I’ve always wanted to attend some our local TV shows here in Toronto. Ofcourse work got in the way since most of them film early in the mornings. Well hello maternity leave! I jumped on that like me on a British Cadbury bar. No it wasn’t just the freebies that lured me in, it was a genuine interest to sit there and soak it all in… What? Serious. I like clapping and smiling ear to ear for no reason. Yes I do have some tips on how to be front and centre!

First on the list was The Marilyn Denis Show. Less than two weeks after putting in my request I received tickets for me and three other fabulous ladies (yes I reconnected with a BFF from Bahrain! This show is super organized and sent us detailed instructions on what to wear, when to get there e.t.c. On arrival they ask you to stand outside the Queen St. building until about 9:15 when they take you inside to a holding room. Here we checked in our coats and then listened to the animated young lady who told us not to chew gum and filled us in on the deets. Since it’s filmed live this was the most efficient of all the shows. Everyone was on cue and Marilyn did a fab job. Unfortunately for us, the topic wasn’t all that interesting (weight loss) but despite that we had a great time. There was a great energy on set and the young lady did a great job pepping everyone up. Marilyn was quite lovely, speaking with the audience and then taking pictures with us at the end of the show. All in all…we were in and out in two hours. Despite there being no giveaway on the show we each received a loot bag. Each one was slightly different. I scored some green nail polish (in time for St. Patty’s!), a swiffer, vitamins, Hugo Boss cologne and a face wash pack. At one point Marilyn looked at the audience and said “and you all get a year’s membership to GoodLife fitness”…she meant the weightloss contestants, not the audience. BOO! It’s okay.. I have my Curves. We were in the front row and on TV a couple times…you can watch it here.

Next up I received an email from Steven and Chris, stating that I have three tickets in total for their show. Alright then! Again this was just a week after I put it my request online. Once again, they make you stand in line downstairs at the CBC building till about 9:30 when they took us up and allowed us to hang our coats before entering the set. It was gentlemen who got us revved up…and told us not to chew gum (okay really.. is it THAT big of a problem that even these guys mentioned it!?!!). This was not a live segment and they were actually filming another episode later that afternoon. Good thing too because Chris had some bloopers in there! I must admit that this was my favest show and not only because the topic was fun (beauty, decor and nutrition). Chris was absolute jokes and had us all laughing with his randomness (read forgetfullness). Steven looked daper and they both greeted us after the show and took pictures with the audience. It took a bit longer here, about three hours in total and we left with a discount towards an online purchase from a beauty store as well as a tube of dragon’s blood mask. During the breaks there were questions asked and prizes awarded as well. Definitely a fun morning to be had here if you ever get the chance. They don’t pan the audience all that much, but you can definitely spot us In the front row again! The show aired on April 3rd and you can watch it here.

