Record-Breaking Big Brother Canada Returns March 5th on Slice™

This Season Welcomes the All-New Weekly Big Brother Canada Side Show

Attention Editors: For complete program information and photos please Visit: www.ShawMediaTV.ca

TORONTO, Jan. 20, 2014 /CNW/ - Big Brother Canada, the country's number one specialty reality series of 2013*, returns to Slice™ on Wednesday, March 5, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT with a special presentation of the premiere also airing on Global. After an epic inaugural season of Endemol's worldwide hit franchise that captivated fans, this season brings with it a new set of houseguests, zany new twists and challenges, and more opportunities for fans online to impact the show.

New this season is the Big Brother Canada Side Show, a weekly post-eviction wrap up show led by series host Arisa Cox and featuring season one houseguests Gary Levy and Peter Brown. Each week a surprise guest will join the Side Show panel to dish on events going on inside the house. The Big Brother Canada Side Show will air immediately following each eviction episode Thursdays at 10 pm ET/PT.

"Last season, our Canadian edition of Big Brother exceeded all expectations, bringing in record audiences and engaging fans in ways we'd never done before," said Barbara Williams, SVP of Content, Shaw Media. "With season two chalk-full of opportunities for viewers at home to influence the house and never before seen show-altering twists, our new batch of houseguests and fans are in for a wildly exciting ride."

"If you thought season one was full of twists and turns, strap on your seatbelts, season two is going to be a rollercoaster ride," said John Brunton, Executive Producer for Big Brother Canada.  "Fans couldn't get enough of the show, so we're bringing them the all-new Big Brother Canada Side Show hosted by the fabulous Arisa Cox and featuring familiar faces Gary and Peter who know the show inside and out.  Sparks will fly."

A group of strangers from across the country will be plucked from their homes to move in to the Big Brother Canada house, outfitted wall-to-wall with cameras and microphones that capture their every move. Week by week, houseguests will be eliminated as they compete in a series of challenges that test both brain and brawn and better their odds at the grand prize of $100,000 and a $25,000 gift card from The Brick.

Fans online couldn't get enough of season one, flocking to the site, streaming over one million hours of video online and driving Twitter conversation so high that #BBCAN trended regularly throughout the series run. Earning a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Cross-Platform Project (Non-Fiction) for season one, the series continues to host a myriad of digital extensions and platforms that augment the social dynamics and real-time momentum of the 24/7 television production. Beyond Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, fans of the series can extend their fix of Big Brother Canada at BigBrotherCanada.ca with full episodes, live streams, and a collection of twists and opportunities that allow them to impact the show.

Big Brother Canada, continues to air three nights a week on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 9pm ET/PT. The Big Brother Canada Side Show will air Thursdays, following each eviction episode, at 10pm ET/PT. Big Brother After Dark will air seven days a week from 2am - 5am ET/11pm - 2am PT.

Details on casting will be revealed at a later date.Tune in to Entertainment Tonight Canada tonight at 7:30pm ET/PT for an exclusive sit-down with Gary Levy about the all-new Big Brother Canada Side Show.

Big Brother Canada is produced by Insight Production Company Ltd., in association with Shaw Media.  Executive Producers for Insight Productions are John Brunton and Barbara Bowlby, with Supervising Producers Erin Brock and Sue Brophey, and Senior Producer Eric Abboud.

* Source: BBM Canada PPM data All Cdn Specialty 12/31/12-12/29/13, V2+ & A25-54

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
Twitter: @BigBrotherCA | @Slice_TV | @ShawMediaTV_PR | #BBCAN #ShawMedia
Instagram: @BigBrotherCA | #BBCAN
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/BigBrotherCA | www.Facebook.com/Slice

Slice™ is a Shaw Media network.

About Shaw Communications Inc.
Shaw Communications Inc. is a diversified communications and media company, providing consumers with broadband cable television, High-Speed Internet, Home Phone, telecommunications services (through Shaw Business), satellite direct-to-home services (through Shaw Direct) and engaging programming content (through Shaw Media). Shaw serves 3.4 million customers, through a reliable and extensive fibre network. Shaw Media operates one of the largest conventional television networks in Canada, Global Television, and 19 specialty networks including HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, History Television and Showcase. Shaw is traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges and is included in the S&P/TSX 60 Index (Symbol: TSX - SJR.B, NYSE - SJR). For more information about Shaw, please visit www.shaw.ca.

About Endemol
Endemol is the largest independent television and digital production company in the world. It comprises a global network of around 90 companies in more than 30 countries and is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 

The company annually produces over 350 series across genres, including entertainment, reality TV, game shows, comedy, drama, sport, kids programming, factual, docu-dramas and features. 

Endemol works with roughly 400 broadcasters, digital platforms and licensees worldwide.  The business covers development, production, marketing, distribution and franchise management.

Credits include international hits such as Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, Wipeout, The Money Drop and Your Face Sounds Familiar. The company's growing drama and comedy portfolio includes Hell on Wheels, Hot in Cleveland, Leverage, Home and Away, Emmy Award winning Black Mirror; and new productions in 2013 including Ripper Street and Peaky Blinders for the BBC and the US adaptation of UK drama Low Winter Sun for AMC. 

As one of the world's largest independent distributors of formats and finished programming Endemol launches over 50 new entertainment formats each year on broadcast networks around the world and distributes more than 29,000 hours of content. The company's creative teams around the world are continuously developing new ideas that are shared across the Endemol network.

About Insight Productions
Insight Production Company Ltd, headed by John Brunton & Barbara Bowlby has become an industry leader in the creative development, financing and production of highly rated television programs and cutting edge multiplatform content for the global market in every genre. Since 1979, it has been recognized for its reputation for quality as the recipient of numerous international awards, including multiple Gemini's. The company has created thousands of hours of groundbreaking television that continues to be broadcast over major networks worldwide. Broadcast Magazine International claims that "when it comes to adapting formats for Canadian audiences there is one producer who appears to have the Midas touch." Along with Big Brother Canada, recent hits include The Amazing Race Canada, Top Chef Canada challenging the culinary skills of Canadian chefs to see who can cut it as Canada's Top Chef, hosted by Lisa Ray; Never Ever Do This At Home; Intervention Canada and The JUNO Awards, which plays a key role in the Canadian music industry; Insight's original formats Canada Sings and Battle of the Blades. For more information, visit www.insighttv.com.

SOURCE: SLICE

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