Before I begin, I would like to personally thank y2kjoker for suggesting this topic to me. I wasn't sure when the right time would have been to post this, but right now seems like a good place to start.
Last May, all of the major US networks announced their fall 2008 schedules during their annual upfront presentations. Once all of the details had become finalized, the Canadian networks began their upfronts more than a week later, where they announced their new programming lineups that also included highlights for their various cable and specialty channels (which I'll cover in Part 2) and digital channels (Part 3). Before making their announcements, the networks tried to furiously outbid one another to gain the rights to the many US series, both old and new, that are available, while also hoping to win viewers with new Canadian shows that they hope will turn into another "Little Mosque" or "Corner Gas". Once again, the CBC refused to take part in the bidding, preferring to keep their programming 100% Canadian-made, which is probably why hardly anyone watches the CBC anymore.
But for those who do, here's what they'll have in the primetime hours:
Monday
8:00 Dragon's Den
9:00 The Border
10:00 CBC News:The National (Mon-Fri at 10:00 pm)
Tuesday
8:00 Rick Mercer Report
8:30 This Hour Has 22 Minutes
9:00 The Tudors
Wednesday
8:00 Little Mosque on the Prairie
8:30 Sophie
9:00 The Fifth Estate
Thursday
8:00 Nature of Things
9:00 Doc Zone
Friday
8:00 Royal Canadian Air Farce
8:30 Rick Mercer Report (encore)
9:00 Doctor Who (Season 4)
Saturday
Hockey Night in Canada - Game 1 (7pm-10pm) (56th season!)
Hockey Night in Canada - Game 2 (10pm-1am)
Sunday
8:00 Movies/Specials
10:00 CBC News: Sunday Night
Here’s what the other Canadian networks will be offering in primetime this fall:
GLOBAL TV
---owner of many Canadian specialty and digital channels, including E!, DejaView, TVTropolis, Mystery, LoneStar, and others
---Digital channel CoolTV will cease operations on July 21st
MONDAY
8:00 Prison Break
9:00 Heroes
10:00 My Own Worst Enemy
TUESDAY
8:00 House
9:00 90210
10:00 Kitchen Nightmares
WEDNESDAY
8:00 Bones
9:00 NCIS
10:00 The Guard
THURSDAY
8:00 Survivor
9:00 The Office (plus its spinoff series in mid-season)
9:30 Kath & Kim
10:00 Life On Mars
FRIDAY
8:00 Life
9:00 The Ex List
10:00 Numb3rs
SATURDAY
8:00 In Cold Blood
9:00 Crime Stories
10:00 Slings and Arrows
SUNDAY
8:00 The Simpsons
8:30 King Of The Hill
9:00 Family Guy
9:30 American Dad
10:00 Brothers & Sisters
E! CANADA
---owned by the Canwest Global group
---daytime programming similar to E! in US
Monday
8:00 'Til Death
8:30 How I Met Your Mother
9:00 Do Not Disturb
9:30 Worst Week
10:00 Boston Legal
Tuesday
8:00 The Biggest Loser
10:00 The Best Years
Wednesday
8:00 Knight Rider
9:00 Deal or No Deal
10:00 E! True Hollywood Story
Thursday
8:00 My Name is Earl
8:30 My Name is Earl
9:00 E! Movie
Friday
8:00 Are Your Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
9:00 Deal or No Deal
10:00 20/20
Saturday
8:00 A Night with E! (Various E! Programming)
Sunday
8:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
9:00 E! Specials
10:00 E! Showcase
CTV
----Canada’s 2nd oldest network
---owned by CTVGlobemedia, which also owns TSN, A-Channel (see below) and other stations formerly owned by CHUM/City TV including TV Land Canada and MuchMusic
Monday
8:00 Dancing With The Stars
9:30 Corner Gas
10:00 CSI: Miami
Tuesday
8:00 Without a Trace
9:00 Dancing With The Stars
10:00 Law & Order: SVU
Wednesday
8:00 So You Think You Can Dance Canada
9:00 Criminal Minds
10:00 CSI: NY
Thursday
8:00 CSI
9:00 Grey's Anatomy
10:00 ER
Friday
8:00 Ghost Whisperer
9:00 Supernanny
10:00 Flashpoint
Saturday
8:00 Crimetime
9:00 Crimetime
10:00 Law & Order: SVU
Sunday
8:00 The Amazing Race
9:00 Desperate Housewives
10:00 The Listener
---CTV is also the Canadian home of American Idol and its homegrown counterpart Canadian Idol.
A
---formerly known as A-Channel
---name change takes effect in the fall of 2008
Monday
8:00 Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles
9:00 Two and a Half Men
9:30 Samantha Who?
