David Fincher’s Mank led nominations to the 93rd Academy Awards with 10 nods Monday, and for the first time, two women — Chloe Zhao and Emerald Fennell — were nominated for best director.
Eight films were nominated for best picture. Mank was joined by Fennell’s Promising Young Woman, Zhao’s Nomadland, Judas and the Black Messiah, Sound of Metal, Minari, The Father and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
History was made in the best director category. Only five women have ever been nominated in the category before. Zhao is the first woman of Asian descent nominated. The other nominees were Lee Isaac Chung for Minari, David Fincher for Mank and Thomas Vinterberg for Another Round.
Among performers, it’s the most diverse slate of nominees ever — and a far cry from the all-white acting nominees that spawned the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag five years ago. Nine of the 20 acting nominees are people of colour, including a posthumous best-actor nomination for Chadwick Boseman, and nods for Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal), Steven Yeun (Minari), Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield (Judas and the Black Messiah), Leslie Odom Jr. (One Night in Miami), Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), Andra Day (The People vs. Billie Holiday) and Yuh-Jung Youn (Minari).
Davis, who won for her performance in 2016’s Fences, landed her fourth Oscar nomination, making Davis the most nominated Black actress ever.
The other nominees for best actress are: Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman; Frances McDormand, Nomadland; Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman.
The nominations were announced from London by presenters Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. The Academy Awards would typically have happened by now but this year were postponed by two months due to the pandemic. They will instead be telecast April 25.
The film academy confirmed Monday that the show will be held at both its usual home in the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles and the city’s railway hub, Union Station.
In addition to Boseman, Ahmed and Yeun, the nominees for best actor are: Anthony Hopkins, The Father; Gary Oldman, Mank.
The nominees for best supporting actress are: Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm; Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy; Olivia Colman, The Father; Amanda Seyfried, Mank; Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari.
The nominees for best supporting actor are: Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7; Leslie Odom Jr., One Night in Miami; Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah; Paul Raci, Sound of Metal; LaKeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah.
The nominees for best documentary feature are: Collective; Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution; The Mole Agent; My Octopus Teacher; Time.
The nominees for best international film are: Quo Vadis, Aida?, Bosnia and Herzegovina; Another Round, Denmark; Better Days, Hong Kong; Collective, Romania; The Man Who Sold His Skin, Tunisia.
The nominees for best original song are: Husavik from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga; Fight for You from Judas and the Black Messiah; Io S? (Seen) from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se); Speak Now from One Night in Miami…; and Hear My Voice from The Trial of the Chicago 7.
The nominees for best animated feature: Onward; Over the Moon; A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon; Soul; Wolfwalkers.
The nominees for best original screenplay are: Judas and the Black Messiah, Shaka King and Will Berson; Minari, Lee Isaac Chung; Promising Young Woman, Emerald Fennell; Sound of Metal, Darius Marder and Abraham Marder; Trial of the Chicago 7, Aaron Sorkin.
The nominees for best costume design: Alexandra Byrne, Emma; Ann Roth, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; Trish Summerville, Mank; Bina Daigeler Mulan; Massimo Cantini Parrini Pinocchio.
After a pandemic year that shuttered most movie theatres, the best-picture nominees will have hardly any box office to speak of. It will be an Oscars not just without blockbusters but with many movies that have barely played on the big screen. Streaming services are set to dominate Hollywood’s biggest and most sought-after awards.
The film academy and ABC will hope that the nominees can drum up more excitement than they have elsewhere. Interest in little golden statuettes has nosedived during the pandemic. Ratings for a largely virtual Golden Globes, with acceptance speeches by Zoom, plunged to 6.9 million viewers — a 64 per cent drop from 2020 — last month.
With the notable exception of fuelling streaming subscriber growth, the pandemic has been punishing for the movie industry. Production slowed to a crawl, blockbusters were postponed or detoured to streaming and thousands have been laid off or furloughed.
But the outlook for Hollywood has recently brightened as coronavirus cases have slid and vaccines have ramped up. Movie theatres are reopening in the U.S.’s two largest markets, New York and Los Angeles. And several larger movies — including the Walt Disney Co.’s Black Widow (May 7) — are scheduled for May and beyond.
Film academy president David Rubin said Monday that the April 25 show will play out at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre as well as its transportation hub, Union Station. Expect the broadcast to do its best to pitch viewers on going back to the movies.
