This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Neil Lumsden who joins Scott to talk about the reopening of restaurant patios and loosened restrictions in Ontario, taking another look at our history through the lens of today's standards, bringing back things from our youth and more. Guest: Neil Lumsden, Vanier Cup Champion, Grey Cup Champion, CFL Hall of Fame Member, former Athletic Director of Brock University & Amazing Race Canada Contestant

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) School's aren't often fully evacuated unless under the most dire of situations like say, a bobcat in the school. Whoever called in this bobcat sighting needs their eyes checked because when the school was finally cleared, it was found to be nothing more than a house cat. 2) Semi-trucks and the trailers they tow are truly some of the most important things to ensuring our society and its businesses can function. Unfortunately things occasionally go wrong while en route and it isn't until you realize that you've leaked an entire trailer's worth of tomato paste mixed with olive oil on the highway for as far as the eye can see. Though it may look like blood, it's only a horror scene for those who love the culinary arts. 3) It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a sex-toy wielding quadcopter? Just some of the words that were almost guaranteed to have been said by onlookers of a a mayoral speech that was being conducted by a mayoral candidate. Whether the goal was to slap the candidate's head with the toy or just to simply divert peoples' attention, it was clear that the only way it was going to be removed was by 'gripping and ripping'. Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

A parole hearing is coming up for Paul Bernardo but everyone is asking, is there really a chance at him being released from his life sentence? Guest: Tim Danson, Lawyer representing the French and Mahaffy families - The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed many weaknesses in our education system. This is something that Dr. Paul Bennett has helped distill down to 5 headlines that describe what exactly is going on with our students, teachers and the system as a whole. Guest: Dr. Paul Bennett, Founding Director & Lead Consultant, Schoolhouse Consulting and Author, "The State of the System" & Educhatter blog - Hockey fans are yet again wondering what punishment, if any, is going to be delivered by the NHL. This comes after another player was injured to the point of being stretchered off of the ice. Is it time for the enforcer to come back or is the NHL actually going to do what it says? Guest: Sean Fitzgerald, Senior National Writer, The Athletic

A long meeting was held at Hamilton City Hall between Councillors and the head of Metrolinx about the proposed LRT system. Was anything accomplished? Guest: Chad Collins, Ward 5 Councillor, City of Hamilton - The Prime Minister said that Quebec can call itself a nation unto itself with the ability to make unilateral changes to the Canadian Constitution. One such change would be the ability to declare French its only official language. By that standard, could any other province declare English to be its only official language? Is it time to end Canada's official bilingualism? Guest: JJ McCullough, Columnist, The Washington Post - You can watch those TV shows you loved as a kid once again! Thanks to a website that's broadcasting the commercials, shows, news, sports & more from the 1970s, 80s, 90s & 00s! Scott speaks with the creator of these websites to find out how the My Retro TV series came into existence and what inspired their creation. Guest: Joey Cato, Creator, My Retro TV series

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) Dead bodies decompose & get extremely smelly over time, that's a fact. A court inquest uncovered that someone, who was knowingly living with a dead body, decided to fight that stench with the help of 70 bottles of air freshener. At what point does someone decide that they've got to get rid of something? 2) Art is something that often finds its place coming from the mind and heart but an Italian sculptor has taken that to a whole new level with his latest sculpture that sold for 15,000 euros ($22146.15 CAD). That very same sculpture is one of an immaterial nature which is fancy talk for it's entirely imaginary and has no physical or digital form. Who thought this was something they wanted to buy?! 3) PC gaming is full of weird and wonderful games from expansive fictional sagas to intricate simulators. One of those simulators has been released under the title, "Chair Simulator". This distinct simulator allows for the player to sit in a chair. Genius. Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) If you were to buy a lottery ticket, you generally want it to be in the drawing you want. This lady didn't have that experience as she entered 3 minutes late which put her into the next drawing. It might not be the lottery she wanted but it sure was the outcome she was hoping for, winning a cool $2 million. 2) Pulling a sports jersey off is usually straight forward and any professional player has done it thousands of times. A pro baseball player's recent injury might make you think otherwise, after all, a broken thumb is no small thing in America's pastime. 3) North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-Un has found the solution to preventing the spread of capitalism through a simple ban on two things: mullets and skinny jeans. Congratulations Kim, you've beat capitalism. Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

