As It Happens

Fans everywhere -- and especially in Canada -- are stunned and heartbroken to hear that Catherine O'Hara has died. Actress and comedian Aurora Browne (Baroness von Sketch Show) tells us what made her such a phenomenal talent.Dozens of community members from the Kashechewan First Nation in northern Ontario test positive for a parasite that causes gastrointestinal illness. A healthcare worker tells us what people are dealing with.A human rights activist tells us the painful and nearly impossible work of confirming how many thousands of protesters have been killed during the crackdown in Iran.Weeks of flooding have killed dozens in southern Africa, and forced people in Mozambique to climb onto their homes or into trees to escape the floodwaters. Our guest says what comes next may be even worse. If the roll-out of the documentary about, and entitled, "Melania" seems unusual, well, our guest has some ideas why Amazon paid so much to promote a film about Donald Trump's wife. And...Australian researchers bore witness to bored subjects in a jaw-dropping new study on an important subject: yawning.As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that's proud to do the yawners.

Hundreds of auto workers in Oshawa, Ontario are working their last shifts this week, as GM scales back its Canadian operations. One of them tells us he’s not sure how he’ll support his family now.The emcee of the Conservative Party's convention tells us delegates are still firmly behind Pierre Poilievre, as he prepares for his leadership review. Two years after a ship smashed into a bridge in Baltimore, four members of its crew are still stuck in the city -- even though they aren't facing criminal charges. The mayor of Budapest is charged for allowing Pride celebrations in his own city. A member of his party says they won't let reprisals rain on anyone's parade. After more than a decade behind the mic, Paddy Daly is leaving Newfoundland and Labrador’s famous call-in show “Open Line”. He'll talk about some of the moments he felt most dialed-in.  An intense competition pits five of Japan's laziest capybaras against one another, in a contest to see who can luxuriate in the tub the longest.As It Happens, the Thursday Edition. Radio that takes the bath of least resistance.

Minnesota's Attorney General tells us about his push to end the federal immigration crackdown there -- and about the dozens of other lawsuits his state has launched against the Trump administration. The families of two Trinidadian men killed when the U.S. bombed their boat near Venezuela mount their own legal fight against the Trump administration -- saying their loved ones had nothing to do with drug cartels. A farmer on the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire tells us he's thrilled by a landmark court ruling that orders the government to make a plan to protect him and his neighbours from the ever-present effects of climate change. We'll talk to a record collector who's been on a mission to find, and promote, the band whose old, beat-up album he found in a thrift store. A Kenyan climate activist tells us why she hugged a palm tree for three full days and nights. And also -- since we're all wondering -- how. After learning Pamela Anderson's grandfather was from Finland, our Scandinavian so-called allies risk an international incident -- by starting an ad campaign aimed exclusively at luring her there.As It Happens, the Wednesday Edition. Radio that urges Ms. Anderson not to cross the Finnish line. 

While Minneapolis deals with ICE agents on its streets, and two shooting deaths at the hands of those agents – Pam Bondi is demanding Minnesota's state government hand over its voter rolls. The Secretary of State tells us he has no plans to respond to what he calls -- ransom.A rescue organization in the Mediterranean says almost 400 migrants are feared dead -- after they tried to make the perilous crossing into Europe during last week's cyclone. Millions of dollars worth of research equipment is destroyed when pipes burst at an aging Montreal hospital. A researcher there says repairs are long overdue, and it's hard to imagine feeling safe walking back into that building.Families were at a hotel in Canmore, Alberta for a hockey tournament -- but a suspected chlorine leak meant kids wound up at the hospital, instead of the rink. We remember legendary drummer Sly Dunbar -- a revered reggae artist and prolific collaborator. When a San Francisco writer realized a new Taco Bell location was exactly five kilometres away from an existing Taco Bell location, he made an unwise decision: to run the five kilometres from one to the other while eating Crunchwraps Supreme. As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that considers this a worst-quesadilla scenario. 

