Leons Headlines Sept 22: NEW this MORNING-Canadian-resident return trips from the U.S. hit 2.3 million in July, up 10.2% year-over-year — the fourth straight monthly increase, driven almost entirely by same-day car trips.
-A potato-hauling semi left the Trans-Canada & rolled onto its side east of Hwy 34 near Austin Monday evening; no word on cause or if the driver was injured.
-Today at 4:30 PM is the deadline to update voter info with your local Municipal Government for the upcoming Oct 28th election.
-A 14yr old boy was hospitalized in stable condition after being stabbed by another teen Monday at Portage Collegiate Institute, prompting a brief lockdown of the school & daycares; a 15yr old was arrested & charges are pending.
-United Way West Central MB launched its 2026 campaign Monday with a $867,530.90 fundraising goal inspired by a 1981 Tommy Tutone hit.
-Community Futures Westman appoints Melissa Rushton as its new executive director.
-MB’s audited 25-26 deficit was $832M, $38M worse than the $794M originally budgeted, but half the $1.66B forecast in December.
-Nearly 1 in 4 Canadian households (23.2%) live in unaffordable housing, renters among those most affected.
-NHL Pre-season; Jets 3 Avalanche 1; tonight the Jets host Edmonton.
-Enjoy the final few hours of summer, fall officially arrives at 7:05 pm.
Winnipeg restaurant finalist. Winnipeg is getting some national food love, with a local restaurant named a finalist for Canada’s Best New Dining Destination. Not bad for a city that sometimes gets overlooked on the national culinary map — and it might be a good excuse to try somewhere new this week.
🤖 Tilly Norwood glitches. This is one of those “wait… WHAT just happened?” AI moments: Tilly Norwood, the computer-generated actress, suddenly switched from English to Cantonese during an interview with Piers Morgan. The funniest part? When Morgan asked what happened, Tilly basically blamed a “little hiccup” and said her wires got crossed — and the clip has since gone viral.
Big retail brands enter the resale game. Lululemon, Canada Goose and IKEA are getting deeper into the resale business, essentially saying: if people are going to buy our stuff second-hand, we might as well be part of the transaction. Lululemon has now brought its Like New program to Canada, while Canada Goose and IKEA are also building their own second-life markets.
Toys “R” Us comeback in the US. Talk about a comeback story: Toys “R” Us is planning 120 new U.S. stores, taking its American standalone footprint from about 40 to 160 locations for the 2026 holiday season. Meanwhile, Toys “R” Us Canada entered creditor protection earlier this year and is shrinking its Canadian footprint — so the contrast between the two countries is pretty wild. However here at home, the Toys “R” Us story has gone in the opposite direction, with Winnipeg losing its remaining locations as the Canadian operation restructures. The company was purchased by Doug Putnam after the earlier bankruptcy-era collapse, but the attempted revival ultimately hasn’t produced the turnaround hoped for.
Winnipeg’s Toys “R” Us situation has changed a lot.The Pembina Highway store is closed (since late 2024). The Polo Park/St. Matthews location is also closing. The Regent Avenue location (1560 Regent Ave. W.) was the remaining Winnipeg store, but it has also been announced for closure this year.
👑 Princess Diana’s brother’s new book. Princess Diana’s brother Charles Spencer has released Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, and he isn’t holding back about what he says happened behind the scenes of Diana’s life and death. Among the most striking claims are his accounts of conversations with then-Prince Charles and Diana’s own doubts about her marriage — but remember, these are Spencer’s recollections and allegations, not independently established facts.
Ed Sheeran breaks down. Ed Sheeran became emotional during his first concert after the explosive fallout involving Macklemore being removed from his tour and several other supporting acts leaving. Sheeran apologized to fans and said the whole situation had become much bigger than music, with the singer visibly breaking down while talking about whether the tour — and even his career — would continue.
Man overboard. A 56-year-old man went overboard from the Carnival Panorama off the coast of Mexico, triggering a search involving the ship, the U.S. Coast Guard and Mexican Navy. Right now, authorities are investigating what happened, so the big question is exactly that: was this an accident, or did he intentionally go overboard?
