In the mid-70s, David Bowie was a mess. He was drinking a lot. His cocaine intake was off the charts. And he was convinced that he was some kind of alien who was being pursued by witches looking to steal his vital essence, which is why he took to storing his urine in the fridge. Oh, and for a while, he fell to less than 100 pounds because all he would eat for meals was milk and red peppers.

This being the 70s, the police were often curious about what sort of illegal things rock stars like Bowie were up to. On December 1, 1974, after the final show of the Diamond Dogs tour, there was a party. It was decadent.

Suddenly, a bunch of plainclothes cops armed with handguns broke down the door. Bowie retreated to a bedroom where he was able to flush his stash. Whatever was left was claimed by Bowie’s bodyguard, Tony Mascia.

He took the rap for his boss, keeping Bowie from being arrested on serious drug charges.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Before there was X Factor and all the Idol and Got Talent TV shows, there was The Gong Show. It was conceived as an insane half-hour of absurdity by TV executive Chuck Barris. It debuted in 1975 and ran for 500 episodes.

There was often nothing serious about the amateur contestants who performed for the panel of judges. If they couldn’t stand you, one of them struck a big gong and your time was done.

John Lee was a radio DJ who also played in a band called The Hard Luck Band. In about 1979, John appeared singing a cover of The Eagles Desperado. Much to his surprise, the judges loved his performance, and he won that particular episode, escaping with his dignity and a little cash.

Why do I mention this? Because John Lee is the father of Amy Lee of Evanescence.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

With the Link Bus Rapid Transit project well underway in Saskatoon, the hope is that it will boost ridership numbers across the city.

And now researchers out of the University of Saskatchewan are suggesting public transit may do more than just get you from point A to point B; it could also improve your health.

“They tend to walk to the transit stations and walk to the bus and walk back home, which does contribute to their physical activity needs. The other thing we know is that sort of people’s well-being and social participation change,” said project lead and U-Sask Associate Professor for the Community Health Department, Dr. Daniel Fuller.

The idea behind it isn’t new, but the 10-year-old “INTERACT’ study is getting new federal funding.

Something Fuller hopes could change how cities plan and implement transit systems.

But some people in the city have differing opinions, especially given recent safety concerns from transit riders.

“Some people… sometimes going crazy. People are screaming and something smells very yucky,” said a transit rider as they waited for their bus downtown Saskatoon.

Another person said: “I actually have a bipolar illness and it’s probably true because you get out in public and you’re able to get used to people instead of sitting at home and getting worse mentally.”

Fuller said that transit is also a great conversation starter.

“One of the things I like to say is like transit or mobility, sort of getting around the city is kind of like the weather. Everybody talks about it and everyone has an opinion about it,” he said.

Fuller added that no matter what mode of transportation you use, whether it be biking, driving, or transit, getting around can be hard on mental health.

With this project, they are hoping to change that.

“What we really want to know is how the change in the system impacts people’s behavior and whether we can get people… who are using different modes of transportation onto the BRT Link system to be able to improve access to different locations, increase people’s physical activity and maybe change their well-being,” said Fuller.

The research project uses surveys and apps to gather the data.

Fuller says they are finding people in Saskatoon are more connected in their community.

“We do see that in general in Saskatoon compared to other cities,” he said.

“So, the INTERACT study has Victoria, Vancouver, Saskatoon, and Montreal as cities that are participating, that people in Saskatoon do tend to have a little bit higher sense of community or sense of social connectedness compared to those other cities.”

A new survey for INTERACT will be launched in the fall.

Watch the video above for more on how transit can improve your health.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Canadians continue to fall victim to the cell phone delivery scam where fraudsters are impersonating telecom providers.

According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, the scam is spreading across the country.

“So far, in the first six months of 2026, over 17 million in reported losses to service fraud. It’s not only to this type of fraud, but it is one of the more prominent types in the service fraud category,” said Jeff Horncastle with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

B.C. resident Jeannie Moss says she owes Rogers over $4,000 after being scammed. “They had my phone number, my address, everything,” Moss told Consumer Matters.

