Blockade halts rail traffic west of Winnipeg

RM OF HEADINGLEY — It was a satisfying sight for Harrison Powder: a freight train stopped, hundreds of metres up the track from a blockade erected by a group of demonstrators.

Powder was among a group of 10 along a windswept country road, about 25 kilometres west of Winnipeg, protesting RCMP enforcement of a court-ordered injunction in northern British Columbia and the arrests of community leaders from Wet’suwet’en Nation.

A spokesman for CN Rail said train movements on the line stopped Wednesday because of the blockade.

“Canada should remember this, so should the RCMP and industry the next time they go invading Indigenous territory trying to force a pipeline through,” said Powder, a member of Bigstone Cree Nation in Alberta, and a Winnipeg resident. “They should remember what happened here with this incident, because it can happen again.”

TV that makes the cut

Ambition is a great motivator in fields as diverse as professional boxing, high-school dance team, photography, animal wrangling and even — stay with me here — bank robbery and alien-summoning?

Sure, some of these are more relatable than others, but the solutions, and the series and movie that contain them, are intriguing. Press play to become a better you.

● The Greatest (docudrama series premières Wednesday, Nov. 4 on Prime Video)

This dramatization of the life of acclaimed boxer and activist Muhammad Ali is billed as the first authorized scripted series on the subject. Its executive producers include his widow, Lonnie Ali, as well as serious name brands Jay-Z and Michael B. Jordan. Newcomer Jaalen Best plays the title role, supported by Giovanni Ribisi (American Hostage) playing Angelo Dundee and Michael Ealy (The Following) as Malcolm X.

‘Mom and dad’ Pereira and Michaud lead Team Canada at Kelowna Grand Prix

Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud’s spirits couldn’t be higher as they begin their fourth ISU Grand Prix season this weekend at Skate Canada International as Team Canada’s top medal prospects.

Fresh off a decisive victory at Nebelhorn Trophy in Germany last month, the reigning world pair skating bronze medallists were riding a wave of confidence and excitement — and feeling “a mom and dad energy” — as they contemplated the assignment ahead in Kelowna, B.C.

“To go out and win our first Challenger (event) was a great confidence boost in our back pocket,” said Pereira, who admitted to a case of jitters before taking the ice in Oberstdorf.

“No matter how many years you do this, you still always get the first competition nerves. We’re just glad we were able to remind ourselves how to handle that and put out two great skates.”

Gilles, Poirier hope winding road leads to podium

What deals should GM Kyle Dubas be looking for? Is the team tough enough?

A guide to some of television’s greatest Christmas sitcom episodes

Many of us return to the well-loved holiday specials every year — your Rudolphs, your Charlie Browns — but the Christmas Episode is also tradition.

Most sitcoms do them; in the days before streaming, they aired in the weeks leading up to The Big Show.

Encountering a Christmas episode in reruns in July or during an unseasonal series binge watch is a bit like eating a candy cane in April, but it’s no accident that many holiday episodes end up being the classic, well-quoted ones. The holidays, with their pressures and relatives and parties, are loaded with comedic potential, sure, but they’re also a chance for a sitcom to show its heart.

Thanks to streaming, you can pretty much watch anything, anytime, so we’ve assembled a little advent calendar of seasonal episodes to get you into the spirit.