Everything You Need To Know For June 30: Canada Morning Brief

Good morning — Andrew from Narcity here! ☕

I regret to inform you that today is the last day of the first half of 2022. Disgusting! It's also my duty to tell you to go get your hot dogs, chips and beer today because a lot of places are going to be closed for Canada Day tomorrow.

Psst... You can now sign up for the soon-to-launch email version of the Canada Morning Brief right here.

In Case You Missed It

1. Toronto Is Canada's Priciest City

In a new study on the cost of living, Toronto ranked as the priciest metropolis in Canada; the Big Smoke placed 89th out of 227 cities from five continents overall, according to Patrick John Gilson. The next four most expensive Canadian cities were Vancouver (108th), Montreal (125th), Ottawa (132nd) and Calgary (141st). An expert details some ways that Canada can combat its affordability issues.

2. Sneakily Shot Barbie Footage Has Us 'Ready For Fun'

The security around the new Barbie movie should probably step it up. People keep wandering onto set and recording the stars of the bleach-blonde nostalgia trip in action — which is why we know a) what Margot Robbie sounds like as the titular character and b) that Will Ferrell appears to be the leader of a gang of corporate inline skaters. Cata Balzano has a roundup of all the pics and clips that have leaked so far.

3. Inside The Massive Issue With Luggage At Canadian Airports

You've seen those pictures — the ones where a sea of luggage spans basically the entire baggage claim area at a Canadian travel hub like Toronto Pearson. While staffing and mechanical issues have certainly contributed to the problem of travelling with a checked bag, the airports and the airline carriers themselves appear to be at odds over who deserves the brunt of the blame for the baggage delays. Helena Hanson gets to the bottom of what the two sides are doing to fix the issue.

4. Move Over, Michelin; Seth Rogen's Van City Restaurant Guide Is The Only One We Need

Seth Rogen presents as someone who has quite possibly had the munchies at some point in his life, so I'm inclined to listen when the chronically hilarious Canadian says where to eat in his hometown of Vancouver. Ashley Harris collected some of Rogen's recos from over the years, from Cambodian chicken wings to the "perfect" jelly donut, into one list.

5. Here's Your Chance To Die On This Century's Version Of The Titanic

A high-concept design for a futuristic "sky cruise" vehicle has made waves this week for, well, how absolutely bonkers it looks and sounds. Think: the Titanic meets the Hindenburg meets Snowpiercer meets Chernobyl. The flying machine would accommodate 5,000 guests, wouldn't have to land and would be powered by 20 nuclear-powered jets, Josh Elliott reports. Since no one has signed on to actually build this giant nuke yet, this animation of what it would look like in flight will have to suffice.

What Else You Need To Know Today

🎉 HOLIDAYS
Today marks National Work From Home Day — a very novel concept in the year 2022. It's also National Handshake Day, so if you are working from home, try to show your mail carrier some love. Of course, it's also Canada Day tomorrow — a celebration for many but also a solemn reminder to some for a number of reasons. However you mark the occasion, be safe (especially around fireworks).

🥁 GET WELL, TRAVIS
Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker has been dealing with a medical emergency over the last 48 hours. Tomorrow happens to be Blink-182 Day (because it's the 182nd day of the year), which is hopefully a good omen.

🎾 WIMBLEDON
Canada's two remaining singles players are both in action today. Bianca Andreescu will take on Kazakh Elena Rybakina and Denis Shapovalov will face American Brandon Nakashima in second-round matches. Canadian Gaby Dabrowski will also take the court today as her doubles run commences.

🇭🇰 HONG KONG
It was 25 years ago today that the United Kingdom's 156-year control of Hong Kong came to an end, with the Brits transferring sovereignty of the special administrative region over to China at midnight on July 1, 1997.

🎂 BIRTHDAYS
The amphibious 23-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps turns 37. Mean Girls goth Lizzy Caplan is 40. "Iron" Mike Tyson is 56 and could absolutely still cave your head in if you made fun of his face tattoo.

Thanks for reading Narcity's Canada Morning Brief — the only newsletter that treats the Barbie leaks with the same seriousness as the Zapruder film.

Soon, you will be able to get our newsletter straight to your inbox. Until then, I'd love to know what you liked (and disliked) about today's edition at andrew.potter@narcity.com.

Have a great day, enjoy the long weekend (if you have one) and I will see you back here on Monday!