Back in April, Moss says she received a phone call about a special promo to upgrade her mobile device. Moss says she was convinced she was talking to a Rogers representative. “I had no qualms that I was speaking to somebody other than Rogers,” Moss said.

Moss accepted the offer and says she received another call the next day, during which she provided her driver’s license to confirm her order. “From there things just went from bad to worse,” said Moss.

The device arrived, but in the wrong colour. Moss says she was contacted again by the same caller apologizing for the mistake. “For your trouble, we’ll send you the iPhone Pro Max and we will send a case with it,” said Moss.

Moss was sent a prepaid shipping label and was instructed to courier back the device.

She says at the time she believed she was sending the phone back to Rogers. Days later, another package arrived at Moss’s home, except this time she says it contained two devices.

Again, Moss says she was instructed to courier the phones back with a prepaid shipping label provided by the same caller from the previous order.

“I was starting to think after the second time I sent something back that it was a scam,” said Moss.

Moss says she contacted Rogers but says she received little support and even visited a Rogers retail location to try and get answers.

“There’s just constant roadblocks. You can’t get through and talk to a person,” said Moss.

Making matters worse, Moss says she started receiving emails from a buy now pay later lending company called Affirm stating her payments were overdue.

Moss says she later discovered someone took out a loan in her name and owed the company over $2,500. Moss says she tried contacting Affirm, but got no response. “I continually got bills from them. It seemingly had no effect on them,” said Moss.

Consumer Matters reached out to Affirm, but never received a response.

However, Moss received confirmation from the company that she wouldn’t be responsible for the loan. “It was you advocating for me that solved that problem,” Moss told Consumer Matters.

In an email regarding Moss’s case, Rogers stated in part: “We are continually updating our processes and sharing information with our customers on how to stay protected as scammers evolve their tactics.

“We use a variety of ways to warn our customers about return scams, including prominent alerts when shopping online, in customized shipping notifications emails, and in information sheets inside the box when their device arrives.”

The telecom giant also confirmed two new iPhones were ordered and delivered to Moss’s address after completing the account authentication and ID verification process and Moss sent the devices to a non-Rogers address.

Rogers also told Consumer Matters it recently increased its visibility of scam warning messages when ordering devices.

As a goodwill gesture, Rogers is waiving Moss’s late payment fees and service charges associated with two fraudulently activated lines.

Still, Moss owes Rogers thousands of dollars for two devices.

“This was a scam I fell for and I know they are trying to keep up with things like that, but it seems the scammers seem to be one step ahead. So I think Rogers has work to do,” said Moss.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Two teens are facing criminal code charges after leading police and HAWCS on a chase early Tuesday morning in southwest Calgary.

Police say they were called to the community of Coach Hill around 1:30 a.m. after getting reports that three teens had been “performing stunts and operating their electric dirt bikes dangerously.”

When officers tried to stop the three riders, police say the trio took off and continued to evade both police and HAWCS through residential neighbourhoods.

Police did arrest two of the riders and have since charged them with dangerous operation of a vehicle and flight from police, under the Criminal Code of Canada.

Police are still looking for the third teenager.

“There are people that are wanting to flee,” says acting superintendent Rob Patterson with the Calgary Police Traffic Division. “In the past it would be ‘oh I’m sorry I didn’t realize this couldn’t be ridden here and off they go, but (now) we’re seeing an increasing number of people trying to flee from the police on these devices and the biggest challenge (is) they’re capable of incredible speeds.”

Police say electric dirt bikes are illegal to ride on public roads, sidewalks, pathways and parks.

The Communities of Evanston and Creekside have seen their fair share of incidents.

Evanston Creekside Community Association president Mike Stiles says kids riding electric dirt bikes have been an issue at Evanston Park since October.

They say what’s likely attracting them to the park is the number of hills that are there, and these kids are using them like it’s their own “personal pump track.”