As Ontario attempts to ramp up its vaccination efforts, the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) says the province is now in a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The association said on Twitter that new data from Ontario’s COVID-19 science advisory table shows variants of concern (VOC) are steeply rising in the province and the number of patients in ICUs is also trending upward.
The OHA says strong adherence to public health measures is urgently needed to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed in the third wave.
As of Monday, the science table estimates Ontario is averaging around 733 variant of concern cases a day which is 49 per cent of total cases.
The effective reproduction number — R(t) — indicated to the average number of additional infections caused by one infected person. An R(t) of greater than one indicates exponential growth.
The table says the R(t) for VOC cases is 1.41.
In the province’s most recent round of COVID-19 modelling, the group said that while the drive to vaccinate residents and workers in long-term care has paid off with declining deaths and illness, progress against the virus has stalled outside that sector.
The key to controlling this, Dr. Adalsteinn Brown says, is ramping up vaccination efforts and focusing on regions hardest-hit by the virus and its strains.
The data shows that declines in community cases and test positivity have levelled off and cases are increasing in most Public Health Units, with average weekly cases soaring in regions where variants are most prevalent, such as Thunder Bay and Toronto.
Over the past two weeks, Ontario has seen cases grow by an average of 1.19 per cent per day.
“We’re nearing the finish line, but we’re not there yet,” said Toronto Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa on Monday.
De Villa spoke about drastic rises in COVID-19 variants in Europe, and the subsequent responses of European countries to a third wave. However she said it too soon to say if Toronto is into a third wave.
She also said the problem can be controlled with the same health and safety measures we already know work: physical distancing, staying home, wearing a mask and good hygiene.
Cell phone analytics, however, show that many Torontonians are not staying home.
“None of us wants to continue to live in a state of suspended animation. This has been a significant burden on all of us,” said de Villa.
Recent data also suggests that the Ford government’s decision to loosen public health restrictions in late February, coupled with the spread of the B.1.1.7 variant first discovered in the UK, is like responsible for an end in improved numbers.
De Villa says it’s also too soon to talk about the possibility of another lockdown in Toronto.
Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams, also says it is “to be determined” whether or not the province finds itself in a third wave of the pandemic.
Williams adds it’s hard to tell where the current trend is heading until the wave or spike is over.
“One of the people on our team says you can always tell you’re [in a third] wave when it’s over,” said Williams.
“We could be into that base of a third wave. What does that mean? How big it is? That is to be determined.”
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) is set to change its guidelines for the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and will recommend it be given to those 65 years and older, a government source confirmed.
WATCH: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/03/15/astrazeneca-vaccine-approval-over-65/
Earlier this month, NACI stopped short of recommending the adenoviral vector vaccine for those 65 and over “due to limited information on the efficacy of this vaccine in this age group at this time.”
In clinical trials, the AstraZeneca shot has proven to be 62 per cent effective in those between the ages of 18 and 64.
When Health Canada approved the vaccine, the agency stated that while clinical trial data was limited for people over the age of 65, blood tests showed seniors did produce COVID-19 antibodies from the vaccine. Also “real world evidence and post-market experience” in places the vaccine is already in use show “a potential benefit and no safety concerns” with giving the vaccine to seniors.
NACI reportedly plans to update its guidelines on Tuesday.
The safety of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine came under scrutiny last week following reports out of Europe that some recipients developed blood clots following inoculation. Over a dozen countries have paused use of the vaccine pending further investigation.
Health Canada said on Friday that none of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine batches under investigation in Europe have been shipped to the country. Canada’s doses are coming from the Serum Institute of India, while Europe is getting its doses from facilities there.
The agency added that no adverse events related to the AstraZeneca vaccine have been reported in Canada to date.
Meanwhile, provinces across the country have begun vaccinating those between the ages to 60 to 64 with the vaccine.
In Ontario, 160 Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw pharmacies in Toronto, Windsor-Essex and Kingston have vaccinated more than 28,000 Ontarians to date.
The changing guidelines come as fears of a third wave of the pandemic are escalating in the country’s hot zones.
On Monday, the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) said the province was now experiencing a third wave, with new data showing variants of concern (VOC) are steeply rising and the number of patients in ICUs is also trending upward.
Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa and Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams both said it is too early to tell whether the city or the province are seeing a third wave just yet.
With files from The Canadian Press
The fever struck Gary Lyon days after he and his wife, Sue, reached their Toronto home early last April, ending what was to have been their 40th wedding anniversary dream vacation.
