The Ultimate Canada Day BBQ:
Terry Fox (38%), Wayne Gretzky (36%) and Cйline Dion (33%) Would Top Canadians' Guest List

Toronto, ON - As Canada prepares to celebrate its 143rd birthday on July 1st, a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of The Historica-Dominion Institute finds that if Canadians were organizing the ultimate Canada Day BBQ and they could invite 5 famous Canadians past or present to join their friends and family, Terry Fox, Wayne Gretzky and Cйline Dion would be on the invite list most often.

From among a list of 30 names, 38% of Canadians would include Terry Fox among the five they would invite to their backyard BBQ if they could. With one leg amputated, Fox embarked on a cross-Canada run in 1980 to raise money and awareness for cancer research, but he died before being able to complete his journey.

Nearly four in ten (36%) would choose to invite Wayne Gretzky, otherwise known as The Great One for his prowess in the hockey rink, while one in three would invite international singing sensation Cйline Dion (33%) - perhaps as the afternoon's entertainment. Rounding out the top-five are environmentalist David Suzuki (30%) and comedian/actor Mike Myers (30%).

Below are the names of 30 famous Canadians and the proportion of Canadians who would include them among the five who would receive invitations:

The data also reveal some interesting differences across the country:

• The top 5 on the invite list in British Columbia are Terry Fox (46%), David Suzuki (39%), Pierre Elliott Trudeau (34%), Wayne Gretzky (31%) and Rick Mercer (31%).
• In Alberta, Wayne Gretzky (46%), Terry Fox (43%), David Suzuki (36%), William Shatner (35%) and Cйline Dion (34%) are most commonly included on Canadians' invite list. Anne Murray (32%) also made her way onto Albertans' lists quite often.
• In Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Neil Young (44%) is first on the invite list, followed by Mike Myers (37%), William Shatner (36%), Terry Fox (35%) and Wayne Gretzky (32%). Honourable mentions go to Louis Riel who would be invited by 26% of those in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
• In Ontario, Terry Fox (38%) was included on the invite list most often, followed by Mike Myers (36%), Wayne Gretzky (35%), David Suzuki (31%) and P.E. Trudeau (31%). Don Cherry (28%) performed particularly well in Ontario as well.
• In Quebec the invite list looks a little different. A majority (62%) of Quebecers would include Maurice "The Rocket" Richard on their invite list, making him the most-chosen Canadian in a single region of the country. A majority (52%) of Quebecers would also include Cйline Dion in the BBQ plans, while nearly half (47%) would invite Renй Lйvesque. Guy Lalibertй (43%) and Wayne Gretzky (36%) round out the top five.
• Terry Fox (43%) and Wayne Gretzky (43%) are equally as likely to appear on the invite list in Atlantic Canada, followed by Cйline Dion (35%), David Suzuki (33%) and Mike Myers (31%).

The invite list also differs based on the age of the people hosting the BBQ:

• Those aged 18 to 34 were most likely to include Mike Myers (51%), Wayne Gretzky (46%), Terry Fox (40%), Cйline Dion (33%) and David Suzuki (27%).
• Those aged 35 to 54 were most likely to include Terry Fox (38%), Wayne Gretzky (34%), Cйline Dion (34%), David Suzuki (34%) and Neil Young (34%).
• Those aged 55 and older were most likely to include Terry Fox (38%), Pierre Elliott Trudeau (34%), Cйline Dion (32%), Anne Murray (31%) and Wayne Gretzky (30%).

The data also reveal that men and women don't always agree on who should be included in their list of five invitees:

• Men were most likely to include Wayne Gretzky (41%), Terry Fox (33%), William Shatner (31%), Neil Young (29%) and Mike Myers (29%).
• Women were most likely to include Terry Fox (43%), Cйline Dion (38%), David Suzuki (32%), Wayne Gretzky (31%) and Mike Myers (31%).
• The biggest disagreements came with regards to Robert Munsch (18% women vs. 4% men), William Shatner (31% men vs. 19% women), Lucy Maud Montgomery (14% women vs. 2% men), Terry Fox (43% women vs. 33% men), Wayne Gretzky (41% men vs. 31% women), Cйline Dion (38% women vs. 27% men), Anne Murray (27% women vs. 17% men) and Steve Nash (20% men vs. 9% women).

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between June 24 and 28, 2010, on behalf of The Historica-Dominion Institute. For this survey, a sample of 1,035 adults from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. A survey with an unweighted probability sample of this size and a 100% response rate would have an estimated margin of error of +/-3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had the entire population of adults in Canada been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:
John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid Public Affairs
(416) 324-2002
[email protected]

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