It's rather well known that governments aren't always the best when it comes to spending money and, unfortunately, that trend is continuing. The federal government will be spending $17.7 billion next year just on consultants. Couple that with the fact that the federal government has approximately 380,000 civil servants and it starts making you wonder why there's so many people who can't do the job on their own. Guest: Stephen LeDrew, Political Commentator; Host, The LeDrew Three Minute Interview; Former President, Liberal Party of Canada - As the Toronto Maple Leafs head into Game 7 of their playoff round against the Montreal Canadiens, fans on both sides are holding their breath to see if their team will go on to play the Winnipeg Jets. It's been 17 years since this match was last made and everyone is wondering, how is this game going to go? Guest: Kevin Shea,  Hockey Historian and Author of ‘Voices in Blue and White: Pride and Passion for the Maple Leafs’ - The prospect of completely autonomous cars is something that's long been held in the realm of science fiction but scientists are working on making it reality; in fact, they've been working on it for years! What's holding them back and are streets full of cars that drive themselves something that's still far off in the future? Guest: Dr. Krzysztof Czarnecki, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo

This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Scot Urquhart who joins Scott to talk about the price of tickets to see the Toronto Maple Leafs play against the Montreal Canadiens, Hamilton's proposed LRT system, a rise in the number of smokers worldwide, whether you would want to know if you'll get Alzheimer's before you start showing symptoms and more. Guest: Scot Urquhart, Co-Host, The Hamilton Network, Cable 14

It seems like there's a nice thick layer of pollen coating every surface in Hamilton this spring. Where did it all come from and what exactly is pollen? Is there any reason it's here in such abundance? Guest: Barbara McKean, Head of Education, Royal Botanical Gardens - Is this the year we'll see the Toronto Maple Leafs continue all the way to win the Stanley Cup? If this first round between the Maple Leafs & Canadiens is anything to go off of, things are looking good for the Leafs. Guest: Rick Zamperin, Senior Sports Director, Global News Radio 900 CHML - UFOs are synonymous with aliens and conspiracy theorists however there might be a shift towards talking about these in a more serious & academic light. Is it time we start talking about the possibility of aliens as something that might actually be real and something that should be studied rather than dismissed as tinfoil hat wearing non-sense? Guest: Dr. Jesse Rogerson, Astrophysicist; Assistant Professor, Department of Science & Technology Studies, York University

Ontario's education system seems to love moving students forward but hates to keep them back regardless of their readiness to progress to the next grade. What happens if a parent doesn't think their kid is ready for the next grade? What can they do? Guest: Monika Ferenczy, Education Expert, Consultant & Author - Metronlinx will be sending its big wigs to Hamilton City Council to answer some questions about the proposed LRT system. What do Councillors want to know? Guest: Lloyd Ferguson, Ward 12 Councillor, City of Hamilton - The 2021 Daytime Emmy nominations have been released and one of the nominees is a guy from Hamilton. You might know him as Dante Falconeri from General Hospital but his real name is Dominic Zamprogna. Are soap fans as crazy as they might seem? What's it like being nominated in the "Lead Actor in a Drama Series" category? Guest: Dominic Zamprogna, Actor & 2021 Daytime Emmy Nominee

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) When the graduating class pulls a prank, there's usually some appreciation for the genius with a pinch of insanity needed to a good one work. These students weren't that lucky instead getting suspended just long enough to miss the graduation ceremony. 2) There isn't often a lot of overlap between the mentality of a criminal and a police officer. This is one of those rare occasions where the officer was probably just as surprised as the criminal who, after stealing a bike and a ham (odd combo but ok), decided to hide in the ceiling of a Subway restaurant. The overlap comes from the surprise everyone felt when he came crashing through the ceiling to the officers' feet. A painful lesson to learn in many different ways. 3) Can't hold your wedding because of COVID-19 restrictions? There's a fix for that! Just charter a plane with everyone you've invited on board and get married that way! Sure the airline might get investigated for disobeying the restrictions but hey, you're married now! Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

