The Life Channel was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

premium television service featuring programming on lifestyle and health subjects, existing for almost 14 months in the late 1980s. The programming represented some of the earlier efforts of Canada's premium television industry, considering

pay-TV Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...

movie channels had commenced in 1983. It should not be confused with later Canadian cable channels Life Network (now known as Slice) and

CTV Life Channel CTV Life Channel is a Canadian English language discretionary specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary. The channel primarily broadcasts factual and reality programming on lifestyle topics such as cooking, home imp ...

History

The Life Channel was approved for broadcast by the

CRTC The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; ) is a public organization in Canada tasked with the mandate as a regulatory agency tribunal for various electronic communications, covering broadcasting and telecommunic ...

on 14 March 1985 following licensing hearings on 5 February 1985. The company was a partnership between

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, Manitoba doctor John Tyson, who became president of the company,

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 ...

, Ontario lawyer Michael G. Rinaldo, who became director and secretary, and broadcast company CUC Limited. On 18 October 1985, The Life Channel began satellite broadcasts to

cable companies This is a list of cable television providers by country. Africa Nigeria *CONSAT TV * DaarSat * DStv *GoTV *MyTV *StarSat *StarTimes Defunct * HiTV South Africa *Multichoice ** DStv **GoTV **Showmax *StarSat *Openview HD Tanzania ...

on a

basis. The initial broadcasts were available free to cable subscribers as a preview until 1 November 1985. Subscription cost was $5.95 per month, but included free with the other Canadian pay-TV channels at the time, at a cost of $19.95. Notable programming included

Ruth Westheimer Karola Ruth Westheimer (née Siegel; June 4, 1928 – July 12, 2024), better known as Dr. Ruth, was a German and American sex therapist and talk show host. Westheimer was born in Germany to a Jewish family. As the Nazis came to power, her paren ...

's ''Good Sex!'' programme which was imported from the American Lifetime network. Domestic programming included a talk show hosted by

Shirley Solomon Shirley Solomon (born 1946) is a Canadian television talk show host. Career She hosted ''The Shirley Show'', a daily afternoon talk show on CTV from September 1989 – 1995. Later in its run, it was syndicated to several major-market American ...

and a medical information show, ''Doctor On Call'', hosted by John Tyson. As of September 1986, the service attracted relatively small subscriber base of 380,000 compared to 892,000 for TSN, 848,000 for

MuchMusic Much is a Canadian English language discretionary specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. It is headquartered at 299 Queen Street West in what was o ...

. The Life Channel had increased the wholesale price it charges cable companies from 15 of 55 cents per subscriber, a move which resulted in some cable systems cancelling the service. Faced with financial problems which included a $4 million debt, The Life Channel ceased broadcasts after 30 November 1986. Its licence was revoked by the

on 1 February 1988.CRTC Decision 88-67
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References

Defunct specialty television channels in Canada Television channels and stations established in 1985 Television channels and stations disestablished in 1986 1985 establishments in Canada {{Canada-tv-station-stub