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Cannonball (series)

Cannonball (series)

Cannonball was a 1958 Normandie Productions and ITC Entertainment co-production half-hour family drama series. Filmed in Canada, the series followed the adventures of Mike Malone and Jerry Austin as they drove trucks across the US and Canada. The series would appear to be unusual, as sources say it is one of the few ITC productions to air on ABC Weekend TV in the UK. Because Associated TeleVision, owners of ITC, also ran the London weekend and Midlands weekdays ITV companies, they tended to hold the rights for ITC series in order to show each one in the Midlands (where ABC was the weekend operator) during the week. The series ran for 39 episodes in monochrome.

Main cast


- Paul Birch as Cannonball Mike Malone
- William Campbell as Jerry Austin
- Beth Lockerbie as Mary Malone
- Beth Morris as Ginny Malone
- Steve Barringer as Butch Malone
- Howard Milsom as Harry Butler

Episode list

The original production order appears to be lost and all that remains is a partial list based upon Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and ITV air dates. As titles were not shown on-screen, these titles may be speculative.
- The Runaway Truck
- Pills
- Nitro Haul
- Small Cargo
- The Big Ambulance
- Mark Time
- The Necklace
- Shock
- The Attack
- The Girl Reporter
- Butch
- Little Old Man
- Sauce for the Goose
- The Girl at Joe's Place
- Nanette
- Lil's Cafe
- The Hostage
- Fallout
- Marooned
- Undercover
- Vendetta
- The Has-been
- The Flying Dutchman
- Rodeo
- Trip to Buffalo
- Wild Party
- Driving School
- Eyewitness
- Ginny
- Racket
- Tunnel Eyes
- Green-eyed Monster
- Sights on Safety
- Moose Hunt
- Big Buck
- Willy
- The Dog
- Snake Eyes
- The Iron Lung

External links


- [http://www.tv.com/cannonball/show/13860/episode_guide.html TV.com entry]
- [http://www.angelfire.com/retro/cta/Can/Cannonball.htm CTA information]
- Category:ITC Distributions Category:Drama television series Category:Drama television series in Canada

1958

1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar.

Events

January


- January 1 - Treaty of Rome founding the EU is implemented
- January 4 - Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from its orbit (launched on October 4 1957)
- January 8 - 14 year old Bobby Fischer wins the United States Chess Championship
- January 13 - 9235 scientists publish a plea to stop nuclear bomb tests
- January 18 - Armed Lumbee Native Americans chase off an estimated 5,000 Klansmen and supporters at the town of Maxton, North Carolina.
- January 23 - Following a two-day general strike, dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez was overthrown by a militar-popular uprising.
- January 28 - Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate begin their murder spree with the killings of her parents and infant sister
- January 29 - Police capture Charles Starkweather in Wyoming
- January 31 - The first successful American satellite, Explorer I, is launched into orbit
- January 31 - James Van Allen discovers the Van Allen radiation belt

February


- February 1 - Egypt and Syria unite to form the United Arab Republic
- February 5 - Gamel Abdel Nasser is nominated to be the first president of the United Arab Republic
- February 6 - Munich air disaster - 21 dead, including 7 players for Manchester United
- February 11 - Marshal Chen Yi succeeds Zhou Enlai as Chinese Minister of Foreign affairs.
- February 11 - Ruth Carol Taylor is 1st African American woman hired as a flight attendant
- February 17 - Pope Pius XII declares Saint Clare the patron saint of television
- February 20 - Test rocket explodes in Cape Canaveral
- February 23 - Cuban rebels kidnap 5-time world driving champion Juan Manuel Fangio. They release him 28 hours later
- February 23 - Arturo Frondizi wins presidential elections in Argentina
- February 24 - In Cuba, Radio Rebelde, radio of rebels of Fidel Castro, begins broadcasting from Sierra Maestra
- February 25 - Bertrand Russell launches the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
- February 28 - One of the worst school bus accidents in U.S. history occurred at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, killing 27.

March-April


- March 1 - Samuel Alphonsus Stritch, ninth bishop (fourth archbishop) of the Roman Catholic diocese of Chicago, appointed Pro-Perfect of the Propagaion of Faith and thus becomes the first American member of the Roman Curia
- March 2 - A British team led by Sir Vivian Fuchs completes the first crossing of the Antarctic in Snow-cat caterpillar tractors and dogsled teams in 99 days
- March 8 - USS Wisconsin is decomissioned, leaving the United States Navy without an active battleship for the first time since 1896.
- March 11 - The US B-47 bomber drops a nuclear bomb in the Mars Bluff, South Carolina
- March 17 - The United States launches the Vanguard 1 satellite
- March 26 - The United States Army launches Explorer III
- March 27 - Nikita Khrushchev becomes Premier of the Soviet Union
- April 3 - Castro's revolutionary army begins its attacks on Havana
- April 4-April 7 - The first protest march for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament from Hyde Park, London to Aldermarston, Berkshire. Demonstrators demand ban of nuclear weapons
- April 4 - The daughter of the actress Lana Turner stabs her mother's gangster lover to death (eventually ruled self defence)
- April 6 - Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiari divorces the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi after she is unable to produce any children.
- April 17 - King Baudouin of Belgium officially opens the World Fair in Brussels, also known as Expo '58.

May-June


- May 1 - Arturo Frondizi becomes President of Argentina
- May 2 - A State of Emergency is declared in Aden
- May 12 - A formal North American Aerospace Defense Command agreement is signed between the United States and Canada
- May 13 - During a visit to Caracas, Venezuela, Vice President Richard M. Nixon's car is attacked by anti-American demonstrators
- May 15 - The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 3
- May 16 - Short-lived outburst of friendship between Arabs and Europeans in Algiers
- May 18 - An F-104 Starfighter sets a world speed record of 1,404.19 mph
- May 20 - Batista's government launches counteroffensive against Castro's rebels
- May 21 - United Kingdom Postmaster General Ernest Marples announces that from December, Subscriber Trunk Dialling will be introduced in the Bristol area. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/21/newsid_2510000/2510289.stm]
- May 23 - Explorer I ceased transmission
- May 30 - The bodies of unidentified soldiers killed in action during World War II and the Korean War are buried at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery.
- June 1 - Charles De Gaulle is brought out of retirement to lead France by decree for six months
- June 1 - Iceland extends its fishing limits to 12 miles
- June 4 - Charles De Gaulle visits Algeria
- June 16 - Imre Nagy is hanged for treason in Hungary
- June 27 - Peronist party becomes legal again in Argentina
- June 29 - Brazil beat Sweden 5-2 to win the 1958 World Cup

