Peter McCully: This is The PULSE Community Podcast. Welcome back. I'm Peter McCully. Last week, while much of North America fell back an hour, we here in British Columbia remained on daylight saving time.

Dave Graham: Daylight saving time. We'll see about that. I'm Dave Graham. That is Dave Graham, private eye. Yes, siree, Bob. I am going to get to the bottom of this. I've opened a case, Peter.

Peter McCully: Uh-huh.

Dave Graham: The case of the lost hour.

Peter McCully: Oh, here we go.

Dave Graham: Oh, yeah. We are going to the ends of the earth to track down what happened here. As you'll recall, last spring, we sprang forward as always. We lost the hour. Then along comes November, and everyone else fell back and got their hour back. Alberta got one. Washington State got one. We got stiffed.

Peter McCully: Well, that's one way to look at it, Dave, but we don't have to change our clocks anymore, and lots of people said they wanted that to happen.

Dave Graham: Yeah, so I've been reading. When public opinion was invited for this decision, this is going back to the summer of 2019 now. Over 90% of respondents voted in favour of permanent daylight saving time. But here's the catch. The total number of respondents represented just 4% of the population of British Columbia. I'm no mathematician, but those numbers are hinky.

Peter McCully: Okay, Dave. So anyway, today's podcast is brought to you in part by Ian Lindsay & Associates, serving the mid-Vancouver Island area.

Dave Graham: As a homeowner and an unlicensed private eye, I can vouch for the real estate professionals at ianlindsay.ca. So Peter, get a load of my PI outfit, eh? Eh? I got the trench coat, the fedora. I even have a magnifying glass, and it's a nice one, too.

Peter McCully: Yep, Dave. Very nicely done. I think the camouflage is overdoing it a bit, though. Tigh-Na-Mara general manager Jim Hykaway, executive chef Eric Edwards, and SOS communications manager Lissa Alexander are here to talk about the 18th annual Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive. All donations will benefit the SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program for local children and youth and low-income families and individuals.

Lissa Alexander: We recently spoke with a single mother who had left an abusive relationship, and she just did not have any more money for gifts for her children. She said she was in tears when she came through the toy shop because she could not believe that the community had filled this toy shop with all new unwrapped gifts donated by the community. And the mom said that being able to select her own gifts gave her a lot of ownership and a sense of belonging in the process.

Dave Graham: The 18th annual toy drive coming soon. Whew, that's a lot of toys, Peter, and a lot of hours, I might add. And we're looking for our lost hour. Hmm, makes you wonder.

Peter McCully: No, not really, Dave. Matt Shade and Angie Everett have traded Toronto for Victoria. Played by BC native Jason Priestley and Cindy Sampson, they join us to talk about Private Eyes West Coast, from a North Vancouver hockey kid and a Halifax teen on CBC's Street Cents to married sleuths solving crimes on Vancouver Island.

Cindy Sampson: Trace and Lane are the twins, and they are impeccable actors. Really great timing. Everyone keeps commenting. Anyone that's seen any of the episodes, they're like, "That kid," and like, "Those kids," 'cause there's two of them, and they are so good. They didn't even cry. They could be carried around by strangers. It was, like, unbelievable.

Jason Priestley: They were great. They were so good that when they were involved in the scene, they'd go through the rehearsal, they would follow the puck, whoever was talking. And if somebody missed a line, they would turn and look at you like, "No, dude, it's your turn to talk."

Dave Graham: Now, that's what we need, a couple of professional private eyes right here on Vancouver Island. I think we should bring them in on our case, maybe as consultants.

Peter McCully: They're actors, Dave.

Dave Graham: Honestly, Peter, aren't we all? Are we not all actors on this great stage of life? And I like the sound of those kids, too. The twins, you know, and how they follow conversation like a hockey puck. That indicates good surveillance skills, my friend. I like the sound of their instincts. Maybe we should look at bringing them on as junior detectives.

Peter McCully: On a future edition of The PULSE Community Podcast, we'll chat with musician David Essig of Protection Island. David has spent close to 60 years writing songs that tell stories.

Dave Graham: Pharmacist Aki Shah will join us to talk about seasonal and travel vaccines.

Peter McCully: And musician Stephen Fearing of Victoria joins the podcast. Stephen has a busy solo career, as well as being a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.

Ian Lindsay & Associates: Ian Lindsay of Lindsay & Associates has played an active role in the local community since 1979. He has been with RE/MAX, Vancouver Island's most advanced real estate business network, since 1996, marketing and selling residential, rural, strata, recreational, investment, and project development real estate. Ian has received several awards recognizing his exceptional community commitment locally, as well as awards for outstanding performance and achievement from both RE/MAX International and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. You'll find true real estate professionals at ianlindsay.ca.