“These kids as young as 10 have been driving around our park, causing havoc in our community, cutting through the park’s pathways, lane splitting, popping wheelies along Simon’s Valley Parkway.”

Bobby Kooner is the community association safety director. He says the complaint he gets most often is regarding the number of times these bikes nearly hit someone at the park or toddlers at the nearby daycare.

“We want to get the education out to the parents who may be buying these bikes without knowing that they’re not legal within city limits,” says Kooner.

“We don’t want to be the fun police, so we would love for the city to do something about making a designated area where they can go ride, but until that happens, you know we want stepped-up enforcement.

A spokesperson in the Office of the Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors says the province is looking at amending the Traffic Safety Act “to build a modernized and safer transportation system that supports drivers, commercial carriers, and alternative transportation users.”

“As part of these amendments, Alberta is considering a provincial framework to support the safe and consistent use of personal micromobility devices, such as e-Scooters and similar small devices, where municipalities enforce and choose to allow them,” says the spokesperson.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A family on Vancouver Island says they are moving to Nova Scotia because of the high cost of farming in B.C.

“By the time I was nine, I had drawings – kind of where my farm and barn would be – where my crops would grow,” Celina Knuff, owner of Back to Nature Acres, told Global News.

But now, keeping the farm alive has become a financial nightmare.

“With the high land costs, it has just been a lot to be able to make that work,” Knuff said.

She and her partner, Nick, have been farming the land since 2022, producing blueberries, citrus fruits and a place for some animals to call home.

But now the family is packing up and moving 6,000 kilometres away to Nova Scotia.

Knuff said that for the price of a one-bedroom condo on Vancouver Island, they were able to buy a 50-acre farm in Nova Scotia, where they will move their pets, livestock and citrus trees this September.

She added that when they announced the move on social media, they received comments from former B.C. farmers saying they had made similar decisions and had zero regrets.

“All of these different places that have just allowed them to have more land, more freedom and grow their families,” Knuff said.

Farmland on Vancouver Island can exceed $100,000 an acre, particularly for smaller properties.

“The reality is, if we continue down this path, we won’t, we won’t have food that is made in B.C. anymore,” Emily Lowan, leader of the BC Green Party, said.

“Small farms will shutter and close.

“And we will become increasingly reliant on imports.”

In a statement, B.C.’s agricultural minister said: “We recognize the challenges that many new and young farmers are facing and my heart goes out to anyone having to make incredibly tough choices about what comes next.”

Knuff said the family believes this is the right decision.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” she said.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Two B.C. pro-Khalistan activists say police have warned them of threats to their lives as they continue campaigning for an independent Sikh state.

Manjinder Singh of Abbotsford organizes a monthly rally outside of Vancouver’s Indian consulate and said RCMP issued him a duty-to-warn notice last week.

Narinder Singh Randhawa says Surrey police also warned him on the weekend.

Both men blame the Indian government for the threats, an allegation New Delhi has denied in response to previous accusations involving the targeting of Khalistan supporters, including the 2023 killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

“I think the Indian government is doing transnational repression in Canada,” Randhawa said.

“That must be stopped. They’re doing Canadian citizen killing in Canadian soil.”

The RCMP would not confirm the individual cases but said duty-to-warn notifications have been carried out by law enforcement agencies across the country involving members of the South Asian community.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

For many Summerland residents returning home after the Bald Range wildfire, the relief of getting back to their community is being met with a difficult new reality.

The neighbourhoods they left behind don’t look the same.

Rick and Nan Cogbill were among those returning home, but as they drove into their neighbourhood, they were confronted by a landscape they barely recognized.

“When we turned the corner into the neighbourhood, the entire view is completely different. There is supposed to be a house there, and now there is just complete wreckage and burned trees,” Nan said.

The Cogbills’ home survived the fire. Four homes immediately surrounding theirs did not.

Rick and Nan have lived in the neighbourhood long enough to consider themselves its self-proclaimed grandparents.