July-August


- July 5 - First ascent of Gasherbrum I, 11th highest mountain in the world
- July 7 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the Alaska Statehood Act into United States law
- July 8 - 7.5 Richter scale earthquake in Lituya Bay, Alaska, causes a landslide that produces a huge 520 meter high wave
- July 10 - First parking meters installed in Britain
- July 14 - Iraqi Revolution: In Iraq the monarchy is overthrown by Arab nationalists and Abdul Karim Qassim becomes the nation's new leader
- July 14 - A left wing military coup in Iraq leads to the murder of the king, Faisal II
- July 15 - In Lebanon, 5,000 United States Marines land in the capital Beirut in order to protect the pro-Western government there
- July 17 - British paratroopers arrive in Jordania; king Hussein has asked help against pressure from Iraq
- July 20 - Various rebel groups in Cuba join forces but communists do not join the deal
- July 24 - The first life peerage is created in Britain
- July 26 - Explorer program: Explorer IV is launched
- July 29 - The U.S. Congress formally creates the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
- August 3 - The nuclear powered submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571) became the first vessel to cross the North Pole under water
- August 23 - Chinese Civil War: The Second Taiwan Strait crisis begins with the People's Liberation Army's bombardment of Quemoy.
- August 30-September 1 - Riots between blacks and whites in Notting Hill, London

September-October


- September 14 - Two rockets of the German engineer Ernst Mohr reach as first German post-war rockets the upper atmosphere
- September 27 - Hurricane Vera in Honshu, Japan, kills 615
- September 28 - In France, a majority of 79% says yes to the constitution of the Fifth Republic.
- October 1 - Tunisia and Morocco join the Arab League
- October 1 - NASA starts operations and replaces the NACA
- October 2 - Guinea declares itself independent from France
- October 4 - BOAC uses new Comet jets to become the first airline to fly jet passenger services across the Atlantic.
- October 9 - Pope Pius XII dies.
- October 11 - Pioneer program: NASA launches the lunar probe Pioneer 1 (the probe falls back to Earth and burns up)
- October 24 - Soviet Union loans Egypt 400 million rubles for the Aswan dam
- October 27 - Gen Ayub Khan succeeds Iskander Mirza as president of Pakistan
- October 28 - Boris Pasternak is expelled from soviet author's society
- October 28 - Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli becomes Pope and takes the name Pope John XXIII.

November-December


- November 3 - New UNESCO building inaugurated in Paris
- November 22 - Menzies Government re-elected for a 5th Term
- November 23 - Have Gun, Will Travel debuts on radio
- November 25 - French Sudan gains autonomy as a self-governing member of the French Community
- November 28 - Chad, the Republic of the Congo, and Gabon become autonomous republics within the French Community
- November 30 - Gaullists win parliamentary elections in France
- December 1 - Central African Republic becomes independent from France
- December 5 - Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) is inaugurated in the UK by the Queen when she dials a call from Bristol to Edinburgh and speaks to the Lord Provost. [http://www.bt.com/archives/history/19461959.htm#1958]
- December 9 - The John Birch Society is formed in the USA
- December 14 - The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first ever to reach The Pole of Relative Inaccessibility
- December 21 - General Charles de Gaulle is elected president of France with 78.5% of the votes.
- December 28 - The Baltimore Colts beat The New York Giants 23-17 in overtime to win The NFL Championship.
- December 29 - Rebel troops under Che Guevara begin to invade Santa Clara in Cuba

unknown date


- The First Cod War between UK and Iceland
- BBC Radiophonic Workshop created
- During the International Geophysical Year, Earth's magnetosphere is discovered
- The United States conducts Operation Argus during August and September
- Foundation of Amirkabir University of Technology
- Based on birth rates (per 1,000 population), the post-war baby boom ended in the United States as an eleven-year decline in the birth rate began - the longest on record in that country
- Last legal female circumcision in the United States.
- Denatonium, the bitterest substance known is discovered. It is used as an aversive agent in products such as bleach to reduce the risk of children drinking them.
- Van Cliburn wins the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in the USSR, breaking cold war tensions.
- The Jim Henson Company founded
- Andorra declared peace with Germany, having been forgotten on the Treaty of Versailles and remaining legally at war.

Births

January-March


- January 20 - Lorenzo Lamas, American actor
- January 24 - Jools Holland, British musician
- January 26 - Ellen DeGeneres, American actress and comedienne
- February 4 - Tomasz Pacyński, Polish writer (d. 2005)
- February 11 - Michael Jackson, British broadcast executive
- February 11 - Regina Marsikova, Czechoslovakian tennis player
- February 13 - Pernilla August, Swedish actress
- February 16 - Ice-T, American singer, songwriter, and actor
- February 21 - Mary Chapin Carpenter, American singer
- February 22 - Jake Burns, Irish musician
- February 24 - Sammy Kershaw, American musician
- February 28 - Michael Kennedy, son of Robert F Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy and nephew of John F Kennedy and Robert F Kennedy and Edward M Kennedy (d. 1997)
- March 3 - Miranda Richardson, English actress
- March 4 - Patricia Heaton, American actress
- March 5 - Andy Gibb, English-born singer (d. 1988)
- March 8 - Gary Numan, British singer
- March 10 - Sharon Stone, American actress
- March 14 - Albert II, Prince of Monaco
- March 18 - Kayo Hatta, American film director (d. 2005)
- March 20 - Holly Hunter, American actress
- March 21 - Gary Oldman, English actor