Webcams: Wondering about the weather on Vancouver Island highways? Are the waves rolling in at Tofino? Check before you go. The PULSE Community's Vancouver Island webcams gather live views from across the island in one place, from Victoria to Nanaimo, Parksville, Qualicum Beach, the Comox Valley, Campbell River, and Port Alberni. Bookmark your region and see the island in real time at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Dave Graham: Keep an eye on our website, our newsletter, and social pages for more contests in the coming weeks, oh, including a Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort giveaway. Might I add a note to our male listeners that spas are not just for women?

Peter McCully: I think people know that, Dave.

Dave Graham: Well, Peter, I've been to the spa on a few occasions, and I have to wonder if some men might be thinking that spas just aren't for them. Guys, the spa's a great space to relax. Leave your worries, such as time changes, at the door.

Peter McCully: The resort will soon be fully immersed in their annual event to make sure kids and families in our community have a bright Christmas. Here's Marilyn.

Marilyn: In the green room are Tigh-Na-Mara General Manager, Jim Hykaway, and SOS Communications Manager, Lissa Alexander, to talk about the 18th annual Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive. All donations will benefit the SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program, providing gifts for local children and youth, as well as grocery store gift cards for low-income families and individuals.

Dave Graham: Jim, it's hard to believe this is the 18th annual toy drive for the SOS, and we gotta talk some numbers. Do you have totals for the entire affair over all these years, or do you wanna start with how you did last year? Where would you like to begin?

Jim Hykaway: Sure, I've got both. Last year we served just over 2,600 breakfasts and collected 3,072 toys, over $36,000 in cash and gift cards, and then our own Bikes for Tykes program donated 20 bikes and 30 scooters. That's Chef Eric's project. He can tell you about that a little bit later. Over the 17 years we've been doing this, we've raised about 30,000 toys, or I should say our community has, and about $250,000 in cash and gift cards.

Dave Graham: Lissa, I want to turn it over to you to talk about those numbers in terms of how they reflect on the need in the community.

Lissa Alexander: Yes, there is always a need in the community, as we all know. Generally at SOS, we serve about 2,000 people every Christmas who register for the program. Last year, we provided nearly 1,000 gifts for local children and youth, and just over 1,000 grocery gift cards to local families and individuals.

Dave Graham: Back to Jim. When is the big day for the 2026 Community Breakfast Buffet? We can talk about the menu with Chef Eric, but when's the big day?

Jim Hykaway: Sure. The big day this year is Wednesday, December 2nd, and that starts at 6:30 in the morning and runs until 10:00 AM. We use our entire Cedars Restaurant lounge as well as our ballroom, and we'll serve around 1,200 breakfasts that day.

Dave Graham: Hopefully more. 1,600, says Chef. Let's talk about numbers, Chef.

Chef Eric Edwards: On the big day, we do for breakfast, as you say, the 1,200 to 1,600 people. So we're looking at 132 pounds of bacon, 159 pounds of sausage, 225 pounds of hash browns, 2,400 pancakes, and 3,600 eggs. Lots of maple syrup, lots of juice and coffee. It's a tremendous event.

Dave Graham: I'll turn this back to Jim. How much of this is volunteer time with the staff putting this together?

Jim Hykaway: It's all volunteer time. Very proud of our team who volunteer their time for this event. They're also invited to donate a portion of their pay all year long. That goes towards our own Bikes for Tykes program, which again, is Chef Eric's baby. We wanted to find a way for our own team members to contribute, and that's what we came up with.

Dave Graham: Now that we're on the topic again, Chef, you wanna talk a little bit more about your bikes program?

Chef Eric Edwards: Well, the Bikes for Tykes program, this year they've raised over $12,000, which is a huge amount of money, seeing it's $5 or $10 from a cheque, or $2 from your paycheque. And the money goes really, really far. So this year we're trying to get bikes for the SOS and scooters, and this year we're gonna make sure we have helmets and locks. We work with Canadian Tire, and we partner with them. The posters should be going up this week, and it'll just remind everybody of their event.

Dave Graham: For folks who are unable to attend the actual breakfast on the day of, can they still make some kind of donation and participate in this fun?

Jim Hykaway: Absolutely. Yeah, if you can't make the big day or simply prefer to come on a quieter day, we are offering a buffet breakfast in our Cedars Restaurant midweek for the two weeks leading up to the toy drive breakfast, for the same donation of a new unwrapped toy or gift card or cash donation. So that's Monday to Friday for the two weeks of November 16th to 20th, and November 23rd to 27th, and the Cedars is open for breakfast from 7:30 in the morning till 11:30.

