Benjamin LefebvreAcclaimed actor Peter Donaldson, whose television roles included Reverend Leonard in Road to Avonlea and Ian Bowles in Emily of New Moon, died on 8 January 2011 at the age of 58. He is survived by his wife, actor Sheila McCarthy, and their two daughters. For more details, see articles in the Globe and Mail and Toronto Star.
I’m very sorry to report that Jackie Burroughs, a renowned and acclaimed film, television, and theatre actor who is best known in the Montgomery community for playing Hetty King in the television series Road to Avonlea and Mrs. Amelia Evans in the 1985 miniseries version of Anne of Green Gables, died this afternoon at the age of 71. For more details on her life and her work, see tributes to her on the Globe and Mail and CBC websites.
Sullivan Entertainment has announced that the first two seasons of Road to Avonlea will be available in restored, high-definition DVD sets on 20 October 2009. For more details, see the pre-order pages for Road to Avonlea: The Complete First Season / Les Contes d’Avonlea: L’intégrale de la première saison and Road to Avonlea: The Complete Second Season / Les Contes d’Avonlea: L’intégrale de la deuxième saison.
World-renowned filmmaker Allan King, whose extensive filmography includes thirteen episodes of Road to Avonlea (1990-1996), died yesterday in Toronto at the age of 79. More details can be found on his obituary at the Globe and Mail. See also Lee Ferguson’s article “King of Compassion” on CBC.ca.