April-August


- April 3 - Alec Baldwin, American actor
- April 10 - Yefim Bronfman, Russian-born pianist
- April 10 - Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, American musician and record producer
- April 15 - Benjamin Zephaniah, British writer and musician
- April 21 - Andie MacDowell, American actress
- April 22 - Ken Olandt, American actor
- April 25 - Fish, Scottish singer
- April 28 - Hal Sutton, American golfer
- April 29 - Michelle Pfeiffer, American actress
- May 23 - Mitch Albom, American author
- May 23 - Drew Carey, American comedian and actor
- May 27 - Neil Finn, New Zealand singer and songwriter
- May 28 - Annette Bening, American actress
- June 7 - Prince, American musician
- June 8 - Keenen Ivory Wayans, American comedian, actor, and director
- June 12 - Rebecca Holden, American actress, singer, and entertainer
- June 17 - Jello Biafra, American musician and activist
- June 20 - Chuck Wagner, American actor
- June 27 - Magnus Lindberg, Finnish composer
- June 30 - Esa-Pekka Salonen, Finnish conductor and composer
- July 2 - Thomas Bickerton, American Methodist bishop
- July 7 - Michala Petri, Danish recorder player
- July 15 - Mac Thornberry, American politician
- July 28 - Terry Fox, Canadian athlete and cancer activist (d. 1981)
- July 30 - Kate Bush, British singer and songwriter
- July 31 - Mark Cuban, American entrepreneur and basketball team owner
- August 7 - Bruce Dickinson, English musician
- August 15 - Victor Shenderovich, Russian writer
- August 16 - Madonna, American musician, songwriter, and actress
- August 19 - Anthony Muñoz, American football player
- August 22 - Colm Feore, American-born actor
- August 29 - Michael Jackson, American singer

September-December


- September 10 - Dan Castellaneta, American voice actor
- September 14 - Jeff Crowe, New Zealand cricket captains
- September 16 - Orel Hershiser, baseball player
- September 19 - Azumah Nelson, Ghanaian boxer
- September 22 - Andrea Bocelli, Italian tenor
- September 23 - Marvin Lewis, American football coach
- September 23 - Scott Shaw, Author, Actor, Filmmaker
- October 5 - Bernie Mac, American actor and comedian
- October 13 - Derri Daugherty, American musician (The Choir and The Lost Dogs)
- October 14 - Thomas Dolby, English musician
- October 16 - Tim Robbins, American actor
- October 17 - Alan Jackson, American singer and songwriter
- October 20 - Viggo Mortensen, American actor
- October 27 - Simon Le Bon, English musician (Duran Duran)
- November 2 - Willie McGee, baseball player
- November 18 - Laura Miller, Mayor of Dallas, Texas
- November 22 - Jamie Lee Curtis, American actress
- November 25 - Kim Ashfield, British model
- November 28 - Dave Righetti, baseball player
- November 30 - Juliette Bergmann, Dutch bodybuilder
- December 1 - Charlene Tilton, American actress
- December 6 - Nick Park, English filmmaker and animator
- December 11 - Nikki Sixx, American musician, Motley Crue
- December 25 - Hanford Dixon, American football player
- December 25 - Rickey Henderson, baseball player
- December 31 - Bebe Neuwirth, American actress

Deaths


- January 1 - Edward Weston, American photographer (b. 1886)
- January 8 - Paul Pilgrim, American athlete (b. 1883)
- January 11 - Edna Purviance, American actress (b. 1895)
- January 30 - Jean Crotti, Swiss artist (b. 1878)
- February 1 - Clinton Davisson, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1888)
- February 4 - Henry Kuttner, American author (b. 1915)
- February 13 - Christabel Pankhurst, English suffragette (b. 1880)
- March 21 - Cyril M. Kornbluth, American writer (b. 1923)
- March 22 - Mike Todd, American film producer (b. 1909)
- March 25 - Tom Brown, American musician (b. 1888)
- March 26 - Phil Mead, English cricketer (b. 1887)
- March 28 - W.C. Handy, American composer (b. 1873)
- April 16 - Rosalind Franklin, British crystallographer (b. 1920)
- April 19 - Billy Meredith, Welsh footballer (b. 1874)
- May 3 - Frank Foster, English cricketer (b. 1889)
- May 19 - Ronald Colman, English actor (b. 1891)
- May 29 - Juan Ramón Jiménez, Spanish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1881)
- June 20 - Kurt Alder, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
- June 26 - George Orton, Canadian athlete (b. 1876)
- June 28 - Alfred Noyes, English poet [b. 1880)
- July 14 - King Faisal II of Iraq (b. 1935)
- August 14 - Frédéric Joliot, French physicist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (b. 1900)
- August 22 - Roger Martin du Gard, French writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1881)
- August 27 - Ernest Lawrence, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901)
- October 9 - Pope Pius XII (b. 1876)
- October 17 - Charlie Townsend, English cricketer (b. 1876)
- November 24 - Robert Cecil, 1st Viscount Cecil of Chelwood, English politician and diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1864)
- November 27 - Artur Rodzinski, Croatian conductor (b. 1892)
- December 8 - Tris Speaker, baseball player (b. 1888)
- December 15 - Wolfgang Ernst Pauli, Austrian-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1900)

Nobel Prizes


- Physics - Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov, Ilya Mikhailovich Frank, Igor Yevgenyevich Tamm
- Chemistry - Frederick Sanger
- Medicine - George Wells Beadle, Edward Lawrie Tatum, Joshua Lederberg
- Literature - Boris Leonidovich Pasternak
- Peace - Georges Pire

Fields Medalists


- Klaus Roth, Rene Thom
- ko:1958년 ja:1958年 simple:1958 th:พ.ศ. 2501

Canada

Canada is the second largest country in the world in terms of area, extending from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean with claims extending to the North Pole. The northern-most country on the mainland of North America, Canada has land borders only with the United States. Governed as a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy, Canada is a federation of ten provinces with three territories. Initially constituted in 1867, the country's constitution was patriated in 1982 from the United Kingdom. Canada's head of state is its monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II, who is represented in Canada by the Governor General, presently Michaëlle Jean. The head of government is the Prime Minister, currently Paul Martin; his minority government recently lost a vote of non-confidence in the Canadian House of Commons and asked for the dissolution of the Parliament by the Governor General, who then issued a Royal proclamation authorising the issue of election writs, and stating a federal election will take place on 2006 January 23. Canada's official languages are English and French. As of 2005, its official population estimate is approximately 32.4 million [http://www.statcan.ca/english/edu/clock/population.htm].

