70th anniversary of television on P.E.I.

 This week is the 70th anniversary of the arrival of television broadcasting on PEI, and The Guardian published an opinion piece I wrote. 

COMMENTARY:

Photo: Kathy Large, left, and her brother-in-law, Ian Scott, display a photo of Large's grandfather, Keith Rogers, during a 2021 ceremony at Government House in Charlottetown. Photo by Omar Broderick /Slick Photography/File

70th anniversary of television on P.E.I.

By Ian Scott, Contributed

Published by The Guardian, Charlottetown, PEI -- Jun 27, 2026

July 1, 2026 is a milestone for local broadcasting on P.E.I. as it marks the 70th anniversary of the arrival of television.

CFCY-TV signed on the airwaves on July 1, 1956, fulfilling the personal dream of Keith Rogers who had established commercial radio locally, with the licensing of CFCY in 1924. His untimely death in 1954 had meant that plans to create a P.E.I.-based TV station would fall to his wife and children who rose to that challenge — completing the job in 1956. His daughter Betty and son-in-law Bob Large took the lead, supported by Betty’s sister Marianne Morrow, brother Bill Rogers, and her mother Flora. Across Canada, many local radio station operators were considering similar moves, despite the warning about the costs in building and operating a station, which could destroy the cash flow of a successful radio station by diverting advertising dollars still needed by the radio operation. Undaunted by the warnings from his colleagues, the boyhood dream of Keith Rogers to bring modern means of communications to the Island, would eventually come to fruition.

Affiliated with CBC

Located initially in a building on the top of the hill in Churchill, the site still houses a variety of transmission towers, but the reality of getting performers to the site in the middle of winter was a challenge. Building a TV studio behind the radio station on Kent Street in Charlottetown was the next goal and construction began on a building in the area between the Charlottetown Hotel and City Hall.

Locally owned, but with CBC affiliate status, both the radio station and TV operations could carry national content like Hockey Night in Canada, and also provide locally produced material to the network. Don Messer had first been hired by the radio station as musical director in 1940, and eventually his band The Islanders, became popular with a growing audience on both radio and television nationally. That success launched the band’s career bringing East Coast music to a keen audience across the country.

CBC had a policy shift away from affiliate stations towards full ownership of CBC facilities in the 1960s. Timing was right for retirement for Bob and Betty Large, and the remaining family ownership group, thus in 1968, the TV operation was sold to CBC, marking a new era for local broadcasting on P.E.I.

While much has changed in 70 years, radio, television, and newspapers all remain key parts of ensuring that local news coverage remains a vital part of Island life.

Ian Scott is a former executive director with the P.E.I. Museum and Heritage Foundation. He lives in Charlottetown.