ICYMI - Your Separatist Anger Is Someone Else's Side Hustle

SHIFTHEADS: The Scream That Rebuilt Bonnie Tyler's Voice

Bonnie Tyler has died at seventy five, and music commentator Eric Alper traces the accident that built her voice: a doctor's order for six weeks of silence, and one scream of frustration that changed everything. What follows is the real story behind the surgery and the raspy sound producers built songs around. The songwriting era behind Total Eclipse of the Heart ran through Jim Steinman's work with Meat Loaf, and Alper draws a direct line from that raspy, wounded delivery to Miley Cyrus's Wrecking Ball decades later. A 2025 pairing with David Guetta introduced the song's chorus to a generation who never knew the original. Eighteen albums, top ten hits across Germany, France, Italy and the UK, an MBE for her charity work, and a farewell tour through South America in 2022 round out a catalogue built on three songs the scale of which music may never see again. Topics: Bonnie Tyler, Eric Alper, Total Eclipse of the Heart, Jim Steinman, David Guetta GUEST: Eric Alper | http://thatericalper.com [http://thatericalper.com] | @‌thatericalper Originally aired on 2026-07-09

NEW - Mr. Dress Up's Final Goodbye to His Crew

Before his last episode aired, Ernie Coombs recorded a farewell message to the crew behind thirty two years of Mr. Dress Up, a moment that anchors this look back at 1996. The same year, Donovan Bailey won gold in the men's hundred metres in Atlanta, and Prime Minister Jean Chretien became known for the Shawinigan handshake after physically shoving a protester out of his path. Bill Clinton's closing argument from the 1996 presidential debate shows a version of political disagreement that feels almost unrecognizable now, two candidates who seemed to genuinely respect each other despite opposing views. The year rounds out with a snapshot of who held power everywhere else: John Major in the UK, Boris Yeltsin newly re-elected in Russia under an election whose legitimacy is still debated. Topics: Mr. Dress Up, 1996 throwback, Donovan Bailey, Shawinigan handshake, Bill Clinton Originally aired on 2026-07-09

Shiftheads - The Pipeline to Ontario Already Exists

Three major announcements landed in Alberta within days of each other, and broadcaster Rob Breakenridge breaks down what is actually behind them. A new pipeline to BC, talk of one from Alberta to Ontario, and a thirteen billion dollar Meta data center all dropped during Calgary Stampede, timed to the political spotlight the event brings every year. Rob points out the catch nobody is saying out loud: a pipeline already connects Alberta oil to Ontario, it just crosses through Michigan first, and Enbridge is already expanding its capacity. Building a second one on strictly Canadian soil could cost tens of billions more to duplicate something that already works. He also digs into Ottawa's decision to exclude American bidders from a 4.9 billion dollar military vehicle contract, and asks whether the move accomplishes anything beyond making a point. Topics: Alberta pipeline deals, Meta data center, Rob Breakenridge, Line 5 pipeline, Calgary Stampede GUEST: Rob Breakenridge | robbreakenridge.ca | @robbreakenridge Originally aired on 2026-07-09

ICYMI - In Search of a Value Meal: Why a KFC Bucket Now Costs Seventy Five Dollars

An eight piece bucket at KFC runs thirty four dollars in Canada right now, and the family size version tops seventy five. Shane Hewitt & the Nightshift went hunting for where fast food still counts as a deal, using a Canadian YouTuber's breakdown that ranked every major chain's value meal and landed on a surprise winner in Wendy's. Tim Hortons came out as the clear budget champion, with a bagel, large coffee, and hash brown totalling nine dollars for a genuinely filling breakfast. Shane Hewitt & the Nightshift also tracked down a site called Price My Meal that compares meal costs across chains by country, showing McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's all landing within a couple dollars of each other. The bigger picture: fast food prices are up three to five percent year over year, and a burger, fries, and drink now costs about the same as a sit-down meal at a local sandwich shop. Topics: fast food prices, best value meal Canada, KFC pricing, Tim Hortons, Price My Meal Originally aired on 2026-07-09

NEW - The 17 Minutes McDonald's Dinner the Chairs Were Built For

Fast food value meals only look like a deal. Food professor Sylvain Charlebois lays out the seventeen minute rule behind them: the average person sits comfortably for seventeen minutes, so McDonald's built its old plastic chairs to move you out the door before that clock ran out, and priced the Happy Meal to lose money on purpose. Every renovated dining room, every soft drink fountain, every table-side delivery is the same math running in reverse, and Charlebois walks through why booze at Canadian fast food spots still is not part of service here despite being standard across Europe. Then the ban on American alcohol comes under the microscope. Five hundred days in, Charlebois has the numbers on what it actually cost the U.S. side, and it is not what most people assume. Topics: fast food value meals, McDonald's, American booze ban, Sylvain Charlebois, liquor boards GUEST: Sylvain Charlebois | @‌foodprofessor Originally aired on 2026-07-09