Overview

The capital city is Ottawa, Ontario, the seat of Canada's Parliament. The Governor General, the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Loyal Opposition, and the Speaker of the House of Commons have official residences in the National Capital Region.National Capital Region, Ontario.]] Originally a union of British colonies with significant French influence and entitled as a "dominion", Canada is a founding member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, and La Francophonie. Canada defines itself as a bilingual and multicultural nation:
- English is the official (and majority) language in most provinces of Canada.
- French is the official language of Quebec, an official language of New Brunswick, and is spoken in various areas throughout the country.
- Several Aboriginal languages have official status in the Northwest Territories; Inuktitut is the majority language in Nunavut and has official status there. Canada is a technologically advanced and industrialized nation. It is a net exporter of energy because of its large fossil fuel deposits, nuclear energy generation, and hydroelectric power capacity. Its diversified economy relies heavily on an abundance of natural resources and trade, particularly with the United States, with which it has had a long and complex relationship. Canada has ten provinces and three territories: Canada's major cities that are not capital cities include Montreal, Quebec; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Calgary, Alberta.

Canada's name

The name Canada is believed to come from the Huron-Iroquois word kanata, which means "village" or "settlement". In 1535, locals used the word to tell Jacques Cartier the way to Stadacona, site of present-day Quebec City. Cartier used Canada to refer not only to Stadacona, but also to the entire area subject to Donnacona, Chief at Stadacona; by 1547, maps began referring to this and the surrounding area as Canada.

History

Aboriginal tradition holds that the First Peoples have inhabited parts of what is now called Canada since the dawn of time. Archaeological records show that these lands have been inhabited for at least 10,000 years. Several Viking expeditions occurred circa AD 1000, with evidence of settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows. British claims to North America date from 1497, when John Cabot reached what he called Newfoundland, though it is unclear whether Cabot landed in current Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, or Maine. French claims date from explorations by Jacques Cartier (from 1534) and Samuel de Champlain (from 1603). Neither Cabot's nor Cartier's explorations left any permanent settlers behind. On August 5, 1583, Sir Humphrey Gilbert claimed Newfoundland as England's first overseas colony under Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I. In 1604, French settlers were the first Europeans to settle permanently in what is now Canada. After an unsuccessful winter in St. Croix Island (today in Maine), they settled Port-Royal in what is now the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, but moved to found Quebec City in 1608. The current Acadians are descendants of settlers who came later in the same century and re-founded Port-Royal. New France was generally the name given to the French colonies of Canada and Acadia (and later Louisiana).Louisiana, depicts British General Wolfe's final moments during the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in 1759.]] British settlements were established along the Atlantic seaboard and around Hudson Bay. As these colonies expanded, a struggle for control of North America took place between 1689 and 1763 (see French and Indian Wars), exacerbated by wars in Europe between France and Great Britain. France progressively lost territory to Great Britain, surrendering peninsular Nova Scotia in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht and the remainder of New France including what was left of Acadia in the Treaty of Paris (1763). During and after the American Revolution approximately 70,000 [http://www.uelac.org/whatis.html] Loyalists fled the Thirteen Colonies. Of these, roughly 50,000 United Empire Loyalists [http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0850061.html] settled in the British North American colonies which then consisted of Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, the Province of Quebec, and Prince Edward Island (created 1769). To accommodate the Loyalists, Britain created the colony of New Brunswick in 1784 from part of Nova Scotia, and divided Quebec into Lower Canada and Upper Canada under the Constitutional Act of 1791. The War of 1812 began when the U.S. attacked British forces in Canada in an attempt to end British influence in North America (and particularly, the British seizures of American merchant ships in the Atlantic). In April 1813, U.S. forces burned York (now Toronto). The British/Canadians retaliated with the burning of Washington (DC) in a surprise attack in August 1814, but were subsequently turned back at Plattsburgh, Baltimore, and New Orleans. The Treaty of Ghent was signed in December 1814. It was only after the French and Napoleonic wars ended in Europe that large-scale immigration to Canada resumed. The Canadas were merged into a single colony, the United Province of Canada, with the Act of Union (1840) in an attempt to assimilate the French Canadians. Once the U.S. agreed to the 49th parallel north as its border with western British North America, the British government created the colonies of British Columbia in 1848 and Vancouver Island in 1849. By the late 1850s, politicians in the Province of Canada had launched a series of western exploratory expeditions with the intention of assuming control of Rupert's Land (administered by the Hudson's Bay Company) and the Arctic. In 1864 and 1866, British North American politicians, in what became known as the Great Coalition, held three conferences to create a federal union. Spearheaded by John A. Macdonald, on July 1, 1867, three colonies—Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were granted a constitution, the British North America Act, by the United Kingdom, creating the Dominion of Canada. The term "Canadian Confederation" refers to this 1867 unification of the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec (formerly Canada East or Lower Canada), and Ontario (formerly Canada West or Upper Canada). The remaining British colonies and territories soon joined Confederation. By 1880 Canada included all of its present area except for Newfoundland and Labrador, which joined in 1949. (It should be noted that, although part of Canada, Alberta and Saskatchewan did not gain Provincial status until 1905.) Newfoundland and Labrador In 1919, Canada became a member of the League of Nations and, in the Imperial Conference of 1926, Canada assumed full control of its own through the Balfour Declaration. In 1927, Canada appointed its first ambassador to a foreign country, the United States. In 1931, the Statute of Westminster gave the Balfour Declaration constitutional force, confirming that no act of the UK's parliament would thereafter extend to Canada without its consent. Canadian citizenship was first distinguished from British in 1947; judicial appeals to the British Judicial Committee of the Privy Council ended in 1949. The power to amend Canada's constitution remained with the British parliament, although subject to the Statute of Westminster, until it was finally "patriated" to Canadian control by the Canada Act 1982. The Quebec sovereignty movement has led to two referendums held in 1980 and 1995, with votes of 59.6% and 50.6% respectively against its proposals for sovereignty-association. In 1997, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled unilateral secession by a province to be unconstitutional.

