Carol Bell

Radio and Television Arts ’57
Artistic Director and General Manager, Saskatchewan Express

A native of Regina, Carol Gay Bell has dedicated most of her life to the performing arts, communications and broadcasting in her home province. A Ryerson Silver Medallist, she began her journalism career in Saskatchewan where she was the first female staff announcer for CBC radio and television, the first producer and director of musical variety on CBC Television, and the first female jazz disc jockey in Canada. Ms. Gay Bell later established the Saskatchewan Roughrider cheerleading team and directed the squad for seventeen years. In 1980, she founded Saskatchewan Express, a nationally recognized touring musical revue, and served as the company’s first General Manager and Artistic Director. The company has entertained more than two million people throughout the years with its touring shows and annual December production. Saskatchewan Express also operates musical theatre studios in Regina and Saskatoon to teach the performing arts to young performers aged three to 19. In recognition of her contributions in developing and promoting young actors, she received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 1997 and was named to the Order of Canada in 2007.