''This Hour Has Seven Days'' was a

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

public affairs program that ran from 1964 to 1966, offering viewers in-depth analysis of the major social and political stories of the previous week. The show, inspired by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and NBC-TV

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposin ...

series ''

That Was the Week That Was ''That Was the Week That Was'', informally ''TWTWTW'' or ''TW3'', is a satirical television comedy programme that aired on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. It was devised, produced, and directed by Ned Sherrin and Jack (aka John) Duncan, and pr ...

'', was created by Patrick Watson and Douglas Leiterman as an avenue for a more stimulating and boundary-pushing brand of television journalism. CBC executives believed the controversial show went beyond the limits of

journalistic ethics Journalistic ethics and standards comprise principles of ethics and good practice applicable to journalists. This subset of media ethics is known as journalism's professional "code of ethics" and the "canons of journalism". The basic codes and ...

and cancelled the show, leading to allegations of political interference. The show set new standards of

broadcast journalism Broadcast journalism is the field of news and journals which are broadcast by electronic methods instead of the older methods, such as printed newspapers and posters. It works on radio (via air, cable, and Internet), television (via air, cable, ...

in Canada and the United States, and many of its elements inspired the tabloid talk show genre in later decades.

Overview

Hosts and contributors

''This Hour Has Seven Days'' was initially hosted by John Drainie, Laurier LaPierre, and Carole Simpson (not to be confused with the now-retired ABC weekend news anchor of the same name); Simpson was soon replaced by Dinah Christie, and Watson himself replaced Drainie in the show's second season when Drainie (who died in 1966) was too ill to continue with the series. It had a production staff of as many as 40 people, with a roster of producers responsible for separate segments. Contributing personalities—known at various times as story editors, writers, directors, and producers—included Charles Backhouse, Donald Brittain, Cecily Burwash, Jim Carney, Roy Faibish, Beryl Fox,

Allan King Allan Winton King, (February 6, 1930 – June 15, 2009), was a Canadian film director. Life Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, during the Great Depression, King attended Henry Hudson Elementary School, in Kitsilano.Tom Koch, Heinz Kornagel, Sam Levene, Brian Nolan, Charles Oberdorf, Peter Pearson, Alexander Ross, Warner Troyer, Jack Webster, and Larry Zolf.

Content

''This Hour Has Seven Days'' debuted on October 4, 1964, replacing the Cliff Solway-produced series '' Background''. The show used a one-hour news format which combined satirical songs (performed by Simpson or Christie) and sketches with

hard news News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the te ...

interviews, reports, and documentaries. It also played a major role in bringing to public attention issues that had been suppressed or made taboo both in television and society as a whole. Leiterman and Watson divided the show into different components, which varied in length and weight from broadcast to broadcast. As a review of the week's events, ''Seven Days'' would rely on film reports, linked with contexts and updates from the studio hosts. ''Seven Days'' combined two types of public affairs television. Following the first type, the show employed the direct-cinema techniques of contemporary documentary filmmaking to cover issues of

public interest In social science and economics, public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society. While it has earlier philosophical roots and is considered to be at the core of democratic theories of government, often paired ...

in depth through hour-long film essays. Second, the show invigorated discussions with public policymakers, and helped establish television as a medium of public accountability. Interviews were drawn from the latter style of broadcast, and were labelled the "Hot Seat," proposed as a "tough encounter with a prominent guest who is hot in the news and prepared to be grilled." The "Small World" segment added the element of a studio audience for interview sessions. The producers also planned to include background commentary by a range of Canadian and foreign broadcasters and writers; among them they proposed

Alistair Cooke Alistair Cooke, Order of the British Empire, KBE (né Alfred Cooke; 20 November 1908 – 30 March 2004) was a British-American writer whose work as a journalist, television personality and radio broadcaster was done primarily in the Unite ...

James Reston James "Scotty" Barrett Reston (November 3, 1909 – December 6, 1995) was an American journalist whose career spanned the mid-1930s to the early 1990s. He was associated for many years with ''The New York Times.'' Early life and educati ...

, Blair Fraser,

Rebecca West Dame Cecily Isabel Fairfield (21 December 1892 – 15 March 1983), known as Rebecca West, or Dame Rebecca West, was a British author, journalist, literary critic and travel writer. An author who wrote in many genres, West reviewed books ...

, Gérard Pelletier,

James Wechsler James Arthur Wechsler (October 31, 1915 – September 11, 1983) was an American journalist who worked as a newspaper columnist, Washington bureau chief, editor-in-chief, and editorial page editor of The ''New York Post''. He was a prominent vo ...