Dave Graham: On the day of, Chef, throwing it back to you, do you send food out to the curb? Do you do drive-through?

Chef Eric Edwards: We do drive-through. You get a muffin or a coffee on the day of and drop off your toy. We have a little fire pit there, and there's lots of fun.

Dave Graham: Well, that's a nice touch. I just love the way this event is put together. Jim, you already established the level of participation amazingly from the staff here, giving so much. That's a reflection of the enthusiasm here.

Jim Hykaway: Absolutely. It's a very special event for our team. It's actually become, you know, a huge part of our culture. I can honestly say it's our team's favourite event of the whole year. It's all about community and the spirit of giving. It's a wonderful kickoff to our busy Christmas season. We also convert our Pines gift shop into a giant gingerbread house. It's just very heartwarming to see how our community rallies every year around such an important cause. We get to see a lot of the same people year after year, and it's a lot of fun.

Dave Graham: So do you wanna talk about some of the challenges that are posed at this time of the year, putting this together?

Jim Hykaway: Our team volunteers their time, and so, you know, we put a lot of work into that, but we also get a tremendous amount of support from the local media to help get the word out. PQB News, the Island radio stations, The Upside on CHEK News, and of course, The PULSE podcast. We also have some great corporate partners. You know, GFS and Canterbury Coffee donate some of the food and the coffee for the event. Chef mentioned that we work with Canadian Tire for our Bikes for Tykes program. RBC sends some volunteers, and there's a community grant that they usually provide as well. Thrifty Foods Parksville is a satellite toy drop-off location, so lots of community support that helps us plan the event.

Dave Graham: Back to lists. What's on your list of things that people need at this time of year?

Lissa Alexander: We often are very well-stocked up for gifts for the younger kids, and we're doing really good for things like bikes and scooters, thanks to Tigh-Na-Mara and the Bikes for Tykes program. We are often low on gifts for teens and tweens in SOS Toy Shop. There is a gift list on our website that people can look at and find out what they can choose. Things like pyjamas, slippers, skincare or hygiene products, gift cards to local stores or the mall, sports equipment, movie passes, Bluetooth headphones or earbuds, books, book gift cards, those types of things.

Dave Graham: Are you proactive in reaching out to help identify and bring in folks who might be needing help in our community?

Lissa Alexander: We try to share the program with the community as best we can. We thank you for helping us get the word out. We also encourage people who already access SOS programs to consider registering for the program. And then sharing other people's stories, we find, helps sorta remove the stigma around asking for help and lets others know that they're not alone in their struggles. Asking for help can be hard, but we just want people to know that we're here for them should they need this program, if they need help putting food on the table, or if they need help getting gifts for their children or grandchildren.

Dave Graham: Do you have a story to share?

Lissa Alexander: I do, yes. We recently spoke with a single mother who had left an abusive relationship, and she just did not have any more money for gifts for her children. So she heard about our program. She came in. She said she was in tears when she came through the toy shop because she could not believe that the community had filled this toy shop with all-new unwrapped gifts donated by the community. And as we know, the Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive provides SOS with the majority of the gifts that we have in our toy shop. So without this program, we wouldn't be able to have people coming through and selecting these gifts. And the mom really said that being able to select her own gifts gave her a lot of ownership and a sense of belonging in the process. So it was a really great experience for her, and she said she hopes one day to be able to be on the other side of the program and give back to the program.

Dave Graham: You mentioned registration. How do people who think they might need some assistance get the ball rolling?

Lissa Alexander: Registration for our SOS Christmas program starts November 18th, so people need to register in person at the SOS Community Services Centre in Parksville. All that information is on our website. The program supports families and individuals with low to modest income, including seniors living in District 69.

Dave Graham: So describe what success will look like through all this.

Lissa Alexander: Success is about more than how many toys we can collect, but it's about making sure that residents don't go hungry over the holidays, and it's about helping create Christmas magic. So we want children and youth to wake up with excitement in their hearts on Christmas morning and find something under the Christmas tree. We also want families and individuals to be able to enjoy food that reflects their needs and traditions, and help it make the season feel familiar and meaningful. So ultimately, success would mean families and individuals feel cared for, supported, and they're able to experience some joy and comfort during the holiday season.

Dave Graham: Jim, any final thoughts?

Jim Hykaway: Our thanks goes out to the community for the past 17 years. It's such a supportive community. We know that they'll come out again this year. The goal is to put a smile on every child's face on Christmas.

