sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is ...

Royal Canadian Air Farce The Royal Canadian Air Farce was a comedy troupe that was active from 1973 to 2019. It is best known for their various Canadian Broadcasting Corporation series, first on CBC Radio and later on CBC Television. Although their weekly radio series ...

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

television show 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, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

Atlantic time zone The Atlantic Time Zone is a geographical region that keeps standard time—called Atlantic Standard Time (AST)—by subtracting four hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC), resulting in UTC−04:00. AST is observed in parts of North America ...

Roger Abbott Roger Abbott (July 10, 1946March 26, 2011) was an English-born Canadian sketch comedian who was a founding member of the long-lived Canadian comedy troupe ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'', and remained one of its stars and writers until his death. Ea ...

Luba Goy Luba Goy ( uk, Люба Ґой; born November 8, 1945) is a Canadian actress, comedian and one of the stars of ''Royal Canadian Air Farce''. Life and career Goy was born in Haltern, Germany, to Ukrainian parents and raised in Ottawa, Ontario, Ca ...

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Madly Off in All Directions ''Madly Off in All Directions'' was a Canadian radio comedy show that aired for several years on CBC Radio One, featuring comedian Lorne Elliott. It formerly aired on Sunday afternoons at 1PM (1:30PM in Newfoundland and Labrador), as well as on Sa ...

Lorne Elliott Christopher Lorne Elliott, known by his stage name Lorne Elliott is a Canadian comedian, musician, author, and award-winning playwright. He is best known for his 11 years as host of the CBC Radio program ''Madly Off in All Directions''. Career Elli ...

Roger Abbott Roger Abbott (July 10, 1946March 26, 2011) was an English-born Canadian sketch comedian who was a founding member of the long-lived Canadian comedy troupe ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'', and remained one of its stars and writers until his death. Ea ...

Luba Goy Luba Goy ( uk, Люба Ґой; born November 8, 1945) is a Canadian actress, comedian and one of the stars of ''Royal Canadian Air Farce''. Life and career Goy was born in Haltern, Germany, to Ukrainian parents and raised in Ottawa, Ontario, Ca ...

Dave Broadfoot Dave Broadfoot (December 5, 1925 – November 1, 2016) was a Canadian comedian and satirist. He is best known for his performances as a member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce.

Additions

*

Barbara Budd Barbara Budd (born May 23, 1951) is a Canadian actress, narrator and radio announcer. Between 1993 and April 30, 2010, she was the co-host of CBC Radio One's ''As It Happens''. Early life Budd was born in St. Catharines, Ontario. She studied th ...

(1984–1991), frequent appearances as a "special guest" on the radio show *

Jessica Holmes Jessica Holmes (born August 29, 1973) is a Canadians, Canadian comedian and actress. She is best known for her work with the ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'', which she joined in 2003, after starring in her own show, ''The Holmes Show'' in 2002. Sh ...

(2003–2011) *

Craig Lauzon Craig Lauzon is a Canadian actor, writer, comedian, and member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce. His main caricatures on the Farce include George Stroumboulopoulos, John Baird, Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Lauzon ...

(2004–2012), supporting member during 2003, became full member in 2004 *

Alan Park Alan John Park (November 5, 1962 – November 10, 2022) was a Canadian comedian and political satire, political satirist best known for his appearances on the ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'' where he gave humorous commentary on current events. Thou ...

(2004–2012), supporting member during 2003, became full member in 2004 *

Penelope Corrin Penelope Anne Corrin (born 28 November 1975) is a Canadian actress and writer. Corrin was born in Ottawa, Ontario. She was seen nationally on CBC Television's '' Royal Canadian Air Farce'' comedy broadcasts for nine years, originally as a repl ...

(2007–2012), filled in during Holmes's maternity leave during the first two months of 2007, returned for the live season finale, joined cast for 2007/2008 season *

Arnold Pinnock Arnold Pinnock (born 1967) is a Canadian actor who is perhaps best known for his appearance as Paul Greebie, Casey's guidance counselor, in ''Life with Derek''. Pinnock was born in Birmingham, England. His career began with sketch comedy at Toro ...

(2013), who made a guest appearance in the 2012 New Year's Eve special, but was credited as a member for 2013

Show history

''Royal Canadian Air Farce'' began in 1973 as a radio show on

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

. It became one of the radio network's most popular programs. Based in Toronto, most of their shows were recorded in CBC's Cabbagetown studios; however, as the troupe became more popular, they frequently travelled throughout the country to record their weekly radio broadcasts, which featured a mixture of political and cultural satire. The Farce troupe recorded a one-hour television special in 1980, which evolved into a ten-week series and two sequel specials. They continued to perform their radio series as the TV series and specials moved forward. Many of the TV show's sketches were actually performed as "radio sketches"—during filming, Air Farce cast members stood on stage in front of microphones reading from scripts, whilst sound effects technician Alex Sinclair could be seen on stage adding sound effects as needed. Other sketches, some quite elaborate, were acted out in full costume as more traditional television sketches. Despite the decent ratings for the initial special, the TV series was received with somewhat lukewarm reviews and ratings. The Air Farce left television after a special in 1984. In the early 1980s, Air Farce's summer radio hiatus periods were filled by another comedy troupe, The Frantics, who later moved on to their own TV series, ''

Four on the Floor ''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is c ...

''. Later summer hiatus periods, however, were filled by Ferguson and Abbott playing classic comedy recordings. In the late 1980s, CBC Radio launched another 30-minutes weekly political satire, ''

Double Exposure In photography and cinematography, a multiple exposure is the superimposition of two or more exposures to create a single image, and double exposure has a corresponding meaning in respect of two images. The exposure values may or may not be ide ...

