When Ian Coss decided to get married, every living member of his family who had ever been married had also gotten divorced: parents, grandparents, and all his aunts and uncles on both sides — some of them twice. Today, he has questions: What is the value of a lifetime commitment? Are we doomed to recycle the patterns of behaviour we get from our ancestors? Are we all just better off alone? Forever is a Long Time is a five-episode series that weaves reflection and original music through Ian’s conversations with his wife and divorced family members — a look at love with people who have made mistakes.
Get lost in someone else’s life. From a mysterious childhood spent on the run, to a courageous escape from domestic violence, each season of Personally invites you to explore the human experience in all its complexity, one story — or season — at a time. This is what it sounds like to be human.
Hear episodes early and ad-free on CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts.
Season 1 | Run, Hide, Repeat: a story of a childhood spent on the run.
Season 2 | Welcome to Paradise: a courageous escape from domestic violence.
Season 3 | Short Sighted: an attempt to explain what vision loss feels like by exploring how it sounds.
Season 4 | Sorry About The Kid: an emotional, deeply personal meditation on the loss of a sibling.
Season 5 | Toy Soldier: The unbelievable story of a Jewish boy amongst Nazis.
Season 6 | Forever is a Long Time: Every living member of Ian Coss' family who has been married has gotten divorced. Can his marriage end differently?
The idea of a lifetime commitment can feel impossible, when it can still fall apart in year 20, or year 30, or 35. My own parents’ marriage never made it that far, but some of my aunts and uncles did, only to find that after all those years, they too were better off apart.
My grandmother never sent presents for birthdays or holidays, and didn't expect us to either. She seemed to resist anything that felt like authority, convention and tradition; which is why it's so strange that she was once married to my grandfather — a Harvard-educated lawyer.
My parents divorced when I was eight years old — young enough that I don’t have a lot of clear memories of it, but old enough that I was definitely watching, listening, and learning. So I asked them both to tell me what happened, and got two pretty different stories.
When I decided to get married, every living member of my family who had ever been married had also gotten divorced. Apparently, I thought my marriage would end differently. Listen to Personally: Forever is a Long Time starting June 16, 2025.
Introducing an upcoming season of Personally, called Creation Myth. Helena does not want kids. Her husband does. What else is the purpose of life, he keeps asking her, hoping she’ll change her mind. But after eight years he gives up and leaves. Lost and alone, she’s left with his question. What is our purpose? And what if it is already here? This series is an Official Selection of the Tribeca Audio Festival. Make sure you follow Personally, so you know when the full season becomes available, lat...
As Alex’s newfound family grapples with who he really was and what side of the war he was fighting for, COVID sets in. Will Alex ever get a real reunion?
Alex finally takes a DNA test, hoping to prove his identity – once and for all. What will it find? Who will it find? The results surprise everyone, even Alex.
Alex’s story goes viral (as viral as it can in the early 2000s), but doubts and accusations swirl around him – dividing his family and community. Alex is called a liar and a conman trying to profit from the Holocaust, yet he refuses to do the one thing that would prove he’s telling the truth.
Uldis is now Alex – living an ordinary, happy life in Australia, but the horrors of his past have resurfaced. Fifty years after his name was stolen from him, can he find it again? A letter from Minsk might hold the answers.
Uldis Kurzemnieks believed he would take his lie to the grave – his life had depended on it. For decades, he told the same story of how he survived the Second World War as a boy, but his niece always believed there was more to the story. Now, she’s learning the whole truth – piece by shocking piece.
As a child, Alex Kurzem faced a choice: be killed or join the killers. After escaping the massacre that killed his family during the Holocaust, he’s found by the enemy and taken in as one of their own – becoming a Jewish boy masquerading as a Nazi soldier. He’d live with this false identity for so long, he no longer remembered who he was before. This is the story Alex would tell the world decades later, but could a story so unbelievable be true? Host Dan Goldberg finds out....
On Drugs looks through the lenses of history, pop culture and personal experience to understand how drugs have shaped our world. Because even if it’s just caffeine or ibuprofen, there’s a good chance you’re on drugs right now. More episodes of On Drugs are available at: https://link.mgln.ai/4DtGUQ
“Isn’t this the a-hole who killed Paul McKinnon? Shut up and die!” A distracting obsession. An unexpected letter. And a controversial method of regaining lost memories. Plus, a final message from Paul.
“Were you waiting for me to just say goodbye?” Alex and his grief counsellor, Yvonne, dive into one memory of Paul that Alex never forgot and try to trigger others. Plus, Alex’s parents discover that some of their own memories are not what they seem.
