Mark Critch (born May 14, 1974) is a Canadian

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

, actor, and writer. He is best known for his work on the comedy series ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics wi ...

'', initially as a writer and then as a regular cast member beginning in 2003.

Family life

He is the son of Mike Critch, a longtime journalist for radio station VOCM in St. John's, and the younger brother of Mike Critch Jr., a radio DJ for

VOCM-FM VOCM-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 97.5 MHz from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Owned by Stingray Group, the station is branded as ''97.5 K-Rock'' and broadcasts a classic rock format, although some 2000s rock songs have ...

who uses the name Mike Campbell on the air.

Career

Critch has been a guest on

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...

's '' Madly Off in All Directions'', the

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 ...

show ''

Republic of Doyle ''Republic of Doyle'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series set in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, which aired on CBC Television from January 6, 2010, to December 10, 2014. The show stars Allan Hawco as private investigator and f ...

'', and is the host of CBC TV's Halifax Comedy Festival. He performed at the Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal and the

Winnipeg Comedy Festival The Winnipeg Comedy Festival (WCF) is an annual national comedy festival, held in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The week-long festival takes place at several venues throughout the city, featuring Stand-up comedy, stand-up, Sketch comedy, sketch, and improvis ...

. He played the recurring role of Gary Breakfast on the CTV sitcom '' Satisfaction''. He appeared in several films, including ''Anchor Zone'', ''Rare Birds'' and ''Above and Beyond''. In 2013, Critch played Henry Tilley in '' The Grand Seduction'', a remake of

Jean-François Pouliot Jean-François Pouliot (born 1957) is a Canadian film director from Quebec. He was born in Montreal and studied at Concordia University. He worked as an assistant cameraman, while also writing and directing short animated films for the National ...

's French-Canadian ''La Grande Séduction'' (2003) directed by

Don McKellar Don McKellar (born August 17, 1963) is a Canadian actor, writer, playwright, and filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. He is known for directing and writing th ...

. Critch and fellow Newfoundland actor

Allan Hawco Allan Hawco is a Canadian writer, actor, and producer from Bell Island, Newfoundland. He is best known for his roles in the series ''Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan'', ''Republic of Doyle'', and '' The Book of Negroes'', and the television limited series ...

featured in a documentary entitled ''Trail of the Caribou'', which followed the

Newfoundland Regiment The Royal Newfoundland Regiment (R NFLD R) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of the 5th Canadian Division's 37 Canadian Brigade Group. Predecessor units trace their origins to 1795, and since 1949 Royal ...

's journey in the First World War. It was released in 2016 to commemorate the one-hundredth anniversary of the Regiment's tragedy at

Beaumont Hamel Beaumont-Hamel () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. During the First World War, Beaumont-Hamel was close to the front line, near many attacks, especially during the Battle of the Somme, one of the la ...

. Critch also appeared in director Matt Johnson's 2023 film ''

BlackBerry BlackBerry is a discontinued brand of handheld devices and related mobile services, originally developed and maintained by the Canadian company Research In Motion (RIM, later known as BlackBerry Limited) until 2016. The first BlackBerry device ...

'', portraying

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

commissioner

Gary Bettman Gary Bruce Bettman (born June 2, 1952) is an American sports executive who serves as the NHL commissioner, commissioner of the National Hockey League (NHL), a post he has held since February 1, 1993. Previously, Bettman was a senior vice preside ...

. Critch reached national notoriety after a ''22 Minutes'' piece aired in which Canadian Member of Parliament (MP)

Carolyn Parrish Carolyn Parrish (born Karolina Janozeski; October 3, 1946) is a Canadian politician who has been the 7th and current mayor of Mississauga since June 24, 2024. Parrish previously served as a Member of Parliament (Canada), member of Parliament (MP ...

stepped on a

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

doll, later causing her to be removed from caucus. He is most famous for his road pieces on the show, in which he accosts celebrities such as

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

Michael Douglas Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the ...

Alec Baldwin Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his leading and supporting roles in a variety of genres, from comedy to drama. He has received List of awards and nominations received by A ...

, former Canadian

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 ...

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and retired politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. Th ...

Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, consultant, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 20 ...

