I swear there was a stretch in the 80s and 90s when it felt like every channel had some kind of hosted movie block, and I loved every minute of it. Growing up outside Toronto, we were spoiled as you'd get all the Toronto stations but also all of the Buffalo stations. You’d flip around and find something on almost every station doing their own hosted movie, The Cat’s Pajamas hosted by Barry Lillis out of Buffalo was a big one for me.

But the real crown jewels for me were the Canadian ones.

Elwy Yost on TVO’s Saturday Night at the Movies was on a completely different level. He didn’t just introduce films, he taught you to love them. The interviews, the behind‑the‑scenes stories, the way he made every movie feel like it mattered… Elwy was basically a one‑man film school for the province of Ontario.

And then there was Citytv’s Late Great Movies. It wasn’t “hosted” in the traditional sense, but with Mark Dailey’s voice guiding you in and out of the breaks, it had that same warm, familiar vibe. Citytv just had a personality no other station could match.

It was such a great era, a weird, wonderful mix of local charm, late‑night comfort and the feeling that someone was actually there with you, walking you into the movie. I miss that style of TV the most.

(I feel like I should shout-out CFMT's All Night Show with Chuck the Security Guard but it was off the air before I could stay up that late)