Peter McCully: General Manager Jim Hykaway and Chef Eric Edwards from Tigh-Na-Mara Resort. Also, Lissa Alexander of the SOS. This is the 18th year of the Tigh-Na-Mara Toy Drive, and every donation goes to local families through the SOS Caring for Community at Christmas program. That means gifts for the kids, grocery gift cards for families and individuals needing a hand this season. You'll find out how to donate in our story notes at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Dave Graham: They make the whole process of giving so easy and fun. Even the purchasing decisions are handled, 'cause sometimes, you know, let's be honest, deciding what to give is the hardest part. They take care of that for you. Again, see our notes for more information. Maybe we'll see you there over breakfast one morning soon.

Peter McCully: While we're talking about families and kids, let's mention our Skookum Kid's Stories, with new stories coming out weekly about Peter and Gracie the Eskimo Dog, and the Mellow Submarine. Each story comes with colouring pages.

Dave Graham: Oh, yes. And in this week's episode of The Mellow Submarine, Captain Dave and Larry the Lobster help untangle an underwater weather station off Nanoose. And I'm keeping my eye on that Larry character. We private eyes do that kind of thing. Something about Larry is suspicious, though. It could be that he's a talking lobster.

Peter McCully: Larry is a fictitious character, Dave.

Dave Graham: Yeah. Ha. Isn't that exactly what a suspicious lobster wants you to think?

Peter McCully: Moving on. Our Radio Archaeology classic radio series features original episodes of Dragnet with Sergeant Joe Friday and Gunsmoke with Marshal Matt Dillon.

Dave Graham: Ah, yes, Sergeant Friday. Just the facts. What an inspiring detective. I have to say, Peter, that the facts are coming together here. We have a time change and a missing hour. I feel we're getting close.

Peter McCully: Sure, Dave. Sure. Our PULSE Community Podcast family includes Cindy Thompson of Parksville. We hope you'll be inspired by her program, A Resilience Project.

Dave Graham: Joel Grenz and Sean Wood host Non-Partisan Hacks, and in their latest episode, they review the elections in British Columbia.

Peter McCully: And Erin Haluschak and Chef Jonathan Frazier of the Comox Valley return to The PULSE Podcast Community with F3, Football, Food, and Fantasy Football. The season's already nearing the halfway point, and Chef Jonathan serves up recipes for hamburgers and veggie burgers.

Dave Graham: And on the latest edition of Too Old or Movie Gold, host Olen Vanderleeden of the Comox Valley and his crew review the movie Jumanji, in which Robin Williams plays a character trapped in a board game for 26 years. Now, that's a serious case of lost time. Has the movie held up after all these years? Well, they'll make the case one way or another on Too Old or Movie Gold.

Peter McCully: You'll find these podcasts and more at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Maya Cooke: Hi, everyone. This is Maya Cooke. I write music that's a blend of jazz, folk, and blues, songs about healing, love, and all that I learned from the land, the ocean, and my body. I'll be playing an intimate acoustic show at Char's Landing in Port Alberni on November 26th. I grew up in the Gulf Islands and lived for a time in Nunavut as a circus artist. Recently though, I've come back home, and I'm so excited to be performing around here where I grew up. I've got a mix of old and new tunes for you, so you can check out my music and get your tickets online, and I can't wait to play and share some stories with you all on November 26th at Char's Landing.

Ian Lindsay & Associates: Ian Lindsay of Lindsay & Associates has played an active role in the local community since 1979. He has been with RE/MAX, Vancouver Island's most advanced real estate business network, since 1996, marketing and selling residential, rural, strata, recreational, investment, and project development real estate. Ian has received several awards recognizing his exceptional community commitment locally, as well as awards for outstanding performance and achievement from both RE/MAX International and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. You'll find true real estate professionals at ianlindsay.ca.

Peter McCully: Our next guests solve crimes for a living. Not like Dave. On television, anyway.

Dave Graham: Oh, Peter, I've been waiting all week for this. I'm prepared to be inspired. We are going to figure out and solve the mystery of the lost hour. Or not. Hard to tell. Here's Marilyn.

Marilyn: Matt Shade and Angie Everett have traded Toronto for Victoria. Played by Jason Priestley and Cindy Sampson, they join the podcast to talk about Private Eyes West Coast. From a North Vancouver hockey kid and a Halifax teen on CBC's Street Cents, to married sleuths solving crimes on Vancouver Island.

Peter McCully: Welcome to the podcast today.

Cindy Sampson: Thanks, Peter. Thanks for having us.

Peter McCully: Now, Cindy, we'll start with you. You grew up in Halifax, as did I. I was born on the other side, in Dartmouth. Married a Halifax girl. How did you become interested in working in television and the movies?

