1985 in Canada

← 1984 1983 1982 1985 in Canada → 1986 1987 1988
Decades:	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
See also:	History of Canada Timeline of Canadian history List of years in Canada

Events from the year 1985 in Canada.

Incumbents

Main article: 1985 Canadian incumbents

Crown

• Monarch – Elizabeth II ^[1]

Federal government

• Governor General – Jeanne Sauvé ^[2]
• Prime Minister – Brian Mulroney
• Chief Justice – Brian Dickson (Manitoba)
• Parliament – 33rd

Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – Francis Charles Lynch-Staunton (until January 22) then Helen Hunley
• Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – Robert Gordon Rogers
• Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Pearl McGonigal
• Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – George Stanley
• Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – William Anthony Paddon
• Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Alan Abraham
• Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Black Aird (until September 20) then Lincoln Alexander
• Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Joseph Aubin Doiron (until August 1) then Lloyd MacPhail
• Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Gilles Lamontagne
• Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Frederick Johnson

Premiers

• Premier of Alberta – Peter Lougheed (until November 1) then Don Getty
• Premier of British Columbia – Bill Bennett
• Premier of Manitoba – Howard Pawley
• Premier of New Brunswick – Richard Hatfield
• Premier of Newfoundland – Brian Peckford
• Premier of Nova Scotia – John Buchanan
• Premier of Ontario – Bill Davis (until February 8) then Frank Miller (February 8 to June 26) then David Peterson
• Premier of Prince Edward Island – James Lee
• Premier of Quebec – René Lévesque (until October 3) then Pierre-Marc Johnson (October 3 to December 12) then Robert Bourassa
• Premier of Saskatchewan – Grant Devine

Territorial governments

Commissioners

• Commissioner of Yukon – Douglas Bell
• Commissioner of Northwest Territories – John Havelock Parker

Premiers

• Premier of the Northwest Territories – Richard Nerysoo (until November 5) then Nick Sibbeston
• Premier of Yukon – Chris Pearson (until March 23) then Willard Phelps (March 23 to May 29) then Tony Penikett

Events

January to March

• January 26 – Frank Miller elected leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party replacing Bill Davis. ^[3]
• January 30 – The federal government relaxes laws requiring businesses to use the metric system.
• February 8 – Frank Miller becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Bill Davis after the Ontario Progressive Conservative leadership election.
• February 11 – The federal and Newfoundland governments sign the Atlantic Accord paving the way for joint development of Newfoundland's offshore oil and gas reserves.
• February 12 – Minister of National Defence Robert Coates resigns after it is revealed that he visited a strip-club while on government business in Germany.
• February 13 – Denis Lortie is found guilty of murder for his attack at the Quebec Parliament Building that killed three.
• February 28 – Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel is found guilty of publishing false news and fomenting racial intolerance.
• March – Willard Phelps becomes premier of Yukon, replacing Chris Pearson.
• March – At the so-called Shamrock Summit between Prime Minister Mulroney and US President Ronald Reagan the two agree on cooperation on missile defence and free trade.
• March 12 – Heavily armed Armenian militants storm the Turkish embassy in Ottawa. They kill a security guard and hold a dozen people hostage for four hours.
• March 21 – Rick Hansen launches his Man in Motion world tour to raise money for spinal cord research.
• March 29 – 10 are killed after two military planes collide near CFB Edmonton.

April to June

• April 24 - The Supreme Court of Canada rules the Lord's Day Act violates Canadians' freedom of religion.
• May - Tony Penikett becomes government leader of Yukon, replacing Willard Phelps.
• May 2 - Ontario election: Frank Miller's PCs win a minority, but David Peterson's Liberals will form a coalition with the NDP, forcing Miller to resign.
• May 9 - The Supreme Court rules that orders in council are subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
• May 31 - A tornado in Barrie, Ontario, kills twelve as part of the 1985 United States–Canada tornado outbreak.
• June 20 – René Lévesque announces his intention to resign as premier of Quebec.
• June 23 - Air India Flight 182 explodes en route from Montreal to London; Sikh terrorists are blamed.
• June 26 - David Peterson becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Frank Miller.