''. Though the programmes were never in direct competition, some found the latter show fresher and edgier. In 1992, Air Farce took a second plunge into television with ''1992: Year of the Farce'', a satirical

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve, also known as Old Year's Day or Saint Sylvester's Day in many countries, is the evening or the entire day of the last day of the year, on 31 December. The last day of the year is commonly referred to ...

special. For this and all subsequent TV appearances, the troupe abandoned the idea of performing TV sketches as "radio sketches", and presented their TV work in a traditional TV sketch show format. A ratings smash, the special led the troupe to produce another weekly television series, which debuted in 1993. However, this time the move to television was permanent. The radio series continued alongside the TV show for four seasons until May 1997, when it was discontinued. The practice of having a New Year's Eve special continued through the show's entire run, and such episodes were typically titled ''Year of the Farce''. Air Farce also frequently had the honour of counting down the seconds before the New Year on CBC, and the show's final episode was itself a New Year's Eve special. Recurring characters on the TV series included the slow Albertan Mike from Canmore (Morgan) and angry Scot Jock McBile (Morgan), self-righteous movie critic Gilbert Smythe Bite-Me (Abbott), and chain-smoking bingo player Brenda (Goy). Though these characters would occasionally feature in skits of their own, usually they were used at the beginning of the show to deliver a stream of one liner jokes commentating on the news of that week. The show also featured frequent skits with politicians, who were portrayed as various extreme

caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, a ...

s of their most infamous personality quirks. Notable re-occurring figures included Prime Minister

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

(Abbott), who could barely speak a single sentence of English without committing at least a dozen outlandish pronunciation and grammatical errors, the nasally-voiced

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

(Ferguson) who loved to shout " REFOOOOOOORM!", a screaming, bitchy

Sheila Copps Sheila Maureen Copps (born November 27, 1952) is a former Canadian politician who also served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Canada from November 4, 1993, to April 30, 1996, and June 19, 1996, to June 11, 1997. Her father, Victor Copps, ...

(Goy), the tyrannical

Lucien Bouchard Lucien Bouchard (; born December 22, 1938) is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat and retired politician. Minister for two years in the Mulroney cabinet, Bouchard then led the emerging Bloc Québécois and became Leader of the Opposition in the House ...

, the dopey and overly-image conscious Stockwell Day, the strutting, clucking, pompous

Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...

, and the power-hungry

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

(all Ferguson). Many of the real politicians also made guest appearances on the show, often interacting directly with their parodic counterparts. However, Colonel "Teresa" Stacy (Ferguson) quickly emerged as the show's most popular character — each time he appeared, Stacy would load up the Chicken Cannon and fire

rubber chicken A rubber chicken is a prop used in comedy. The phrase is also used as a description for food served at speeches, conventions, and other large meetings, and as a metaphor for speechmaking. Description A rubber chicken is an imitation plucked fowl ...

s and other assorted projectiles at whomever he deemed the most annoying public figure of the week (or year). Morgan retired from Air Farce in 2001, and the remaining three members carried on with a rotating stable of guest stars (usually no more than one per episode). Seen frequently as "special guests" from 2001 to 2003 were Rochelle Wilson,

Jessica Holmes Jessica Holmes (born August 29, 1973) is a Canadians, Canadian comedian and actress. She is best known for her work with the ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'', which she joined in 2003, after starring in her own show, ''The Holmes Show'' in 2002. Sh ...

,

Sean Cullen Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as '' Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; anglic ...

,

Peter Keleghan Peter Keleghan is a Canadian actor and writer, perhaps best known for portraying Ben Bellow in the comedy series ''18 to Life'', Clark Claxton Sr. in the comedy series ''Billable Hours'' and Ranger Gord in ''The Red Green Show''. Currently has a ...

, Janet van de Graaff, James Roussel,

Craig Lauzon Craig Lauzon is a Canadian actor, writer, comedian, and member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce. His main caricatures on the Farce include George Stroumboulopoulos, John Baird, Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Lauzon ...

and

Elvira Kurt Elvira Kurt (born December 9, 1961) is a Canadian comedian, and was the host of the game show '' Spin Off''. She hosted the entertainment satire/talk show ''PopCultured with Elvira Kurt'', which began on The Comedy Network in Canada in 2005. That ...

. Holmes' appearances became more frequent as time went by, especially by the beginning of the 2003–04 season. In December 2003, she officially joined the show, adding celebrity figures such as

Paris Hilton Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American media personality, businesswoman, socialite, model, and entertainer. Born in New York City, and raised there and in Beverly Hills, California, she is a great-granddaughter of Conra ...

and

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is among a rare group of performers awarded an Emmy, Grammy ...

, and Canadian politicians such as

Belinda Stronach Belinda Caroline Stronach (Born May 2, 1966) is a Canadian businesswoman, philanthropist and a former Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons of Canada from 2004 to 2008. Originally elected as a Conservative, she later crossed the fl ...

, to the troupe's roster of characters. Later, in 2005, after a

lockout Lockout may refer to: * Lockout (industry), a type of work stoppage **Dublin Lockout, a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers 1913 - 1914 * Lockout (sports), lockout in sports leagues **MLB lockout, lock ...

at CBC, Air Farce gained two new cast members, who had previously appeared on the show as recurring guest stars:

Alan Park Alan John Park (November 5, 1962 – November 10, 2022) was a Canadian comedian and political satire, political satirist best known for his appearances on the ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'' where he gave humorous commentary on current events. Thou ...

and

Craig Lauzon Craig Lauzon is a Canadian actor, writer, comedian, and member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce. His main caricatures on the Farce include George Stroumboulopoulos, John Baird, Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Lauzon ...

. The addition of these two newcomers brought the total number of performers in the troupe to six. While the show was widely regarded as a Canadian institution, some critics have felt that the television show's quality has diminished over the past few seasons, especially since the breakdown of the original four-actor quartet. However, it still continued to draw solid ratings each week. On March 30, 2007, the Air Farce celebrated their 300th episode by doing the show on live television (except in Western Canada) for one hour. Roger Abbott and Luba Goy began the show with a brief history of the show, closing with "the scariest three words on television: AIR FARCE LIVE!". After this experimental episode, CBC announced that the 15th season of the series would be aired live for the entire season, with a name change to ''Air Farce Live''. The final season retained its live format, but was renamed as ''Air Farce: Final Flight''.