Cindy Sampson: Peter, are we cousins? Do we know? Are we possibly related, being from Halifax and all? You know what? I randomly started working in the movies. I went to an audition for a CBC show called Street Cents, with TV's Jonathan Torrens, and then my part-time job in high school ended up being on a TV show. And I had a lot of fun, made some money, and the rest is history.

Peter McCully: Before the dramas, you were doing sketch comedy, writing and performing, and I understand you appeared on stage at Just for Laughs. So I wonder how much of Angie's comic timing comes from the sketch days.

Cindy Sampson: A lot, I think. There's things that you do or learn that you think nothing of, but then they serve you in the future, and that's kinda where we're at. I did sketch comedy, loved it so much, and then left entirely and never did comedy again, ever. I just ran from monsters or did sci-fi for years. And so we've done this full circle thing where I think it's probably given me a little bit of confidence to play, to try things, to fail, you know? Yeah, definitely.

Peter McCully: Jason, as a teen at Argyle Secondary in North Van, you stepped back from acting to focus on sports, especially hockey. Was there a moment that hockey might have won out, and did those years help you play a former pro hockey player in the character of Matt Shade?

Jason Priestley: Those experiences that I had playing hockey growing up in British Columbia served me well in playing Matt Shade. But for me, when I was growing up, I, like most Canadian kids, I had dreams of playing in the NHL. Yes, it became apparent pretty early on that my ambition was far larger than my talent. It was at that point in time that I gave up that dream and decided to pursue another one, which was theatre, film, and television. I went to theatre school, and the rest is history.

Peter McCully: Now, weren't you two in a movie together filmed in Halifax in the '90s? Love and Death on Long Island?

Jason Priestley: We did not meet that day.

Cindy Sampson: Oh my gosh. We weren't in a movie together. Jason was Jason Priestley, and I was a background performer just crying with the other girls in the mass hysteria of Jason Priestley's in Nova Scotia. We did not meet.

Jason Priestley: Hold on. The movie within the movie. We were actually in a movie called Hot Pants College.

Cindy Sampson: I was sitting on the back of your car in the Hot Pants movie, which was the movie within the movie.

Peter McCully: I'm gonna have to look that up. Wow.

Jason Priestley: Now I'm gonna go back and rewatch that.

Cindy Sampson: Me too. I'll see if I can find myself.

Jason Priestley: That's hilarious.

Peter McCully: Jason, you must have enjoyed making Hollywood and Vines, a wine show with the legendary Terry David Mulligan.

Jason Priestley: Yes, I did. We had a great time making that too. It was just a thing we came up with. We were actually fishing, Terry and I, up in Hakai Pass. We always brought bottles of wine with us. We were always tasting wine and stuff. And Terry said to me, he said, "How do we get people to give us free wine?" "The smartest thing to do is to just do a TV show and then just travel around, and people will give you free stuff." And he was like, "Let's do that." And so we did. We came up with this idea for Hollywood and Vines, and Terry went around and would interview all kinds of celebrities to get their input on wine, and then Terry and I just started traveling the world, and it was super fun.

Peter McCully: A tough gig if I ever heard one.

Jason Priestley: Oh, yeah. It was a really tough gig. Yeah, it was, yeah, it was hard. Hard on my liver more than anything.

Peter McCully: You have both shared friendships with many in the business who have become well-known in the industry over the years. Jason, you shared an apartment with... Just a sec. I wrote the guy's name down here somewhere. Brad Pitt.

Jason Priestley: Yeah, Rob Lowe.

Peter McCully: And Cindy, one of your early recurring roles was in the award-winning series Durham County. Greyston Holt of Salt Spring was a castmate on that show, and he's now in the extremely popular Neagley series, starring as Hudson Riley.

Cindy Sampson: I'm actually friends with his wife, Christina Rosato. I bet you she'll be on our show soon. They live on Salt Spring Island.

Peter McCully: They do.

Cindy Sampson: Jason and I flew there last year to go to the cider house and to bike around.

Jason Priestley: Sure did. It was awesome.

Cindy Sampson: What a beautiful place that is.

Jason Priestley: Spectacular.

Peter McCully: Jason, did you wanna say anything about that guy? What was his name again?

Jason Priestley: About my old friend Brad? Yeah. Maybe one day he'll finally break through and have the success that I think he so deserves.

Peter McCully: Now, my wife and I came across Private Eyes on streaming over the winter, and enjoyed it very much. I'm not sure how we missed it the first time around. I wanted to know if you remember the first day that you worked together, and when did you know the chemistry was there?

Jason Priestley: I knew the chemistry was there when we did our chemistry read together, hence why Cindy got the job. But our first day of actual work together?

