Jimmy MacDonald's Canada

Jimmy MacDonald's Canada: The Lost Episodes is an eight-episode Canadian television series that aired on CBC Television in the summer of 2005. The show is a mockumentary, purporting to be a lost Canadian public affairs series of the mid-1960s, hosted by the fictional Jimmy MacDonald (Richard Waugh) with additional commentary (from a woman's point of view) by Marg Margison (Teresa Pavlinek). The premise of the show is that Jimmy MacDonald's Canada was a wildly popular TV show in the 1960s, but that MacDonald had a breakdown while on the air and fled to northern Canada, taking all of the filmed episodes with him. His plane crashed and he was presumed dead, and the premise is these films have recently been found. The humour of the show is derived from the differences in social values between the 1960s and today. This humour also extends to now-taboo, then-common cigarette advertisements being included in the show, and even the opening credits, which lampoon the similar style of manic, partially animated credits that were common in the era.

Incorporating scripted retrospective commentary from actual public figures (including then-current Prime Minister Paul Martin and the then-current Governor General), the series never breaks character. In his series, ultra-conservative MacDonald rails against various innovations and the rise of youth culture. Although fictional in nature, the series incorporates actual news and human interest footage from the CBC archives.

Commentaries were provided by:

MacDonald begins each episode by saying: "I'm Jimmy MacDonald, and I'm going to give it to you straight!"

MacDonald provides commentary on trends in Canadian society from a reactionary viewpoint, opposing such "fads" as physical fitness, rock music and fashion, from the point of view of an ultra-conservative with Victorian sensibilities.

Margison hosts a segment called "A Woman's Advice", providing advice on social issues based on personal experiences. "Let's build a great Canada!" she encourages viewers at the end of each segment. Running jokes related to this segment include Margison's expressions of veiled contempt towards her husband, and MacDonald's own attraction to her (at one point he is caught on camera asking for her phone number).

...
Wikipedia