Simone de Beauvoir Simone Lucie Ernestine Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir (, ; ; 9 January 1908 – 14 April 1986) was a French existentialist philosopher, writer, social theorist, and feminist activist. Though she did not consider herself a philosopher, nor was she ...

, and future Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. Once each month, ''Seven Days'' was replaced by ''Document'' (1964–66), a single-item documentary series, also produced by Leiterman and Watson. One documentary commissioned by ''Document'', Fox's

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

film '' The Mills of the Gods: Viet Nam'', winner of Film of the Year at the Canadian Film Awards, became one of the most famous documentary films ever produced about the war, with editing by Don Haig. Earlier, the creative team of Fox and Haig, along with cameramen Richard Leiterman, John Foster and Grahame Woods, had gone to Mississippi to cover

Freedom Summer Freedom Summer, also known as Mississippi Freedom Summer (sometimes referred to as the Freedom Summer Project or the Mississippi Summer Project), was a campaign launched by civil rights movement, American civil rights activists in June 1964 to r ...

following the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner in August 1964. The result, known as '' Summer in Mississippi'', won a

Canadian Film Award The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually, except in 1974 when a number of Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation. In the 1970s ...

for Best TV Information and was shown on ''Seven Days''. One of the most dramatic techniques was to ambush politicians and other figures at their homes or on their way to work and ask them difficult questions.

Select episodes and issues covered

As an example of the broad scope of each episode of ''Seven Days'', consider the one that aired on the January 1, 1966 episode. It featured: Brian Nolan's interview with surrealist artist

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (11 May 190423 January 1989), known as Salvador Dalí ( ; ; ), was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, ...

; Ken Lefolii's interview with reporter Richard Dudman, who was blamed for upsetting peace negotiations in

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

; Robert Hoyt and Douglas Leiterman's interview with Washington columnist Max Freedman concerning President

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

's performance in the latest peace offensive; a comedy sketch by Stan Daniels and Barry Baldaro portraying future events in

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

; a report on increased U.S. usage of chemical and biological weapons; a satirical report on

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

's gubernatorial candidacy in California accompanied by film clips from some of his films; Dinah Christies' interview with actor

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, director and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits for much of his career. Ustinov received #Awa ...

, cartoonist

Jules Feiffer Jules Ralph Feiffer ( ; January 26, 1929 – January 17, 2025) was an American cartoonist and author, who at one time was considered the most widely read satirist in the country. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for Pulitzer Prize for Editori ...

, and writer Stan Freburg, regarding the 1960s; Larry Zolf's man-in-the-street interviews in London gauging public recognition of Canadian Prime Minister

Lester B. Pearson Lester Bowles Pearson (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th prime minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as Leader of the Liberal Party of C ...

; and finally a round table discussion with Finance Minister Mitchell Sharp who discusses public life, federal-provincial relations, foreign ownership and Canada's economic condition. The show was also instrumental in news coverage of the Munsinger Affair, a 1966 sex scandal involving former federal Minister of Defence Pierre Sévigny. When Zolf showed up on Sévigny's doorstep in pursuit of the story, Sévigny whacked Zolf on the head with his cane. Allan Fotheringham, ''Birds of a Feather: The Press and the Politicians'' (Toronto: Key Porter Books, 1989). Among other controversies inspired by the show, LaPierre was once shown wiping away tears on the air after a filmed interview pertaining to the Steven Truscott case,"Amid CBC turmoil, 'This Hour Has Seven Days' stands out as Golden Age"
''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the September 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ' ...

'', November 27, 2014. a report on the Miss Canada pageant was criticized as journalistic "poaching" because the rival

CTV Television Network The CTV Television Network, commonly known as CTV, is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television network. Launched in 1961 and acquired by BCE Inc. in 2000, CTV is Canada's largest privately owned List of Canadian ...

had exclusive coverage rights to the event, and an interview with members of the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

was deliberately engineered to provoke an on-air reaction when a black civil rights activist was brought in, unannounced, to join the interview partway through.

History

Created by Patrick Watson and Douglas Leiterman, ''This Hour Has Seven Days'' debuted on October 4, 1964, with a

studio audience A studio audience is an audience present for the recording of all or part of a television program or radio program. The primary purpose of the studio audience is to provide applause and/or laughter to the program's soundtrack (as opposed to canne ...

, unheard of for a news show at the time. The debut episode featured music by Dinah Christie, who sang original tunes based on the news of the week, and an interview with Marguerite Oswald, mother of

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at age 12 for truan ...

