The Greatest Canadian

In November 2004 Canadians put Tommy Douglas at the top of the heap in a country-wide poll. Borrowed from the BBC, The Greatest Canadian debuted on CBC TV in October.

Over the course of six weeks Canadians submitted more than 140,000 nominations from across the country. From that huge pool of nominations a top 10 list was finalized. Each candidate had a 30 minute show dedicated to him (all the top 10 in Canada were men), with a celebrity advocate telling Canadians across the country why their nominee was the best.

In the end, after some 1.2 million votes were cast by phone, text message and on the Internet, Tommy Douglas was named as the Greatest Canadian.

Tommy Douglas, a former premier of Saskatchewan has been credited with the development of Canada's health care system, which has had a significant impact on Canada as we know it today. Douglas was born in Scotland in 1904, and he grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He spent well over 50 years being dedicated to social causes, his biggest dream being universal health care for all Canadians regardless of ethnic background, social status or financial status.

He was a member of federal parliament from 1935-1944 and left national politics to become the premier of Saskatchewan. It was during this time he developed the concept of "medicare", a system which was later adopted at the federal level by the government. He went back to national politics in 1961 and became the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP). He retired from politics in 1971. Tommy Douglas died of cancer in 1986. For more on Tommy Douglas visit the CBC's extensive coverage at

Rounding out the top 10 were (and be reminded that some of these nominees were criticized for being in the top 10 in the first place):

2. Terry Fox, Canadian hero who brought cancer awareness and research to the forefront of Canadian society in his attempt to run across Canada

3. Pierre Elliott Trudeau, one of Canada's most influential Prime Ministers

4. Sir Frederick Banting, medical doctor credited with the development of insulin and other medical advances

5. David Suzuki, scientist and environmental campaigner

6. Lester B. Pearson, former Canadian Prime Minister credited with the Canada Pension Plan and other government reforms in the 1960s

7. Don Cherry, former NHL player and coach, now a television personality

8. Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada's first Prime Minister

9. Alexander Graham Bell, credited with the creation of the telephone

10. Wayne Gretzky, the world's greatest hockey player, who in retirement still makes waves on the management side of the game

Several broadcasters in other countries have set up their own "Greatest..." programs with results already in from Germany (Konrad Adenauer), England (Winston Churchill) and here in Finland. On December 5, 2004, Finns called in from around the country to choose the Greatest Finn. When all was said and done, General Marshall C.E.G. Mannerheim was bestowed the title. Rounding out the top three were President Risto Ryti and President Urho Kekkonen.

By Carmen Boudreau-Kiviaho