End of series

''Air Farce'' remained popular through its radio run and initially as a TV series, but over the years interest in the show began to drop and its ratings fell. On April 1, 2008, the CBC and Air Farce announced that ''Air Farce Live'' would end in the 2008/2009 season. Nine new shows, titled Air Farce—Final Flight! aired from October 3, 2008, to December 5, 2008, with the New Year's Eve special as the tenth show and series finale. A special feature of the final season of shows was "Air Farce Flashback", featuring a memorable segment from the previous 15 seasons of the Air Farce series. The New Year's Eve Grand Finale featured in the Air Farce Flashback segment highlights from several segments of Air Farce sketches over the years. The final hour-long episode aired December 31, 2008, at 8:00 PM

Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small port ...

. It featured special guests Ron MacLean,

Peter Mansbridge Peter Mansbridge (born July 6, 1948) is a British-born Canadian retired news anchor. From 1988 to 2017, he was chief correspondent for CBC News and anchor of '' The National,'' CBC Television's flagship nightly newscast. He was also host of CB ...

, and former Air Farce member

Dave Broadfoot Dave Broadfoot (December 5, 1925 – November 1, 2016) was a Canadian comedian and satirist. He is best known for his performances as a member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce.

Specials

In December 2009, it was announced that the Air Farce would return for a New Year's Eve 2009 special, featuring the return of most of the original staff (excluding Jessica Holmes, Gord Holtham, and Rick Olsen), guest appearances by Peter Mansbridge, ''

Battle of the Blades ''Battle of the Blades'' (or ''BOTB'' for short) is a Canadian figure skating reality show and competition that airs on CBC Television. The show originally aired for four seasons between 2009 and 2013. It was revived for a fifth season in 2019. ...

'' winners

Jamie Salé Jamie Rae Salé (born April 21, 1977) is a Canadian former competitive pair skater, and a current motivational speaker and conspiracy theorist. With her former husband David Pelletier, she is the 2002 Olympic Champion and 2001 World Champion. ...

and

Craig Simpson Craig Andrew Simpson (born February 15, 1967) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers and the Buffalo Sabres. He is currently a broadc ...

, and the Dragons of ''

Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it is k ...

''. The special also featured the successor to the Chicken Cannon, "F-Bombs," which were dropped onto photographs from the top of the atrium of the

Canadian Broadcasting Centre The Canadian Broadcasting Centre, also known as the CBC Toronto Broadcast Centre, is an office and studio complex located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It serves as the main broadcast and master control point for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp ...

. On December 16–17, 2010, the Royal Canadian Air Farce 2010 New Year special was taped. It aired December 31, 2010. The cast included Jessica Holmes, who returned for the 60 minute show as Yogi Gurt and

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

. Moved to New Year's Day due to ''

Hockey Night in Canada CBC Television has aired National Hockey League (NHL) broadcasts under the ''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') brand that is primarily associated with its Saturday night NHL broadcasts throughout its hi ...

'', the ''Air Farce Not the New Year's Eve Special'' aired on January 1, 2012. Jessica Holmes did not return for this special due to a prior commitment. This was the first Air Farce special that did not feature the late

Roger Abbott Roger Abbott (July 10, 1946March 26, 2011) was an English-born Canadian sketch comedian who was a founding member of the long-lived Canadian comedy troupe ''Royal Canadian Air Farce'', and remained one of its stars and writers until his death. Ea ...

in its cast, who had died earlier in 2011. In 2017, a

Canada Day Canada Day (french: Fête du Canada), formerly known as Dominion Day (french: Fête du Dominion), is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 18 ...

special aired, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Confederation, as well as a year-end special. While ratings for the specials remained strong, drawing over a million viewers in 2017 and 2018, the CBC informed the troupe in May 2019 that due to budgetary constraints, the 2019 year-end special would be the final edition in the series, as a farewell show combining new material looking at 2019 in review and archival material from the troupe's past, including clips of deceased members Roger Abbott and John Morgan.

Sketches

Recurring sketches

Some of the recurring sketches on Air Farce include: *"Ad Absurdum", where Goy remarks on the terrible commercials aired on Canadian television. *"Driving with Alan Park", a modified version of "Not the Official Story" where Alan Park is now shown driving in a car instead of in front of his computer. **This show aired after the 2005 CBC Lockout *"A Canadian Moment", featuring the entire cast as regulars in a coffee shop. The sketch always ends with the characters saying their

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

s ("You got that right" for Ferguson, "You betcha" for Morgan, "Tell me about it" for Goy, "Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah" for Abbott as he pours sugar into his coffee, and "Totally" for Holmes, typically in that order). This was the final sketch in the New Year's Eve grand finale in which the coffee shop owner, played by Broadfoot, closes the donut shop permanently and kicks out the regulars at closing time. *"Brenda the Bingo Lady", where a middle-aged woman (Goy) vents her opinions about current issues while playing a game of

bingo Bingo or B-I-N-G-O may refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * Bingo, a game using a printed card of numbers ** Bingo (British version), a game using a printed card of 15 numbers on three lines; most commonly played in the UK and Ireland ** Bi ...

