As It Happens

People in Lynn Lake, Manitoba are forced to leave their town because of an out-of-control wildfire -- just two weeks after they were allowed to return after fleeing another out-of-control wildfire.Our guest tells us what the passage of Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" -- with its deep cuts to Medicaid -- is likely to mean for millions of Americans with disabilities, including him. A Palestinian student was accepted to a Canadian university master's program, on scholarship -- but she can't leave Gaza City until Ottawa comes through with her student visa. And she's hardly the only one. A community in Newfoundland and Labrador got some good news this week: for the first time in decades, part of the town now has clean water coming out of their faucets. Cowbirds skip the hassles of hatching and rearing their young by leaving their eggs in other birds' nests. Now, new research shows how the cowbird chicks find their way back to their own kind -- after flipping their foster parents the bird. 

Guyana is confronting the legacy of a deadly 1978 cult tragedy, where more than 900 people died. A private tour company has recently started taking visitors to see the site. A guide tells us he's proud of the work -- even if survivors are giving it mixed reviews.The legal director for the National Council of Canadian Muslims talks about opening her email to see a video of an attack on a Muslim woman at a pizza parlour in Oshawa, Ontario. A horrifying incident she tells us is, disturbingly, not rare. An inquiry finds British colonizers in Australia committed genocide against Indigenous people. A witness at the commission says reckoning with that past is the first step in moving forward.In response to a growing rat problem, Toronto considers taking a page out of New York City’s book -- and appointing a “rat czar" to get the vermin under control.Scientists catalogue the traits that give me -- I mean, someone -- the indefinable yet indisputable quality of “coolness.” And the results are surprisingly conclusive.

We'll hear from a reporter who was there to capture the chaotic reaction outside the courthouse. The head of a French hotel and restaurant association reacts to the country's new limits on outdoor smoking -- by saying that if they come for his patios, it would be a drag. On the fourth anniversary of the deadly fire in Lytton, B.C., one first responder tells us he and his team have learned to be prepared to fight off new fires all the time -- as they had to do just this week. Remembering the late Jimmy Swaggart's appearance on this program in 1987, when he accused fellow televangelist Jim Bakker of immoral character -- just months before his own catastrophic fall from grace. A British musician explains how she created a haunting piece of music with an orchestra made up of more than 80 species of moths. And…Thousands of Norwegians were told they'd won millions in the lottery -- only for the lottery CEO to tell them they hadn't, and apologize for accidentally putting the decimal point in the wrong place. As It Happens, the Wednesday Edition. Radio that thinks that took a lotto nerve.

A volunteer at a radio station south of the border goes all in on Canada Day by programming twenty-four hours of exclusively Canadian music. In a bid to thwart talk of separation, a new petition is asking Albertans if they want to stay in Canada. The former politician behind that push tells us why he's confident the result will go his way.We'll revisit my interview with the CEO of Metis Crossing in Smokey River, Alberta -- when the wildlife park was celebrating the birth of 7 new bison calves, a century-and-a-half after the last wild bison were seen there.A cross-border rivalry between the top-ranking jogglers in Canada and the U.S. -- as in, joggers who juggle -- wasn't always a toss-up. From our archives, a conversation with the 9-year-old who found the largest maple leaf ever recorded -- which turns out to be a real rake-up call. And...the way she gives the cake really takes the cake. Every Canada Day, a baker in one Ontario community makes a cake big enough to feed thousands. We'll talk to her as her massive cake makes the high-stakes journey from the kitchen to the centre of town.As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that knows the thing about a layer cake is it always ends in tiers.

An Idaho mountain community mourns two firefighters slain in what officials say was an ambush by an arsonist. A nearby resident tells us how the situation unfolded.Canada reverses course on a long-promised tax on tech giants, in order to bring Donald Trump back to the negotiating table -- which has us asking finance minister François-Philippe Champagne just how many concessions it'll take to get a trade deal.  A University student from Attawapiskat First Nation canoed 400 kilometres to set up an encampment in Ontario's Ring of Fire, protesting laws that could fast-track mining projects there. And he tells us he’s not going anywhere soon. Seoul is overrun with love bugs, whose trick of mating on the move is just one reason residents say the city should clear the air.Feeling the heat. A heat wave gripping parts of Europe has temperatures soaring. Residents and visitors explain how they're keeping their cool while the sun sizzles.On Canada Day eve, we hear from the editor of a dictionary of Canadianisms -- who has just updated the tome to include up-to-the minute Canuck catch-phrases, including "elbows up" and "maple-washing." As It Happens, the Monday edition. Radio that loves a sappy ending.

