Now or Never

4.9 (28)
Society & Culture
Weekly

In a world that can feel pretty scary, it’s easy to get stuck. This is a show that celebrates what it takes to try. To take the risk. To have the talk. To rock the speedo. Because making even the tiniest change takes courage, and hosts Ify and Trevor are here to remind you that you’re not alone when you do. New episodes every Thursday.

2d ago

What happens when you push your luck too far?

Luck is the ultimate wild card. When you feel like it’s on your side, it can push you to unbelievable heights. But if you push your luck too far, it can sometimes lead to disaster. Five stories of people taking big risks and hoping their luck doesn’t run out. Akshay Sapra made more than $1.7 million betting on stocks and then watched it all disappear. Even after losing hundreds of thousands more this past year, he still can’t shake the feeling that his next big win is just around the corner. Shailyn Drukis knows she's pushing her luck every time she goes for a drive in her rusty 1994 Toyota Corolla named "Ursa," that has over 430,000 kilometers on it. But even though Ursa is on her last legs, Shailyn just can't give her up. From lucky underwear to 'shoeys,' Toronto Argos fans share their weirdest game-day superstitions they believe help win games. Unlike everyone else on the show today, David Arama isn't leaving anything to chance. He's ready for the worst — like nuclear, worst. As a prepper and survivalist, he has a nuclear bomb shelter on his property that’s completely off-grid. But he’s a lot more chill than you might think. Simran Bajwa is determined to become the youngest Canadian to hike the seven summits, the highest mountain peaks in each continent. So what drives her to push her luck against unpredictable weather, treacherous terrains, and nature itself? Simran reveals she's doing it all for her mom, who was never able to scratch her own itch for adventure.
Oct 15

My body rules! Reclaiming your body from head to severed toe

The relationship we have with our bodies - and specific body parts - is always changing, as we navigate aging, illness and injury. So when your body changes in ways you aren't expecting, what do you do about it? On this episode, five people show you how it’s done. Welcome to "Paint Your Own Booty!" night, where artist Emmy Tran teaches people to paint their own behinds in a body-positive environment. She tells us how picking up a paintbrush helped her have a healthier relationship with her own body, after struggling with body dysmorphia for years. There's an old tradition in Dawson City, Yukon which some might find…gross. It’s called the Sourtoe Cocktail and it’s a rite of passage that’s been happening since the 70s. It’s one part liquor, one part mummified toe. But where do these toes come from? We track down the owner of one frostbitten, severed toe, and ask how it ended up in a bar in Dawson City. When Edmonton’s Jesse Mulley weighed 524 pounds, he hated his life. He could barely walk, struggled with his mental health, and felt desperate for change. He made a promise to himself to start working towards healthy goals, and not quit for an entire year. Three years later, he’s lost more than 300 pounds, completely transforming his body, mind and life. When Paralympic bronze medalist Leanne Taylor learned she was paralyzed from the waist down after a biking accident in 2018, she was afraid to ask if she could ever have children. Eight years later, she’s a mom to a one-year-old son and determined to make sure other people with disabilities know what’s possible. One of the hardest parts of Anabia Bilal's cochlear implant surgery was convincing her mom to let her do it. In 2025, Anabia became the first person in North America to have a cochlear implant that uses smart technology. Anabia and her mom Zehra Hyder share how life has changed since.
Oct 8

Inside the mysteries keeping people up at night

Today Now or Never digs into four mysteries that are keeping people up at night, and forcing them into action. When air cadet trainer pilot Brian Renaud was flying with a student, he saw something in the sky he couldn’t explain. Not once…twice. Now he searches the sky above Gimli, Manitoba — 24 hours a day, seven days a week — looking for other unidentified flying objects trying to figure out what it was that he saw. For the past 26 years, someone known only as “JY” has posted thousands of lovestruck personal ads in the Toronto Star, all addressed to the same woman: Frances. So who is JY, and why does he have it so bad for Frances? Three readers — Edward Brown, Sue Brophey and Vicki McKee — share how they came together to get to the bottom of this real-life love mystery. Stan Dworkowski woke up from an eight-day coma with no memory of how he ended up badly injured in a ditch just outside of Nisku, Alberta. Now, he’s investigating his own mystery trying to piece together the hours he simply can’t remember. Have you ever loved a song so much that you want to know everything about it? Over 40 years ago, a mysterious song was recorded from a Toronto radio station onto a cassette tape. More than a thousand people all across the world are now trying to find out who wrote this song. We’ll meet the people who are searching for the band behind the song they’ve named CIA.
Oct 1

