David Suzuki has announced he’ll retire from CBC’s The Nature of Things next spring after 43 years as host of the longest-running television science program. Suzuki, 86, announced his pending retirement Sunday night during an interview with Ian Hanomansing on The National. A professor and geneticist prior to joining the public broadcaster, Suzuki had a desire to connect television audiences with a better understanding of science. He began his television career in 1970 with weekly children’s show Suzuki on Science, going on to host Quirks & Quarks on CBC Radio and half-hour television series, Science Magazine from 1975-79. The Nature of Things premiered on CBC in October 1979. The show’s 62nd season will debut Jan. 6, 2023, with Suzuki’s final episode set to air in the spring. CBC says new hosting plans for the series will be confirmed in the coming weeks. Read more here.
Mark Sutcliffe will serve as Ottawa’s next mayor. Sutcliffe, 54, retired from daily radio last year after stepping back from his mid-morning talk show, Ottawa Today on CityNews Ottawa (CIWW-AM). He had been on-air for two decades in the market with stops at 580 CFRA and Rogers TV, in addition to 15 years as a columnist for the Ottawa Citizen. Sutcliffe garnered 51% of the vote in Monday night’s election, campaigning on a promise of fiscal frugality and a cap on property tax hikes.
Tandy Yull has joined the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) as Vice President, Policy and Regulatory Affairs. Yull arrives from the CRTC where she’d been a Senior Manager for the last 23 years, most recently in Alternative Dispute Resolution. Prior to joining the commission in 1999, she served as CAB’s Manager of Television Policy and Social Issues. Erin Dallaire also joins the CAB as Manager, Collectives Services, supporting the administration of the Canadian Broadcasters Rights Agency (CBRA). The CAB added Lesley LeRoux as Manager, Communications and Lindsay Royston as Director, Finance earlier in the summer.
Christian Tanna of I Mother Earth is joining Durham Radio’s 94.9 The Rock (CKGE-FM), serving Greater Toronto and Oshawa, as the station doubles down on its rockstar talent. Tanna is taking over hosting duties on new and emerging artist spotlight, Generation Next Radio. He’ll be heard weeknights at 8 p.m. and weekends at 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., starting Nov. 7. He takes over from in-demand music producer/mixer/engineer Brian Moncarz, who is stepping away from the show after a decade. Tanna joins Cone McCaslin of Sum 41 on the 94.9 The Rock lineup. McCaslin joined the station in April with Sunday night music discovery show, Cone’s Cave, dedicated to punk, garage rock and metal. Read more here.
Mike Luck, or Lucky as he is known as one half of Craig and Lucky on 94.9 The Rock (CKGE-FM) Oshawa, has joined the NHL on Sportsnet broadcast team as a play-by-play announcer. Luck, who has called the OHL’s Oshawa Generals for 15 seasons, has been tapped to call select national Ottawa Senators and Winnipeg Jets broadcasts on Sportsnet, including Hockey Night in Canada.
Lisa Evans is now being heard on SiriusXM’s 70s on 7 on weekends, the channel’s first Canadian host. She’ll also continue to co-host mornings on Harvard Media’s Play 107 (CKPW-FM) Edmonton and middays on Kraze 101.3 (CKIK-FM) Red Deer.
Kevin Nimmock has left CTV Calgary where he’d served as assignment editor for the last four years. Prior to joining CTV Calgary, Nimmock was the morning producer for CTV Morning Live Winnipeg and a reporter with Moncton’s Times & Transcript.
Stephanie Florian has joined Global BC as a part-time weather reporter/anchor. Florian arrives from CTV Vancouver where she’d been a weather anchor since 2014.
Andrew Burns has been promoted within SiriusXM Canada to Manager, Editorial. He has been working with SiriusXM since 2013 as an Interactive Content Editor. Burns’ early career included stops at Corus Radio Toronto, and JACK FM, Citytv, and OMNI.
Kathy Shaw has accepted a new position with Pattison Media as General Sales Manager at Island Radio. Shaw arrives from Stingray Calgary where she’d been a Senior Account Manager since 2016. Prior to that, she held sales, marketing and creative roles with Bell Media and Standard Broadcasting in Calgary.
Jawn Jang has announced his departure from 980 CKNW Vancouver after two years with the station and nearly a decade in radio. Jang says he’ll be “turning off the mic and moving to a new adventure.” He joined CKNW in Sept. 2020 as a fill-in host and contributor to the daytime talk shows, including The Jas Johal Show. Prior to Corus, Jang was co-host of “The Playbook” on Sportsnet 650 (CISL-AM) Vancouver, alongside Satiar Shah.
Anthony Furey has left Postmedia and is now True North’s new Vice President of Editorial and Content. Furey will oversee newsroom operations as well as contribute his own columns and video commentary. He’ll also be hosting a regular podcast breaking down the daily news.
Ruairi Doyle has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PressReader. Co-founder and former Chief Executive Officer Alexander Kroogman has transitioned to the role of Executive Director and member of the Board of Directors. Doyle joined PressReader five years ago, initially serving as the General Manager and R&D Lead at PressReader’s EMEA office based in Ireland, later relocating to Vancouver as Vice President of Product, and more recently SVP, Product and Operations. Before PressReader, he held leadership roles at Google, Independent News & Media, and not-for-profit Apps for Good.
Brandon Davis has been appointed to the newly-created position of Chief Operating Officer at Project 10 Productions. He’ll work alongside CEO Andrew Barnsley, responsible for the day-to-day management of Project 10, as well as the execution of its new business growth strategy. The announcement comes following a highly successful year for Project 10, including the premiere of the Amazon reboot of Kids in the Hall and the second season of Son of a Critch slated to premiere on CBC in early 2023. Davis has served as a strategic advisor to Project 10 for the past seven years and is also Managing Partner for professional baseball player Vernon Well’s private equity firm, JayChris Management.
Nicole Shizuka Oguchi and Phil Klapwyk have joined Vancouver’s Omnifilm Entertainment as the company ramps up production activity. Shizuka Oguchi joins as Head of Physical Production and Klapwyk as Business Development Executive. A seasoned film and television unit production manager and line producer, Shizuka Oguchi has worked on high profile features including Steven Spielberg’s The BFG and Tim Burton’s Big Eyes. Klapwyk was known for his leadership at IATSE 891 for the past seven years.
Louis Vachon has joined the board of BCE Inc. and Bell Canada. He will also join the Board’s Management Resources and Compensation Committee and Risk and Pension Fund Committee. Vachon is an Operating Partner at J.C. Flowers & Co. Previously, he was President and CEO of the National Bank of Canada, from 2007-21. Vachon is also a corporate director who serves on the boards of Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., Groupe CH Inc., MDA Ltd. and Molson Coors Beverage Company.