There are a lot of questions about a Canadian citizen who died in immigration custody in Florida -- and his defence lawyer says his family deserves answers.After a shocking auditor general's report finds Newfoundland and Labrador overspent millions on agency nurses, the head of the provincial health authority tells us change is coming.The brand-new members of the CDC vaccine advisory committee meet for the first time since RFK Jr fired their predecessors. A CDC vaccine expert tells us why that drove her to resign.  We remember the prolific composer Lalo Schifrin, who wrote the memorable music to all kinds of TV shows and movies -- including one piece that absolutely refuses to self-destruct. After nearly 40 years of striking fear in the hearts of computer users, Microsoft announces the death of the Blue Screen of Death -- to be replaced by a black as cold as a pitiless void.Researchers discover that orcas off the coast of B.C. use seaweed to scrub each other's skin -- a technique that could have both physical and social benefits.As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that gets by with a little kelp from its friends.

As the projected costs for Vancouver to host a handful of FIFA World Cup games next year jump again -- our guest says it's time for the city to bow out -- and use that money to help people across the province who are struggling to make ends meet.A Francophone busker is shocked by a new rule requiring musicians to sing in French only in certain areas of Quebec City. He calls the change out of tune with his diverse community.Bill of health. Newfoundland and Labrador's auditor general tells us the provincial health authority’s questionable and excessive spending on agency nurse contracts should raise serious alarms.Oscar-winning Canadian director Denis Villeneuve is taking on the next James Bond film. An expert on all things double-0-7 says it is a dream scenario for the next phase of the franchise.And, Cuss célèbre. An animal rescue goes viral for its post about a macaw with an "R-rated" vocabulary.As It Happens, the Thursday edition. Radio that guesses that means Parrot-al Guidance is Advised.

At the NATO summit, the Prime Minister promises to spend a lot more on defence; Cesar Jaramillo, the chair of a Canadian disarmament group says that if the aim is to make the world safer, the move is way off target.Chandra Pasma, a provincial parliamentarian, tells us about her efforts to get the Ontario government to do more to address extreme heat in schools and other workplaces across the province.An activist in Kenya tells us she thought things would be peaceful today, when protestors commemorated a deadly protest one year ago. Instead, history repeated itself.People have started to return to Denare Beach, Saskatchewan, after wildfires ripped through their village. One resident tells us going home isn't easy -- but it's therapeutic all the same.We remember ground-breaking Quebecois musician Serge Fiori, whose band Harmonium changed the music scene in the province by paving the way for homegrown talent.A poorly-timed wardrobe malfunction leads to an unfortunate photo finish -- in which an American hurdler wins the race while trying -- and failing -- to keep his shorts in place. As It Happens, the Wednesday Edition. Radio that always double-checks its equipment. 

An Ottawa mom had to take her son to the ER when he came home from class with heat exhaustion; she says school administrators need to do a better job of keeping students safe. Before the shaky ceasefire with Iran, Israel attacked a prison in Tehran that houses political prisoners -- and today, friends and family are still waiting on news about their loved ones. The Democratic primary for mayor falls on New York City's hottest day in years -- and a strategist says the close race between an establishment moderate and outsider progressive could point to where the party heads next.Two Nigerian communities are taking oil giant Shell to court over longstanding pollution caused by spills -- which they say has infiltrated their drinking water. We hear from an artist in the UK about her project that could take decades: drawing every pub in London. A British nightclub becomes the site of a sinister mystery -- when someone leaves behind a surprisingly large, and just surprising, sausage.As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that loves a club banger.

A non-proliferation expert says that no matter what Donald Trump says, there's no way to know if U.S. bombs destroyed Iran's nuclear program. But they did make it more likely that Iran will pursue the bomb in secret. An advocate for Arab residents of Israel tells us too many of their communities have too few of the reliable protections that are commonplace in Jewish-majority cities across the country. After five years, an opposition leader is freed from prison in Belarus. His wife -- who took up the leadership in his absence -- tells us about their family reunion, and her husband's drive to get back to work. Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil is released after over a hundred days in ICE detention. We'll hear some of what he told the crowd that gathered to celebrate his return to New York.A triathlete is doing okay after a giant black bear ran in front of his bike during a race this weekend -- at which point he ran into the bear.One of the scientists who discovered little sea spiders that eat methane says the tiny creatures are playing an outsized role in the deep sea ecosystem.As It Happens, the Monday Edition. Radio that warns: they may be compact, but they're gas-guzzlers.