08:12 – Barbara is going out to dinner with friends this evening, so Colin and I will have peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches and watch Heartland reruns. We’re about a third of the way through series five at this point. That leaves only series six to watch before we go back and start again at series one episode one. We’ll probably make it through all six seasons at least twice more before series seven finishes broadcasting next spring.
Speaking of series seven, CBC broadcast the first episode last night. I watched just enough of it to confirm that Amber Marshall Turner is still credited as “Amber Marshall” rather than under her married name and that Shaun Johnston (Grandpa Jack) is no longer listed in the opening credits, although the opening still includes a shot of him riding a horse. The cliffhanger in the series six finale was of Jack lying in the snow with his horse standing next to him, so Heartland fans have been speculating all summer about whether they killed him off.
Amber Marshall is the only lead in Heartland. The rest are supporting only. Without Amber, they have no show. But of the supporting actors, Shaun Johnston comes closest to being essential, so I’ll be very surprised if they kill off his character.