alongside her husband (Abbott). Each sketch often invariably ends with the husband, who is named Sid, winning, despite playing only one bingo card to Brenda's numerous cards. *"B.S. 2000", where the cast of Air Farce portray various particular Canadian newspeople as they put their spin on the 2000 federal election. At the end of a sketch, they would "poll" the public (another cast member playing an anonymous Canadian) and give its results, the gag being that only one person was polled in the survey (and thus one leader would get 100% of the votes, but on one occasion the person abstained). *"Chicken Cannon". Although originally a sketch in the early parts of Air Farce on TV meant to satirize the Canadian military (in it, the Canadian military consists of only two people, Colonel "Teresa" Stacy and his assistant, played by Ferguson and Morgan), but as the popularity of the sketch grew, it became an integral part of Air Farce, spawning its own newsroom sketch titled "Chicken Cannon News". Studio audience members or viewers at home nominate or vote for their favourite target along with their choice of ammunition (not necessarily a chicken). The cast picks a winner and fires the Chicken Cannon at the fan-suggested target at the end of the sketch. The fan also wins some form of Air Farce merchandise for having their choice be a Chicken Cannon target. In the "Year of the Farce" episodes, a special version of the Chicken Cannon has the top five targets of the year, with the first four being fired upon by a

rubber chicken A rubber chicken is a prop used in comedy. The phrase is also used as a description for food served at speeches, conventions, and other large meetings, and as a metaphor for speechmaking. Description A rubber chicken is an imitation plucked fowl ...

while the top target being fired as before. Past targets included: **Canadian party leaders

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

, Stockwell Day, Alexa McDonough, Gilles Duceppe, and

Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...

, for the 2000 election **Olympic

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

judges, for their part in the scandal that had surrounded

Jamie Salé Jamie Rae Salé (born April 21, 1977) is a Canadian former competitive pair skater, and a current motivational speaker and conspiracy theorist. With her former husband David Pelletier, she is the 2002 Olympic Champion and 2001 World Champion. ...

and

David Pelletier David Jacques Pelletier (born November 22, 1974) is a Canadian pairs figure skater. With his former wife Jamie Salé, he was the co-gold medal winner at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. They shared the gold medal with the Russian pair Elena Ber ...

in the

2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 ( arp, Niico'ooowu' 2002; Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; nv, Sooléí 2002; Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), was an internation ...

**

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

and

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

, for the scandal that surrounded the 2000 US Presidential Election ** George W. Bush,

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...

, and

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former U ...

for their involvement in

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**

Gary Bettman Gary Bruce Bettman (born June 2, 1952) is an American sports executive who serves as the commissioner of the National Hockey League (NHL), a post he has held since February 1, 1993. Previously, Bettman was a senior vice president and general cou ...

and Bob Goodenow, for the furor that resulted from the

2004–05 NHL lockout The 2004–05 NHL lockout was a labor lockout that resulted in the cancellation of the National Hockey League (NHL) season, which would have been its 88th season of play. The main dispute was the league's desire to implement a salary cap to ...

**

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

**

Ben Johnson Ben, Benjamin or Benny Johnson may refer to: In sports Association football * Ben Johnson (footballer, born 2000), English footballer * Ben Johnson (soccer) (born 1977), American soccer player Other codes of football *Ben Johnson (Australian foot ...

** Alexei Yashin **

Pikachu is a fictional species in the ''Pokémon'' media franchise. Designed by Atsuko Nishida and Ken Sugimori, Pikachu first appeared in the 1996 Japanese video games ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Green'' created by Game Freak and Nintendo, which w ...

from

Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...

**

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...

**

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

**

Canadian Idol ''Canadian Idol'' is a Canadian reality television competition show which aired on CTV, based on the British show ''Pop Idol''. The show was a competition to find the most talented young singer in Canada, and was hosted by Ben Mulroney. Jon Dore ...

host

Ben Mulroney Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he ...

** Former mayor of Toronto

Mel Lastman Melvin Douglas Lastman (March 9, 1933 – December 11, 2021) was a Canadian businessman and politician who served as the third mayor of North York from 1973 to 1997 and 62nd mayor of Toronto from 1998 to 2003. He was the first person to serve ...

for being a "paternal bad boy" ** Former CEO of

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...

Robert Milton ** Then-Ontario Premier

Dalton McGuinty Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. (born July 19, 1955) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 24th premier of Ontario from 2003 to 2013. He was the first Liberal leader to win two majority governments since Mitchell Hepburn nea ...

**

Marty McSorley Martin James McSorley (born May 18, 1963) is a Canadian former professional hockey player, who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1983 until 2000. A versatile player, he was able to play both the forward and defense positions. A form ...

for being suspended after assaulting by hockey stick in 2000, the only known target where Colonel Stacy attacks with hockey stick. **

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...

, for his involvement with the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

. Note that this is the only known target where Colonel Stacey loads the Chicken Cannon himself. **

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

and

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

for their unprofessional behaviour over the past year of 2005 **The

Y2K The year 2000 problem, also known as the Y2K problem, Y2K scare, millennium bug, Y2K bug, Y2K glitch, Y2K error, or simply Y2K refers to potential computer errors related to the formatting and storage of calendar data for dates in and after ...

bug ** Frank and Gordon, animated beavers used as advertising mascots for

Bell Canada Bell Canada (commonly referred to as Bell) is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is an ILEC (incumbent local exchange carrier) in t ...

**Then-Canadian Environment Minister

Rona Ambrose Ronalee Ambrose Veitch ( , Name at birth, née Chapchuk; born March 15, 1969) is a Canadian former politician who was Interim leader (Canada), interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, Conservative Party and the Leader of the Official ...

(for "messing up the environment") **Former Edmonton Oiler

Chris Pronger Christopher Robert Pronger ( or ; born October 10, 1974) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman and a former advisor to the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Originally selected second overall by the Hartford ...

for being a "turncoat" **

Karlheinz Schreiber Karlheinz Schreiber (born 25 March 1934) is a German and Canadian citizen, an industrialist, lobbyist, fundraiser, arms dealer and businessman. He has been in the news regarding his alleged role in the 1999 CDU contributions scandal in Germany ...

and

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...

were a tie in 2007. ** Joe Biden and

Sarah Palin Sarah Louise Palin (; Heath; born February 11, 1964) is an American politician, commentator, author, and reality television personality who served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009. She was the 2008 R ...

