John Fraser: The Hidden (and Gossipy) History of Canada’s Governors General

About this episode

John Fraser discusses the history and significance of Canada's Governors General, highlighting key figures and their impacts.

John Fraser joins Steve to discuss his new book, The Governors General: An Intimate History of Canada's Highest Office, why he cares about this history when so few do, why it took 80-plus years to get an actual Canadian Governor General, and why it’s a position that is “merciless.” They also discuss every single Governor General since 1952, including the “magisterial” Vincent Massey, Georges Vanier, Adrienne Clarkson, and the “catastrophic” mandate of former astronaut Julie Payette.

People in this episode

Host: Steve

Guest: John Fraser

Topics covered

• Canada's Governors General
• historical commentary
• political history
• biography
• government roles

Keywords

• Governors General
• Canada
• John Fraser
• politics
• history
• Vincent Massey
• Julie Payette

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Governors General: An Intimate History of Canada's Highest Office

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