“We are kind of the grandma and grandpa of the neighbourhood,” Rick said.

That made seeing the destruction around their home especially difficult.

“But then we looked to the right and we can see houses we’ve never seen before because there’s normally a house blocking that view,” Rick said. “Then we look across the street and it looks like a completely different subdivision than the one we left.”

Now, as residents return, the focus is beginning to shift from evacuation to recovery.

The province has committed to an after-action review of the wildfire response, looking at how to better prevent wildfires from reaching communities and how to manage large-scale evacuations in the future. The province is seeking feedback from both the public and organizations.

For the Cogbills, the return comes with relief, but also grief for the neighbours who are now facing a much longer road home.

“Our neighbours have a long way to go and we really feel for them,” Rick said.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have lost another player to a season-ending injury.

Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea revealed on Wednesday that defensive back Ethan Ball will likely miss the rest of the campaign after he suffered an Achilles injury in the fourth quarter of their win over the Ottawa RedBlacks last week.

“It’s gonna be tough to see him again the rest of the season for sure,” O’Shea told reporters on Wednesday.

It was just the 24-year-old’s third game of the season after also starting the year on the injured list. It was pretty evident by his reaction on the field that he knew it was a serious injury immediately, slamming his hand on the turf in frustration.

The loss of Ball hurts their depth on both defence and special teams.

“He was a key piece,” O’Shea said. “Extremely smart, gifted athletically, hyper-competitive, so that certainly hurts.”

He’s the second player the Bombers have ruled out for the season after linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox was injured on the first day of training camp.

Bombers running back Brady Oliveira missed a third straight day of practice, but the head coach said he still expects Oliveira to suit up on Friday despite him being listed as questionable to play.

Receiver Nic Demski is also questionable but was back on the field for their final session before they jet off to Edmonton for Friday’s matchup against the West Division-leading Elks.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

In 1900, Donald Smith personally funded a new Canadian military regiment to support efforts in the Boer War in South Africa.

Located in Western Canada, Smith recruited police officers, cowboys and other frontiersmen who all had one thing in common: horse training.

The Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) was formed as a cavalry unit and has remained an integral part of the Canadian Armed Forces ever since.

While the unit no longer trains troopers on horseback, it maintains a presence with horses to ensure its heritage is never forgotten.

“Just like most of history, if you don’t talk about it, it’s lost,” said Master Corporal Brennan Maddison of the LDSH(RC). “Before tanks and bullets, it was horses and swords.”

From the last great cavalry charge that helped swing the First World War in 1918 to modern conflicts in Afghanistan, the regiment’s history is deep.

The Strathcona Mounted Troop has, since the 1970’s, brought that heritage to families across Canada and the Commonwealth.

“We were reinstated as the Strathcona Mounted Troop official in 1974 and then became the official colour guard for Spruce Meadows in 1975 when they opened and then we’ve been doing this ever since.”

The Musical Ride came to Lethbridge this week during Whoop-Up Days, the first visit from the unit in years.

“We try to get ourselves into actual rodeo events. The reason for it is it’s more local, more our bread and butter and really taps into the roots of the people that originally came with the Strathcona’s,” said Maddison.

For Whoop-Up Days organizers, it was a no-brainer to bring them back.

“They said they hadn’t been to Lethbridge in a long time and would like to come back and that Whoop-Up Days would be the perfect opportunity to get in front of crowds. We were like, this is a perfect fit for us, too,” said Paul Kingsmith, director of event development at Excite Lethbridge.

Members of the mounted troop are active duty soldiers trained at the modern armoured regiment, but even for those who’ve never been on a horse before, the historic troop has its calling.

“I joined because I wanted to give back to my community,” said Corporal Andy Vu. “It’s nice being able to come here, put on a show for the local population and seeing the kids smile, the parents coming up asking questions, kids coming up to us, it’s an amazing time.”

The regiment was in Lethbridge on Tuesday and Wednesday. Whoop-Up Days continues until Saturday.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.