They were passengers on Coral Princess, one of dozens of cruise ships cast adrift as the COVID-19 pandemic caught fire one year ago. After being rejected at several ports across South America, their ship found its final refuge in Miami, setting off a frenzied set of flights home — through Columbus, Ohio and Newark, N.J.
The Lyons witnessed a chaotic “gong show” of departures in the U.S., especially in Columbus where masked passengers mixed with unmasked drivers waiting on the tarmac at the bottom of the plane’s staircase.
When they arrived in Toronto, the Lyons were impressed by the steps taken to guard against the virus. The plane landed in a remote terminal and its passengers met masked border officials who were efficient.
But they wonder to this day about their taxi driver who declined their offer of a mask.
“We took all the precautions that people had asked us to do, like masks and gloves and luggage that was sprayed and all that stuff. But when I got home — when we got home — what kicked in was fever, body ache, loss of taste and smell,” Gary recalled.
So began a new, challenging health journey for the Lyons, two of the 62,580 Canadian travellers who were brought home from 109 countries as the federal government staged the largest, most elaborate repatriation of stranded Canadians outside of a full-scale war.
They came home on 692 flights and from 36 cruise ships, in an effort that continued until early July last year, Global Affairs Canada said.
“There were a lot of people who were saying, ‘Help. Help me to get back to Canada, I need to get back to Canada.’ I think that it was one of one of our finer moments.” – Marc Garneau
Global Affairs headquarters transformed into a travel agency. The department’s emergency response centre, normally staffed by two dozen people, swelled to 600, swallowing up offices, the library and entire floors of the Lester B. Pearson Building in Ottawa.
When countries began locking down, imposing road closures and checkpoints, there were calls to foreign governments to negotiate landing rights and safe ground passage for desperate passengers.
“Everyone became a consular official, everyone became a travel agent,” recalled then-foreign affairs minister François-Philippe Champagne. “I remember texting my counterpart in Peru to open the airspace.”
After doing that, Champagne got another call. Peru had declared martial law just as an Air Canada flight had been booked to head there. So, Champagne and his officials scrambled again, and the jet was granted permission to land at a military base just outside Lima.
“The airlines responded beautifully. I’m talking mainly Air Canada, because they have the international reach,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau. Garneau was the transport minister last year.
“We worked with them as a government to organize a lot of these flights, which they did at cost. And so, I have nothing but admiration for how they did that.”
For some travellers, the trip home was quick and uneventful. But for many, the exercise was fraught with delays, costs, and concern they would get sick from COVID-19. A year later, there is anger when they see Canadians still travelling to sun destinations.
Spencer Mason made it home from London last March, but it was a tough decision to leave behind a good IT job in a vibrant world capital. When he heard Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s televised call for Canadians to come home as the pandemic was declared, Mason bought a plane ticket before the big rush hit.
“I wasn’t just temporarily visiting the U.K., but rather a full-time employee, which made the decision a bit harder,” said Mason, 23, who is now attending the London School of Economics and Political Science remotely from St. Catharines, Ont.
For other travellers, not everything went as smoothly. Some think the government could have done better, especially on the communications front.
Sanford Osler was among the final 94 to disembark the Coral Princess cruise ship in Miami after its South American voyage was disrupted by the pandemic.
The Canadians on board had formed close friendships, creating a Facebook page and an email list. They began sharing information because Osler said the official line coming out of Global Affairs just didn’t add up.
“That was my biggest concern about the Canadian government. They were following it, they had plans, but they weren’t communicating it generally through their normal channels to us.”
Passengers contacted their members of Parliament. Osler credits his Liberal MP, Terry Beech, with being “very useful because he got in touch with Global Affairs and sent me specific information that we weren’t getting.”
Catherine McLeod, a retired high school teacher from Ottawa who made a harrowing trip home last April from a stranded cruise ship, said the government should have done more, sooner, to slam Canada’s border shut to foreign travellers.
“And here we are with the variants now. Doesn’t make much sense to me. I think it’s ridiculous that they kept allowing people to fly in and fly out.”
But McLeod gives the government high marks for negotiating the passage of the cruise ship she and her husband, Paul, were on — the Zaandam — through the Panama Canal in late March.
Dozens of passengers had developed flu-like symptoms and the ship had been essentially stranded at sea after setting off from Chile in mid-March. It was granted passage through the channel on condition that all passengers stay on board.