Cindy Sampson: Do you remember?

Jason Priestley: No.

Cindy Sampson: We should know that. What's our first scene? I don't remember.

Jason Priestley: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Cindy Sampson: Well, I keep thinking it was the stakeout. I don't... Outside the axe throwing, which is so weird. I don't know why that sticks in my head. I don't know. But it had to be the pilot episode with Kelly Makin.

Jason Priestley: Yeah.

Cindy Sampson: Also, I knew in the chemistry read because we laughed. We just genuinely laughed together, and I was like, "That's it." My work here is done. The only thing that I came here to accomplish. I don't care, I could've been the worst actress ever, but I made Jason Priestley laugh. I was like, we got it. Success.

Peter McCully: Speaking of success, that original series was licensed into 180 territories worldwide. What's the most unexpected place you've ever heard from a fan?

Cindy Sampson: Kyrgyzstan.

Peter McCully: Really?

Jason Priestley: Really?

Cindy Sampson: No. I just made that up 'cause it sounded pretty cool.

Peter McCully: There's that comic timing again.

Jason Priestley: To be perfectly honest, when I was on Beverly Hills 90210, kids, it was always kids who would get excited, and mail in, and try to get autographs and stuff. This show is aimed squarely at an adult audience, and I feel like they just don't have the same crazy, reckless passion that teenagers do.

Peter McCully: So am I to understand that you didn't know that the season five finale was your last episode when you shot it? So the kiss that we all waited 59 episodes for was just kinda left hanging out there?

Jason Priestley: Yeah. We didn't know that the show was getting cancelled. Shows get cancelled, right? What are you gonna do? But I feel like coming back to the show just gives us a great opportunity to bring some closure to all that, and to hopefully satisfy our audience, which seems to have stayed with us pretty well.

Peter McCully: Now we have a reboot with a new city, new characters. Do you have any doubts that it would've been accepted when it hit the screen? It's doing really well.

Cindy Sampson: We always kinda thought that will they or won't they is what kept the show going. So having them start being together, being married, having a kid, we were like, "This is never gonna fly." But then we read the pilot episode, and we were like, "Yeah, this is really great. It's, like, a new start. There's all these relatable places to go with this, parenting, spouses working together, a new city, new entourage." Back then, I never really thought it would work, and now I'm like, "Oh, this is beautiful. It's a new incarnation. It's so much better than the original."

Peter McCully: Jason, you're a Vancouver kid. What's it like coming home to work in BC, and what did Victoria give the show that perhaps Toronto didn't or couldn't?

Jason Priestley: For me, I always love coming back to work in British Columbia. The original show was obviously being set in Toronto. It just was a grittier show and just had a grittier feel, whereas this show is much, much lighter, and we seem to do things with a lighter touch on this version of the show, which is super fun. And Victoria was a magical place for us to shoot in. Everything was so close. Our base camp tended to be five or 10 minutes from where we were all staying, as opposed to an hour and 20 minutes in Toronto.

Cindy Sampson: The average, right?

Jason Priestley: Yeah, so just the ease of operation. It was a wonderful place to shoot. And I spent a bunch of time in Victoria when I was a kid, but I hadn't really spent much time there as an adult. To be there for that extended period of time and to be able to explore Victoria and all the things that the island has to offer was really fun for me.

Peter McCully: This is Shade's second shot at parenthood. You're a dad of two. Did any of your own parenting find its way into some of these scenes?

Jason Priestley: You know what? I'm really glad I have kids because I'm at that age where I play dads a lot. So I'm glad that I've gone through the experience of having babies, and having toddlers, and having infants, so I, just more comfortable and more familiar with it. This is Matt's second shot at being a parent. I know he takes it very seriously because he felt like he missed out on his first daughter, Jules. He missed out on a lot of her life because he was on the road and playing hockey, and traveling, and being gone. And so with Declan, I think he's really conscious about trying to make an imprint on the kid and to be there for his new kid.

Peter McCully: I wanted to go back to something that you mentioned, particularly location shots. There's lots and lots of location shots in Victoria in the show. I haven't seen an overcoat or snow yet. What was your favourite location and perhaps your best encounter with a Victoria local during filming?

Cindy Sampson: Ooh. Every time we filmed at our house was, like, magical. And that was in Brentwood Bay, right, Jay? And it's like its own little inlet. It's so beautiful. It felt like we were just on our own island there almost. Our crew would go swimming at lunch. It was, like, fabulous. Oh, also, like Dallas Road, that Breakwater Bistro. Ooh. And then my daughter and I would go look for sea glass all the time at that little beach all the time, the Ogden Point. I thought that was really pretty. Oh, Farley Mowat's family has land. I don't even know where that is. We were shooting the hot tub scene on that piece of land, on that little peninsula.

