Burning Log
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Burning Log is a television program which airs traditionally on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning on the Shaw Spotlight community channels in Canada, replacing the remainder of the channel's programming for the time frame.
The program is a film loop of a wood fire burning in a fireplace; an unidentified individual can periodically be seen stoking the fire. It airs free of charge, without any commercial interruptions, compared to US fire logs on local stations in that country which do so.
Burning Log was shot in 1999 by a Shaw Cable staffer named John. It was conceived as a means by which Shaw employees could stay home with their families, instead of working over the holidays.[1]
The original film was shot by John at his home in Victoria, British Columbia.
The video became famous when university students Rodger Banister, Brian Berglund and Paul McTaggart in Victoria staged a mock protest through a fake not-for-profit called BLOWS (Burning Logs of the West Coast Society) after Shaw took it off the air in 2000. The program was both a critical and ratings success,[citation needed] and by popular demand, it has been rebroadcast ever since.
The program is a Canadian counterpart to the older (unrelated) Yule Log (WPIX-TV first aired in 1966).