“That was the government that pushed that. We snuck through in the dead of night with no lights on or anything,” said McLeod. The ship made port in Florida by the end of March, enabling McLeod and others to fly home.
McLeod and her husband are staying put these days. They managed to stay healthy, but others they knew from the ship got sick.
The experience has marked her forever, she said. She has no patience for people who chose to travel now.
“I think you’d have to be out of your mind,” said McLeod.
Gary Lyon agrees. He’s since beat COVID-19. His wife, Sue, was never tested but had all the symptoms and likely had it too. Today, they both feel a little more sluggish, less vibrant, and they have a hard time wondering whether it’s just a bad day, or something else. They’re reading a lot about so-called “long-haulers” in search of clues.
“You might dodge the bullet, but then you might not. I don’t know how people would justify most leisure travel in that scenario,” he said.
During the height of the airlift last spring, Champagne said he wondered whether “there’ll be light at the end of the tunnel” as hundreds of pleas for help piled up on his phone.
The government has now cracked down on travellers, imposing steep fees for quarantine hotels, and Canadian airlines suspending flights to some spots. Champagne wonders why anyone would want to travel for leisure.
“Why would anyone want to take the risk?” he said.
Global Affairs said the financial cost of the effort to get Canadians home is still being calculated.
Garneau said the great repatriation of 2020 was a remarkable achievement that fulfilled a duty to help Canadians who needed rescuing in extreme circumstances.
“There were a lot of people who were saying, ‘Help. Help me to get back to Canada, I need to get back to Canada.’
“I think that it was one of one of our finer moments.”
London’s police commissioner on Sunday defended her officers’ actions and said she didn’t intend to resign, after coming under heavy criticism for the way police treated some protesters during a vigil for a woman whom one of the force’s own officers is accused of murdering.
WATCH: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/03/14/london-police-under-pressure-over-clashes-at-womens-protest/
Hundreds defied coronavirus restrictions Saturday to protest violence against women and remember Sarah Everard, a 33-year-old London resident whose disappearance and killing prompted a national outcry. But the vigil ended with clashes between police and those attending, and many questioned whether the police force was too heavy-handed.
Home Secretary Priti Patel said scenes from the vigil in south London were “upsetting.” The capital’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, said the police response was “at times neither appropriate nor proportionate.” Both said they were not satisfied with the force’s report of events and were seeking a full and independent investigation.
Police were seen scuffling with some women at the event, and one woman was seen pinned to the ground by two officers. Video widely shared on social media showed a woman was pulled up from the ground by officers who then shoved her from the back. Several women were led away in handcuffs as other attendees chanted “Shame on you” at police. The force later said four people were arrested for violating public order and coronavirus regulations.
On Sunday, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick, who is the first woman to head the force, said she was personally appalled by the attack on Everard and she was more determined than ever to lead the organization. She said she fully understood the strength of feeling in response to Everard’s case, but stressed that Saturday’s vigil was an unlawful gathering and officers had been put in a “very difficult position” trying to police a protest during a pandemic.
She said that as big crowds gathered, officers needed to act to counter the considerable risk to people’s health. She added that she welcomed a review into her force’s operations.
Many of those attending the vigil were already wary of police because a serving Metropolitan Police officer, Wayne Couzens, was charged with the kidnap and murder of Everard, who vanished March 3 while walking home in London. Her body was found a week later.
The case has sparked a heated debate on women’s safety in the public space. Organizers had planned an official vigil at Clapham Common, a park near where Everard was last seen alive, but were forced to cancel the event because of COVID-19 restrictions. A huge crowd turned up Saturday nonetheless.
Khan, London’s mayor, said Sunday the police force had assured him the vigil would be “policed sensitively” but that this wasn’t the case.
Jamie Klingler, who organized the cancelled “Reclaim These Streets” event, blamed police for denying women their right to have a silent vigil in the first place. The force got the angry reaction Saturday because they refused to facilitate a peaceful rally, she alleged.
“I think we were shocked and really, really sad and to see videos of policemen handling women at a vigil about violence against women by men … I think it was painful and pretty triggering to see,” Klingler said Sunday.
Patsy Stevenson, who was pictured pinned to the ground by two officers during Saturday’s clashes, said she was considering whether to challenge the 200-pound ($278) fine she received.