Another deadly ICE shooting shakes Minneapolis; we reach a volunteer who supported protesters and mourners on Saturday, at a restaurant-turned-field hospital. The government of Yukon slams the federal government's gun buyback program -- saying Ottawa's ban on thousands of firearms shows it doesn't understand the northern way of life. After years without a health-care professional, help is on the way to Change Islands, Newfoundland and Labrador -- where the mayor has been busy answering 9-1-1 calls herself. A reporter in Montana who dug into a local mystery tells us it's still not clear who affixed three bicycles to a giant piece of driftwood in the Missouri River -- but he thinks he has figured out why.The vice-principal of an Ontario school tells us what happened after a golden budgie found its way out of the January cold -- and into a kindergarten classroom.A plush horse made to mark the Year of the Horse is galloping off the shelves in China -- after a factory workers accidentally sewed its smile on upside-down.As It Happens, the Monday Edition. Radio that's throwing in the scowl. 

We want to recommend a show by our friends at Cross Country Checkup. Every Sunday, Ian Hanomansing hears directly from Canadians on the most pressing issues. This week, he's joined by experts to analyze how Prime Minister Mark Carney is dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump. Canadians also called in to have their say and gave their grades on the prime minister's strategy so far.

We hear from an investigative journalist who's been covering the story for more than a decade. A Canadian who served in Afghanistan tells us there's no place for the kind of insulting rhetoric the U.S. president is spreading about his country's NATO allies. As Valentino Garavani is laid to rest in Rome, director Matt Tyrnauer tells us about the fashion insight, friction, and friendship...that came with capturing the beloved designer's life and work in the documentary, The Last Emperor. It's a simple enough concept -- but knitters will tell you that it's a game changer. And it exists because of the late Barbara G Walker, who revolutionized the craft.  Canada Post honours pioneering Canadian hiphop artists with their own stamps -- including the groundbreaking Michie Mee. She tells us it's a big deal to be on a small rectangle. Science thought a prehistoric kangaroo was just too gigantic to jump -- but now, new science has changed the old science's mind. As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that finds this whole discussion pretty roo-dimentary. 

After a provocative speech at Davos, Mark Carney returns to Canada with a message of unity. A former Trudeau speech writer tells us if she thinks it hit the mark. Three more journalists are killed in Gaza, adding to a staggering total -- on one of the deadliest days since the ceasefire began. In Minneapolis, some schools have had to pivot -- and quickly -- to online learning. It's to protect students from ICE agents; a teacher tells us she hopes small acts of kindness can counter the fear her students are dealing with.When production was halted at their plant, a family of auto workers made the difficult decision to move to a city hours away, so the whole 18-member-strong clan could get back to work, together. We still don't know how dozens of giant stones got to Stonehenge -- but thanks to new science, we know one way they didn't get there.A Quebec film-maker talks to us about her Oscar-nominated documentary -- which follows a trio of donkeys on a journey to get a glimpse of the cosmos. As It Happens, the Thursday Edition. Radio that hopes they spotted some ass-teroids.

In Davos, Donald Trump says he won't use military force to acquire Greenland -- which alleviates one worry. But a Danish journalist tells us it is impossible not to be very concerned about what else could come next.70 years after the execution of a Black man convicted of murdering a white woman in the 1950s, the state of Texas publicly exonerates him -- and admits its terrible mistake. As ICE agents continue to occupy Minneapolis, many people are afraid to leave their homes, whether they are immigrants or not. So a local pastor is organizing thousands of food drops for families.An academic researcher has analyzed the way stand-up comics use timing -- and she tells us the silences and hesitations...are as important...as the laughs. I'll speak with a father-daughter duo who started singing together for fun -- and are having more fun than ever now that they're nominated for a Grammy. On a 13-billion-dollar aircraft carrier stationed off the coast of Venezuela, American troops are doing battle with a merciless enemy: constantly malfunctioning toilets.As It Happens, the Wednesday Edition. Radio that really hopes they can get their ship together. 

A Globe and Mail reporter reveals that, for the first time in a century, the Canadian military has modeled a hypothetical U.S. invasion of Canada.At a tense public meeting, a group of New Brunswick residents expressed serious opposition to a planned new gas plant. A vice-president of the utility tells us public support does matter -- but so does keeping the lights on. A reporter in Chile tells us how fire overcame one coastal community in the blink of an eye -- and shocked locals are now wondering if this is the new normal.The tale of a small, strangely popular boulder in British Columbia called "Portable" -- which is finally heading back to where it belongs, months after it went missing. And.... A new scientific paper introduces the world to a brilliant cow by the name of Veronika -- who uses a broom to sweep away her itches, in an incredible example of bovine tool use. As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that assumes she just started from scratch.