Jason Priestley: Gorgeous.

Cindy Sampson: Stunning. But I don't even know where we were.

Jason Priestley: No, I don't either. Yeah, ooh. It was really pretty, though.

Peter McCully: Hot tub, hot pants. I sense a pattern here. Who plays Declan in the show? Often young actors are twins.

Jason Priestley: They are twins.

Cindy Sampson: Trace and Lane are the twins, and they are impeccable actors, really great timing. Everyone keeps commenting. Anyone that's seen any of the episodes, they're like, "That kid," and like, "Those kids," 'cause there's two of them, and they are so good. They didn't even cry. They could be carried around by strangers. It was, like, unbelievable.

Jason Priestley: They were great. They were so good that when they were involved in the scene, they'd go through the rehearsal, they would follow the puck, whoever was talking. And if somebody missed a line, they would turn and look at you like, "No, dude, it's your turn to talk."

Peter McCully: Can you tell us whether there will be some West Coast-themed plots that might find their way into the show this season?

Jason Priestley: Yeah. We did a, an episode about mushroom foraging. We go to Tofino, and it's the whole surfer culture up in Tofino. The episode that just aired, it was a free diving episode. And, like, the show is really West Coast-centric, and a lot of that has to do with one of our executive producers, Sarah Dodd. She actually grew up in Victoria, so she really focuses on bringing that West Coast experience to the show.

Peter McCully: Can we fire a few speed round questions your way?

Jason Priestley: You bet.

Peter McCully: Who's the bigger prankster on the set?

Jason Priestley: Probably me.

Cindy Sampson: You. Probably. Just terrorizing everyone. Taping chips to my cast chair.

Jason Priestley: Oh, yes. 100% it's me.

Peter McCully: Now, who flubs more lines?

Jason Priestley: 100% that's me.

Cindy Sampson: No, I was gonna say neither of us. We're perfect.

Peter McCully: Your coffee order?

Cindy Sampson: Americano.

Jason Priestley: Americano, black.

Peter McCully: Well, that makes three then.

Jason Priestley: Yeah.

Peter McCully: Last show you binge-watched?

Jason Priestley: Beef.

Cindy Sampson: Oh, I haven't seen second season. Fantastic. We just finished The Gentlemen.

Jason Priestley: The Gentlemen is amazing. I love that show.

Cindy Sampson: Yeah, just finished that one.

Jason Priestley: Yeah. The Italy season where he gets married to the Italian princess, yeah.

Cindy Sampson: Yeah.

Peter McCully: Halifax donair or West Coast sushi?

Cindy Sampson: Ah, don't make me choose against my hometown. Sushi all the way. Ah.

Jason Priestley: As much as I like a donair, sushi for me too. Now, if you would've offered me donair pizza, that would've been a more difficult choice.

Peter McCully: Is that with the Halifax sweet sauce?

Jason Priestley: Yeah.

Cindy Sampson: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

Jason Priestley: You've never had a donair pizza?

Peter McCully: I have lots of donairs. Cheater. Never had a donair pizza.

Jason Priestley: Next time you're in Halifax, go to Pizza Corner. All the joints there will give you a donair pizza.

Peter McCully: I can taste it now. Afternoon tea at The Empress or fish and chips in Oak Bay?

Cindy Sampson: Oh, I love afternoon tea.

Jason Priestley: Yeah, I like afternoon tea.

Cindy Sampson: I love it. I do. So fancy. We're classy people. I know we don't look it, we don't sound it, but we are.

Jason Priestley: Classy is just another way of saying old, Cindy.

Cindy Sampson: We'll take that too.

Peter McCully: Favourite NHL team?

Jason Priestley: Vancouver Canucks.

Cindy Sampson: Who cares?

Jason Priestley: Spoken like someone from Toronto.

Cindy Sampson: I already knew what you were gonna say. Yeah. You might as well tattoo it on your forehead.

Peter McCully: The best Canadian TV show ever, other than yours?

Cindy Sampson: I know what I'm gonna say. Oh.

Jason Priestley: Go.

Cindy Sampson: What were you gonna say?

Jason Priestley: I was gonna say The Beachcombers.

Cindy Sampson: Oh my God, do you know that I still remember episodes from The Beachcombers? Yeah. I swear to God. It's so funny. I have these weird flashbacks of episodes of The Beachcombers from when I was growing up.

Jason Priestley: Yeah.

Cindy Sampson: That wasn't what I was gonna say though, but that's so good. What were you gonna say?