“We were there to remember Sarah, we all felt deeply saddened and still do that it happened, so I brought a candle with me but unfortunately wasn’t even able to light it to put it down because the police turned up and barged their way through,” she told LBC radio.
Emotions were still running high Sunday, as several hundred demonstrators gathered outside London police headquarters. The crowds, which were peaceful, then marched to Parliament and laid down on the ground for a minute of silence to remember Everard.
Couzens, 48, appeared in court Saturday for the first time. He was remanded in custody and has another appearance scheduled Tuesday at London’s Central Criminal Court.
The Metropolitan Police has said it is “deeply disturbing” that one of its own is a suspect in the case. The force said Couzens joined its ranks in 2018 and most recently served in the parliamentary and diplomatic protection command, an armed unit responsible for guarding embassies in the capital and Parliament.
Everard, a marketing executive, was last seen walking home from a friend’s apartment in south London at about 10:30 p.m. on March 3. Her body was found hidden in an area of woodland in Kent, more than 50 miles southeast of London, on Wednesday. A post-mortem examination was underway, police said Friday.
NEW YORK — Beyonce and Taylor Swift had a historic night at the Grammys, where the top four awards were won by female acts.
WATCH: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/03/15/who-run-the-grammys-women-beyonce-swift-make-history/
Swift became the first female performer to win album of the year three times and Beyonce, with her 28th win, became the most decorated woman in Grammy history. She also ties Quincy Jones for second place among all Grammy winners.
H.E.R. won song of the year and Billie Eilish picked up record of the year, telling the audience that best new artist winner Megan Thee Stallion deserved the honour.
Though women have won all top four awards in the past — including Eilish’s sweep last year — it marked the first time four separate and solo women won the top four honours.
“We just want to thank the fans,” said Swift, who won the top prize with “folklore” and previously won album of the year with her albums “Fearless” and “1989.”
Beyonce walked into the show with 24 wins and picked up four honours, including best R&B performance for “Black Parade,” best music video for “Brown Skin Girl” as well as best rap performance and best rap song for “Savage,” with Megan Thee Stallion.
“As an artist I believe it’s my job, and all of our jobs, to reflect time and it’s been such a difficult time,” Beyonce said onstage as she won best R&B performance for “Black Parade,” which was released on Juneteenth.
She went on to say she created the song to honour the “beautiful Black kings and queens” in the world.
She added: “I have been working my whole life … This is such a magical night.”
Beyonce is only behind the late conductor Georg Solti, who is the most decorated Grammy winner with 31 wins.
But Beyonce didn’t only make history, her whole family did. The royal family of music all won honours Sunday: Jay-Z picked up his 23rd Grammy, sharing the best rap song win with his wife since he co-wrote “Savage.” And 9-year-old Blue Ivy Carter — who won best music video alongside her mother — became the second youngest act to win a Grammy in show’s 63-year history. Leah Peasall was 8 when The Peasall Sisters won album of the year at the 2002 show for their appearance on the T Bone Burnett-produced “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” soundtrack.
Megan Thee Stallion, who won three honours, also made history and became the first female rapper to win best rap song. She’s also the fifth rap-based act to win best new artist.
Beyonce was the night’s top contender with nine nominations. She didn’t perform but Swift did.
She sang “cardigan” and “august” from “folklore,” as well as “willow” from “evermore,” and was joined by the collaborators who helped her make the albums, Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, who both won album of the year with Swift.
Silk Sonic, aka Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak, also performed, bringing a throwback R&B vibe to the show with their smooth new single, “Leave the Door Open.” Dua Lipa, who won best pop vocal album, proved her pop star status with a performance of her hits “Don’t Start Now” and “Levitating,” where she was joined by the DaBaby, who was an all-star during his own performance of his guitar-tinged rap hit “Rockstar,” flipping the song for an exceptional live rendition featuring R&B singer Anthony Hamilton, a skilled violinist and background singers.
Country singer Mickey Guyton — the first Black woman nominated for best country solo performance — gave an impressive performance of her song “Black Like Me,” which she released last year as police brutality continued to devastate Black families and the coronavirus ravished Black America disproportionately. Lil Baby, joined by Killer Mike and activist Tamika Mallory, gave a political performance that impressed.
“Black Parade” joined a list of songs honouring that Black experience that won Sunday, including H.E.R.’s protest anthem “I Can’t Breathe” and Anderson Paak’s “Lockdown,” which was released on Juneteenth like “Black Parade.”