July to December

• July 1 - The first cell phone call is made in Canada, between Toronto mayor Art Eggleton and Montreal mayor Jean Drapeau. ^[4]
• September 1 - The wreck of the RMS Titanic is found off the coast of Newfoundland.
• September 6 - The Canadian Encyclopedia is launched.
• September 17 - The Tunagate scandal erupts.
• September 20 - Lincoln Alexander becomes the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, the first Black person to hold a vice-regal position in Canada.
• September 25 - The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology opens in Drumheller, Alberta.
• October 3 - Pierre-Marc Johnson becomes premier of Quebec, replacing René Lévesque.
• November 1 - Don Getty becomes premier of Alberta, replacing Peter Lougheed.
• November 5 - Nick Sibbeston becomes government leader of the Northwest Territories, replacing Richard Nerysoo.
• December 2 - In the Quebec election, Robert Bourassa's Liberals gain a majority, defeating the Parti Québécois.
• December 12 - Robert Bourassa becomes premier of Quebec for the second time, replacing Pierre-Marc Johnson.
• December 12 - The worst airplane accident in Canadian history occurs when Arrow Air Flight 1285 crashes on take-off from Gander International Airport; 256 people are killed.
• December 23 - Nahanni earthquake, largest of a number earthquakes occurs in Nahanni region of NWT.
• Corel is founded in Ottawa.

Unknown

• The Mulroney government establishes the Court Challenges Program.

Arts and literature

New books

• Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid's Tale
• Colin Thatcher: Backrooms: A Story of Politics
• Brian Moore: Black Robe
• Erín Moure: Domestic Fuel
• Farley Mowat: My Discovery of America

Awards

• See 1985 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
• Books in Canada First Novel Award: G. Ursell, Perdue, or How the West Was Lost
• Gerald Lampert Award: Paulette Jiles, Celestial Navigation
• Pat Lowther Award: Paulette Jiles, Celestial Navigation
• Stephen Leacock Award: Ted Allan, Love Is a Long Shot
• Vicky Metcalf Award: Edith Fowke

Television

• The last episode of The Friendly Giant on CBC Television
• The first episode of the children's series The Raccoons on CBC Television

Music

• February 10 - A supergroup of Canadian musicians, Northern Lights, gathers to record the charity single Tears Are Not Enough for famine relief in Ethiopia.

Sport

• May 18 – Prince Albert Raiders win their only Memorial Cup by defeating the Shawinigan Cataractes 6 to 2. The final game was played at the Cataractes' Shawinigan Municipal Auditorium in Shawinigan, Quebec.
• May 30 – Edmonton Oilers win their second (consecutive) Stanley Cup by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4 games to 1. The deciding Game 5 was played at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton. Brantford, Ontario's Wayne Gretzky is awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy
• November 24 – BC Lions win their second (and first since 1964) Grey Cup by defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 37 to 24 in the 73rd Grey Cup played at Olympic Stadium in Montreal
• November 30 – Calgary Dinos win their second (consecutive) Vanier Cup by defeating the Western Ontario Mustangs 25 to 6 in the 21st Vanier Cup played at Varsity Stadium in Toronto

