''Mr. D'' is a Canadian
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
starring comedian
Gerry Dee
Gerry Dee (born Gerard Francis-John Donoghue;[Profile](_blank)
, oct.ca; accessed February ...
. The series follows the misadventures of an underqualified schoolteacher named Gerry Duncan, nicknamed Mr. D. It debuted on
CBC on January 9, 2012 and concluded after eight seasons on December 19, 2018.
On December 11, 2020, Mr. D became available for streaming in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
on
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...
.
Cast
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Gerry Dee
Gerry Dee (born Gerard Francis-John Donoghue;[Profile](_blank)
, oct.ca; accessed February ...
as Gerry Duncan: an under-qualified
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
social studies teacher
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
who prefers to be called Mr. D by the children and is jealous when the school's actual Mr. D (Paul Dwyer) returns to Xavier Academy. During Season 8, he is promoted to the role of principal of Xavier Academy.
*
Jonathan Torrens
Jonathan Ormond Torrens (born October 2, 1972) is a Canadian actor and television personality best known for his co-hosting of '' Street Cents'', his talk show ''Jonovision'', and his role as "J-Roc" in the popular Canadian mockumentary ''Trailer ...
as Robert Cheeley: Robert is the vice principal of the school but his bizarre character traits make it difficult for his colleagues to respect him. He becomes co-principal with Lisa in season 6 and sole principal at the end of season 6. In Season 8, he is co-vice-principal with Mr. Dwyer.
*
Lauren Hammersley
Lauren Hammersley is a Canadian actress known for playing teacher Lisa Mason, the CBC Television sitcom Mr. D. and Charmaine in Virgin River on Netflix.
Early life
Hammersley was born in Campbell River, British Columbia in 1981.
She was rai ...
as Lisa Mason: a competent and responsible former teacher and principal, known for her traditional teaching style. She has a Masters in Education and a PhD in
Medieval literature
Medieval literature is a broad subject, encompassing essentially all written works available in Europe and beyond during the Middle Ages (that is, the one thousand years from the fall of the Western Roman Empire ca. AD 500 to the beginning of t ...
. In the seventh season, she is the school guidance counselor.
*
Bette MacDonald
Bette MacDonald is a Canadian comedian, actress, and writer, best known for her comedic television series ''Rideau Hall''.
A premier Atlantic Canadian comedian, she has been compared to Carol Burnett, John Candy and Bette Midler; described as a ...
as Trudy Walsh: the school secretary who runs much of the day-to-day business at Xavier Academy.
*
Naomi Snieckus
Naomi Snieckus is a Canadian actress and comedian, best known for her regular television role as Bobbi in ''Mr. D'' and her appearance as Nina in ''Saw 3D''."As seen on TV, a lot". ''The Globe and Mail'', June 29, 2012. She is also a podcast host. ...
as Bobbi Galka: the confident and respected PE teacher at Xavier Academy.
*
Darrin Rose
Darrin Rose (born Darrin Rowsell) is a Canadian stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. He was host of the Canadian remake of ''Match Game'' in 2012–15, and played Bill the bartender on the sitcom Mr. D for eight seasons.
Early life
Born in ...
as Bill Cogill: Gerry's roommate and a womanizing bachelor who works as the local bartender, until the bar closes in the final season. He then runs a smoothie bar at Xavier Academy.
*
Mark Little as Simon Hunt: the science teacher of the school, he is weak and a typical science geek who is also assistant coach of the girls' basketball team.
*
Wes Williams
Wesley "Wes" Williams (born March 31, 1968) is a Canadian rapper, record producer, actor, and author. He is known professionally by his stage names Maestro Fresh Wes (formerly Maestro Fresh-Wes) or Maestro as a musician, and is credited by his ...
as Paul Dwyer: Paul is cool and loved by all the teachers, and was the original Mr. D to the children before he left. During the final season, he is the co-vice-principal of Xavier Academy with Robert Cheeley. Gerry is often jealous of Dwyer and feels that he is in competition with him.
* Suresh John as Malik: the mysterious school custodian with an unusual history.
*
Kathleen Phillips
Kathleen Phillips is a Canadian actress based in Toronto, Ontario. She is most noted for her roles in the sketch comedy series '' Sunnyside'', for which she and the other core cast collectively won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Performance in ...
as Emma Terdie: Emma is the librarian who runs a tight ship and demands that rules are followed and that things are always done by the book in her library.
* Bill Wood as Frank: the school's guidance counselor and assistant basketball coach to Mr. D. He uses crutches to walk.