Geography

unconstitutionalCanada occupies the northern portion (precisely 41%) of North America. It is bordered to the south by the contiguous United States and to the northwest by Alaska. The length of these borders are 6,416 km (3,987 mi) and 2,477 km (1,539 mi), respectively. Off the southern coast of Newfoundland lies Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, an overseas community of France. The country stretches from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west (hence the country's motto). To the north lies the Arctic Ocean; Greenland is to the northeast. Since 1925, Canada has claimed the portion of the Arctic between 60° and 141° W longitude ([http://atlas.gc.ca/site/english/maps/historical/territorialevolution/1927/1]); this claim is not universally recognized. The northernmost settlement in Canada (and in the world) is Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Alert on the northern tip of Ellesmere Island – latitude 82.5° N – just 834 kilometres (518 mi) from the North Pole. Also, the magnetic North Pole lies within Canadian boundaries (although is moving towards Siberia). Canada is the world's second-largest country in total area, after Russia. Much of Canada lies in Arctic regions, however, and thus Canada has only the fourth-most arable land area behind Russia, China, and the U.S. The population density of 3.5 people per square kilometre (9.0/mi²) is among the lowest in the world: Canada has more land area than the U.S., but only one-ninth of its population. The most densely populated part of the country is the Quebec City-Windsor Axis in the east. To the north of this region is the broad Canadian Shield, an area of rock scoured clean by the last ice age, thinly soiled, rich in minerals, and dotted with lakes and rivers—over 60% of the world's lakes are in Canada. The Canadian Shield encircles the immense Hudson Bay, extending from Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories at its westernmost point, to the Atlantic coast in Labrador in the east. Newfoundland, North America's easternmost island if Greenland is excluded, is at the mouth of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, the world's largest estuary. The Canadian Maritimes protrude eastward from the southern coasts of Quebec. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are divided by the Bay of Fundy, which experiences the world's largest tidal variations. Prince Edward Island is Canada's smallest province. Prince Edward Island; at 5 959 m (19,551 ft), Canada's highest point and second highest in North America.]]West of Ontario, the broad, flat Canadian Prairies spread toward the Rocky Mountains, which separate them from British Columbia. Northern Canadian vegetation tapers from coniferous forests to tundra and finally to Arctic barrens in the far north. The northern Canadian mainland is ringed with a vast archipelago containing some of the world's largest islands. Some specific geographical features of note include the world's largest freshwater island, Manitoulin Island, which divides Georgian Bay and Lake Huron and the world's longest freshwater beach, Wasaga Beach, on the Georgian Bay shoreline. Thanks to past glacial activity in the Canadian Shield, Canada boasts a considerable reserve of fresh water and more lakes than any other nation, roughly two million in all, the overwhelming majority of which are relatively small.

Climate

Canada has a reputation for cold temperatures in the winter months. Winters can be harsh in many regions of the country, particularly in the Prairie Provinces. Temperatures can reach lows of -50°C (-58°F) in the far North however, such low temperatures are not the norm; the record coldest temperature in North America was -63°C (-81°F), at Snag, Yukon, in 1947. Coastal British Columbia is an exception: it enjoys a temperate climate with much milder winters than the rest of the country however, rainy winters are common. Summers in Canada range from mild (low 20s Celsius [70°F]) on the east and west coasts, to hot (mid 20s to low 30s Celsius [75-90°F]) in Central Canada, the Prairies and the intermontane regions of British Columbia. The highest recorded temperature in Canada was 45°C (113°F) at both Midale and Yellow Grass in Saskatchewan on July 5, 1937. For a more complete description of weather norms around Canada, go to www.climate.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html

Politics

1937] Canada's head of state is the monarch, currently Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and commonly referred to as the Queen of Canada. However, the day-to-day duties of head of state are exercised by the Governor General, who is generally a retired politician, military leader, or other notable Canadian; the current Governor General is Michaëlle Jean. All government authority is derived from the monarch, and executive power is wielded by the Prime Minister of Canada and the cabinet. The Governor General is formally appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister and is a non-partisan figure who fulfils many ceremonial and symbolic roles including providing Royal Assent to bills, reading the Speech from the Throne, officially welcoming dignitaries of foreign countries, presenting honours such as the Order of Canada, signing state documents, formally opening and ending sessions of Parliament, and dissolving Parliament for an election. The Governor General is also the titular Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Armed Forces. The position of Governor General also beholds considerable reserve powers, but these have been rarely used. The last to do so was Jeanne Sauvé, who ignored the National Capital Commission and closed the grounds of Rideau Hall in the late 1980s; the most famous use of the Governor General's extraordinary powers was during the King-Byng Affair in 1926. Canada's constitution governs the legal framework of the country and consists of [http://lois.justice.gc.ca/en/const/index.html written text] and unwritten traditions and conventions (see Westminster system). The federal government and the governments of nine provinces agreed to the patriation of the constitution, with procedures for amending it, at a meeting of First Ministers in November 1981. The Quebec government did not agree to the changes, and Quebec nationalists refer to that night as the Night of the Long Knives. The patriation of the Constitution included the adoption of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees basic rights and freedoms for Canadians that, generally, cannot be overridden by legislation of any level of government in Canada. It contains, however, a "notwithstanding clause", which allows the federal parliament and the provincial legislatures the power to override other sections of the Charter temporarily, for a period of five years. notwithstanding clause]]The position of Prime Minister, Canada's head of government, in practice belongs to the leader of the political party who can command a majority in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister and his or her cabinet are formally appointed by the Governor General; however, the Prime Minister effectively chooses the cabinet and the Governor General, by convention, has to appoint the Prime Minister's desired choices. The Cabinet is drawn, by convention, from members of the prime minister's party in both legislative houses, though mostly from the Commons. Executive power is exercised by the prime minister and cabinet, all of whom are sworn into the Privy Council of Canada and become ministers of the Crown. The Prime Minister exercises a great deal of individual political power, especially in terms of the appointment of other officials within the government and civil service. The legislative branch of government has two houses: the elected House of Commons and the appointed Senate. Each member in the Commons is elected by simple plurality in one electoral district or "riding"; general elections are called by the Governor General when the prime minister so advises, and must occur every five years or less. Members of the Senate, whose seats are apportioned on a regional basis, are chosen by the prime minister and formally appointed by the Governor General, and serve until age 75. electoral district]]Canada has four main political parties today. The traditionally centrist / left-of-centre Liberal Party of Canada formed the government in Canada for most of the 20th century, and is the party of the current Prime Minister Paul Martin. The only other party to have formed a government is the now-defunct, right-of-centre Progressive Conservative (PC) Party and its predecessor, the Conservative Party, which was the dominant political party in the 19th century. The PC Party merged with the Canadian Alliance to form a new rightist Conservative Party of Canada in December 2003. The New Democratic Party (NDP) is the major party furthest to the political left. The Bloc Québécois promotes Quebec independence from Canada and currently holds a majority of Quebec's seats in the Commons. There are many smaller parties and, while none have current representation in Parliament, the list of historical parties with elected representation is substantial. Canada's judiciary plays an important role in interpreting laws and has the power to strike down laws that violate the constitution. The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court and final arbiter; its nine members are directly appointed by Cabinet. All judges at the superior and appellate levels are selected and appointed by the federal government, after consultation with non-governmental legal bodies. The federal cabinet also appoints justices to superior courts at the provincial and territorial levels. Judicial posts at the lower provincial and territorial levels are filled by their respective governments (see Court system of Canada for more detail). Common law prevails everywhere except in Quebec, where civil law predominates. Criminal law is solely a federal responsibility and is uniform throughout Canada. Law enforcement, including criminal courts, is a provincial responsibility, but in most provinces policing is contracted to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The RCMP is one of few police forces in the world to perform three different levels of enforcement: municipal, provincial, and federal.