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is a key musician in popularizing pop-punk music, as she paved the way for female-driven, punk-influenced pop music in the early 2000s. List of awa ...

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

and

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

. Critch's impressions are another recurring feature on ''22 Minutes'', including those of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

Rex Murphy Robert Rex Rafael Murphy (March 1947 – 9 May 2024) was a Canadian commentator and author, primarily on Canadian political and social matters. He was the regular host of CBC Radio One's '' Cross Country Checkup'', a nationwide call-in show, fo ...

Don Cherry Donald Stewart Cherry (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, coach, and television commentator. He played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins. After concluding a playing career in the A ...

and former Newfoundland and Labrador premier Danny Williams.

Book and adaptation

In 2018, Critch announced the release of his early life memoir, ''Son of a Critch''. Published by

Penguin Random House Penguin Random House Limited is a British-American multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate publishing company formed on July 1, 2013, with the merger of Penguin Books and Random House. Penguin Books was or ...

Canada, it was released on October 2, 2018, and immediately entered the Globe and Mail bestseller list, where it remained for several weeks. ''Son of a Critch'' was the winner of the ''Margaret and John Savage First Book Award (non-fiction)'' at the ''Atlantic Book Awards'', and shortlisted for both the 2019

Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, also known as the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour or just the Leacock Medal, is an annual Canadian literary award presented for the best book of humour written in English by a Canadian writer, publis ...

and the 2019 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize. It was also longlisted for the 2019

RBC Taylor Prize The RBC Taylor Prize (2000–2020), formerly known as the Charles Taylor Prize, was a Canadian literary award, presented by the Charles Taylor Foundation to the best Canadian work of literary non-fiction. It was named for Charles P. B. Taylo ...

. His second book, ''An Embarrassment of Critches'', was also shortlisted for the

in 2022. In 2021, CBC Television and

Lionsgate Films Lionsgate Films (spelled as Lions Gate until 2005, and formerly Cinépix Film Properties until 1998) is a Canadian-American film production and distribution company founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on June 15, 1962. It was owned by Lionsga ...

announced the production of '' Son of a Critch'', a television series adaptation of the book. Critch plays his father (Mike Critch) in the series, while child actor

Benjamin Evan Ainsworth Benjamin Evan Ainsworth (born 25 September 2008) is an English actor. He is known for portraying Miles in the Netflix series '' The Haunting of Bly Manor'' (2020), William in Disney’s '' Flora & Ulysses'' (2021), and the voice of Pinocchio in D ...

plays the young Critch.

Recognition

* David Renton Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor at the Atlantic Film Festival for his role in ''The Grand Seduction''. * Gemini Award * Canadian Comedy Award * Writers Guild of Canada Award

Charitable work

Critch is known in Newfoundland and Labrador for his charitable efforts, including serving as honorary chair of the Victoria Park Foundation in St. John's, and the honorary fundraising patron of the O'Brien's Farm Foundation. He was named the Honorary Chairperson for the Cancer Society of Canada's "One Night Stand Against Cancer" campaign to raise funds for Nova Scotia's Sobey Cancer Support Centre. He has hosted and/or spearheaded fundraising campaigns for the Parkinson's Society of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Heart and Stroke Foundation. On December 7, 2017, the Wonderful Grand Band released a re-recorded version of Babylon Mall for the 50th anniversary of the Avalon Mall, with Critch on vocals. Proceeds from the song remake were donated to the

Tommy Sexton Thomas Sexton (July 3, 1957 – December 13, 1993) was a Canadian comedian. Born in St. John's, Newfoundland, he was the youngest member of the ''CODCO'' comedy troupe. Educated in St. John's, he was an honours student before quitting after Grad ...

Centre.

References

External links

CBC Biographical Page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Critch, Mark CBC Television people Writers from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador 1974 births Living people This Hour Has 22 Minutes Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian sketch comedians 21st-century Canadian male writers Canadian male non-fiction writers Male actors from Newfoundland and Labrador 21st-century Canadian memoirists Comedians from Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian male comedians Canadian Comedy Award winners Canadian Screen Award winning writers Screenwriters from Newfoundland and Labrador 21st-century Canadian comedians