It was in front of several dozen colleagues and special guests that Paul Arcand offered the very latest edition of Puisqu’il avoir se leva, the most listened to morning show in the country.
The one nicknamed “the king of the airwaves” was entitled to a deluge of tributes. Facing his colleague Alain Crête, who took on the role of host for this special program on 98.5, he received these testimonies with great humility and emotion.
There was an atmosphere of frank camaraderie in the large room of Cogeco which had been transformed into a giant studio.
Paul Arcand is leaving daily hosting after 34 years at the helm of a morning show, including 20 years at 98.5.
As listeners quickly discovered, Mr. Arcand’s last show as host was Thursday. Friday was all about retrospectives, anecdotes and, of course, tributes.
Current and former collaborators and members of the public took turns at the microphone to talk about their experiences with Paul Arcand. Some thanked him for helping them move forward in their journey, while others outright admitted to being terrified at the idea of speaking alongside him.
From the first minutes of the show, around 5:30 a.m., Paul Arcand wanted to make things clear: “I haven’t changed my mind, it’s the last one,” he said. he decided. And a few minutes before the end of the show, four and a half hours later, nothing had changed.
But the departure will not be smooth, he admitted, when he took a long moment to address his listeners.
“Am I going to be bored? Obviously I’m going to be bored. I’m going to miss doing radio, that’s for sure, being there every morning, having this routine, having this direct, privileged contact with listeners,” he said. .
Beyond the countless interviews with politicians and public figures, Paul Arcand is especially proud of having given a voice to people who don’t have one, of having helped newcomers learn French and of having entered into the daily lives of listeners.
“I’m everywhere in your life. I am in your living room, in your car, in your trials, and in the moments of life that have been wonderful memories for you. I feel like I’m a member of your family. You told me it, you wrote it to me, and it touches me – really. »
Paul Arcand also thanked his team, as well as his family members, recognizing that it is not always easy to be “the son of” or “the spouse of”.
“‘You made me happy,’” he summed up.
Throughout the program, numerous previously recorded testimonies were broadcast. Céline Dion, Guy A. Lepage, Yvon Deschamps and Mikaël Kingsbury notably took a few moments to pay tribute to a radio “monument”. The host, however, seemed even more touched by the testimonies of listeners who spoke of the impact he had in their everyday lives.
Prime Minister François Legault also offered him a few words on social media: “The end of an era! Thank you, Paul, for your rigor and your sensitivity. We will miss you.”
Despite the seriousness we know about him in interviews and in the preparation of his show, many collaborators have highlighted Paul Arcand’s sense of humor, especially off the air.
He himself was humorous in the first minutes of his last show, of course making a nod to current events.
“I would like to ask the Montreal Fire Department to let us finish the show. We are respecting the capacity rules, we don’t have any tents, so please, everything is under control and everything is going according to the rules,” he said, referring to a subject that marked his last week as host, namely the closure of the terraces of certain restaurants during the Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend.
More seriously, he added: “Quite honestly, I don’t like it […] the kind of avalanche of tenderness and affection,” he admitted, admitting that he would have preferred a normal show , with “a good interview brewing”.
Even if he leaves daily entertainment, Paul Arcand is not completely retiring.
Starting next fall, he will collaborate with La Presse, while continuing to offer his famous press review in the form of a podcast available on the 98.5 digital platforms.
It is the journalist and host Patrick Lagacé who will replace him at the helm of the 98.5 morning show at the start of the fall term. The show will be renamed Lagacé le matin.