You would have been considered a hardcore conspiracy theorist a while back if you said that COVID-19 was created in a Wuhan lab but is there a chance that that might be the case? Guest: Dr. Charles Burton, Senior Fellow, Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad - It would appear that there's a shift in people's usage and opinion of self-checkout vs. cashier. More people are starting to use the self-checkout lane despite a previous aversion to them. What has changed and has the COVID-19 pandemic played a role in this? Guest: Dr. Sylvain Charlebois a.k.a. The Food Professor, Senior Director, Agri-Food Analytics Lab, Dalhousie University - Many people have held the role of TV analyst across the multitude of sports we enjoy. Some of the best analysts are those who've fallen into the role following their athletic career. Does The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, have what it takes to be one such athlete? Scott discusses that very question with Don Robertson to find out. Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton welcomes Annette Hamm back to the show to talk about Hamilton's COVID Memorial Wall, CHCH's new building, an investigation into Martin Bashir's interview with Princess Diana, unkempt lawns and more. Guest: Annette Hamm, Co-host, Morning Live, CHCH-TV

The announcement has been made and it sounds like Ontario is going to be allowed to slowly start opening back up. What does the plan put forward by Doug Ford mean for Hamilton? Guest: Paul Johnson, Director, Emergency Operations Centre, City of Hamilton - Hamilton is now the third least affordable city in North America to live in. This puts it above Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Seattle, Chicago and many more. The two cities that are even less affordable than Hamilton are Toronto & Vancouver. What kind of challenge does that make for those who are trying to provide affordable housing? Guest: Graham Cubitt, Director of Projects and Development, Indwell - For the first time in a very, very long time, the Toronto Maple Leafs & the Montreal Canadiens will be playing against each other in the playoffs. Scott turns to someone who's played for both the Habs and the Leafs to get some insight into what it's like to be on the ice. Is more pressure generated by Toronto or Montreal fans? Guest: Ric Nattress, Former NHL Defenceman & Stanley Cup Champion

Today on the Scott Radley Show Podcast:   CAD has been trending above $0.83 USD on average which is great news! But why is it trending this way? And what is up with crypto currencies lately? That is what our first guest is trying to decode with us. As well he details what he likes to call the "Scott Radley Show curse." Marvin Ryder, Degroote School of Business, McMaster University.   The sport of baseball has changed a lot in recent years, will it ever go back? Mike Wilner, sports columnist for the Toronto Star. His podcast is Deep Left Field, and it can be found here: https://www.thestar.com/podcasts/deepleftfield.html

Winning a game of bingo feels great but being able to do so with a belly full of great food is even better! A big game of bingo involving restaurants from all over Hamilton is currently underway. With dishes that span everywhere from Thai food & barbeque to butter tarts & chocolate dipped ice cream cones and more, there is something for everyone and you're helping small businesses all over this great city of ours. How did it start and how do you enter? Scott gets the rundown from Chan Thatch. Guest: Chan Thach, Founder, Ask for Chan

Justin Trudeau has recently come out and said that Quebec has the ability to unilaterally make amendments to the Constitution of Canada. Is this accurate and if so, does that mean every province is free to change parts of the Canadian Constitution? Guest: Ryan O'Connor, Lawyer & Partner, Zayouna Law Firm - Working from home has left many employees asking if they have the right to not answer the phone should work come calling outside of normal hours. The best person to answer this question is an employment lawyer so Scott does just that and brings one on the show. Guest: Mackenzie Irwin, Employment Lawyer, Samfiru-Tumarkin LLP - Apparently there are some intentions for Bill C-10 to help promote Canadian content. But aren't there already laws in place to aid in the promotion of Canadian content? Do we need to promote our content even more? Is it time to take it easy with how hard we push it? Guest: Eric Alper, Publicist, Music Commentator & Shameless Idealist

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) There are many things that don't belong on a plane. An example of this is a mask-less, shoe-less passenger who's acting aggressive and making stabbing motions to everyone while spewing racial & misogynistic slurs just after snorting some white powder. I wonder what that powder could have been... 2) It's no secret that the service and hospitality industry has been truly wrecked by the COVID-19 pandemic but there might be a solution being proposed in the Britain. Everyone has a job to do and that job is simple, every adult must drink around 124 pints of beer in order to save the pub industry. For the first time ever, you can be drunk and doing your part at the same time! 3) Winning the lottery is an astronomically unlikely thing to do which makes it that much more special for those who win. Of those who have drawn the winning ticket, how many do you think have washed a pair of pants that holds that very same ticket? The stars must have aligned because we found someone who did just that! Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

