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Peter Mansbridge OC LLD (hc)
Peter Mansbridge, May 2008
Born	July 6, 1948 (1948-07-06) (age 61) London, England
Nationality	Canadian
Occupation	broadcast news anchor
Spouse(s)	Parm Dhillon (?-1975)[1] Wendy Mesley (1989-1992) Cynthia Dale (1998-present)

Peter Mansbridge, OC (born July 6, 1948), a British-born Canadian broadcaster and news anchor, is the "Chief Correspondent" and anchor of The National, CBC Television's flagship nightly newscast. It has been announced that in May of 2010 he will become chancellor of Mount Allison University and will hold the position until December 2013.^[2]

Early life

Mansbridge was born in London, England and raised in Ottawa, Ontario, where he attended Glebe Collegiate Institute, but dropped out before graduating. He served in the Royal Canadian Navy in 1966 and 1967 and studied at Trinity College School in Port Hope, Ontario.

Newscasting career

While working at Churchill Airport in Churchill, Manitoba in 1968, Mansbridge was recruited to work for a local radio station by a radio executive who heard his voice make a flight announcement (Mansbridge's regular job was as a baggage handler). From there, he moved to CBC Radio's northern service, still in Churchill. In 1971 he moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba to continue as a reporter for CBC Radio and while there in 1972 began as a reporter for CBC Television.

In 1975, he became The National's reporter for Saskatchewan, and in 1976 he became parliamentary correspondent in Ottawa. Following a decade of political coverage, Mansbridge had become a substitute anchor for Knowlton Nash and in 1988, was reportedly being recruited by U.S. broadcaster CBS for a prominent position. Nash, in fact, voluntarily gave up his position as anchor later that year, specifically so that Mansbridge would be promoted to anchor and remain in Canada.

During his tenure at the helm of CBC's flagship newscast beginning May 1, 1988 (as co-anchor of CBC Prime Time News from November 1992 to fall 1995, and as sole anchor of The National otherwise), he has covered Canadian news stories including federal elections, party leadership conventions, the Meech Lake Accord negotiations, the Charlottetown Accord and its referendum, the 1995 Quebec referendum, floods in Manitoba in 1997, ice storms in Ontario and Quebec in 1998, the six days in September 2000 that marked the death and state funeral of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and the 2003 blackout across much of Eastern North America. His coverage of the blackout was notable because the normally clean-shaven Mansbridge had grown a beard during his summer hiatus (as he did every summer), and the news of the blackout broke with no time for him to shave. Thus, Canadian viewers saw a bearded Peter Mansbridge reporting on the events of that day.

He has also anchored coverage of many world events, both in the studio and on the scene. In the studio, he anchored coverage of the Gulf War, the War in Kosovo, and the events surrounding September 11, 2001. He was on the air live when the 2003 invasion of Iraq began and anchored coverage of it. On the scene, he anchored coverage of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the funerals of Diana, Princess of Wales and Pope John Paul II, numerous royal, papal, and U.S. presidential visits to Canada, numerous Olympic Games, and the inauguration of U.S. President Barack Obama. He reported extensively from Normandy both 50 and then 60 years after D-Day and from the United Kingdom and the Netherlands for the fiftieth anniversary of V-E Day. He also reported from the Netherlands for the sixtieth anniversary of V-E Day.

In 1999, he launched a new program, Mansbridge One on One, in which he interviews newsmakers.

Personal life

He has been married to Canadian actress Cynthia Dale since 1998.^[3] They have a son, Willie, born in 1998.^[4]

His previous marriage to CBC colleague Wendy Mesley (1989-1992) became regular tabloid fodder in Frank Magazine as their marriage ended.^[5] Mansbridge has two daughters from a first marriage which ended in 1975.^[1]

Mansbridge lives in Stratford, Ontario with his family.

Awards

On July 1, 2008, he was appointed by Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada as Officer of the Order of Canada, the second grade of the highest civilian honour in Canada.

He received the honorary degree Doctor of Laws, honoris causa (LL.D.) from the University of Western Ontario, in London, Ontario on June 9, 2008.^[6]

Trivia

In one episode of This Hour has 22 Minutes, Peter was parodied in his career by the false commercial of the DVD set 'Peter Mansbridge: The Complete Series' with the feature of 'over 3000 hours of director's commentary'. The Rick Mercer Report also created a mock ad for a mock DVD set entitled 'The Best of Mansbridge Being Away' and featuring a variety of clips of Newsworld subanchors Heather Hiscox, Diana Swain and Mark Kelley reading the standard introduction for Mansbridge's absence: "Good evening. Peter is away." On the Royal Canadian Air Farce (radio edition), the marriage with Wendy Mesley was spoofed by having the two exchange household information when Peter went to one of Wendy's live remote reports.

References

External links

• CBC Personalities - Peter Mansbridge
• CBC Newsworld - Mansbridge One on One
• The Canadian Encyclopedia: Mansbridge, Peter

Related Video

• Peter Mansbridge's Video Bio June 2007.
• One on One with George Stroumboulopoulos, 13 February 2003. (Discusses political music, activism, making an impact, and the untapped literacy of today's youth.)