Foreign relations

Canada has a close relationship with the United States, sharing the world's longest undefended border, co-operating on some military campaigns and exercises, and being each other's largest trading partners. Canada also shares a history and long relationship with the United Kingdom as its "mother country". United Kingdom.]] In the last century, Canada has been an advocate for multilateralism, making efforts to reach out to the rest of the world and promoting itself as a "middle power" able to work with large and small nations alike. This was clearly demonstrated during the Suez Crisis when Lester B. Pearson mollified the tension by introducing the idea of peacekeeping and the inception of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force. In 1957, Pearson was the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. In that spirit, Canada developed and has tried to maintain a leading role in UN peacekeeping efforts. Canada has cumulatively contributed more troops to peacekeeping operations worldwide than all other nations combined and currently serves in over 40 different peacekeeping missions, most recently in Afghanistan. Canada has contributed in some way to all UN peacekeeping missions. Canada is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, La Francophonie, the Organization of American States (OAS), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the World Trade Organization, the G8, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Military

Asia-Pacific Economic CooperationA founding member of the NATO alliance, Canada currently employs about 62,000 regular and 26,000 reserve military personnel.[http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/about/family_e.asp] The unified Canadian Forces (CF) are comprised of army, navy, and air force branches. Major CF equipment deployed includes 2,400 armoured fighting vehicles, 34 combat vessels, and 140 combat aircraft. Defence is an exclusive federal jurisdiction: defence spending in fiscal year 2004-5 was approximately $14 billion.[http://www.vcds.forces.gc.ca/dgsp/pubs/rep-pub/ddm/rpp/rpp05-06/sec3c_e.asp] However, in the 2005 federal budget, the Liberal government allocated an additional $12.8 billion over five years to the armed forces, and committed to increasing troop levels by an additional 8,000 regular and reserve personnel over the same period.[http://www.fin.gc.ca/budget05/speech/speeche.htm] Canadian forces have served in various wars including World War I, World War II, the Korean War and recently, in Afghanistan. Since Lester B. Pearson proposed the first UN peacekeeping force in 1956, the Canadian Forces have served in 42 peacekeeping missions — more than any other country. Canada was also the prime destination of American draft dodgers during the Vietnam War. These factors – along with its comparatively low level of military spending, other positions such as nuclear non-proliferation, and an international treaty banning personnel land mine usage – have led to Canada sometimes being referred to as a pacifist country. Battles significantly contributing to Canada's development and self-identity include the Battle of Vimy Ridge, the Second Battle of Ypres, the Third Battle of Ypres, and Juno Beach. Currently, CF personnel are involved in the NATO mission in Afghanistan. Smaller missions are also taking place in Haiti and Kosovo. Canada's Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) has participated in two relief operations in the last year. The two-hundred member relief crew helped in Southeast Asia after the December 2004 tsunami, and DART was also deployed in response to the devastating earthquake that struck the Kashmir region in South Asia in October 2005. Moreover, CF (and RCMP) personnel recently assisted in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.

Provinces and territories of Canada

Canada is composed of ten provinces and three territories. The provinces have a large degree of autonomy from the federal government, the territories somewhat less. Each has its own provincial or territorial symbols. The provinces are responsible for most of Canada's social programs (such as health care, education, and welfare) and together collect more revenue than the federal government, an almost unique structure among federations in the world. The federal government can initiate national policies that the provinces can opt out of, but this rarely happens in practice. Equalization payments are made by the federal government to ensure that reasonably uniform standards of services and taxation are kept between the richer and poorer provinces. All provinces have unicameral, elected legislatures headed by a Premier selected in the same way as the Prime Minister of Canada. Each province also has a Lieutenant-Governor representing the Queen, analogous to the Governor General of Canada, appointed on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Canada, though with increasing levels of consultation with provincial governments in recent years. Lieutenant-Governor.]] Most provinces have provincial counterparts to the three national federal parties. However, some provincial parties are not formally linked to the federal parties that share the same name. Some provinces have regional political parties, such as the Saskatchewan Party. The provincial political climate of Quebec is quite different: the main split is between separatism, represented by the Parti Québécois, and federalism, represented by the Parti Libéral du Québec. The three territories have fewer political powers than provinces, having been created by acts of the national Parliament rather than having their status enshrined in the Constitution. There is no lieutenant-governor to represent and fulfil the functions of the Queen, but each has a politically neutral Commissioner appointed by the federal government to act as its senior representative. Only Yukon's legislature follows the same political system as the provincial legislatures. The other two territories use a consensus government system in which each member runs as an independent and the premier is elected by and from the members. There is also interest within Canada and the Turks and Caicos Islands, an overseas UK territory in the Caribbean, for the latter to enter into Confederation.

Economy

Caribbean, depicting (from top to bottom) Wilfred Laurier, John A. Macdonald, Queen Elizabeth II, William Lyon Mackenzie King, and Robert Borden.]]As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, Canada today closely resembles the U.S. in its market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and high living standards. In the last century, the impressive growth of the manufacturing, mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. Canada has vast deposits of natural gas on the east coast and in the west, and a plethora of other natural resources contributing to self-sufficiency in energy. The 1989 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (which included Mexico) touched off a dramatic increase in trade and economic integration with the U.S. Since 2001, Canada has successfully avoided economic recession and has maintained the best overall economic performance in the G8. Two long-term concerns loom. One is the continuing political differences over the Constitution between Quebec and the rest of Canada, periodically raising the possibility of Quebec independence. As the economy becomes stronger, notably in Quebec, fears of separation have generally waned. Another concern is the "Brain Drain", the emigration of professionals to the U.S. in search of higher pay, lower taxes, and high-tech opportunities. (However, a [http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_PrintFriendly&c=Article&cid=1124920225033&call_pageid=971358637177&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes recent Toronto Star article] claims that the "Brain Drain" of doctors has abated, as more are returning to Canada due to high insurance rates in the U.S. and a more efficient medicare system in Canada.) Simultaneously, a larger, under-recognised "Brain Gain" is occurring, as educated immigrants (particularly from developing countries, a controversy in and of itself) continue to enter Canada [http://www.statcan.ca/english/indepth/81-003/feature/eqhi2000006003s1a01.htm].

