Episode 176: Brent Butt, Lorne Cardinal, Nancy Robertson & Tara Spencer-Nairn

Seventeen years ago, Brent Butt was a 30-something stand-up comedian with an idea for a TV show about the zany residents of a prairie town named Dog River located 40 km from nowhere. Brent was admittedly surprised when his show idea – ultimately titled Corner Gas – was picked up by CTV, and downright shocked when it became a hit. Corner Gas is one of Canada’s highest-rated comedy brands of all-time, spawning a live action series, a movie, an animated series, two chart-topping books, sold-out comedy tours, a successful line of merchandise, a top-selling series of DVDs, a theme song, a holiday single, and a thriving tourist industry in Rouleau, Saskatchewan, where the live-action sitcom and movie were filmed on location. But all good things must come to an end, even for the residents of Dog River and the viewers who love them. On July 5, the fourth and final season of Corner Gas Animated kicked off on CTV Comedy. On the eve of the premiere, four of the stars of Corner Gas – Brent Butt, Lorne Cardinal, Nancy Robertson, and Tara Spencer-Nairn – visited the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to talk about their time in Dog River, how they reacted to learning that Corner Gas was a big hit, what happened when a certain Canadian Prime Minister made a cameo on the show, and whether it’s really the end. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA