Some of these items are quite old, one is quite new, but regardless, I thought it good to post a summary of Canadian game show happenings. As usual, all of these are French-language shows produced in Montréal.
--Vingt et un axed: early in February, TVA announced that its version of TwentyOne would not be renewed. Hosted by the ultra-popular Guy Mongrain, the show had managed to beat its existing competition in the 6:30 PM timeslot. L'union fait la force was hosted by even-more popular Patrice Lecuyer, and featured two teams (3 contestants, one celebrity) playing 5 days for their favourite charity.
L'UFLF's lively, fast-paced gaggle of mini-games was a stark contrast to 21's glacial, repetitive, interaction-free '50s format, although Mongrain's experience made the show quite pleasant to watch. 21's ratings were actually higher than its SRC competition, probably due to Mongrain's appeal to the game-show crowd. The coup de grace came over the holidays, when 21 took a month-long break but l'UFLF continued running. Ratings increased and remained so even after 21 came back on the air.
Trivia: my taping occurred on the weekend immediately following the cancellation announcement. A chuck of foam was missing from the inside of the right contestant booth's door, the spot which hostess Julie Deschenes's hand tended to hold. During rehearsals, the ever-smiling Mongrain noticed and smirked to the studio audience, "less than a week since our cancellation and the set is already falling apart!"
--L'Union fait la force returns: Although thought dead for several months, news has come out that L'union fait la force will return next season... but on Friday, Saturday and Sunday! The unusual scheduling is due to superstar Veronique Cloutier's (La fureur) new daily variety show. Host Lecuyer is reportedly unhappy with the news; further scheduling changes may result.
--Neither Tele-Quebec nor TQS plans to air a game show. Comic Normand Brathwaite's (Piment Fort) humour game show project, Moi j'connais un gars... , has been shelved.
--Finally, a pilot for La cible, the Canadian version of the French game show, is being/has been shot. Production house, network, pickup status unknown. La cible is a great show: 8 contestants stand in a circle, surrounding a rotating camera mounted on a pole. After each question is read, the roaming eye stops on a random player, who is placed on the spot and must answer immediately. The last 4 move on (advancing onto an inner circle -- the stage is shaped like a target) to play a different game; the last 2 face off. I like it, and wouldn't mind one bit if this show made its way to our shores.
That's it for now.
