1985 in Canada
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See also: 1984 in Canada, other events of 1985, 1986 in Canada and the Timeline of Canadian history.
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Incumbents
- Premier of Alberta - Peter Lougheed then Don Getty
- Premier of British Columbia - Bill Bennett
- Premier of Manitoba - Howard Pawley
- Premier of New Brunswick - Richard Hatfield
- Premier of Newfoundland - Brian Peckford
- Premier of Nova Scotia - John Buchanan
- Premier of Ontario - Bill Davis then Frank Miller then David Peterson
- Premier of Prince Edward Island - James Lee
- Premier of Quebec - René Lévesque then Pierre-Marc Johnson then Robert Bourassa
- Premier of Saskatchewan - Grant Devine
See 1985 Canadian incumbents for more
Events
- January 26 - Frank Miller elected leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party replacing Bill Davis
- January 30 - The federal government relaxes laws requiring businesses to use the metric system
- February 8 - Frank Miller becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Bill Davis after the Ontario Progressive Conservative leadership election
- February 10 - A supergroup of Canadian musicians, Northern Lights, gathers to record the charity single Tears Are Not Enough for famine relief in Ethiopia.
- February 11 - The federal and Newfoundland governments sign the Atlantic Accord paving the way for joint development of Newfoundland's offshore oil and gas reserves
- February 12 - Minister of National Defence Robert Coates resigns after it is revealed that he visited a strip-club while on government business in Germany
- February 13 - Denis Lortie is found guilty of murder for his attack on the Quebec National Assembly that killed three
- February 28 - Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel is found guilty of publishing false news and fermenting racial intolerance
- March - Willard Phelps becomes government leader of Yukon, replacing Chris Pearson
- March - At the so-called Shamrock Summit between Prime Minister Mulroney and President Ronald Reagan the two agree on cooperation on Missile Defence and free trade
- March 12 - Heavily armed Armenian terrorists storm the Turkish embasssy in Ottawa. They kill a security guard and hold a dozen people hostage for four hours
- March 21 - Rick Hansen launches his Man in Motion world tour to raise money for spinal cord research
- March 29 - 10 are killed after two military planes collide near CFB Edmonton
- April 24 - The Supreme Court rules the Lord's Day Act violates Canadians' freedom of religion
- May - Tony Penikett becomes government leader of Yukon, replacing Willard Phelps
- May 2 - Ontario election: Frank Miller's PCs win a minority, but David Peterson's Liberals will form a coalition with the NDP, forcing Miller to resign
- May 9 - The Supreme Court rules that Orders-in-Council are subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- May 31 - A tornado in Barrie, Ontario kills twelve
- June 23 - Air India flight 182 blows up en-route from Toronto to London; Sikh terrorists are blamed.
- June 26 - David Peterson becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Frank Miller
- September 1 - The wreck of the RMS Titanic is found off the coast of Newfoundland
- September 6 - The Canadian Encyclopedia is launched
- September 17 - The tunagate scandal erupts
- September 20 - Lincoln Alexander becomes the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, the first Black person to hold a vice regal position in Canadian history
- September 25 - The Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology opens in Drumheller, Alberta
- October 3 - Pierre-Marc Johnson becomes premier of Quebec, replacing René Lévesque
- November 1 - Don Getty becomes premier of Alberta, replacing Peter Lougheed
- November 5 - Nick Sibbeston becomes government leader of the Northwest Territories, replacing Richard Nerysoo
- December 2 - In the Quebec election, Robert Bourassa's Liberals gain a majority, defeating the Parti Québécois.
- December 12 - Robert Bourassa becomes premier of Quebec for the second time, replacing Pierre-Marc Johnson
- December 12 - The worst airplane accident in Canadian history occurs when an Arrow Airlines flight crashes soon after take-off from Gander, Newfoundland. 256 people are killed.
- Corel is founded in Ottawa
Arts and literature
- New books
- Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale
- Colin Thatcher - Backrooms: A Story of Politics
- Erin Mouré - Domestic Fuel
- Farley Mowat - My Discovery of America
- Awards
- See 1985 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
- Books in Canada First Novel Award: G. Ursell, Perdue, or How the West Was Lost
- Gerald Lampert Award: Paulette Jiles, Celestial Navigation
- Pat Lowther Award: Paulette Jiles, Celestial Navigation
- Stephen Leacock Award: Ted Allan, Love Is a Long Shot
- Vicky Metcalf Award: Edith Fowke
- Television
- The last episode of The Friendly Giant on CBC
Births
- February 27 - Fefe Dobson, singer
- November 11 - Kalan Porter, singer
- Marc Hall, rights activist
Deaths
- April 21 - Foster Hewitt, broadcaster