Cityline has a long wait, about two to three months and at the end of that they delete their database so you have to go in and re-register. We had no hope of getting in here as I really wanted a Wednesday (babies allowed) or Fashion Fridays. That said, it seems that they were having issues filling seats and sent out a request on Twitter. My fabulous friend (who attended the previous two shows with me as well) jumped on that and sure enough…there we were on set again! They seemed to provide the least amount of information (not even location!) in their emails and this might have been because we were last minute additions. They invite everyone in at 9:30 and then assign a ticket to each person (for a raffle at the end of the show). You are then taken upstairs to a holding room where you hang your coats and chill till it’s time to come back down again. Once on set there’s a lot of action here, with various setups and many things happening at once. Tracey Moore is absolutely fun. She’s down to earth and engaged with the audience throughout. There was a genuineness to her and it definitely came through. There was actual cooking on set, we were taught about gardening and given some great tapas and entertaining solutions. The swag here was announced during the show (gift card to HomeSense and some ceramic dishes featured in the cooking and entertaining tapas segments). This was not live but there were no re-takes and we were out within two hours, after our pictures with Tracy ofcourse! The show will be aired on April 10th 2012.
So three shows in. Front row on all three shows. How did we do it? Here’s our tips.
1) Provide a compelling story when they ask you why you want tickets. Come on… you can come up with something good I’m sure. Maternity leave always works!
2) Arrive about 15 mins early to be the first in line (this applied for Mariyln Denis and Steven and Chris but not so much to CityLine as they take you upstairs and allow you to sit around, does help to sit towards the front of the room!)
3) Dress in bright colours! This is the most important factor I think. We wore bright blues, fuchsias, salmon pinks, ravishing purples and electric greens all to our advantage. I think it was our colours that got us the great positions as nearly every seat allocator mentioned how they loved our bright colours. Yeap…Marilyn and Tracey noticed them too!
4 ) It definitely helps if you’re on the younger and ‘ethnic’ end of the spectrum. Lets face it, most of the women who come out are the older, stay at home varietals. So if you’re young you definitely have an up there. Just saying. I know it’s not fair.
Go on. Do it! It’s a fun morning at no cost! A big thank you to my brother who babysat for me while I smiled ear to ear and clapped to my palm’s content and cheek’s ache!
p.s – Since this post I’ve had the chance to have makeovers done on CityLine and Marilyn Denis. And be featured on a new mom segment with Breakfast Television.
Fariha
April 4, 2012 at 2:11 pmGreat read Yashy! I never knew about any of this stuff!
Adrienne
April 4, 2012 at 2:18 pmThis is great! Great tips for other potential audience members! My dress is like the “Where’s Waldo”. Next on my list: Oprah (but I doubt we’ll get a photo with her).
parent club
April 6, 2012 at 1:53 pmGreat tips! I’ve been on Cityline 3x and it wassuper action packed and entertaining.
Ricquetta
April 16, 2012 at 2:19 pmI love Steven & Chris. I never considered doing this but now I really want to try! Great post 😀 <3
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Samantha
September 23, 2014 at 4:02 pmI was on the Marilyn Denis show today and thought that the method of seating by the audience coordinator Jay was very unfair. I was standing in line quite early (around 8:45 am for the morning show) but where you were in line made no difference at all in seating. Everyone is waiting in the holding room for about 40 mins. At the time we were supposed to be going into the studio, he kept calling out parties names to be seated in all the nice spots where the view was not obstructed and you could be seen on TV. He did this until there were only about 14 people left (myself and my guest were 2 of them) and then he said the rest of you can all go in. He then just filled the last two back rows with us where we could not see Marilyn’s guest because the back of their chair was facing us. Our particular section never once appeared on TV (I know because I just watched the live show on TV with my PVR).
In response to your comment about young and ethnic people having an edge in being seated, I am both young and ethnic so its not really true. I realize he might have had to fill the first couple of rows by hand selection but I wish the audience coordinators would be more fair and do the rest of it on a first come, first served basis.
Other than that Marilyn Denis is very personable and entertaining, it was great to have a picture with her after the show.
Yashy
September 23, 2014 at 4:07 pmHi Samantha! Thanks for coming back and letting everyone know of your experience. It has been a while since I attended but I`m hoping this was a one off situation. Perhaps those called out were part of a special tour,media or friends of the guests being featured? I know that can happen at times. It’s a shame that you weren’t on tv or get the chance to watch everything live. So glad you had a chance to get a picture with her! Do you think you’d attend a show again?
Leah
September 24, 2014 at 3:12 pmFriends and I got seperate tickets to the same cityline taping. Do they let you choose your own seats or choose for you?
Yashy
September 24, 2014 at 3:28 pmI believe they’ll let you walk in and sit together. I remember them asking how many in our group so you can say two instead of 1 + 1 . Have an awesome time!!
Anonymous
November 2, 2015 at 11:18 pmI recently attended an episode of Marilyn Denis…..I don’t like or agree with your comment about having to be young and ethnic at all…just saying
Yashy
November 3, 2015 at 1:14 pmTotally fair! I did write this a while back and so I’m sure things may have changed. Did you enjoy the show?
Samantha
September 23, 2014 at 4:15 pmHi Yashy,
Unfortunately, the majority of the audience was not media, tours or friends of the guests being featured. I’ve been to other shows where the first couple of rows were pre-selected but nothing like today where about 85% was picked out before hand by the audience coordinator of where to be seated. I hope that by posting this the audience coordinator will be more sensitive and fair to future guests and allow people who were waiting in line longer to have access to better seats.
Despite this, I am still a Marilyn fan and would probably attend again. She has a warm, welcoming energy to her.
fitnessblog
July 24, 2015 at 11:00 amGreetings! I’ve been reading your web site for a long time
now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give
you a shout out from Lubbock Texas! Just wanted to tell you
keep up the good work!
Sue
October 2, 2015 at 9:58 amBeenthe show twice and not impressed they make you wait outside seems like a long time and then you can go in and they take you upstairs then you’re standing in a holding area with some minimal seats and you just waiting and waiting and waiting its seem like half an hour and then they start calling your name and its not according to the when you came in its I don’t know how they base that name calling and your name is called you go down to the show our names are called last. Would not attend again. City line. treat their audience with more respect not like a herd of cattle standing in roped area for up to.half hour
Yashy
October 2, 2015 at 11:16 amOh no! Sorry you had to wait that long!!! I do agree the holding patterns are a bit odd and I have no idea how they determine who sits where. Wonder if it has anything to do with clothing/colours/patterns?