Are some topics just off limits for comedy? I’ve been having that conversation with several people in the funny business lately while pulling together a feature about a certain ex- CBC radio host. A good example of a TV show that tackles a taboo subject with wit and compassion is Getting On, returning for a second short season
Outlander, which begins Sunday night at 10 p.m. on Showcase, is the latest big-budget historical epic to be shot in Europe. Vikings, Penny Dreadful and Game of Thrones shoots next door in Ireland. The Borgias was shot in Hungary, as is the upcoming CBC spy drama Camp X. There’s one actor on Outlander who has traveled
Some entertainers, you really hope that when you meet them, you like them. They’ve made you smile on TV or film and you hope for that same experience in a scrum or a press conference. The thing about Robin Williams was that, when you met him, you liked him even more. The surprise was how
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.–HBO chief executives Richard Plepler and Michael Lombardo had plenty to crow about at Thursday’s TCA press tour session. Once again, thgeir premium cable network had cleaned up at the Emmys, snaring 99 nominations, including a record 19 for the limited run series True Detective. (That tally nosed out the 18 noms gained
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.–It looks like that free window on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will remain open for now. Selected rants from the Sunday night HBO showcase featuring British-born comedian John Oliver have been available after every show on YouTube. A spokesperson for the premium cable network says there have been “some discussions” about how
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.–A terrific little series that snuck on and off HBO’s schedule last winter was Getting On. Based on a British series, the dark comedy looks at life in a geriactric wing of a Long Beach Hospital. The good news is that Getting On is coming back for a second season. Laurie Metcalf, Alex Bornstein
What’s on TV this summer? Plenty, including the launch of the most popular Canadian series of the modern ratings gathering era, The Amazing Race Canada (Tuesday night on CTV). It’s curious CTV is running it on a Tuesday this season, perhaps getting Canadians used to the idea that its Sunday tent pole, the American Amazing
My son Dan’s favourite new TV show is Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. How, I wondered. The series airs Sundays at 11 p.m. on HBO Canada, a premium pay service I know his Ryerson U gang down at the Carleton Street bunker do not subscribe to. Still, I shouldn’t be so surprised. These kids today,