Other performers Sunday included Billie Eilish, Cardi B, Bad Bunny, Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris and Harry Styles, who won best pop solo performance for the hit “Watermelon Sugar.”
“To everyone who made this record with me, thank you so much,” said Styles, the first member of One Direction to win a Grammy.
Host Trevor Noah kicked off the show telling jokes about the coronavirus pandemic and the year that was 2020. He was live from downtown Los Angeles, with attendees wearing masks and sitting, socially distanced, at small round tables.
Double winners included H.E.R., Fiona Apple, Kaytranada and late performers John Prine and Chick Corea.
The province launches its much awaited online vaccine booking portal and call centre on Monday with a warning to anyone outside of the priority group thinking of jumping the queue.
WATCH: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2021/03/14/ontario-set-to-launch-covid-19-vaccine-booking-portal-and-call-centre-monday/
Individuals 80 years and older (born in 1941 or earlier) plus those in the Phase 1 priority group who are eligible to receive the vaccine at this time can visit ontario.ca/bookvaccine to make an appointment or by calling 1-888-999-6488.
The portal, which is set to go live on Monday at 8 a.m., will allow people to book their first and second vaccination appointments at the same time.
“If you’re going to be 80 this year, if you’re going to be 80 in September or October, November, please go online and book your appointment.” – Premier Doug Ford
Retired Gen. Rick Hillier, who is heading up the provincial vaccination effort, has already cautioned about delays and a potential crash of the website once it is up and running on Monday morning. That is why provincial officials are asking that anyone outside of the priority group stay off the website until it is their turn.
“For the online booking system, we have more than 800,000 appointments that are going to be available,” said Hillier. “We have stress tested the system over the last week’s here, including with Toronto Public Health, and since Friday we’ve booked more than 15,000 appointments using the online booking system. It was done without a flaw.”
“We are confident in the system itself but we all know that in many places, there are some hiccups and sometimes the systems go down for a while and if it does, we’ll fix it and get it back up,” he added.
Hillier adds the call centre will utilize more than 2,200 operators and the system is capable of handling approximately 10,000 calls an hour.
When compared to California, Quebec and other places who experienced call centre issues, “that is twice or three-times the capacity to handle calls,” said Hillier. “We’re prepared to ramp up even further if necessary.”
To book an appointment, individuals will need to have a green photo health (OHIP) card as both numbers on the front and back of the card are required. Expired cards will be accepted.
For those people who still have the red and white health card, they will have to make their appointment using the call centre.
Despite provincial data which shows just under 42,000 vaccines were administered on Saturday — down from the more than 53,500 done the previous day — Ford says the province is ready to get even more shots into the arms of Ontarians.
“We are ready,” said Ford. “We are ready to ramp up immediately to 150,000 vaccinations a day, we just need more vaccines. We have the capacity to do 4.8 million (vaccinations) in a month and we have 1.4 million coming in through March.”
City of Toronto officials say their online booking system will be offline as of 8 p.m. Sunday night in order to allow for a transition to the provincial system. It will be available to book appointments again starting at 8 a.m. Monday.
Starting Wednesday, the City will begin vaccinating residents born in 1941 and earlier at mass immunization clinics located in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto Congress Centre and Scarborough Town Centre.
Some family doctors in Ontario started administering the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to people aged 60 to 64 years old in the regions of Hamilton, Toronto, Guelph, Peterborough, Simcoe-Muskoka, and Peel Saturday. The Ontario Medical Association says there are a limited number of doses and they’re asking people not to call their doctors’ office, saying that physicians will contact eligible patients.
As well, select pharmacies in Toronto, Windsor-Essex and Kingston are also offering the AstraZeneca vaccine to residents in the 60 to 64 age group.
To book an appointment, eligible Ontarians aged 60 to 64 can visit ontario.ca/pharmacycovidvaccine to find a participating pharmacy.
Note: An earlier version of this article erroneously stated that priority groups in Phase 2 would also be able to book appointments starting Monday. Currently only those in Phase 1 groups are permitted to book appointments.