Who's in your corner? The power of a mentor

What does it take to come through overwhelming odds, discover your passion, and get to the top of your game? Today on Now or Never the answer is: the right mentor. Meet three people taking stock of how far they’ve come, turning to the person who helped get them there and saying thank you. As a kid in Winnipeg’s inner city, Dale Turcotte III had to grow up fast. His biological dad was in jail. His parents struggled with addiction. And he often had to take care of his five younger siblings, while figuring out where their next meal would come from. Today Dale is 18-years-old, captain of his football team, and settling in at university on a football scholarship. He tells us the story of what it took for him to get here, and how two complicated father figures helped keep him on the right path. Twenty-nine musicians take to the stage with one goal: to thank the retired music teacher who changed their lives. Meet David “The Proz” Proznick and find out how musician Mike Ardagh finally convinced him to come to the sold out concert you won’t want to miss. Hannah Chown thought she was hanging up her cleats and her dreams of playing pro soccer. She’d landed a teaching job and had said goodbye to her record-breaking run as the captain of the University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's team. But then one call from the Ottawa Rapid FC changed everything. David Chown, her dad and first coach, shares what this moment means to him.
Sep 24

Feeling the financial squeeze? Meet Canadians dealing with it in creative ways

If you're feeling sticker shock every time you fill up for gas or go to the grocery store, you're not alone. So what are you supposed to do when everything feels more expensive? Meet people finding outside-the-box ways to make their money stretch further. When magician Brian Glow sits down to a meal at Winnipeg’s Bistro on Notre Dame, he won’t pay his bill with money. He’ll use the local barter bank, MK Global Trade, and exchange magic shows for food, services, and even home renovations. Find out how it works and why Martin Kahan, the man behind the bank, says barter is growing in these expensive times. When Whitehorse resident Joanne Doyle drops stuff off at the dump, she’s not leaving empty-handed. Find out how community-driven "free stores" in the Yukon are helping people save money, declutter their homes, and score amazing free stuff. Ify goes thrift shopping with Heidi Kristensen, who tells us how thrifting isn't just helping her wallet -- it’s also helping her maintain her sobriety. After two decades in the education industry, Lethbridge, Alta. teacher Verna Mabin didn’t expect she’d still be working a side hustle…and searching for another. Nova Scotia mom Alex MacLaren has a motto when it comes to cooking on a budget: We use what we have. So every day, you'll find her MacGyvering every last vegetable in her crisper into meals even her five-year-old loves, and sharing those tips with her 800,000 followers.
Sep 17

Kindness isn't dead: Five stories that prove it

We’re more divided than ever and sometimes, it feels like meanness is winning. So this week, Now or Never is going all in on kindness, with five totally unexpected stories on the kindness of strangers that will hopefully nudge you to be a little kinder, too. Two weeks ago, Ben Shannon got a call at work that every parent fears: his 12-year-old daughter, Sumire, was alone, at one of Toronto's busiest intersections, experiencing a sudden medical emergency. He raced to the scene and found a stranger cradling his daughter amidst the chaos. In the rush to get to the hospital, Ben didn't get the Good Samaritan's name. But now that Sumire is OK, Ben is on a mission to find the stranger who stepped up for his daughter in a crisis. On September 11, 2001, a terrifying plane detour brought Americans Sue Riccardelli and Maureen Murray to Gander, Newfoundland and into the life of a stranger named Mac Moss. Today, the three friends reunite to talk about kindness and gratitude, at a time when tensions between Canada and the U.S. are particularly high. We asked you for your stories about a recent moment of kindness involving a stranger, and you delivered! Hear how these small moments of connection have stayed with them. An act of kindness cost Nadine Green her business, her friendships, and her home. But that is only making Nadine double down on her efforts to help unhoused people in her community. Find out what motivates Nadine to keep giving, sometimes to her own detriment. A cancelled flight left Patricia Robinson wondering how she was ever going to make it to her 90th birthday celebration. Then two strangers stepped up and gave her a birthday road trip that she will never forget. When Colin Vickers was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, a stem cell transplant was his only hope. From across the ocean came a match — an anonymous genetic twin. Once he recovered, Colin made it his mission to find the donor. Meet Scotland’s Charlie Devlin and find out how you make friends with the stranger who saved your life.
Sep 10