**

Don Cherry Donald Stewart Cherry (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, coach, and television commentator. Cherry played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins, and later coached the team for five se ...

as requested by Ron MacLean when he was a guest in 2008. ** John Baird **

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

's

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

(For not turning off his lights during Earth Hour.) **

Patrick Patrick may refer to: * Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name * Patrick (surname), list of people with this name People * Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint *Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick ...

and Jonathan Roy **

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

,

Stéphane Dion Stéphane Maurice Dion (born 28 September 1955) is a Canadian diplomat, academic and former politician who has been the Canadian ambassador to France and Monaco since 2022 and special envoy to the European Union since 2017. Dion was Leader of ...

,

Michael Ignatieff Michael Grant Ignatieff (; born May 12, 1947) is a Canadian author, academic and former politician who served as the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011. Known for his work as a histo ...

,

Jack Layton John Gilbert Layton (July 18, 1950 – August 22, 2011) was a Canadian academic and politician who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2003 to 2011 and leader of the Official Opposition in 2011. He previously sat on To ...

, and Gilles Duceppe for the 2008–2009 Canadian parliamentary dispute. **The CBC for cancelling the Air Farce series and for losing the rights to the Hockey Night in Canada theme music to CTV **

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

and

Viktor Yanukovych Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych ( uk, Віктор Федорович Янукович, ; ; born 9 July 1950) is a former politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the Revolution of Di ...

for trying to meddling 2004 Ukrainian presidential election **

Slobodan Milosevic Slobodan ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан) is a Serbo-Croatian masculine given name which means "free" (''sloboda'' / meaning "freedom, liberty") used among other South Slavs as well. It was coined by Serbian liberal politician Vladimir Jovanović w ...

*"Critic At Large", where Gilbert Smythe Bite-Me (Abbott), an entertainment critic, gives negative reviews, and takes regular potshots at the

Women's Television Network W Network (often shortened to W) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by Corus Entertainment. The channel primarily broadcasts general entertainment programming oriented towards a female audience. W Network was established in ...

, describing them as 'a bunch of scrotally-deprived, estrogen-sodden non-males', and 'not just because three of (his) ex-wives work there.' *"Sister Bessie". Sister Bessie (Holmes) is a Catholic nun commenting on various political topics either in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

or relating to outside sources like

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

. The issues usually make her angry, causing her network Vision Television to block out any obscenities that she may say during her broadcast. *"Craig Oliver's 3-Way" (Abbott) talks recent news and events with opinions from three other panel members. *"Dave the Cabbie", where Dave (Ferguson), a cab driver, takes on a fare and proceeds to converse with them on various current events. Dave demands that the fare pay in cash and not with the

Visa Visa most commonly refers to: *Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allows ...

credit card A credit card is a payment card issued to users (cardholders) to enable the cardholder to pay a merchant for goods and services based on the cardholder's accrued debt (i.e., promise to the card issuer to pay them for the amounts plus the o ...

(often with the line "You pay cash, no Visa. You pay Visa I kill you.") He also pronounces the I in Visa with a hard I (v-eye-za) and not a soft I (v-ee-za) as is usually the case. The cabbie also often takes the passenger somewhere other than requested and then demands an outrageous price. For a famous celebrity's death, Dave says "It's very sad about

Mister Rogers Fred McFeely Rogers (March 20, 1928 – February 27, 2003), commonly known as Mister Rogers, was an American television host, author, producer, and Presbyterian minister. He was the creator, showrunner, and host of the preschool television se ...

. He imitates Rogers saying, "Not a beautiful day in the neighbourhood." Although he has a thick

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

accent, he claims to be originally from Regina (The "flat part"). Although he usually speaks the most, when the client leaves he claims that "(he) thought that (the client) would ''never'' shut up." *"

English as a Second Language English as a second or foreign language is the use of English by speakers with different native languages. Language education for people learning English may be known as English as a second language (ESL), English as a foreign language (EF ...

News", hosted by Heikki Flergenpootz (Abbott, in a horned helmet) and Svetlana (Goy, in a fruit hat). The sketch is a typical newsroom sketch, often peppered with mistakes that typical ESL learners make. In later years, they typically said "Goodbye" at the beginning of the sketch and "Hello" at the end. Each sketch also included a third "guest commentator" portrayed by Ferguson, some of which would later get their own sketches. *"Get Stuffed", in which Jock McBile (Morgan), a Scottish-Canadian left-handed bagpipe repair man, put his spin on current events. *"I Love that Word Refoooorm", in which

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

(Ferguson, although Manning himself has appeared in the sketch playing Ferguson's role), promotes his party, with comical results. Manning was frequently accompanied by various guests (most often Morgan as

Deborah Grey Deborah Cleland Grey, (born July 1, 1952) is a retired Canadian member of Parliament from Alberta for the Reform Party of Canada, the Canadian Alliance, and the Conservative Party of Canada. She was the first female leader of the Opposition in ...

, deputy leader of the party, although Grey herself has been a guest) who criticize Manning on his speech. Manning ended the sketch with the phrase "I love that word reform", with "reform" being drawn out for comedic effect. *"Knob of the Week", a sketch in the style of the Chicken Cannon "honouring" various acts of stupidity by various groups. It was introduced partially to replace the Chicken Cannon, which was specially reserved for the ''Year of the Farce'' show and possibly the season opener (both of which were one-hour shows compared to the regular 30-minute shows). *"Man's World" with Buck McSweeney (Ferguson). Typically, Ferguson is joined by a special guest star (most often an athlete) playing as themselves. Buck proceeds to do a typical sports interview while letting his obsession with

synchronized swimming Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming) or artistic swimming is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by FINA (the ''Fédérati ...

be known. *"Member for Kicking Horse Pass", in which the fictional

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(

Dave Broadfoot Dave Broadfoot (December 5, 1925 – November 1, 2016) was a Canadian comedian and satirist. He is best known for his performances as a member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce.Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. There are a number of sketches-within-a-sketch interspersed throughout, common ones being: **"52 Weeks in 52 Seconds", in which Jimmy and Seamus rapid fire various one-liners based on events that occurred in the past year. It is typically a part of every ''Year of the Farce'' show. **"Point-Counterpoint", in which Jimmy and Seamus try to debate an issue from different points of view. However, one starts the argument and the other agrees on the spot. **"Seamus' Commentary", where Seamus makes a one-line commentary about one particular issue. In one sketch, he delivered his commentary in the style of a

Rick Mercer Richard Vincent "Rick" Mercer (born October 17, 1969) is a Canadian comedian, television personality, political satirist, and author. He is best known for his work on the CBC Television comedy shows ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' and '' Rick Merc ...

streeter from ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics w ...

