with Ed Robertson
-- Barenaked Ladies co-founder goes farther afield for his toughest assignments yet as the crew ventures overseas at the mid-way point of Season 3 production --
Toronto, ON (June 16, 2008) – OLN, together with Toronto-based Peace Point Entertainment Group, announced today Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies is once again leaving his cozy tour bus and gearing up for adventure as production is currently under way on Season 3 of the original OLN series Ed’s Up!. This summer, 13 half-hour episodes are being shot for broadcast in Fall 2008 in Canada on OLN. The second half of production on the new season is going international with filming set to begin next week in Jamaica and the U.K.
**Media Note** Download photos for Ed's Up! at www.ctvmedia.ca/oln ."OLN is thrilled that Ed's Up! continues to evolve each season," said Patrice Baillargeon, Executive Producer, OLN. "As Ed flies to destinations beyond Canada and the continental U.S., viewers will get a chance to follow him to places where the locations themselves will become an integral part of the storylines."
Throughout Season 1, Robertson began logging flight-time in his Cessna airplane, crossing Canada to tackle a series of on-the-job challenges: working with the army, ranchers in Alberta and a CFL football team. Then, in Season 2, jobs got tougher — and wetter — as Robertson took advantage of his new floatplane license by making water landings all over Canada and the U.S. He worked in a New York City hospital ER, a Canadian Air Force boot camp and a Chicago slaughterhouse. Through it all, the Canadian rock star learned how hard the work-a-day life could be as he took on the toughest of jobs with his trademark good humour and down-to-earth attitude.
"He's a tough guy to crack, that Ed!" laughs Les Tomlin, President and Executive Producer of Peace Point Entertainment Group. "He rises to almost every occasion. We've only been able to break him a couple of times!"
As Season 3 of the hit OLN series moves production overseas, Tomlin explains that the workplace challenges awaiting Robertson this time around are as much mental as physical. "There's more of an emotional connection with the people he's working with," says Tomlin, notably when the rock star goes to teach at a school in Jamaica. "This'll be the first time that the show goes off the North American continent," Tomlin explains, "The idea is to really take him out of his North American element and see how he survives."
From working as a coffee farmer in Jamaica to joining a sailing crew as they cross the Irish Channel on their way to Liverpool, Robertson will log over 16,000 kilometres in his plane. But the most important journey for the musician will be exploring his own emotional and physical limits, learning a new respect for the people who grapple with some of the world's most difficult jobs.
Working again with producer Craig Fleming, Robertson and the crew are racing to complete filming before he's due back in the recording studio in mid-July to work on the next Barenaked Ladies album.
Robertson is the founding member of the band Barenaked Ladies and plays guitar, sings, writes, raps, drums – and flies! The band has sold over 12 million records, achieved a U.S. number one single, and received two Grammy nominations and seven Juno Awards. As an actor, Robertson has appeared in the films Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle; The Wrong Guy; Love, Sex, and Eating the Bones; and such TV shows as Charmed; 2 Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Joint; MadTV; and Dennis Leary's Merry @@$$%@ Christmas.
OLN:
OLN is Canada's destination for adventurous entertainment. Going beyond the comforts of home, OLN's experience-based programming reveals the insatiable human drive for adventure. Riveting and rugged, OLN's fearless line-up pushes the limits with series like Survivorman, Mantracker, Ed’s Up!, The Amazing Race and Extreme Survival; and covering internationally-renowned events including the Tour De France, Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show and Professional Bull Riding. Visit OLN on the web at www.tsn.ca/oln . CTV Inc. is the managing partner of OLN.
Peace Point Entertainment Group is a Toronto-based independent producer of cutting-edge television content for the worldwide market. To date, the company has produced well over 400 hours of television content with distribution in over 35 international markets. Current shows in production and/or airing include Ed’s Up! (OLN Canada), Bump! (OUTtv), Food Jammers (Food Canada), Fresh with Anna Olson (Food Canada), Reality Obsessed (TVtropolis) and Real Fight Club (Global TV). The company creates, finances, produces and distributes popular television programming in a variety of genres including doc, lifestyle, reality and drama. Additionally, Peace Point is a shareholder of OUTtv Canada where Tomlin also sits on the board. OUTtv is a national Canadian digital specialty channel (formerly PrideVision).For more information and video clips, log onto: www.peacepoint.tv
For More Information:
Sónia Brum – Publicist, OLN
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or 416.332.5076
Michael Joseph Ianni / Daniel Paquette for Peace Point Entertainment
Daniel Paquette Public Relations
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416 413-7714; www.dppr.ca