Is everything negotiable? This guys thinks so

When the Canada-U.S. trade negotiations broke down in spectacular fashion last month, that got us thinking about the tough negotiations playing out in our own lives right now. Whether you're battling your kid over screen time or negotiating a pay raise, how do you find a middle ground when you don't see eye-to-eye? So on this episode of Now or Never, we're bringing you stories of people on opposite sides, who are figuring out how to talk to each other. You might remember Vivian Ketchum, kookum, activist, and long-time friend of the show. After a violent incident between a security guard and a First Nations man at the Dollarama in downtown Winnipeg, Viv took to the streets protesting the security company responsible. Enter Ron D’Errico. He's the CEO of that security company, who calls Vivian his "greatest adversary." He also knows he needs to do something about racial profiling. Trevor pulls up a chair between the two, to find out how they went from butting heads to working together. In his day job as a realtor, Mohit Agarwal makes deals and encourages his clients to negotiate before signing. He says there's always a deal to be done in everyday life. So Ify joins him as he puts his skills to the test on the streets of Toronto. As one of the stars of Dragon’s Den, Manjit Minhas knows what it’s like to negotiate under pressure. So we asked her: how does she apply her negotiation tactics as a CEO on her own teenagers? When negotiations failed and a trade war started, Osee Podolsky knew he was in trouble. As a third-generation bee farmer near Ethelbert, Manitoba, 90 per cent of his customers were big U.S. bulk buyers. So overnight, Osee had to pivot and renegotiate in order to keep the family business buzzing.
Sep 3

We threw a surprise party for our 10th anniversary. We didn’t expect what happened next

Now or Never celebrates ten years of diving in with people as they gather the courage to take a leap into the unknown, with a live show from Winnipeg's Gas Station Arts Centre! There are always surprises in a Now or Never story, and this live show is no exception. Secret guests, a pop-up choir, confetti cannons and one hilariously unfiltered kookum who you don't want to miss. Winnipeg couple Trish Cooper and Sam Vint’s life together has been filled with hilarious and surprising (mis)adventures, including culture shock on the rez, a surprise gummy overdose, and discovering your partner is an accidental fugitive. After 23 years together, can Sam pull off a surprise for Trish live on stage? Musician Boy Golden shares songs from his new album, and a truly jaw-dropping story from the road. Now or Never all-star Vivian Ketchum is back for a record fifth appearance on the show and this time it's unhinged. We were there when she graduated high school at 58, sat on her bed as she shared the residential school memories that keep her up at night, and joined her at the post office opening letters from Canadians across the country sharing their reconciliation commitments. What is Vivian up to now? Dating! Hear her raw and unfiltered takes on sex and dating in her sixties. Two months ago, Jo Dworschak quit her job to follow her dream of being a full-time storyteller and comedian. She joins us on stage to share how fixing a broken elevator in a bathing suit at 17, lit the spark for the life she’s living today. Hundreds of Canadians have shared their stories on Now or Never over the years. Can Ify and Trevor remember them all? We challenge them with a game of "Guess the Guest," as past guests pop up on stage with three clues, while a blindfolded Trevor and Ify try to figure out who they are. Plus, Ify and Trevor try their best to surprise each other. This episode originally aired in April 2026.

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When she was 20 years old, something terrible happened to Vienna Luke. And for more than a decade, the truth of that night remains buried. But when Vienna becomes a mother, she realizes she must confront the past and uncover the truth – whatever the consequences for her family. Her sister Shawnessy comes aboard in the role of dogged detective and Vienna plays the secret agent in a relentless search for answers and justice. Personally: Agent Layla is a gripping true story about memory, family and how far one woman must go to set the record straight. Hosted by Jodie Martinson. Episode one is available wherever you get your podcasts, September 21. ---ABOUT PERSONALLY--- 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.

4.1 (441)

Documentary
Normally, therapy sessions are totally confidential — but this podcast opens the doors. In this season of Other People’s Problems, Dr. Hillary McBride explores the transformative power of psychedelics in a therapeutic setting. With her psychological expertise, Dr. Hillary leads her clients through drug-assisted therapy, guiding them to new heights on their healing journeys. Experience these real, unscripted sessions firsthand as they unfold in each episode. This season offers an unprecedented look at psychedelic psychotherapy, breaking new ground in the podcast space and demystifying this often misunderstood practice as a powerful tool in trauma recovery. Season 5 of Other People’s Problems will be available everywhere on May 12, 2025. Hear episodes early and ad-free on CBC Stories Premium.

