Mister Doty is Busy
A look at how our web master has been occupying himself

June 2005
Release of new documentary on the London Knights hockey club and their record-smashing season. The program airs on Rogers.

Premier of The Donnelly Trial at the former London and Middlesex Courthouse, the scene of the actual trial.

May 2005
Produces video installation documentary on the history of Banting House National Historic Site as part of the museum's upgrades.

April 2005
Produces well-received video on the history of London for the mayor's celebratory banquet for the city's 150th birthday. Interviewed by Global Television for an upcoming documentary on Ambrose Small.

February 2005
Reading of new play written and researched by Chris, The Donnelly Trial, on the 125th anniversary of the brutal murders near Lucan, Ontario. The play will be mounted in June at the former London Middlesex Courthouse.

October 2004
Signs a book deal with Altitude Publishers for a retrospective look on famous Ontario hangings.

August 2004
Serves as freelance reviewer for the London Free Press during the London Fringe Theatre Festival and posts his own work on a special webpage on Doty Docs. Click here to read his reviews.

July 2004
As a result of his webpage on London hangings, Chris is able to reunite the family of George Walter Rowe, the last man executed in the city. Rowe's two daughters had not seen or spoken to each other for 53 years.

June 2004
Appears on The New PL's New Day with London Film Club members Matt Loop, Nick Scott and Laurence Simner to discuss the summer's hot movies.

May 2004
Launches a new section on his website that offers visitors the definite listing of every person executed in London.

Offers the toast at the 201st anniversary of the founding of the Talbot settlement.

April 2004
Receives a grant from the London Arts Council to write a play based on the trial of the Lucan-area vigilantes accused of the murder of the infamous Donnelly family. The production will be staged in 2005, the 125th anniversary of the incident. Click here for more information.

New exhibit at Museum London on the first 50 years of CFPL features short video installations designed by Doty. Gives lectures in Woodstock and London on the future of Wonderland Gardens and the part it played in Guy Lombardo's career.

March 2004
CFPL-TV premiers DVD versions of two classic Doty documentaries: Slippery and Let's Go to the Grand!

February 2004

Hosts a successful fundraiser for the London Public Library - An Evening with Christopher Doty. Guest speaker at Revenue Canada for Black History Month. Talks about the great London actor Richard Berry Harrison. Appears on New Day to announce his Oscar pix with members of the London Film Club.

December 2003
DVD version of Rewind, complete with directory's commentary, goes on sale. All copies are quickly snapped up by the public.

November 2003
Rewind: Fifty Years of Local Televison premiers on The New PL. The two-hour documentary recaptures the first 50 years of Canada's second private television station and features interviews with Eric Sorensen and Douglas Bassett.

October 2003
Creates two sets of historical minutes for The New PL and Rogers Television. The Rogers series covers an ecclectic range of topics: The Big Cheese of Ingersoll, The Tillsonburg Livingstons Basketball Team and the murder of the Donnelly Family in Lucan.

Let's Go to the Grand is nominated for a CAB award.

July 2003
Participated in a career panel discussion at the University of Western Ontario's journalism school.

June 2003
Provides extensive archival film research for an upcoming DVD that will celebrate the University of Western Ontario's 125th anniversary.

Revamped Storybook Gardens opens in London. Doty is interviewed extensively by the local media on the park's history. VHS copies of his refurbished documentary on Slippery the Sea Lion go on sale.

May 2003
Launch of We're From South, coffee table book celebrating the 75th anniversary of Doty's old high school, South Secondary.

Speaks before the Canadian Heritage Ontario conference in Sarnia, Ontario.

April 2003
As the chair of Landmarks London, announces grants to local museums and organizations at Banting House National Historic Sight. Media conference also includes two historic film clips relating to Banting House that were recently discovered by Doty.

March 2003
Premiers his restoration of Talbot of Canada, the nation's first feature-length colour movie, at Museum London. The film will become part of a touring exhibit honouring the bicentennial of the founding of the Talbot settlement in South Western Ontario.

February 2003
Kicks off Black History Month by helping unveil a plaque dedicated to London-born Broadway star Richard Berry Harrision. Doty was also instrumental in the renaming of a local park in Harrison's honour.

January 2003
Reworks his 1995 documentary on Slippery, the sea lion who escaped from a London-area theme in 1958 and led hunters on a two-week chase through the Great Lakes. The program will be aired by CHUM Television this spring as part of the re-launch of Storybook Gardens in June.

December 2002
Helps found The Brickenden Awards which will honour theatrical excellence in the London area. Doty's selections receive extensive coverage in the two local newspapers and within the theatre community.

November 2002
Screens three rare television broadcasts on the career of Canadian author James Reaney at Museum London as part of a month-long celebration of his work.

October 2002
Portrayed Ontario Hydro founder Sir Adam Beck (illustrated) in a short skit for Doors Open London. Chris' first acting attempt since high school was called "vigorous" by the critics.

Appointed chair of newly formed Black History Month and Sesquicentennial Celebration committees. Gave a ghost tour for area public school students on Halloween. Destinations including Eldon House and The Grand Theatre.

September 2002
Supervised a 16-hour recording sessions for Talbot of Canada, Canada's first feature length colour movie. The marathon effort nearly killed Chris and his technicians.

Helped open the Wolf Performance Hall at the new Central Library by hosting two screenings of Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

August 2002
Announced the voice over cast for Talbot of Canada. Resulting media coverage unfortunately focussed on Chris rather than the actors.

Reviewed 26 plays for the London Fringe Theatre Festival - and received death threats from two acting companies as a result. Was asked to portray a phone in one production.

July 2002
Lectured at the Festival of the Sound on the Golden Age of Hollywood Composers at the request of festival organizers.

Latest documentary, Let's Go to the Grand, receives its Canadian specialty channel premier on Bravo!

June 2002
Appeared on two specials produced by CBC and PBS Radio for the 100th birthday of bandleader Guy Lombardo.

Produced a show reel for The New PL's donation of its film holdings to the Ontario Archives. The video was screened at a special event held at CHUM City in Toronto.

Speaks to the University of Western Ontario's journalism class on London's failure to honour local bandleader Guy Lombardo.

May 2002
Awarded a London Arts Council grant to produced a documentary on experimental film maker Jack Chambers.

April 2002
Documentary on The Royal Tour of 1939 receives heavy air play after the death of the Queen Mother. Chris is interviewed extensively by the London Free Press and the National Post as a result.

March 2002
Sits on a round table discussion on the use of audio visual resources in the interpretation of history. The panel also includes broadcast historian Mary Vipond and University of Western Ontario film professor Michael Zryd.

February 2002
Talks about actor Richard Berry Harrison as part of Black History Month at Beth Emmanuel Church. Despite a conflict with the U.S./Canada Olympic hockey final, the event is well attended.

January 2002
Two premiers: Let's Go to the Grand, debuts on The New PL and a restored version of Guy Lombardo: A Royal Canadian, attracts a capacity crowd at Museum London.