A “miracle” launch for Télé-Québec

“It’s a miracle that we’re here today.” Against all odds, Télé-Québec managed to launch its 2024-2025 programming on Thursday, less than a week after the flood that ravaged its head office.

At a round table far from the damage, in downtown Montreal, the president and CEO of the public broadcaster, Marie Collin, indicated that she had “never experienced something of this magnitude.”

“It’s out of the ordinary,” she commented, before adding that it was an “out of the ordinary” situation, an expression that, coincidentally, also serves as the broadcaster’s slogan for the year 2024-2025. (“An out of the ordinary start to the school year”, “An out of the ordinary program”… The phrase plasters the official documents given to journalists.)

The historic building where Télé-Québec moved its headquarters in 2021 suffered significant damage after a water pipe burst last Friday in the Ville-Marie borough. The famous “geyser” did not spare the broadcaster’s archives, stored in the basement.

Regarding costumes from cult shows like The Oralians And Passe-Partoutsent to the care of a company specializing in restoration, the damage is less serious than believed. “The people who take care of it are optimistic. It smells good,” said Marie Collin.

As for the electrical and computer systems, also located in the basement, it’s a completely different story. We’re talking about an infrastructure that “needs to be largely redone.”

“On the scale of disasters that we could envisage, this is one of the worst. The people who go down to the basement are dressed in spacesuits,” added the CEO, who expects at least two months of teleworking before considering a return to the site, on the upper floors.

Since Monday, Télé-Québec has occupied office spaces belonging to TV5 in the heart of Old Montreal, according to a reciprocal agreement signed – by happy coincidence – the day before the flood.

The broadcaster remains in “crisis management” mode, but there is good news: its headquarters under the Jacques-Cartier Bridge got electricity back on Wednesday. More good news: its new programming should start, as planned, on September 2. Marie Collin believes in it.

Even more fiction

And what does this programming look like? The preview given to journalists suggests a 2024-2025 schedule with several original fiction series, including seven new ones.

The broadcaster would never have been able to reach this mark without the $101 million envelope over five years that it received from the Quebec government for the youth offering, and the $20 million envelope over two years that it received for the general public offering, Marie Collin stressed.

Why focus on fiction? “Because that’s what the public is looking for,” explained Nadine Dufour, vice-president of content. According to her, Télé-Québec “makes different fiction.”

It’s hard to argue with him when you take a look at the network’s menu. On the adult side, among the most intriguing titles, we highlight three productions that will be airing this winter: The Raccoon Academy – Who pushed Melody?a “crime comedy” set in a daycare with Chantal Fontaine, Catherine Chabot and Jacques L’Heureux, which will hit the airwaves this winter, Kamikazes!a sketch comedy with Fabiola Nyrva Aladin, Éric Bernier and Kathleen Fortin, and T-Rex (working title), in which three childhood friends engage in a dangerous game of virility.

In December, the channel will take advantage of the off-season to present The Last Communiona comedy in which three religious men (Guy Jodoin, Fayolle Jean, Jean-Pierre Bergeron) decide to leave their monastery, and LIAMwhere Bianca Gervais plays a scientist who designs a teenage android to replace her deceased child. “It’s a youth series, but with the complexity of an adult series,” the actress told reporters.

On the acquisitions side, Télé-Québec will offer the French version of Rematcha Franco-Hungarian series by Yan England (Sat, 1:54) and André Gulluni (Robot portrait) which chronicles the confrontation between Russian world chess champion Garry Kasparov and IBM’s supercomputer Deep Blue in 1997.

Stephan Bureau and company

Still on the subject of new releases, but in variety shows, magazines and other documentaries, we mention the resurrection of Street gablewhich is considered the first Quebec reality TV show, and the arrival ofA wonderful timea large set that marks the return of Stéphan Bureau to Télé-Québec. “It’s the only network that hasn’t recently fired me,” the host joked.

Quiz fans should bet on Quiz nighta show hosted by Tammy Verge and Antoine Vézina that will air Tuesdays at 9:30 p.m. “Late nights are a good time to discover that you don’t know much,” laughed Antoine Vézina.

Télé-Québec will bring back several sure values ​​in the coming weeks, including Beautiful and bum, It’s worth the cost, For once, In the media, Curious Begin, On call 24/7, Awesome ! And The McSween Investigation. What are you playing?with Jean-Philippe Baril Guérard, We will pick up tomorrowwith Pier-Luc Funk, Crazy timeswith Edith Cochrane, and Beyond Sexwith Rose-Aimée Automne T. Morin and Jonathan Roberge, will also be returning to service.

In 2025, we expect in particular: Epica race against time in the great outdoors hosted by Ève Côté, Give the tastea culinary magazine in which Hélène Bourgeois-Leclerc travels the roads of Quebec to meet chefs from here and elsewhere, Two Golden Men and Rosalie with Ricardo, and Winterganzaa winter youth competition.

Télé-Québec’s market share was 3.2% last year, up 7%. Due to the flooding that prevented it from accessing its servers, the broadcaster was unable to reveal its most listened-to programs.