10:00 The Mentalist
Tuesday
8:00 Pushing Daisies
9:00 Fringe
10:00 Eli Stone
Wednesday
8:00 America/Canada's Next Top Model
9:00 Private Practice
10:00 Dirty Sexy Money
Thursday
8:00 Moment of Truth
9:00 America's Next Top Model
10:00 The Eleventh Hour
Friday
8:00 Wife Swap
9:00 Don't Forget The Lyrics
10:00 Stargate SG-1
Saturday
8:00 The Big Picture
9:00 Comedy Now!
10:00 Comedy Inc.
Sunday
8:00 Gossip Girl
9:00 Cold Case
10:00 Mad Men
CITY-TV
---formerly part of a large network controlled by CHUM Limited
---now operating as an independent station with channels in Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver
Monday
8:00 Chuck
9:00 Celebrity Fit Club
10:00 Curb Your Enthusiasm
10:30 Less Than Kind
Tuesday
8:00 Surviving the Filthy Rich
9:00 Opportunity Knocks
10:00 Nip/Tuck
Wednesday
8:00 Glam God
9:00 Stalista
10:00 Lipstick Jungle
Thursday
8:00 Ugly Betty
9:00 Rock of Love
10:00 Friends
10:30 Friends
Friday
8:00 Crusoe
9:00 The Secret Life of the American Teenager
10:00 Kaya
10:30 Everybody Hates Chris
Saturday
8:00 Canadian Movie
10:00 Less Than Kind
10:30 Kaya
Sunday
8:00 I.M. Valentine
9:00 Easy Money
10:00 Crusoe
OMNI
---like CITY-TV, OMNI is owned by Rogers Communications and operates independently
---specializes in mulitilingual programming with English language content limited to daytime talk shows and reruns
---operates 4 different channels: OMNI1, OMNI2 (both based in Toronto), OMNI Alberta, and Channel M Multivision (British Columbia)
What follows is the English language programming for each channel:
OMNI1
Mon-Fri
5:00 PM King Of Queens
5:30 King Of Queens
6:00 Family Guy
6:30 Friends
7:00 Two and a Half Men
7:30 The Simpsons
10:00 The Simpsons
10:30 King Of The Hill
11:35 David Letterman
12:35 AM Night Court
Sat
11:00 pm Mad TV
Sun
5:00 PM Home Improvement
5:30 Home Improvement
6:00 Without A Trace
7:00 Without A Trace
8:00 Friends
OMNI2
Mon-Fri
11:00 AM The Price Is Right
12:00 PM Everybody Loves Raymond
12:30 Trivial Pursuit
1:00 Judge Judy
1:30 Home Improvement
5:30 According To Jim
6:00 Law & Order
7:00 Cold Case
10:00 Two and a Half Men
10:30 Friends (Mondays only)
10:30 King Of Queens (Tue-Fri)
11:00 Cold Case (Tue-Fri)
12:00 AM Blind Date
Sat
12:00 AM Blind Date
12:30 AM Blind Date
OMNI Alberta
11:00 AM The Price Is Right
12:00 PM Frasier
3:30 Home Improvement
4:00 The O.C.
5:30 Judge Judy
6:00 According To Jim
6:30 King Of The Hill
7:00 Two and a Half Men
7:30 The Simpsons
10:00 The Simpsons
10:30 King Of Queens
12:00 AM Cold Case
Sat
12:00 AM Mad TV
Sun
5:00 PM Everybody Loves Raymond
5:30 Frasier
6:00 Without A Trace
7:00 Without A Trace
8:00 King Of Queens
8:30 King Of Queens
CHANNEL M (MULTIVISION)
Mon-Fri
9:30 AM Trivial Pursuit
10:00 The Price Is Right
11:00 Judge Joe Brown
11:30 Scrubs
12:00 PM The Simpsons
3:00 Maury Povich
4:00 Cold Case
5:00 Law & Order
6:00 The Simpsons
6:30 Friends
7:00 Two and a Half Men
7:30 Two and a Half Men
11:35 David Letterman
12:35 AM King Of The Hill
1:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos
1:30 Judge Joe Brown
Sat
6:00 PM Friends
6:30 Friends
7:00 Two and a Half Men
7:30 Two and a Half Men
10:30 Scrubs
11:00 Mad TV
12:00 AM Scrubs
12:30 Home Improvement
Sun
6:00 PM Without A Trace
7:00 Without A Trace
12:00 AM Scrubs
12:30 Home Improvement
Still to come:
SUN TV, CTS, Specialty Channels (Part 2), and Digital Channels (Part 3)
Stay tuned!