1987 in Canada

Events from the year 1987 in Canada.

Incumbents

Crown

Monarch – Elizabeth II

Federal government

Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

Premiers

Territorial governments

Commissioners

Premiers

Events

January 1 - Frobisher Bay changes its name to Iqaluit.
April 21 - The lifeless body of Claude Jutra was finally found in the Saint Lawrence River near Cap-Santé.
April 30 - Provincial premiers agree to Meech Lake Accord.
May 22 - Rick Hansen returns home to Vancouver after his Man in Motion world tour.
June 30 - Canada introduces a $1 coin, commonly called loonie; the dollar bill is withdrawn in 1989.
* a bill to restore the death penalty was defeated by the House of Commons in a 148–127 vote, in which Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, Minister of Justice Ray Hnatyshyn, and Minister of External Affairs Joe Clark opposed the bill, whereas Deputy Prime Minister Donald Mazankowski and a majority of Progressive Conservative MPs supported it.
July 3 - Quebec City becomes the first city in North America to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
July 14 - Montreal is hit by a series of severe thunderstorms during the Montreal Flood of 1987.
July 31 - The Edmonton Tornado kills 27 people.
September 10 - Ontario election: David Peterson's Liberals win a majority.
September 20 - Pope John Paul II visits the Northwest Territories.
October - Canadian and American negotiators reach agreement on the Canadian-American Free Trade Agreement.
October 27 - Frank McKenna becomes premier of New Brunswick, replacing Richard Hatfield.
October 31 - The Reform Party of Canada is founded.
November 12 - Dennis Patterson becomes government leader of the Northwest Territories, replacing Nick Sibbeston.
November 30 - Several new Canadian specialty channels are licensed: YTV, VisionTV, CBC Newsworld, The Weather Network/MeteoMedia, and one pay-television channel: The Family Channel.
December 16 - Chartwell Technology company is founded in British Columbia.
ElderTreks, Canadian adventure travel company is founded.

Arts and literature

New works

William Bell: Metal Head
Dave Duncan: A Rose-Red City
Michael Ignatieff: The Russian Album
Irving Layton: Fortunate Exile
Donald Jack: This One's on Me
Steve McCaffery: Evoba
Antonine Maillet: Margot la folle
Farley Mowat: Virunga: The Passion of Dian Fossey
Paul Quarrington, King Leary
Mordecai Richler: ''Jacob Two-Two and the Dinosaur''

Awards

See 1987 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
Books in Canada First Novel Award: Karen Lawrence, The Life of Helen Alone
Gerald Lampert Award: Rosemary Sullivan, The Space a Name Makes
Marian Engel Award: Audrey Thomas
Pat Lowther Award: Heather Spears, How to Read Faces
Stephen Leacock Award: W.P. Kinsella, The Fencepost Chronicles
Trillium Book Award: Michael Ondaatje, In the Skin of a Lion
Vicky Metcalf Award: Robert Munsch

Music

November 27 - Rock band Cowboy Junkies record their most famous album, The Trinity Session, at Toronto's Church of the Holy Trinity.

Sport

January 26 - Calgary's Bret Hart wins his first title when he became the third Canadian to win the World Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championship by defeating the British Bulldogs in Tampa, Florida, for the WWF's Superstars of Wrestling
May 15 - The Medicine Hat Tigers win their first Memorial Cup by defeating the Oshawa Generals 6 to 2. The final game was played at Oshawa Civic Auditorium in Oshawa, Ontario
May 31 - The Edmonton Oilers win their third Stanley Cup by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4 games to 3. The deciding Game 7 was played at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton. Brandon, Manitoba's Ron Hextall was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy in a losing effort.
June 24 - The "new" Montreal Allouettes cease operations
August 30 - Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson sets a new world record in the 100-metre dash.
November 21 - The McGill Redmen win their first Vanier Cup by defeating the UBC Thunderbirds by a score of 47-11 in the 23rd Vanier Cup
November 29 - The Edmonton Eskimos win their tenth Grey Cup by defeating the Toronto Argonauts 38 to 36 in the 75th Grey Cup played at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver

Births

January 1
*Gilbert Brulé, ice hockey player
*Devin Setoguchi, ice hockey player
January 15
* Kelleigh Ryan, fencer
* Michael Seater, actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
January 16 - Jake Epstein, actor
January 19 - Alexandra Orlando, rhythmic gymnast
January 21 - Andrew Forde, engineering graduate student and musician
February 12 - Anna Hopkins, actress
February 21 - Elliot Page, actor
February 25
*Andrew Poje, figure skater
*Eva Avila, singer
March 31 - Winston Venable, American football player
April 1 - Mackenzie Davis, actress
April 4 - Sarah Gadon, actress
April 9 - Felix Cartal, DJ and producer
April 10 - Shay Mitchell, actress, model, entrepreneur, and author
April 11 - Lights, singer and songwriter
April 27
* Joëlle Békhazi, water polo player
* Alexandra Carter, voice actress
* Emma Taylor-Isherwood, actress
April 30 - Jeremy Bordeleau, canoeist
May 1 - Marissa Ponich, fencer
May 16 - Kylie Stone, artistic gymnast
May 17 - Con Kudaba, water polo player
May 29 - Noah Reid, actor and musician
June 18 - Niels Schneider, French-Canadian actor
June 22 - Melanie Banville, artistic gymnast
July 7
*Mylène Mackay, actress
*Steven Crowder, American-Canadian political youtuber
August 7 - Sidney Crosby, ice hockey player
August 8 - Jenn Proske, actress
August 16 - Carey Price, ice hockey goaltender
August 25
*Stacey Farber, actress
*La zarra, singer
September 2
* Mazin Elsadig, American-Canadian actor
* Scott Moir, ice dancer
September 13 - G.NA, singer
September 16 - Christina Schmidt, actress and model
September 23 - Shannon Chan-Kent, actress and voice actress
September 29 - Kyle Riabko, pop singer and guitarist
October 6 - Kia Byers, canoeist
October 15
* Jesse Levine, Canadian-American tennis player
* Chantal Strand, actress and voice actress
October 16 - Pascal Wollach, swimmer
October 29 - Jessica Dubé, figure skater
November 12 - Bryan Little, ice hockey player
November 15 - Ludi Lin, Chinese-Canadian actor
December 12 - Kate Todd, actress and singer-songwriter

Deaths

January to June

January 5 - Margaret Laurence, novelist and short story writer
January 5 - Herman Smith-Johannsen, ski pioneer and supercentenarian
January 27 - Norman McLaren, animator and film director
February 19 - Russell Doern, politician
March 21 - Walter L. Gordon, accountant, businessman, politician and writer

July to December

September 11 - Lorne Greene, actor
September 19 - Ralph Steinhauer, native leader, first Aboriginal to become the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta
October 5 - Conrad Bourcier, ice hockey player
October 13 - Hugh Alexander Bryson, politician
October 15 - Juda Hirsch Quastel, biochemist
November 1 - René Lévesque, politician, Minister and 23rd Premier of Quebec
November 6 - George Laurence, nuclear physicist
November 18 - George Ryga, playwright and novelist
November 29 - Gwendolyn MacEwen, novelist and poet