Cindy Sampson: I was gonna say Cardinal, because I feel like that was a really good Canadian TV show.

Jason Priestley: Cardinal was great.

Jason Priestley: It really was. Yeah, that show was awesome.

Peter McCully: One word to describe each other?

Cindy Sampson: Brilliant. Jason Priestley is so smart, it's, like, unbelievable. I don't think people realize how smart this guy is. It's annoying. He's very, very smart. So, brilliant.

Jason Priestley: Thanks, Cindy.

Cindy Sampson: Beat that.

Jason Priestley: That's kind. I'm gonna say Cindy Sampson is funny.

Cindy Sampson: Oh, good.

Jason Priestley: Cindy Sampson is very funny.

Cindy Sampson: I like it. I'll take that.

Peter McCully: Who's more like their character?

Jason Priestley: That's a good question.

Cindy Sampson: I don't know.

Jason Priestley: Maybe me? Maybe me.

Cindy Sampson: Maybe me.

Jason Priestley: I don't know. Angie's got a whole lot of workaholic, by-the-book stuff. You're nothing like that.

Cindy Sampson: I'm really not.

Jason Priestley: By the book.

Peter McCully: If Shade and Angie opened any business on Vancouver Island other than a PI firm, what would it be?

Jason Priestley: An oyster farm.

Cindy Sampson: Oh, yes. Good one. We know all about oysters. We'd be so good at it.

Cindy Sampson: Could we do a Raspberry Point or a Lucky Limes on the West Coast? Oh. Would it still be that oyster?

Jason Priestley: No, I don't think so. Oh, I do love some Lucky Limes.

Cindy Sampson: I know you do. So do I. Ugh.

Jason Priestley: So hard to find on the West Coast. I mean, it's so good.

Peter McCully: Karaoke go-to song?

Jason Priestley: Turning Japanese by The Vapors

Cindy Sampson: I don't even know that song, do I?

Jason Priestley: You don't know that song? I'll play it for you.

Cindy Sampson: Okay. I'm writing it down so I can go listen to it. And also, I feel like I've retired from karaoke, but it used to be Don't Stop Believin' by Journey.

Jason Priestley: Wow.

Dave Graham: Yeah, you gotta have pipes for that.

Jason Priestley: Cindy does. She can sing.

Cindy Sampson: I think it's called Tequila, but okay.

Dave Graham: Jason Priestley and Cindy Sampson respectively. We're talking a former North Vancouver hockey kid and a Halifax teen from Street Cents. And now they play Matt Shade and Angie Everett solving crimes in Victoria on Private Eyes West Coast. The show picks up five years after the original as they deal with life on the island. That includes a baby played by twins Trace and Lane. They are sharp little cookies. Private eyes in the making, I think. You'll find links to the show in our story notes at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Peter McCully: So Dave, how's that case of the missing hour coming along?

Dave Graham: Mm, putting the pieces together, Peter. Yes, coming together they are, the pieces. Quite a puzzle, you know. I'm tracking down the bits. So to answer your question, yes, it's a thing.

Peter McCully: Okay. Well, good to know. Hey, folks, we encourage you to sign up for our weekly newsletter. It'll keep you up to date on the latest podcasts, guests, and contests.

Dave Graham: We have added links to Vancouver Island webcams to our site, plus links to help you find other Vancouver Island podcasts.

Peter McCully: And let us know of any stories you think we could be following. You can reach us and leave a voice or a text message. Head to our website and click on the contact link at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Dave Graham: You can also find us on Apple, Amazon, iHeart, Spotify, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. And we accept tips, the mystery solving kind of tips I should say, especially anything regarding our lost hour.

Peter McCully: Okay. We're calling a wrap on this one, Dave. Thanks everyone for listening.

Dave Graham: Oh, we can't be done yet. Nobody's called in to answer the mystery of the lost hour. Uh, we need to stall. Keep talking.

Peter McCully: No, Dave. Time's up. We've gotta go.

Dave Graham: You know, Peter, it's a good thing I charge by the case and not the hour, because this one could go on for a while.

Peter McCully: Exactly who are you charging for this, Dave?

Dave Graham: Oh, right. Huh. Well, I guess that means this case is closed, which is really fine. This whole investigating thing's not for me. Although, I am going to hang on to this beautiful fedora.

Rockin' Rhonda & The Uptown Blues Band: Here comes Peter, here comes Dave, oh listen. Bringing stories, making waves, no missing. Spinning tales in the podcast cave, so to speak. Laughs and insights everywhere - what a treat. Peter and Dave, they're on the mics. All right, join the ride. It's gonna feel just right.