By Victoria Ahearn

CBC has greenlit new seasons of a slew of original comedies, including scripted series Run the Burbs and Son of a Critch, but Strays will not be returning.

Son of a Critch and Run the Burbs have been greenlit for third seasons, while long-standing sketch program This Hour Has 22 Minutes is getting a 31st season.

However, Strays has been cancelled after two seasons, a CBC spokesperson confirmed, adding that “it was a CBC programming decision not to renew the series.” The 30-minute series premiered in fall 2021 as a spin-off of CBC’s Kim’s Convenience. Nicole Power starred as the head of an animal shelter in Hamilton, Ont.

Created by comedian, writer and actor Andrew Phung and his best friend and collaborator, filmmaker Scott Townend, Toronto-shot Run the Burbs follows a Vietnamese-South Asian-Canadian family in the suburbs. Phung also stars in the series and is an executive producer along with Townend.

Based on Mark Critch’s memoir, Son of a Critch is set and filmed in Newfoundland and Labrador. It’s created by Critch, who also stars in the Halifax-shot This Hour Has 22 Minutes, and Tim McAuliffe, and produced by Andrew Barnsley. The most recent season was the most-watched English Canadian comedy series, according to Numeris figures, and CBC’s most-watched program with the 18- to 49-year-old and 25- to 54-year-old audiences.

Also returning for the 2023-24 broadcast season are several standup comedy specials and series, including The New Wave of Standup (season four), which is filmed at Just For Laughs Vancouver and produced by Just For Laughs TV. Just for Laughs Galas, which is also from Just For Laughs TV, will have a 20th season, while the Winnipeg Comedy Festival has been tapped for a 22nd season and the Halifax Comedy Fest has a greenlight for season 27.

The pubcaster’s 2023-24 comedy slate also includes Peabody Award-winning comedy Sort Of, which was renewed for a third season by CBC and HBO Max last December.

“Run the Burbs, Son of a Critch, Sort Of and This Hour Has 22 Minutes each provide a reflection of this country that is unique, funny and genuinely Canadian and as result, have firmly established themselves as part of CBC’s comedy legacy,” said Sally Catto, general manager, entertainment, factual and Sports, CBC, in a statement.

A version of this story previously ran on Playback.