. The show was initially hosted by John Drainie, Laurier LaPierre, and Carole Simpson (not to be confused with the now-retired ABC weekend news anchor of the same name); Simpson was soon replaced by Christie. In the show's second season, Watson himself replaced Drainie as co-host, after the latter (who died in 1966) was too ill to continue with the series. This would leave Leiterman as the sole executive producer.

Cancellation

Concerned about the show's approach to the news, the CBC fired hosts Watson and LaPierre in April 1966, just before the end of the TV season; Lapierre's tears following the Truscott report, purportedly betraying a

bias Bias is a disproportionate weight ''in favor of'' or ''against'' an idea or thing, usually in a way that is inaccurate, closed-minded, prejudicial, or unfair. Biases can be innate or learned. People may develop biases for or against an individ ...

in his reporting, were cited as the pretext for the firing. This resulted in a public outcry for weeks as viewers organized demonstrations, wrote letters and made angry phone calls, CBC staff threatened to resign, newspaper editorials fulminated about political interference in the decision, and politicians demanded a

parliamentary In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

inquiry. A parliamentary committee hearing was convened, and

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Lester Pearson Lester Bowles Pearson (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th prime minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as Leader of the Liberal Party of C ...

appointed ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, and is the larg ...

'' publisher Stu Keate as a special investigator. CBC president Alphonse Ouimet told the committee that CBC management had been battling the show's producers for two years, and that the show had consistently ignored CBC policies. Following two weeks of mediation, Keate said it was clear that there had been "mistakes made on both sides" and recommended that the CBC board of directors do a better job of explaining to the public its decision to fire Watson and LaPierre. CBC directors immediately reaffirmed the firing of Watson and LaPierre, while admitting that the way they were fired had been a mistake. The dispute heated up again in July, leading producer Douglas Leiterman to halt work on a new season of programs."Leiterman suspends work on '7 Days'," ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...

'', July 6, 1966, p.1 Leiterman said he was told by CBC that his contract for the show would only be renewed if he signed a pledge to behave himself, and that he believed that Bud Walker—the CBC vice-president who had fired Watson and LaPierre—had been given a promotion to oversee all CBC English programming. The CBC denied that Walker had been promoted, fired Leiterman and cancelled the show.

Legacy

''Seven Days'' set new standards of

in Canada and the United States. Shortly after it ended, the rival

launched a similar program called '' W5'', which continues to air to this day (Watson contributed to this series on occasion). ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...

'' and ''The Fifth Estate'' were two others shows that debuted within fewer than 10 years of ''Seven Days''' cancellation. It later also inspired the Canadian sketch comedy series '' This Hour Has 22 Minutes'', which took both its name and a comedic variation on ''Seven Days''-style ambush interviews from the earlier show. Watson continued to produce programming for the CBC, including the 1988 documentary series ''The Struggle for Democracy''. He also produces and narrates '' The Heritage Minutes'', which are made for the Historica Foundation and given to all broadcasters who want them (receiving some 50,000 showings per year across Canada). In 1989, he was named chairman of the CBC, a position he held until 1994. LaPierre, who also continued to produce CBC programming and authored a number of books on Canadian history, was named to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 2001. He died in Ottawa in December 2012. Christie continued to work as a singer and comedic actress. In 2001, the CBC reaired a number of old episodes of ''Seven Days'' as a summer series. In 2002, the

Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada (or the AV Trust). originally the Alliance for the Preservation of Canada's Audio-Visual Heritage,MasterWorks recipient (video clip)
/ref> In 2014, the October 24, 1965 episode of the series was screened at the Canadian International Television Festival in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. This episode featured the

segment noted above, as well as an invitation to political party leaders to appear on the show as part of the 1965 election campaign, a report on the shooting death of a policeman in Sudbury, an election "poll" of

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

men, interviews with Bob Guccione and

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

, a feature profile on boxer George Chuvalo, and a comedic sketch mocking Prime Minister

and British Prime Minister

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...

's negotiations to have the Canadian government purchase military aircraft from the United Kingdom.

References

External links

*
This Hour has Seven Days
' at '' CBC Digital Archives'' * {{IMDb title, 0168389
''This Hour Has Seven Days''
at

Museum of Broadcast Communications The Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC) is an American museum that showcases historic and contemporary radio and television content. It is headquartered in Chicago. Museum locations (1987–present) The Museum of Broadcast Communications wa ...

Queen's University Directory of CBC Television Series
via archive.org) 1964 Canadian television series debuts 1966 Canadian television series endings Black-and-white Canadian television shows 1960s Canadian television news shows CBC Television original programming CBC News Canadian English-language television shows