'', and Mercer himself showed up mid-sketch to correct Seamus' delivery style. **During the show's live 300th episode, Alan Park played the role of Seamus, because the last sketch had Don Ferguson doing his

Rex Murphy Rex Murphy (born March 1947) is a Canadian commentator and author, primarily on Canadian political and social matters. He was the regular host of CBC Radio One's ''Cross Country Checkup'', a nationwide call-in show, for 21 years before stepping d ...

impersonation, accompanied by Mary Walsh who did her famous character, ''Marg: Princess Warrior''. *"Not the Official Story", where a newspaper editor (Alan Park) comments on current events. *"Off the Record", a sketch that itself parodies TSN's '' Off The Record'' sports talk show, with Ferguson playing the role of host

Michael Landsberg Michael Elliott Landsberg (born July 22, 1957) is a Canadian sports journalist and the former host of TSN's, ''First Up with Landsberg and Colaiacovo'', and former host of TSN's '' Off the Record with Michael Landsberg'' from 1997 to 2015. B ...

. *"Sermon from the Mount", where a

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

(Morgan) proceeds to recall current events in the style of a sermon or lines from

the Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

. *"Speedvision News", a newsroom sketch (purportedly on the

Speedvision Speed was an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that was owned by the Fox Sports Media Group division of 21st Century Fox. The network was dedicated to motorsports programming, including auto racing, as well as aut ...

television channel) where two anchors (Abbott and Ferguson) speak quickly while recalling current events. Similar sketches also lampoon

Rogers Sportsnet Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then was r ...

's and The Score's news programmes (''

Sportsnetnews ''SportsNet Central'' is a daily primetime sports news program that has aired since 1997 on Comcast Sportsnet Philadelphia and its successor NBC Sports Philadelphia NBC Sports Philadelphia is an American regional sports network owned by the NB ...

'' and '' Score Tonight''), where Holmes and Ferguson play the roles of the anchors (Holmes plays either Jody Vance or

Martine Gaillard Martine Gaillard (; born May 21, 1971) is a Canadian sports television personality currently working for Rogers Sportsnet as a co-host of the ''Sportsnet Central'' program. After graduating from Evan Hardy Collegiate in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, G ...

, while it is unclear which sportscaster Ferguson is playing). *"Liberal and PC" a spoof of the "Get a Mac" ad, Park plays a Liberal (parody of the Mac) and Lauzon plays a "PC" (Progressive Conservative) and follows the outline of the Mac ad. *"Billy Two Willies", played by Abbott, a representative of First Nations, asserting their right to sell tax-free cigarettes and run casinos.

Individual sketches

Some of Air Farce's famous individual sketches include:

Politically correct version of "O Canada"

In response to criticisms from different groups about

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the mus ...

's lyrics, Air Farce had guest star

Seán Cullen Seán Cullen (born August 29, 1965) is a Canadian actor and stand-up comedian. He is known for combining improvisation with mimicry and music. He is known for providing voices of characters in shows like ''Best Ed'', ''Seven Little Monsters,'' ...

sing an edited,

politically correct ''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...

version of the anthem. The skit was performed on October 5, 2001. The following is the lyrics of the edited "O Canada". : ''O Canada, our living quarters and aboriginals persons, including Inuit, Métis, and First Nations land'' : ''True patriot love, implying affection, but not in a sexual way, in all thy gender non-specific spouse offspring's suggestion'' : ''With glowing hearts, we get horny, the true North strong and free'' : ''From far and weight-challenged, O Canada, we stand or sit on guard for thee'' : ''Non-denominational, gender-unspecified supreme being keep our land, glorious and free'' : ''O Canada, we stand ready to sit down and discuss our differences in a civilized manner for thee'' : ''O Canada, we stand ready to sit down and discuss our differences in a civilized manner for thee''

Guests

Air Farce has its share of guests, including those who portray themselves. The show generally features Canadian guest stars, or people whose careers are primarily Canadian, such as athletes

Doug Flutie Douglas Richard Flutie (born October 23, 1962) is an American former football quarterback whose professional career spanned 21 seasons. He played 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), eight seasons in the Canadian Football League (CF ...

and

Carlos Delgado Carlos Juan Delgado Hernández (born June 25, 1972) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball primarily as a first baseman, from 1993 to 2009, most prominently as a member of the Toronto ...

. *

Jann Arden Jann Arden (born Jann Arden Anne Richards; March 27, 1962) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and actress. She is famous for her signature ballads, "Could I Be Your Girl" and "Insensitive (song), Insensitive", which is her biggest hit to date. Ea ...

– Arden was a guest who largely disliked her appearance on Air Farce. She was repeatedly interrupted when she was about to sing by Colonel Stacy, in the midst of preparing to fire the "Chicken Cannon". Although she got to fire the cannon, her experience on Air Farce, as she described it, was not a pleasant one. *

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, teacher, environmental activist, and inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of non-fiction, nin ...

– Atwood appeared at the final episode (New Year's Eve 2008) at the beginning of the show. * Mike Bullard – appeared on an episode of Gilbert Smythe Bite-Me. *

Brent Butt Brent Leroy Butt (born August 3, 1966) is a Canadian actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Brent Leroy on the CTV Television Network, CTV sitcom ''Corner Gas'', which he created. He also created the television serie ...

