Shelagh Rogers is retiring after the current season of CBC Radio literary program, The Next Chapter after 15 years and 43 with the public broadcaster. Her final hosting turn on the show will air June 24.
Rogers got her start in radio at Queen’s University campus station CFRC, going on to host a country music program while still a student at CKWS (now Global TV) Kingston. She joined CBC Radio Ottawa in 1980, where she hosted current affairs and music programs, becoming the host of national classical concert show Mostly Music in 1982.
Upon moving to CBC Toronto in 1984, Rogers started hosting on national programs like Morningside, The Max Ferguson Show and Basic Black, and was the founding host of The Arts Tonight. In 1995, Peter Gzowski named Rogers the permanent guest host of Morningside. She went on to develop Sounds Like Canada, which aired weekday mornings from 2002 to 2008, when she took the helm of The Next Chapter.
“Shelagh’s laugh may be as memorable as her enthusiasm for talking about this great country, ” said Barbara Williams, Executive Vice-President, CBC, in an announcement from the public broadcaster. “It’s a thrill when Shelagh takes us along for the ride to discover a new Canadian artist, voice or perspective. I will miss laughing and learning along with her on the radio, especially when those national conversations touched on her own commitment to mental health and reconciliation. Her enduring legacy will be inspiring listeners to question for themselves, what about being Canadian brings them joy.”
CBC says The Next Chapter will continue with the summer edition of the show to be hosted by CBC Books producer and contributor Ryan B. Patrick, as the search for a permanent host gets underway.
“I want to say thank you to the listeners for being with me,” said Rogers. “Thank you for giving me the chance to grow. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to introduce you to voices you may not otherwise have heard on the radio. I’ve had such joy in seeing writers, especially from diverse communities, enjoy phenomenal success — and long may that continue. I just love the fact that more and more voices are being heard and I will miss being a part of that wonderful current that is running through radio these days.”
“I just want to give the keys to somebody else and say, ‘This is yours now — just go for it. Go and use all your creativity, your sense of wonder, curiosity and compassion and tell the stories of this complicated, messy and beautiful country.'”
Rogers was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2011, for promoting Canadian culture, her volunteer work in adult literacy, fighting against the stigma of mental illness, and her work in support of reconciliation. She was chosen as an “Honourary Witness” by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
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