Bob Bratina has announced that he won't be running for his seat in the House of Commons in the next election and with a mayoral race not far off in the distance, questions about if he'll run in it or not are starting to crop up. Who else has been tagged as being likely to run for the Mayor of Hamilton? Guest: Bill Kelly, Host, The Bill Kelly Show, Global News Radio 900 CHML - Quadmester is the word of the day for Hamilton and Toronto's school boards. What would this new format of dividing up the school day mean for students and teachers as well as the curricula? Guest: Vanessa Vakharia, Founder & CEO of The Math Guru - Athletes often say that the fans and crowd noises don't influence how they play but we'll be getting a chance to see if that's actually the case as American and Canadian hockey teams play their playoff games with very different amounts of fans in the stands. Despite being a team that has many of the traits that make for a high grossing team in terms of fan base, the Toronto Blue Jays only seem to garner attention when they're winning or scoring big, why is that? Scott and Don discuss these and more in this week's edition of Sports Talk with Don Robertson. Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Rick Zamperin who joins Scott to talk about the idea of reintroducing grade 13 to schools, Hamilton's age-old debate over LRT, the Toronto Maple Leafs finally making a playoff appearance, potentially changing the way homes are bought in the hopes of combating rampant house prices and more. Guest: Rick Zamperin, Senior Sports Director, Global News Radio 900 CHML

The CFL relies on fans being in the stands, and the revenue they generate, to carry on but some recent news from the provincial sports minister sounds like that crucial life line might not be there. What could this mean for the CFL and this year's season? Guest: Steve Foxcroft, Sports Broadcaster, NFL Chain Gang Member, NBA Court-side Administrator & Vice-President, Fluke Transport - SCTV is a staple for many people thanks to iconic skits and characters and that goes for both sides of the screen as its launched the careers of many comedians and actors. A documentary that was set to be directed by Martin Scorsese about an SCTV reunion was in the works however we're hearing it's been delayed. Scott speaks with Bill Brioux to find out more about this. Guest: Bill Brioux, TV blogger, brioux.tv

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) CCTV cameras are infamous for their grainy quality video feeds but one bakery has decided they can still work with that after being broken into. Why not take the best photo they have of the burglar and put it on some of their food? 2) A lady in Australia got her wisdom teeth removed but awoke from the general anesthetic to find that her mouth isn't the only thing that changed, her voice did too! Despite never visiting Ireland in her life, she now has an Irish accent! 3) Having your car broken into is really bad but what's even worse is having your prosthetic arm stolen too! Luckily enough for this one-armed pitcher, his thief threw away the arm only for it to be found by workers at a recycling plant who sent it back to him. Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?

Inflation is a constant when it comes to the economy but that doesn't mean the rate of inflation is ever constant. In fact it's the word of the day with economists worrying about if it's time to start bracing for a big hit and in the event that it does come, how bad will the hit be? Guest: Marvin Ryder, Associate Professor of Marketing, DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University - Should the Olympics go forward and take place in Japan this year? There's a growing number of people who think the answer should be no and many of them are in Japan. Scott chats with an expert on the Olympics who's also played soccer at the professional level to here what he thinks about the situation. Guest: Dr. Jules Boykoff, Author of Power Games: A Political History of the Olympics; Professor of Politics, Pacific University; Former Professional Soccer Player - With an announcement about Hamilton's pending LRT system expected to happen tomorrow, Scott has spoken with people who are in favour of the project happening and now it's time to hear from someone who's a little more reserved about the project. Guest: Chad Collins, Ward 5 Councillor, City of Hamilton

Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features: 1) A politician in India has made a video where he can be seen drinking a liquid that he claims, if ingested on an empty stomach every day, will prevent COVID-19 from infecting you. What is this magical liquid you might ask? Cow urine. Is this one of those cases where the cure is worse than the disease? 2) It turns out that Auckland, New Zealand has a pothole problem and someone has taken it upon their self to do something about them. Draw some phallic imagery that features the pothole and then boom, the pothole is gone! The pen may be mightier than the sword but spray paint seems to be much quicker. 3) An ugly picture on your ID may suck but you only have to show it every now and then. An ugly mug shot, on the other hand, sucks much more, especially when the police is posting it everywhere. This criminal found a solution to this, get some better pictures taken and then send the police one of them. Which one will be crowned Ben's Story of the Day? Which one is your story of the day?