*

Jeffrey Buttle Jeffrey "Jeff" Buttle (born September 1, 1982) is a Canadian figure skater and choreographer. He is the 2006 Winter Olympics bronze medalist, the 2008 World champion, the 2002 and 2004 Four Continents champion and the 2005–2007 Canadian cha ...

– Figure skater, after he won the world championship in March 2008. *

Jean Charest John James "Jean" Charest (; born June 24, 1958) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 29th premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012 and the fifth deputy prime minister of Canada in 1993. Charest was elected to the House o ...

appeared during the 1998 Year of the Farce in the sketch, 'Ottawa Confidencial.' According to the PI character played by Morgan, Charest had all the characteristics to become

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Hou ...

except that he was not Miraculous births, born by a virgin. * Don Cherry (ice hockey), Don Cherry – Appeared for a video message to the show's live 300th episode. *

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

– Chrétien had one appearance on Air Farce, in which he claimed that Abbot's impersonation sounded more like

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

. *

Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...

– Pays a visit to Jean Chrétien (Abbott) to offer some advice, former Prime Minister to current Prime Minister; the gag is that everything Joe says has a word that rhymes with "right", since he is a Conservative while Chrétien is a Liberal. *

Sheila Copps Sheila Maureen Copps (born November 27, 1952) is a former Canadian politician who also served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Canada from November 4, 1993, to April 30, 1996, and June 19, 1996, to June 11, 1997. Her father, Victor Copps, ...

– During a New Year's Eve Special, the at-the-time Deputy Prime Minister interrupted the parody sketch "RoboCopps." * David Cronenberg – Appeared during an episode of Gilbert Smythe-Bite Me. * John Crosbie *

Seán Cullen Seán Cullen (born August 29, 1965) is a Canadian actor and stand-up comedian. He is known for combining improvisation with mimicry and music. He is known for providing voices of characters in shows like ''Best Ed'', ''Seven Little Monsters,'' ...

– Cullen has appeared several times on the show, initially as the leader of Corky and the Juice Pigs for a musical number comparing the 1993 Federal election to Gilligan's Island; he also appeared as "Quint" in a spoof of the movie ''Jaws (film), Jaws''. * Stockwell Day * Gill Deacon – Both she and George Stroumboulopoulos beat up

Craig Lauzon Craig Lauzon is a Canadian actor, writer, comedian, and member of the Royal Canadian Air Farce. His main caricatures on the Farce include George Stroumboulopoulos, John Baird, Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Lauzon ...

. * Fred Ewanuick – In character as Hank Yarbo From ''Corner Gas'', appeared on the live 300th episode. * Joe Flaherty – From Second City Television, SCTV, made an appearance in 2002. * Megan Follows – Best known for her role as ''Anne Shirley'' in ''Anne of Green Gables (1985 film), Anne of Green Gables''; introduced Air Farce Live on December 7, 2007, and played the role of ''Sue Johanson'' in ''The Canadian View'' skit. * Red Green (character), Red Green – Steve Smith (comedian), Steve Smith appeared as Red Green doing a Handyman's Corner segment where he showed how to make an angel to top off a Christmas tree. *

Deborah Grey Deborah Cleland Grey, (born July 1, 1952) is a retired Canadian member of Parliament from Alberta for the Reform Party of Canada, the Canadian Alliance, and the Conservative Party of Canada. She was the first female leader of the Opposition in ...

– Grey appeared in one sketch on Air Farce, in which she was a guest on Ferguson's "I Love That Word Refooooorm" sketch. In the final moments of the sketch, she, along with Ferguson (as

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

), sang ''Auld Lang Syne'', forgetting most of the lyrics partway through. * Paul Gross – the star of ''Due South'' reprises his role in a "lost episode" in which he falls for Rita MacNeil (Goy). * Sitara Hewitt – From ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'' and ''You Bet Your Ass'', appeared on the live 300th episode. * Mel Hurtig – First political guest on the TV show; as leader of the newly formed and almost unheard of ''National Party of Canada'', he appeared in a game show where the contestants couldn't identify the man, even after he tells them who he is. * Sue Johanson – The host of ''Sunday Night Sex Show'' appeared during a New Year's Eve special. Luba Goy, who was parodying Johanson, got up to retrieve a book. Johanson herself returned, book in hand, exclaiming "Found it." * Flora MacDonald (Canadian politician), Flora MacDonald * Ron MacLean – the host of ''

Hockey Night in Canada CBC Television has aired National Hockey League (NHL) broadcasts under the ''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') brand that is primarily associated with its Saturday night NHL broadcasts throughout its hi ...

'' has appeared on Air Farce in several sketches, most notably one in which he portrays himself alongside Goy (as the Queen who is impersonating Don Cherry (ice hockey), Don Cherry). He was also involved in a sketch where an airline passenger Onex Corporation, Onex CEO Gerry Schwartz is mistaken for him. Later in the sketch, Schwartz and MacLean (both guest stars portraying themselves), switch seats, and the passenger mistakes MacLean for Schwartz. Another memorable sketch had MacLean impersonate Cherry while Ferguson played the role of MacLean. MacLean also appeared for a video message to the show's live 300th episode. He also appeared in the final program of the series to fire the Chicken Cannon. * Shaun Majumder – Made an appearance in 2002, before his newscasting role on ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics w ...

''. * John Manley (politician), John Manley – Manley appeared in a "Man's World" sketch (a rarity since he is a politician and not an athlete) shortly after his remarks on how Canada should abandon the monarchy. Most memorable in this sketch was Buck McSweeney's reaction to Manley's indifference towards

synchronized swimming Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming) or artistic swimming is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by FINA (the ''Fédérati ...