4.7 (773)

Society & Culture
If you’ve ever been to Newfoundland, you know it’s a place where fog can envelop you so deeply, you don’t know where you’re going or where you came from. When two men, born in the same rural Newfoundland hospital on the same day, discover an unbelievable 52-year-old secret, it changes the way they see themselves forever. But this isn’t the end of the story. Because it turns out these men are not alone. A series of other close calls and near misses have begun to emerge, and not only at Come by Chance hospital. Come By Chance is a story about what it means to belong in a family — and how a twist of fate can upend the life you thought you knew. Hosted by Luke Quinton. Seven episodes releasing Tuesday, June 4, 2024.

4.7 (166)

Society & Culture
Love, marriage… and a secret history of trauma. Anna Maria Tremonti has been keeping her past a secret for over 40 years. As one of Canada’s most respected journalists, she has a reputation for being fearless and hard-hitting. She’s reported from some of the world’s most dangerous conflict zones. But none were as immediately threatening as life at home. In her early 20s, she fell in love with a man who seemed worldly and charming. Behind closed doors he was incredibly violent. They were only married for a year but the consequences of the abuse have lasted a lifetime. This is the first time Anna Maria has told anyone—including family or close friends—the details of what she endured. Working with her therapist, she reveals the intimate details of a past she’s kept to herself for most of her life. The result is a profoundly intimate portrait of a powerful woman confronting the source of tremendous pain and trauma and, remarkably, freeing herself from a life-long sense of shame. Written and hosted by Anna Maria Tremonti (The Current), produced by Daemon Fairless (Hunting Warhead, Boys Like Me) and mixed by Mira Burt-Wintonick (Wiretap, Love Me, Sorry About The Kid).

4.8 (228)

Documentary
Who gets to compete? Since the beginning of women’s sports, there has been a struggle over who qualifies for the women’s category. Tested follows the unfolding story of elite female runners who have been told they can no longer race as women, because of their biology. As the Olympics approach, they face hard choices: take drugs to lower their natural testosterone levels, give up their sport entirely, or fight. To understand how we got here, Host Rose Eveleth (they/them) traces the surprising, 100-year history of sex testing.

4.5 (275)

Sports
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 now, 30 years later, Alex wants them back. In this emotional four-part series, Alex unearths his childhood grief — with help from family, friends, and a therapist who witnessed his brother’s death. What happens when trauma and memory collide? Sorry About The Kid is a deeply personal meditation on the losses that define us. Hosted by Alex McKinnon. Produced with Mira Burt-Wintonick (WireTap, Love Me).

4.9 (347)

Documentary

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4.9

out of 5

28 Ratings

Definitetly not DNTO but a welcome surprise

01/06/2017

JPthr33

My subscription to DNTO was automatically transmogrified into this show a few months ago and I admit I was skeptical, but (you knew there was a "but", this is a five star review), but I was genuinely surprised. Quality programming here from a blend of personalities that hit the spot in terms of banter. The producing team behind the hosts must boast a rich vein of talent. I know I'm in the US and have the generous tax dollars of our step-siblings up north to thank for this, so "thanks" Canada--I'll hit you back someday. Here's hoping "Now or Never" isn't a time-specific command to non-Canadian listeners about when to directly fund the show. ;)
My Favourite!

05/28/2016

3DdonnaB

This has been my favorite show for years on CBC and now I get the podcasts on my phone. Hip and fresh always with interesting topics and I love Sook-Yin Lee. I’ve never turned an episode on and not finished it. The topics are always right up my alley and I learn so much! Fun listening!!
Very cool

05/11/2014

StephenDedalus

Very current, fun, intelligent, different, human, insightful
Entertaining and lots of heart

09/17/2012

Dumbo's Circus

The hosts obviously have a passion for storytelling, and it comes through with some of the unusual topics they cover. I know there are a lot of comparisons to "This American Life," but I think DNTO has much more personal approach. Rather than tell you other people's stories, they work to make those stories relatable to listeners. The man on the street interviews often give a snap shot on the show topic too. If you love your podcasts thoughtful and funny, then DNTO is for you. Also, don't worry about this being a Canadian production, as the stories it tells are universal to humankind, not country-specific. Great work!