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You Can 'Bette' On This One!

© Jael Mehr

The Bette Show is one of the newest of the sketch comedy routines to hit the air waves. In the style of CODCO and Kids in the Hall, Bette focusses on Bette MacDonald, the sister of Canadian comic Ed Macdonald (who rose to fame with This Hour Has 22 Minutes, and who chooses, for whatever reason, to use a small "d" in his surname), who is often likened to another popular sketch-scene comic, Tracey Ullman. The series is a half-hour long, and airs Monday nights on CBC at 9:30 PM.

Bette isn't the only one to grace The Bette Show though. Her co-stars (and co-writers) include brother Ed and comic Tim Steeves. The three of them perform numerous skits on-air, taking on different personas with each one. Premiering as a six-episode special in March of 1999, the show surprised many when it returned for another season.

The show offers a more light-hearted look than This Hour Has 22 Minutes and a less cutting look than Royal Canadian Air Farce (in addition to being non-political). It's being produced in groups of six, not having yet been granted a full season. Featured characters for The Bette Show include Girl Cop, Beulah Claxton (a lounge singer), Lunch Lady, Gwen Gibbons, Bucky and Wayne, and Marybelle Emia. The show pokes fun at everything from the modelling world to other television shows on the air.

When not performing on The Bette Show, Bette MacDonald continues to successfully run her own one-woman shows, something she's been doing for over five years now. Younger brother Ed is well known for talents above and beyond The Bette Show -- he is the recipient of two Gemini awards for his writing on This Hour Has 22 Minutes. Tim Steeves has been doing stand-up comedy for years, and has even hosted the national Just for Laughs.