*
Emma Hunter Emma Hunter may refer to:
* Emma Hunter (swimmer)
* Emma Hunter (actress)
Emma Hunter (born ) is a Canadian actress and comedian. She is known for her recurring role as Nisha in the sitcom ''Mr. D'', and as co-anchor with Miguel Rivas of the ...
as Nisha Corcoran, who is hired in Season 5 to replace Mr. D when he's fired by Ms. Mason. She has a relationship with Mr. Hunt.
Main characters
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*
*
*
Production
Creator, writer, executive producer and star Gerry Dee based ''Mr. D'' on his ten years teaching physical education in high school before he left for a career in stand-up comedy in 2003.
The pilot episode was directed by Steve Wright and produced by Gerry Dee and Michael Volpe. The show is filmed on location at
Citadel High School
Citadel High School is a high school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
The school opened in September 2007 on the site of the former Bell Road Campus of the Nova Scotia Community College. Its location bordering Bell Road, Trollope Street, and Ahe ...
in
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...
.
''Mr. D'' was renewed for a third season on April 3, 2013, and for a fourth season on April 4, 2014.
For the fourth season, CBC included the series in a production deal with
City
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
.
["Calgary-shot Young Drunk Punk to get second run on CBC this fall in innovative deal between networks"]
''Calgary Herald
The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network.
History
''The ...
'', January 9, 2015. Under the deal, ''Mr. D'' and City's new sitcom ''
Young Drunk Punk
''Young Drunk Punk'' is a Canadian television sitcom, which debuted on City on January 21, 2015.
Created by Bruce McCulloch based on his autobiographical theatrical show of the same title, the series stars Tim Carlson as Ian McKay, a young punk ...
'' will each air on their own originating network in the winter of the 2014–15 television season, then swap networks for a second run in the fall of the 2015–16 season.
CBC announced that ''Mr. D'' had been renewed for a fifth season in a press release dated March 4, 2015.
16 February 2016, CBC announced "Mr. D" had been renewed for a sixth season in a press release.
On April 6, 2017 Dee confirmed the show had been renewed for a seventh season.
On March 11, 2018 the show was renewed for an eighth season. Dee confirmed this would be the show's last.
Episodes
Series overview
Season 1 (2012)
Season 2 (2013)
Season 3 (2014)
Season 4 (2015)
Season 5 (2016)
Season 6 (2016)
Season 7 (2017)
Season 8 (2018)
Reception
The first episode of the show was watched by 1.23 million viewers, which was the biggest midseason debut for the CBC 2011–12 season.
Awards and nominations
Proposed U.S. version
On October 31, 2015, Gerry Dee and ''Mr. D'' co-creator Michael Volpe announced an agreement had been signed with
Will Arnett
William Emerson Arnett (; born May 4, 1970) is a Canadian actor, comedian and producer. He is best known for his roles as Gob Bluth in the Fox/Netflix series ''Arrested Development'' (2003–2006, 2013, 2018–2019) and as the titular charact ...
's newly formed TV production company, Electric Avenue, to develop an American version of the show for American network
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
.
Dee revealed the initial contact with Will Arnett came from a friend of a friend who went to school with Arnett. He stated that there had been small interest from American television in the past, but this was the first serious proposal to get an American version of the show up.
Dee and Volpe originally pitched the show as an American reboot with Dee reprising his role. However, CBS was looking to use the show as a vehicle for an American star with Dee and Volpe getting executive producer credits. Veteran comedic actor Tom Arnold had been signed to the title role. CBS also mentioned hiring Tom Hertz as showrunner. Hertz was previously executive producer of popular American sitcoms ''
Spin City
''Spin City'' is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 to April 30, 2002, on ABC. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show is set in a semi-fictionalized version of the New York City mayor's ...
'' and ''
King of Queens
''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the sho ...
''.
While Dee understands a show about his life as a teacher before he became a comedian will be adapted to suit American audiences, with changes including a multi-camera American sitcom system rather than the single camera Canadian system, he hopes the American version will retain Mr. D's mix of character humour, physical comedy and authenticity, along with its use of talented young actors for students instead of 25-year-olds playing teenagers.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mister D
2010s Canadian high school television series
2010s Canadian sitcoms
2010s Canadian workplace comedy television series
2012 Canadian television series debuts
2018 Canadian television series endings
CBC Television original programming
Television series about educators
Television series by Entertainment One
Television shows filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia
Citytv original programming