For Immediate Release: December 18, 2017 Tweet this Release: www.airfarce.com/press

AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY BROADCAST ON CBC, DECEMBER 31

Kim Jong-un, Putin, Trump, Morneau, Scheer, Singh, Sears and CIBC Penguins all under fire

Introducing the Farce’s newest member Lisa Gilroy

Kurt Browning, and David Suzuki guest star

Toronto (December 18, 2017) – A comedy staple for looking for homegrown laughs, AIR FARCE is one of the most popular and enduring comedy troupes in the country skewering the biggest news stories, events, people, and pop culture phenomena of the year. This year, the Farce’s long- standing New Year’s Eve tradition celebrates 25 years on television. AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE premieres Sunday, December 31 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT) on CBC with an encore broadcast later the same night at 12:05 a.m. (12:35 NT).

Click on the link for AIR FARCE Photos and Bios

AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE 2017 targets include Kim Jong-un, Vladimir Putin, Donald J. Trump, , Finance Minister Bill Morneau, Canada’s new party leaders Andrew Scheer and Jagmeet Singh, Sears, Tim Hortons and CIBC. This year, Wonder Woman battles America’s biggest threat – President Donald J. Trump, ’s anti-burka law gets a well-deserved jab, and The Handmaid’s Tale gets a musical treatment with Taylor Swift. Capping off the special is the infamous F-BOMB – its mission is simple, to eradicate 2017’s most worthy targets, as suggested online by AIR FARCE viewers. An annual tradition, the year’s five most irritating targets get the richly deserved Farce Bomb filled with monstrously messy guck dropped from 50 feet above.

What began as a troupe of four in 1992 – with , , , and – has burgeoned into a cast of eight. AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE 2017 stars founding troupe members Don Ferguson and Luba Goy, and veterans (The Holmes Show, The Itch), (Fool Canada, The Ron James Show), and Darryl Hinds (My Babysitter’s a Vampire, Little Mosque on the Prairie). Recent recruits include Chris Wilson (The Beaverton, What Would Sal Do, Meet the Family), Isabel Kanaan (Haunted or Hoax), and Canadian Screen Award- nominee Lisa Gilroy (Undercover High, The Zone) who makes her AIR FARCE debut.

As is tradition, joining the cast for the one-hour special are some very special guests: David Suzuki and Lloyd Robertson make return appearances while Canadian figure skating champion Kurt Browning finds himself on thin ice with an unlikely skating partner in his first FARCE flight.

Over the years, AIR FARCE has featured nearly 200 illustrious guests, our very first being former troupe member . Guests that followed over the next 25 years include: Prime Ministers Justin Trudeau, , Jean Chrétien and ; news anchors , Lloyd Robertson and Lisa LaFlamme; TV personalities Don Cherry, Ron MacLean, Mike Holmes and David Suzuki; comedians Brent Butt, Rick Mercer, Colin Mochrie, Russell Peters and Mary Walsh; actors Megan Follows, Graham Greene, Paul Gross, and Sheila McCarthy; musical guests Jann Arden, Measha Brueggergosman, Jim Cuddy, Anne Murray, and Serena Ryder; athletes Mike “Pinball” Clemons, Doug Gilmour, Milos Raonic, Elvis Stojko and Jamie Salé; authors and David Chilton; filmmaker David Cronenberg; and astronaut Chris Hadfield, to name a few.

AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE is written by Kevin Wallis, Wayne Testori, Carly Heffernan and Rob Lindsay. Contributing writers are Chris Wilson and Sam Mullins. The special is directed by Rob Lindsay and Wayne Moss.

AIR FARCE NEW YEAR’S EVE is produced by Don Ferguson Productions (DFP) in association with CBC. Executive Producer is Don Ferguson. Senior Producer is Lucy Stewart. Producers are Rob Lindsay, Mark Selby, Wayne Testori, and Kevin Wallis.

For more details, visit:

WEBSITE airfarce.com

FACEBOOK Facebook.com/AirFarceCBC

TWITTER @AirFarceCBC

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About AIR FARCE: May the Farce be with you! What began as a topical sketch comedy troupe (1970), skewering Canadian politics, current affairs and pop culture, grew into a radio series running for 24 seasons on CBC Radio (1973-97), and spawning national concert tours, live stage productions, home audio and video releases, a book, and several television specials. It became a weekly television series and ran for 16 highly successful seasons on CBC-TV (1993-2008), while its annual New Year’s television special (1992–present) celebrates its 25th anniversary and continues to be a ratings hit today. AIR FARCE has received many awards and accolades. The troupe became the first Canadian inductees into the International Humour Hall of Fame in 1992 and was inducted into the Canadian Comedy Hall of Fame in 2001. They are the recipient of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award in 1998 and received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2000. At the 2000 Gemini Awards, AIR FARCE received both the for AIR FARCE’s body of work in Canadian television, and the viewer-voted People’s Choice Award for favourite television program. AIR FARCE is produced by Don Ferguson Productions Ltd. in association with CBC. Visit www.airfarce.com for more information.

About CBC/Radio-Canada: CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada’s trusted source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also provide international news and information from a uniquely Canadian perspective. In 2017, CBC/Radio-Canada will be at the heart of the celebrations and conversations with special 2017-themed multiplatform programming and events across Canada.

For interview requests: Margaret Sirotich, AIR FARCE Publicist, 647-466-1746 or [email protected] Elizabeth Reid, CBC Publicist, 416-205-2665 or [email protected]