYL CAF STORIES (Thursdays at 1 p.m.):  Stuart McLean presents a new mix of old stories from the Vinyl Caf vaults, featuring Dave, his wife Morely, and the constellation of characters who inhabit Dave's life and second-hand record store.

TRAILBREAKERS (Wednesdays at 11 p.m. and Fridays at 11:30 a.m.) is about our aboriginal activists and artists, educators and innovators, chiefs and youth who are pointing a new way forward. The radio series was first broadcast this past winter as part of CBC's 8th Fire project, which looked at the relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians.

WACHTEL ON THE ARTS (Wednesdays 1 p.m.):  Eleanor Wachtel brings her trademark style of intimate, in-depth interviews with leading artists, architects, composers, filmmakers, theatre and opera directors, actors, singers, conductors, and choreographers from Canada and around the world. These shows first aired on Ideas this season.

GAME CHANGER (Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. and Fridays at 9:30 a.m.): The Current's Anna Maria Tremonti presents the stories of the people, events and ideas that have fundamentally changed the way we move throughout our world, the decisions we make, the actions we take and how we figure out the best way forward.

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES (Mondays at 9:30 a.m. and Wednesdays at 11:30 p.m.) is an international documentary series produced in cooperation with broadcasters from around the world: BBC World Service, Australian Broadcast Corporation, RTE (Ireland), Radio Television Hong Kong, Radio New Zealand, SAFM Radio South Africa and CBC Radio. The theme this year: "Old School, New School."

For full schedule and further information, please visit www.cbc.ca/radio.

About CBC/Radio-Canada

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. The Corporation is a leader in reaching Canadians on new platforms and delivers a comprehensive range of radio, television, Internet, and satellite-based services. Deeply rooted in the regions, CBC/Radio-Canada is the only domestic broadcaster to offer diverse regional and cultural perspectives in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages, plus seven languages for international audiences. In 2011, CBC/Radio-Canada celebrated 75 years of serving Canadians and being at the centre of the democratic, social and cultural life of Canada. 

For further information, contact:                 
Melissa Prince, Veritas Communications
P) 416-482-2669
C) 416-704-8733
prince@veritascanada.com