Births

• January 1 – Jeff Carter, ice hockey player
• January 3 – Leah Gibson, film actress ^[5]
• January 4
  • Danielle Campo, swimmer
  • Robbie Dixon, skier
• January 6 – Nathan McIver, ice hockey player
• January 14 – Katie Thorlakson, soccer player
• January 27 – Eric Radford, pair skater
• January 30 – Torrey Mitchell, ice hockey player
• February 7 – Tegan Moss, actress
• February 11 – Mike Richards, ice hockey player
• February 18 – Chelsea Hobbs, actress and singer
• February 19 – Raymond Sawada, ice hockey player (d. 2023)
• February 27 – Braydon Coburn, ice hockey player
• February 28 – Fefe Dobson, singer and songwriter
• March 9 – Brent Burns, ice hockey player
• March 11 – Paul Bissonnette, ice hockey player
• March 25 – Carmen Rasmusen, singer
• April 6
  • Clarke MacArthur, ice hockey player
  • Al Mukadam, actor, director, and producer
• April 9 – Brian Elliott, ice hockey goaltender
• April 10
  • Christie Laing, actress
  • Dion Phaneuf, NHL hockey player
• April 14 – Grant Clitsome, ice hockey player
• April 19 – Sabrina Jalees, comedian, dancer, actress, presenter, and writer
• April 22 – Kristin Fairlie, actress
• April 23 – Rachel Skarsten, actress
• May 6 – Lewis Hilsenteger, youtuber
• May 15 – Tyrone Savage, actor
• May 22 – Marc-Antoine Pouliot, ice hockey player
• May 27 – Andrew Francis, voice actor and actor
• June 10 – Kreesha Turner, singer-songwriter and dancer
• June 13 – Danny Syvret, ice hockey player
• June 22 – Douglas Smith, actor
• June 23 – Holly Lincoln, football (soccer) player
• June 24 – Isabelle Rampling, synchronized swimmer
• July 1 – Nineteen85, hip-hop producer
• July 5 – Michael Cuccione, child actor and activist (d. 2001)
• July 6 – Diamond Rings, singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
• July 12
  • Adam Gregory, singer
  • Theo Tams, singer-songwriter, pianist & keyboardist
• July 16
  • Matthew Santoro, youtuber
  • Vanessa Meloche, artistic gymnast
• July 20 – Harley Morenstein, actor and internet personality
• July 21 – Vanessa Lengies, actress, dancer, and singer
• July 23 – Tessa Bonhomme, hockey player
• August 7 – Rick Genest, artist, actor, and fashion model (d. 2018) ^[6]
• July 28 – Dustin Milligan, actor
• August 26 – Sean Denison, basketball player
• September 2 – Yani Gellman, Canadian/Australian film and television actor
• September 8 – Justin Bradley, actor
• September 10 – Elyse Levesque, actress
• September 19 – Renee Young, journalist
• September 22 – Tatiana Maslany, actress
• September 24 – Jessica Lucas, actress and singer
• September 27 – Massimo Bertocchi, decathlete
• October 1 – Leah Renee Cudmore, actress and singer
• October 8 – Magda Apanowicz, actress
• October 22 – Mitch MacDonald, singer & guitarist
• November 11 – Kalan Porter, singer-songwriter
• November 21 – Carly Rae Jepsen, singer and songwriter
• December 8 – Meagan Duhamel, pair skater

Deaths

January to June

• January 30 – F. R. Scott, poet, intellectual and constitutional expert (b. 1899)
• February 2 – Micheline Coulombe Saint-Marcoux, musician and composer (b. 1938)
• February 5 – Georges-Émile Lapalme, politician (b. 1907)
• February 16 – Marian Engel, novelist (b. 1933)
• March 17 – Athole Shearer, actress (b. 1900)
• April 17 – Walter Weir, politician and 15th Premier of Manitoba (b. 1929)
• April 21 – Foster Hewitt, radio pioneer (b. 1902)
• April 22 – Jacques Ferron, physician and author, founder of the Parti Rhinocéros (b. 1921)

July to December

• July 3 – Frank J. Selke, ice hockey manager (b. 1893)
• August 20 – Donald O. Hebb, psychologist (b. 1904)
• September 6 – Isabel Meighen, wife of Arthur Meighen, 9th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1883)
• October 28 – Eric Coy, discus thrower and shot putter (b. 1914)

Full date unknown

• June – Kenneth Zeller, teacher and librarian (b. 1945)

See also

• 1985 in Canadian television
• List of Canadian films of 1985

References

1. "Queen Elizabeth II | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
2. Lentz, Harris M. (4 February 2014). Heads of States and Governments Since 1945. Routledge. p. 144. ISBN   978-1-134-26490-2.
3. Keesing's Contemporary Archives. Keesing's Limited. 1985. p. 33379.
4. "From antennas to touch screens: Cellphones mark 30 years in Canada". CTV.ca. 2015-06-29. Retrieved 2015-06-29.
5. "Fresh Blood". People. June 23, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
6. Rick 'Zombie Boy' Genest, Star of Lady Gaga's 'Born This Way' Video, Dies at 32 Alexia Fernandez, Time, People.com August 3, 2018.