Demographics

The 2001 national census recorded 30,007,094 people, and as of October 2005 the population has been estimated by Statistics Canada as 32.3 million people[http://www.statcan.ca/english/edu/clock/population.htm], an increase of some 2.3 million people by both immigration and natural growth. About three-quarters of Canada's population live within 150 km of the U.S. border, and a similar proportion live in urban areas. In the 2001 census, 39.42% of respondents reported their ethnic origins as "Canadian", most of whom are believed to be of British, Irish, and French heritage of earlier immigrants. In addition, 20.17% identified their origin as English, 15.75% as French, 14.03% as Scottish, and 12.90% as Irish. Numerous other groups were also reported. Ethnic origins reported by more than 1 million people included: German (9.25%), Italian (4.29%), Chinese (3.69%), Ukrainian (3.61%) and North American Indian (3.38%). Close to four million people reported they were members of a visible minority, amounting to 13.44% of the total population. (Note that Aboriginal peoples are not considered visible minorities). Also, the 2001 census reported that Canada had 5,448,480 immigrants. [http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/highlight/Immigration/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=0&View=1&Table=1&StartRec=1&Sort=2&B1=Counts] According to the last census[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/analytic/companion/rel/contents.cfm], 72% of Canadians identified as being Christians; of this, Catholics make up the largest group – 43% of Canadians. One-sixth of Canadians declared no religious affiliation, and the remaining 12% were affiliated with religions other than Christianity.

Language

Catholics]] Canada's two official languages are English and French. On July 7, 1969, under the Official Languages Act, French was made commensurate to English throughout the federal government. This started a process that led to Canada redefining itself as a bilingual and multicultural nation:
- English and French have equal status in federal courts, Parliament, and in all federal institutions.
- Any defendant in a criminal case has the right to a trial in either English or French.
- The public has the right, where there is sufficient demand, to receive federal government services in either English or French.
- Official language minority groups in most provinces and territories have the right to be educated in their language, in their own schools, with their own elected school boards, where they exist in sufficient numbers.
- While multiculturalism is official policy, to become a citizen one must be able to speak either English or French.
- More than 98% of Canadians speak English or French or both. While the nation remains officially bilingual, the majority of Canadians are fluent only in English. The official language of Quebec is French, as defined by the province's Charter of the French Language, which was introduced by the Parti Quebecois in 1976. However, the charter also provides certain rights for speakers of English and aboriginal languages. Quebec provides most government services in both French and English. French is mostly spoken in Quebec with pockets in New Brunswick, eastern and northern Ontario, Saskatchewan, and southern Manitoba. In the 2001 census, 6,864,615 people listed French as a first language, of whom 85% lived in Quebec. 17,694,835 people listed English as a first language. New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province, a status specifically guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Some provincial governments, notably Manitoba and Ontario, offer many services to their French minority populations. Aboriginal languages are co-official in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Non-official languages are also important in Canada, with 5,470,820 people listing a non-official language as a first language. (The above three statistics include those who listed more than one first language.) Among the most important non-official first language groups are Chinese (853,745 first-language speakers), Italian (469,485), German (438,080), and Punjabi (271,220).

Aboriginal peoples

The Constitution Act of 1982 recognizes three groups of aboriginal peoples in Canada: the Indians (now often called First Nations), Inuit, and Métis. The aboriginal population is growing almost twice as fast as the rest of the population in Canada. According to the Canada 2001 Census, people identified themselves as aboriginal numbered 976,305 people (or 3.3% of Canada's population) of whom about 62% are First Nations, 30% are Métis, and 5% are Inuit. Also, ethnic origin figures from the Census show that 1.3 million Canadians stated that they were partially of fully of aboriginal ancestry, including about one million people claiming full or partial First Nation ancestry, 307,000 Métis ancestry and 56,000 Inuit ancestry.

Culture

Canada 2001 Census originated from Canada when residents began playing hurley on ice.]] Due to its colonial past, Canadian culture has historically been heavily influenced by British and French cultures and traditions. In more modern times, Canadian culture is now greatly influenced by American culture, due to the proximity and the migration of people, ideas, and capital. Amidst this, Canadian culture has developed unique characteristics. In many respects, a more robust and distinct Canadian culture has developed in recent years, partially because of the civic nationalism that pervaded Canada in the years prior to and following the Canadian Centennial in 1967, and also due to a focus by the federal government on programs to support culture and the arts. There were and are many distinct First Nations across Canada, each with its own culture, language and history. Their culture was transmitted largely through oral means and stories were passed down through the elders to the younger generations. Various tribes created unique styles of artifacts such as woven baskets, painted pictures, and carved sculptures of animals. Much of this artistic legacy remains celebrated in Canada to this day. The emblem of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics is the inukshuk, a stack of rocks in human form that is a part of Inuit culture. [http://www.vancouver2010.com/Emblem/home.htm] From as early the 1500s, European explorers, traders, and fishermen from England, Ireland and France helped form the basis of Canadian culture. During their colonization of Canada, settlers created a folklore about the land around them. The tales of Paul Bunyan are a product of French-Canadian folklore and the style of jigs from Newfoundland found their origins in Ireland. Canada and the United Kingdom share a common history and continue to work together through many organizations such as the Commonwealth, G-8, and NATO. The two countries share the same head of state, and have among the oldest parliamentary democracies in the world. They still share many of the same customs, values, and traditions, which have been reinforced by working side by side in two world wars and over half a century of expanding peace and prosperity. The United Kingdom is Canada’s third largest trading partner and is the second largest source of tourists visiting Canada. The Canadian and U.S. governments share a variety of close working partnerships in trade, economic, legal, security, and military matters. These are occasionally strained by domestic politics; for instance, the ongoing softwood lumber dispute and the war in Iraq. This has led to successive drives by Canadian leaders to diversify trade with other countries; examples include Diefenbaker's efforts to increase trade with the U.K., Trudeau's efforts with Europe, and current efforts with China and India. As well, the decision to switch to the metric system in 1970 (though, like the U.K., both the metric and Imperial systems are in common usage) has similar roots. As Canada and the U.S. grew closer after World War 2 (the U.S. became Canada's largest trading partner in the late-1940s), many Canadians started to develop complex feelings and concerns regarding what makes Canada "distinct" within North America. The large American cultural presence in Canada has prompted some fears of a "cultural takeover" that have led to the establishment of laws and institutions to protect Canadian culture, including the CBC, the National Film Board of Canada, and the CRTC. Many American movies, authors, TV shows, and musicians are equally popular in Canada (and vice versa), many have been successful worldwide. Most cultural products of these types are now increasingly marketed toward a unified "North American" market, and not specifically a Canadian or American one. Though debatable, Canada has increasingly distinguished itself politically in recent years by being more fiscally conservative on issues such as balanced budgets, tax cuts, and reductions in government, while also being more socially liberal: the Canadian government currently supports universal health care, same-sex marriage, and decriminalization of marijuana. All of these issues are of varying contention amongst Canadians. Many Canadian citizens see Canadian culture as based on the policy of multiculturalism.