MC Hammer Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken
Recipe by: Trevor Lui
Instagram: @trevorlui
Prep: 5 Minutes, plus 8 hour marinating time
Cook: 5 – 10 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 tsp mirin
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 cup potato starch
- 3 cups canola oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 8 Thai basil leaves
- Chilli sauce or plum sauce to serve
Customers always asked about the name of this dish. When I was growing up in the eighties and nineties, MC Hammer was a popular music artist and, at one point, a brand celebrity for a fried chicken company. I recalled his Hammertimne dance promoting popcorn chicken, and hence the name MC Hammer Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken. the dish, derived from Japanese Karaage and makes for a great party snack or side dish.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine garlic, mirin, sesame oil, soy sauce (or tamari), and sugar. Add chicken to the marinade, stirring to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
Put potato starch in a medium bowl. Add chicken and stir well to ensure all pieces are thoroughly covered.
Heat oil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Using a metal slotted spoon, slowly lower chicken into the oil and deep-fry for 5-6 minutes until golden, crispy brown and internal temperature is 180ºf. Transfer chicken to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain.
In a large bowl, combine chicken, salt and pepper.
using a metal slotted spoon, lower basil leaves into the hot oil and deep-fry for 6-8 seconds. Transfer leaves to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain.
Garnish popcorn chicken with the basil leaves and serve immediately with chilli or plum sauce.
Ontario’s Transportation Minister says she was made aware of a disturbing discovery at a Toronto construction site on Wednesday night.
In a tweet, Caroline Mulroney said a noose was found at the Eglinton Crosstown Leaside construction site and police are investigating.
Toronto police did not confirm the discovery of a noose, but said they were called to the site just before 8 a.m. Thursday for a “suspicious incident.” They said the investigation is in the very early stages and officers are gathering information.
“Once investigators are in a position to share details an update will be made available. In terms of the ‘suspicious’ element, we are still firming up the facts,” they said in a statement to CityNews.
Mulroney added in her tweet that “racism and hate, in any shape or form, will not be tolerated in Ontario.”
She also said the province is working with Metrolinx regarding the matter.
Metrolinx CEO Phil Verster echoed Mulroney’s sentiments in a statement, reiterating a zero tolerance policy for racism and bigotry.
“When the person, or people, who carried out this despicable act are identified, they will be banned from working on any present or future Metrolinx projects,” he said.
He added that Crosslinx — the consortium building the Eglinton Crosstown line — have assured him that they are “taking this incident very seriously and are fully cooperating with the police investigation.”
Crosslink spokeswoman Kristen Jenkins also condemned what she called a “deplorable act,” saying those responsible will be held accountable.
“Crosslinx is disgusted that this racist act happened on one of our sites. Crosslinx has zero tolerance for racism and any kind of discrimination,” she said in a statement.
This is the second time a noose has been found on a Crosstown site. The first was last July where Fairbank Station is being built near Dufferin and Eglinton. A construction worked was fired and removed from his union in connection with that incident.
In a separate incident, two nooses were also found on a job site at Michael Garron hospital, and one each in Regent Park and in the city’s downtown core.
Police made an arrest connected to the hate crime on the Michael Garron hospital construction site.
Metrolinx spokeswoman Anne Marie Aikins added that the incident is disappointing given that the construction industry has made a lot of progress since last year.
“They signed pledges and they’ve been working really hard … people are taking it very seriously, so this was very sad that this happened again,” she said. “But I think it just encourages us to all continue to work as hard as we can to root out this kind of hate.”
Mayors in Peel Region are asking the province to further loosen restrictions in their communities days after a stay-at-home order was lifted.
Peel Region – made up of Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon – was moved into the strictest “grey lockdown” category of the province’s pandemic framework on Monday, following nearly two months under the stay-at-home order.
That meant non-essential retailers could reopen with capacity limits, although gyms, personal care services and indoor restaurant dining remain closed.
The mayor of Mississauga is calling for her city to now be moved to the second-strictest “red” category of the framework, without or without the other communities in Peel.
Brampton’s mayor also says Peel should be placed into the “red” zone and councillors in his city voted to ask the province to make that move as soon as possible.
Being in the “red” zone would allow gyms to reopen with capacity limits and indoor restaurant dining and personal care services to also resume with restrictions.
Peel’s top doctor, Dr. Lawrence Loh had called for the region to be placed in the “grey” zone, saying it would preserve the progress made in the fight against the virus.
At that time, Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie said she would have preferred a move to the “red” level but understood the region being placed in the “grey” zone.
Loh says his public health unit is monitoring COVID-19 data closely and will soon be making a recommendation to the province on where the community should be in the pandemic framework.
Caledon, Ont., Mayor Allan Thomspon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
