Through his work as a producer, writer, television host and more, Watson helped shape the face of Canadian journalism – while never shying away from controversy or difficult decisions. Born in Toronto in 1929, Watson began his career playing Jake on CBC Radio’s daily children’s series The Kootenay Kid in 1943 — a job for which he began making $1 an episode. He began to pursue a career in academia, but later gave up his PhD in linguistics from the University of Michigan to work at the CBC in 1955. Soon after, he hosted the travel series The Four Corners in 1957 and then worked both in front of and behind the camera for a number of other shows including The Watson Report (1975-1981), Venture (1985-1987) and The Struggle for Democracy (1989). Struggle for Democracy took five years to make, was filmed in 30 countries and was, at the time, the most expensive original documentary series ever made for Canadian television. Laurier LaPierre, left, Dinah Christie, center, and Patrick Watson appear in a publicity photo for This Hour Has Seven Days on January 9, 1966. (Barry Wilson/CBC Still Photo Collection) In 1964, Watson began work on one of the most influential shows of his career, This Hour Has Seven Days. The Sunday evening program, which Watson co-hosted with Laurier LaPierre and co-created with Douglas Leiterman, was an innovative PR series that attracted an audience of millions with its no-holds-barred, brooding style.
“I was seen as a troublemaker”
Based on the BBC program That Was The Week That Was, the series used a mix of documentary material, satire and original music by Canadian actress and singer Dina Christie to review the week’s news — and often denigrate influential figures. It ran for two years and ran for 50 episodes before being canceled in 1966 due to its provocative nature, after which Watson spent several years as a freelance producer and journalist. “I was considered a troublemaker,” Watson said in a 1981 interview with Maclean’s magazine about leaving the CBC after that hour ended. “In part, it was a self-imposed exile from the CBC, but it was also true that they wouldn’t hire me. I was broke after doing some spectacular television.”
Author of the Proceedings of Inheritance
However, younger Canadians may have known him best as the lead writer behind the original Heritage Minutes, a one-minute series that aimed to make Canadian history more accessible. Watson said this work, which has become legendary in Canadian culture, was created to “convince Canadians that they have an interesting past.” WATCHES | Charles Bronfman and Patrick Watson on the origins of inheritance practices: Watson returned to the CBC and became president from 1989, during which he presided over the broadcaster’s controversial restructuring in the 1990s. During that time, 1,100 workers were laid off and several stations closed in the face of a huge budget deficit. He stepped down as chairman in 1994, though he went on to land more work – including hosting The Canadians: Biographies of a Nation, a biographical series from History Television and, later, a three-volume print edition of that show. “From his beginnings as a teen actor on CBC Radio’s The Kootenay Kid, to his storied career at CBC News and his time as Chairman of the Board of CBC/Radio-Canada, Patrick Watson’s contributions to public broadcasting Canada and his service to Canadians in many fields was great, made a difference and will not soon be forgotten,” a CBC spokesperson said of Watson’s death. “Both at the CBC and beyond, Watson’s work as a broadcaster, producer, actor and writer over five decades has made him an icon of Canadian broadcasting and has left a legacy that will continue for decades to come. Our thoughts are with his family and friends.” WATCHES | Patrick Watson on the art of the interview:
Patrick Watson and the Art of the Interview
In 1978 broadcaster and renaissance man Patrick Watson describes how he developed the interview technique. Watson was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1981 and later promoted to Companion in 2001 for promoting “excellence in Canadian television and radio”. He was also a long-time disability advocate after having his leg amputated below the knee in 1960, and served as honorary president of the Canadian Amputee Sports Association and honorary president of the Canadian Abilities Foundation. He later became an accomplished pilot, wind-surfer, water-skier and diver, published several novels and non-fiction books and a play (1983 The Book of Job) in which he also starred. As an actor, he appeared in the television films The Terry Fox Story (1983) and Countdown to Looking Glass (1984). the films Bethune (1977) and The Fourth Angel (2001) and the series Slings and Arrows (2003). In 2004 he published an autobiography entitled This Hour Has Seven Decades.
