YTV LAUNCHES NEW SUNDAY MOVIE BLOCK BIG FUN MOVIES WITH HOST LAURA

Viewers can enjoy three movies back-to-back every Sunday beginning
January 2 at 2 p.m. ET/PT

Big Fun Movies kicks off with Over the Hedge, Ice Age and Igor

TORONTO, Dec. 13 /CNW/ - Corus Entertainment's YTV is giving kids and their families another reason to curl up this winter and spend more quality time together with its new Sunday movie block, Big Fun Movies. Hosted by YTV's newest on-air personality Laura, Big Fun Movies will debut on Sunday, January 2 at 2 p.m. ET/PT with three back-to-back movies.

"Movies have always been a big draw for our audience, especially on the weekend, and Big Fun Movies is a terrific way to make Sunday afternoon and evening a destination for the best in family films," said Ted Ellis, Vice President, Kids/Family Programming, Corus Television. "Also, we couldn't be happier to welcome Laura to the YTV family of hosts, as she takes the viewers' movie experience to the next level with her fun intros and interstitials."

Hailing from St. Catharines, Ontario, Big Fun Movies host Laura is no stranger to YTV; her first job was an acting gig playing a news reporter on YTV's System Crash. Now, continuing her dream of being on-air, Laura brings her passion for writing, singing, music and directing short films to her weekly interstitials as she takes viewers behind-the-scenes to check out all things movie related. Whether it be exploring a movie set or interviewing A-list stars, Laura is on a mission to explore the magic of movie making. Laura's favourite movies of all time include Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands starring Johnny Depp and the classic film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

To access an image of YTV's newest host Laura, click here.

On Sunday, January 2 at 2 p.m. ET/PT Big Fun Movies will kick things off with Over the Hedge starring Bruce Willis and Steve Carell, followed by Ice Age starring Ray Romano at 4 p.m., leading up to the Canadian broadcast premiere of Igor at 6 p.m.

The animated feature Igor stars the voice talents of John Cusack as the title character, along with John Cleese, Arsenio Hall, Jay Leno, Molly Shannon, Christian Slater and Steve Buscemi. In this humourous fable, a cliché hunchbacked scientist's assistant, Igor, aspires to become a scientist himself. But much to the chagrin of the rest of the evil science community, Igor's dreams of winning first place at the Evil Science Fair may come true.

Offering viewers three movies back-to-back every Sunday at 2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., Big Fun Movies will feature the following titles throughout the month of January:

Sunday, January 9

• Garfield Gets Real at 2 p.m.
• Garfield The Movie at 4 p.m. - starring Jennifer Love Hewitt and Bill Murray
• Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties at 6 p.m. - starring Bill Murray and Billy Connolly

Sunday, January 16

• Muppets Treasure Island at 1:45 p.m. - starring Billy Connolly
• Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium at 4 p.m. - starring Dustin Hoffman
• The Golden Compass at 6 p.m. - starring Nicole Kidman

Sunday, January 23

• The NeverEnding Story at 2 p.m.
• Snow Day on Sunday, January 23 at 4 p.m. - starring Chevy Chase
• The Mighty Ducks at 6 p.m. - starring Emilio Estevez and Joshua Jackson

Sunday, January 30

• Rugrats Go Wild at 2 p.m. - starring Tim Curry
• Open Season at 4 p.m. - starring Martin Lawrence, Ashton Kutcher and Debra Messing
• Open Season II on Sunday, January 30 at 6 p.m. - starring Billy Connolly

Seen in over 10.5 million homes across Canada, YTV is a leading entertainment brand for kids. As a major force in kids' television, YTV offers great programming for kids and families with hit Nickelodeon series, blockbuster movies and original Canadian programming. YTV reaches kids online at YTV.com and in local communities with the travelling road show WOW!. Visit www.ytv.com.

YTV is owned by Corus Entertainment Inc., a Canadian-based media and entertainment company. Corus is a market leader in specialty television and radio with additional assets in pay television, television broadcasting, children's book publishing and children's animation. The company's multimedia entertainment brands include YTV, Treehouse, Nickelodeon (Canada), W Network, CosmoTV, VIVA, Sundance Channel (Canada), Movie Central, HBO Canada, Nelvana, Kids Can Press and radio stations including CKNW, CFOX, CKOI, 98,5 FM, Q107 and 102.1 the Edge. Corus creates engaging branded entertainment experiences for its audiences across multiple platforms. A publicly traded company, Corus is listed on the Toronto (CJR.B) exchange. Experience Corus on the web at www.corusent.com.

For high-resolution images, please visit: http://mediacentre.corusent.com

For further information:

Molly Ray
Senior Publicist
Corus Entertainment
416.479.6087
[email protected]