by Janet Smellie
Northern News Services

NNSL (Oct 20/97) - While some people in the NWT admit they hardly watch North of 60, many Northerners still plug into the Canadian drama every Thursday night.

Take Dwayne Lafferty, who works at the Friendship Centre in Fort Simpson.

Lafferty says everyone he knows in the

community is a faithful fan of the program, even going so far as to refusing to hold band council meetings on Thursday nights to ensure everyone's free for North of 60.

"We've been watching it for years. Years ago we used to all gather at one of the town's social establishments and watch it on the big television screen. Now, everybody pretty well watches it at home," Lafferty says, adding his personal favorite on the program would have to be Tom Jackson because "he provides the show with that leadership style that we all aspire to in our own community."

While Lafferty, who serves as Fort Simpson's recreation co-ordinator, admits he's an "avid fan" of the program, he's not without his criticism of how the show depicts communities like Fort Simpson.

"I'd like to see a friendship centre somewhere in the show. These centres are at the heart of the community, they run all the programs like

the inner youth program with sports, which would also be good to see ... these programs are helping our youth with a lot of their problems."

Picking up a few months after last year's tumultuous season-ender, this year's storyline takes Lynx River beyond the discover of rich gas pools. Produced last January on the set near Bragg Creek, Alta., most of the key players returned, including writers, producers and directors.

While there's no actors from the Northwest Territories working on the program, there are real North of 60 advisers, including Nick Sibbeston, a former NWT government leader and entrepreneur and Bertha Norwegian, a special adviser for the government of the NWT's ministry responsible for the status of women.

And while viewers in the Western Arctic say they can relate to the program, it's not surprising that viewers in the East aren't as anxious to watch the program.

"I don't watch it myself. I'm always too busy doing something else," says Joan Gibbons, who works as a hamlet receptionist and water sewage clerk in Coral Harbour. "I've got a TV, and we get quite a few channels, but I only watch TV when something exciting is on the news."

It's a similar story in Pangnirtung, where Steve Keenainak lives.

"I watch it sometimes, but not all the time," Keenainak says. "It's not about the Inuit, or about us. It's OK, but I'd rather watch hockey any day."