Alex worshipped his older brother, Paul. But when Paul was killed by a speeding police car at age 14, Alex almost immediately started to forget him. First his voice. Then his laugh. Then pretty much everything else. But what if those memories could be retrieved? Through a series of intimate conversations with family and friends about Paul’s final moments alive, Alex begins to explore why Paul’s death has become the only thing he remembers.
A funeral. A strange smell. A story that just doesn’t add up. In the days after Paul’s death, grief consumes Alex’s family. His mom is catatonic. His dad is furious. Both are focused on one thing: demanding the police take responsibility for what they’ve done. Meanwhile, Alex’s memories of Paul are already slipping away. Now, he confronts the roots of that memory loss with a grief counselor who has her own connection to Paul — she saw him die.
How do you forget your favourite person in the world? Alex remembers everything about the day a speeding police car killed his brother. But his brother, alive? Those memories are lost – and he wants them back. Sorry About the Kid is an emotional, deeply personal meditation on the losses that define us. Hosted by Alex McKinnon. Produced with Mira Burt-Wintonick (WireTap, Love Me).
Graham faces his fears and travels to Vancouver to learn how to surf from blind screenwriter Ryan Knighton . Special thanks to Ryan Knighton.
After an unsuccessful eye surgery, Graham feels estranged from his camera. Blind photojournalist Samantha Hurley offers a different perspective before she leaves to photograph the 2024 Paralympic games in Paris. Special thanks to Sam Hurley. For more about Sam Hurley’s work visit https://samanthahurley.myportfolio.com/ New episodes will be released weekly on Tuesdays. Don't want to wait? Binge the whole season right now via CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts ....
Graham talks to blind artist Devon Healey , who makes dance shows for people who don’t see and explores the world of audio description. Special thanks to Justin Miller, Tarragon Theatre, Outside The March Theatre company and Vanessa Smythe. For more on Devon Healy’s “Rainbow on Mars” visit https://outsidethemarch.ca . New episodes will be released weekly on Tuesdays. Don't want to wait? Binge the whole season right now via CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts ....
Because there are no visual identifiers for Graham’s condition, people don’t think he’s losing his sight. They think he’s an asshole. Graham talks to his friends about why they think he has problems in social situations. Special thanks to Dan Barra-Berger, Yvonne Felix, Steven Aquino, Steven Scott, and Erica Peck. New episodes will be released weekly on Tuesdays. Don't want to wait? Binge the whole season right now via CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts ....
Writer and journalist Graham Isador has a degenerative eye disease. It’s started to impact his day-to-day and his work prospects. He’s been looking for the best way to talk about it. New episodes will be released weekly on Tuesdays. Don't want to wait? Binge the whole season right now via CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts.
Graham Isador is losing his vision. Through Short Sighted's mini episodes, he situates listeners in the everyday experience of a blind or low vision person for an intimate and irreverent look at accessibility and its personal impacts. A five-part series from CBC’s Personally. New episodes will be released weekly on Tuesdays, starting Nov. 19. Don't want to wait? Binge the whole season via CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts .
Anna Maria makes a trip to find out more about Pat's past and confirms something she’d suspected. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Find transcripts of the series here .
As Anna Maria prepares to contact Pat, she makes a startling discovery. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Find transcripts of this series here .
Getting out is only half the battle. After separating from her abusive husband, Anna Maria faces the most dangerous period of the relationship… and long-term emotional fallout that follows her for years. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Find transcripts of the series here ....
Anna Maria is living a double life. In public she and Pat seem like the perfect couple. At home, he’s becoming increasingly violent. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Find transcripts of the series here .
Pat seems charming, funny and worldly – the perfect husband. But shortly after their wedding, Anna Maria discovers the man she’s married is an entirely different person behind closed doors. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Find transcripts of this series here ....
Ready to reveal her longest-held secret, Anna Maria Tremonti talks to her therapist about a trauma from 40 years ago that’s the source of shame and self-loathing. She’s reported on gender-based violence many times as a journalist, including from war zones – but this time, she’s telling her own story. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence, you can find a list of resources here . Click here for transcripts of this series....
As one of Canada’s most respected journalists, Anna Maria Tremonti has a reputation for being fearless. She’s reported from some of the world’s most dangerous conflict zones. But there’s one story she’s never made public: when she was 23 years old, she married a man who beat her. Their marriage only lasted one year but the consequences of that abuse lasted a lifetime. Now she's telling her own story. This is Welcome to Paradise. If you or someone you know is affected by intimate partner violence...