: "... and you call yourself Manley!" *

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

– largely considered to be the first guest star on Air Farce, Manning has appeared in many sketches, including a ''Blair Witch Project'' parody. In some appearances, he also pronounced "Reform" in the same manner as Ferguson, who normally portrayed him in sketches. *

Peter Mansbridge Peter Mansbridge (born July 6, 1948) is a British-born Canadian retired news anchor. From 1988 to 2017, he was chief correspondent for CBC News and anchor of '' The National,'' CBC Television's flagship nightly newscast. He was also host of CB ...

– Mansbridge has appeared on several Air Farce sketches, most notably a ''Man to Mansbridge'' sketch in which he is interviewed by Abbot (also as Mansbridge). In another memorable show, there was a running gag was where Mansbridge, in his role as anchor for ''The National (CBC), The National'', finds himself appointed as the head of CBC while announcing a new series of appointments by the prime minister. Mansbridge also appeared for a video message to the show's live 300th episode. *

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

– Appeared on a spoof of ''Venture (TV series), Venture'' when he was Minister of Finance (Canada), Minister of Finance, and threatened to audit the host, Robert Scully (Ferguson) when he tries to hand deliver his tax return to save on postage. * Sheila McCarthy – From ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'', appeared on the live 300th episode. * Patrick McKenna – McKenna has appeared in various Air Farce sketches, most notably one in which he appears as ''Marty Stephens'', his character from ''Traders (TV series), Traders'', but with the voice and mannerisms of his ''The Red Green Show'' character, ''Harold Green''. *

Rick Mercer Richard Vincent "Rick" Mercer (born October 17, 1969) is a Canadian comedian, television personality, political satirist, and author. He is best known for his work on the CBC Television comedy shows ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' and '' Rick Merc ...

– Mercer appeared on ''Air Farce'' in a sketch where Ferguson, as Seamus O'Toole, parodied his trademark "Screener" sketch from ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics w ...

''. Mercer would first confront O'Toole, then later show him how it's done. * Colin Mochrie – Mochrie has appeared in various Air Farce sketches, most notably as an associate to Colonel Stacy on the "Chicken Cannon". *

Ben Mulroney Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he ...

*

Rex Murphy Rex Murphy (born March 1947) is a Canadian commentator and author, primarily on Canadian political and social matters. He was the regular host of CBC Radio One's ''Cross Country Checkup'', a nationwide call-in show, for 21 years before stepping d ...

– Rex Murphy guest starred as himself, interviewing Samuel De Champlain. * Anne Murray – Murray appeared in one sketch titled ''Murray and the Queen'', where the two shared their surprisingly similar New Year's resolutions. * Russell Peters – Appeared in an episode in 2005 and the 2015 New Year's Eve special as Dr. Malcolm Sidwell. * Bob Rae * Lloyd Robertson – Robertson, who had once stated that it was an honor to appear on Air Farce to parody himself, appeared in several Air Farce sketches, most notably in one where he, as the CTV Television Network, CTV news anchor, asks a correspondent, "Do you think I'm as handsome as

Peter Mansbridge Peter Mansbridge (born July 6, 1948) is a British-born Canadian retired news anchor. From 1988 to 2017, he was chief correspondent for CBC News and anchor of '' The National,'' CBC Television's flagship nightly newscast. He was also host of CB ...

? What about Peter Kent? He's very good looking." * Carlo Rota – From ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'', appeared on the live 300th episode. * Sonja Smits – From the TV series ''Traders (TV series), Traders'', made two appearances in 2001. * Evan Solomon – Beat up Craig Lauzon. * Elvis Stojko * Trish Stratus – Stratus appeared in one Air Farce show, although she was a part of several sketches, most notably one where she portrayed a stripper in a sketch lampooning the Judy Sgro "strippergate" scandal. (This can also be a spoof of Trish herself, since she has refused several offers to appear in Playboy) * George Stroumboulopoulos – He and fellow CBC personality Gill Deacon beat up Craig Lauzon over Lauzon's impersonations of Stroumboulopoulos. * The Canadian Tire Couple (Ted Simonett and Gloria Slade) – They appeared in a sketch made to look like one of their regular ads, where they promoted the "Baby Power Washer". * Pamela Wallin – Wallin has made several appearances on Air Farce, including one in which Goy portrays herself as the Canadian host of ''Who Wants to be a Millionaire?'' while Wallin, as Catherine Zeta-Jones, appears as a celebrity contestant. * Mary Walsh – Creator of ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics w ...

'', appeared on the live 300th episode. * Brian Williams (sportscaster), Brian Williams – then-''CBC Sports'' anchor who has made several appearances on Air Farce, most memorably in which he portrays himself locked in his studio at the conclusion of the 2000 Olympic Games. * David Suzuki – Suzuki's appearance on Air Farce is memorable, as he appeared nude in the sketch (although the nudity was covered by a briefcase and later a desk), a parody of an ad campaign Suzuki participated in for his show The Nature of Things. In his sketch, he is interviewed, where the interviewer (Goy), aware of his nudity, is taken aback by Suzuki's apparent use of double entendres, and later faints when Suzuki asks her if she wanted to see his "genetically altered banana". Suzuki, clueless to the ordeal, then produces a slightly larger-than-normal banana. * Former premier of New Brunswick, Bernard Lord once appeared in an episode taped in Saint John, New Brunswick, Saint John.

References

External links

Official Website, with free episodes from recent seasons, and all of Air Farce's records from their radio days

CBC Website

* * {{Royal Canadian Air Farce 1993 Canadian television series debuts 2008 Canadian television series endings CBC Television original programming Royal Canadian Air Farce 1990s Canadian satirical television series 2000s Canadian satirical television series Canadian political comedy television series Governor General's Performing Arts Award winners Radio programs adapted into television shows Television shows filmed in Toronto 1990s Canadian sketch comedy television series 2000s Canadian sketch comedy television series fr:Royal Canadian Air Farce

Cast history

Original members

Show history

End of series

Specials

Sketches

Recurring sketches

Individual sketches

Politically correct version of "O Canada"

Guests

References

External links