Sports

multiculturalism.]] Notable sports which are enjoyed throughout Canada include ice hockey, curling, lacrosse, basketball and the home-grown Canadian Football League. Although CFL teams compete in a variant of American football, traditional football (soccer) is hardly an unknown in Canada, and in 1986 the Canucks qualified for their only appearance at the World Cup in Mexico. In addition, as the vast majority of Canadians live in very close proximity to the United States, Canadians can also watch sporting events from the professional leagues in that country, such as NASCAR and the National Football League. The National Hockey League, the National Basketball Association, the National Lacrosse League and Major League Baseball are comprised of teams from both Canada and the United States. Major League Baseball As of the 1994 National Sports of Canada Act, Canada officially has two national sports. Ice hockey is the national winter sport and lacrosse is the national summer sport.

National symbols

Major League Baseball The use of the maple leaf as a Canadian symbol dates back to the early 18th century, and is depicted on its current and previous flags, the penny, an

Associated British Corporation

ABC Television or ABC Weekend TV was the British Independent Television (ITV) (commercial television) contractor on Saturdays and Sundays in the Midlands and North of England between 1956 and 1968. ABC was one of a number of commercial television companies set up in the 1950s by cinema chains in an attempt to safeguard their business by getting involved in television which was taking away their cinema audiences. In this case, the parent company was the Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), who initially did not wish to become involved in the new broadcasting system. However, when one of the consortia that had been awarded a franchise in 1954 collapsed, the ITA approached ABPC to step into the breach. Accordingly, the Corporation agreed to take up the franchises to broadcast on Saturdays and Sundays to the Midlands and the North of England. The contract agreeing to do so was signed on 21 September 1955, the day before Independent Television launched in London. This gave the new ABC five months to come on air in the Midlands, the service launching on 18 February 1956. Soon afterwards, they were also up and running in the North - they went on air there for the first time on 5 May 1956. ABC's original presentation style was criticised by the ITA for being bland and too much attached to the existing ABC Cinemas brand. Taking this criticism to heart, ABC Television developed a strong corporate identity, effectively becoming the first British TV station to recognise the importance of corporate branding. Its new animated logo showed three triangles joining up to form a bigger triangle (in geometry the points of a triangle are often labelled A, B and C), accompanied by a xylophone playing "la-te-doh" (i. e., "A-B-C"). Weekend franchises were scrapped - except in the London area - in the 1967 round of franchise renewals. ABC then looked further afield, pinning its hopes on the London weekend franchise, although they also picked the new Midlands 7-day contract as a second choice. In the event, ABC were offered the London weekdays franchise on condition that it merged with Rediffusion, London. This was agreed, with profits being shared equally between the two but with ABC maintaining control over the new merged company, Thames Television. Thames Television in turn lost its franchise in the 1991-2 round of franchise renewals, although the company continues to exist as an independent programme producer, now a part of the FremantleMedia Group and known as talkbackTHAMES. Networked programmes from ABC included the drama series Police Surgeon, Redcap, The Avengers, the series of one-off plays in ABC's Armchair Theatre, the pop shows Thank Your Lucky Stars and Oh Boy!, plus the gritty dramas Callan and Public Eye (both of which continued as Thames productions after 1968).

Names used

Company names:
- Associated British Cinemas (Television) Limited (1955-1968)
- Associated British Corporation (1966-1970s on exports and on continuing productions on Thames) On-air names:
- Associated British (1956)
- ABC Television (1956-1968)
- ABC Weekend TV (1964-1968) Initials used:
- ABC (1956-1968) Nicknames used:
- All Bloody Commercials (joke nickname attributed to Bob Monkhouse) Slogans used:
- ABC - Associated British in the North (1956-1958)
- ABC - Associated British in the Midlands (1956-1958)
- ABC, your weekend TV (1958-1964)
- ABC, your weekend television in the north (1964-1968)
- ABC, your weekend television in the midlands (1964-1968)

External links


- [http://www.transdiffusion.org/abc/ ABC at Large from Telemusications (unofficial history site)]
- [http://www.625.uk.com/tv_logos/flash/abc_serif.asp Animated ABC logo], c.1960 from 625.uk.com (Macromedia Flash 6 or later required)
- [http://www.625.uk.com/tv_logos/flash/abc_tv_64.asp Animated ABC logo], 1964 from 625.uk.com. Category:ITV franchisees

London

London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. As Europe's richest city, London produces 17% of the UK's GDP, and is one of the world's major business and financial centres. The capital of the former global empire, London is a leader in culture, communications, politics, finance, entertainment and the arts and has considerable influence worldwide. arts]] arts] London is the most populous city in the European Union, with an estimated population on 1 January 2005 of 7,500,000 and a metropolitan area population of between 12 and 14 million. London's population includes an extremely diverse range of peoples, cultures, and religions, making it one of the most cosmopolitan, vibrant and energetic cities on earth. A resident of London is referred to as a Londoner. Over 300 languages are spoken in London, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. Initially it was a Roman city and known as Londinium and then as Lunnainn, Llundain and Londain in the Scottish, <