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Courtney Shea

Courtney Shea is a freelance journalist in Toronto. She started her career as an intern at Toronto Life and continues to contribute frequently to the publication, including her 2022 National Magazine Award–winning feature, “The Death Cheaters,” her regular Q&As and her recent investigation into whether Taylor Swift hung out at a Toronto dive bar (she did not). Courtney was a producer and writer on the 2022 documentary The Talented Mr. Rosenberg, based on her 2014 Toronto Life magazine feature “The Yorkville Swindler.”

Latest from Courtney Shea

"We're driving dangerous behaviour indoors": Epidemiologist Sumon Chakrabarti on why the government needs to reopen parks and other outdoor facilities

“We’re driving dangerous behaviour indoors”: Epidemiologist Sumon Chakrabarti on why the government needs to reopen parks and other outdoor facilities

"When I saw that the government had shut down playgrounds, my first thought was, what are they thinking?"

"At this point, we've probably helped thousands of people book shots": Q&A with Joshua Kalpin of Vaccine Hunters Canada, the viral website for vaccine appointment intel

“At this point, we’ve probably helped thousands of people book shots”: Q&A with Joshua Kalpin of Vaccine Hunters Canada, the viral website for vaccine appointment intel

"Jean Yoon from Kim’s Convenience tweeted that she was able to book her vaccine based on info she got through our Twitter feed"

"I told her the vaccine was the only way to get back to everything she misses": How this scientist convinced her vaccine-fearing grandma to get the jab

“I told her the vaccine was the only way to get back to everything she misses”: How this scientist convinced her vaccine-fearing grandma to get the jab

"I heard my grandmother on the phone with her friend, saying something like, 'Oh no, there is no way I am taking that vaccine.' Of course I was like, whaaaat?????"

"This is about leisurely and responsible imbibing": A Q&A with the Toronto councillor trying to legalize drinking in public parks

“This is about leisurely and responsible imbibing”: A Q&A with the Toronto councillor trying to legalize drinking in public parks

If Josh Matlow gets his way, summer in the city could be a little less dry

"I spent $40,000 to get my outdoor patio up and running—and most of it went down the toilet:" A Toronto restaurateur on reopening the day before going back into lockdown

“I spent $40,000 to get my outdoor patio up and running—and most of it went down the toilet:" A Toronto restaurateur on reopening the day before going back into lockdown

Bar Reyna owner Nicki Laborie on how the whiplash of opening and closing comes at a high cost

"Some barbers are hosting haircutting parties in their condos": A Q&A with the hairstylist petitioning the province to reopen salons

“Some barbers are hosting haircutting parties in their condos”: A Q&A with the hairstylist petitioning the province to reopen salons

Glassbox Barbershop's Peter Gosling on his shop's “hospital-grade” hygiene protocols, why al fresco salons are not the answer and why the dangerous haircut black market is booming

Mark Carney is already on to the next crisis

Mark Carney is already on to the next crisis

The former central banker has spent the past decade wrestling with the GFC, Brexit and Covid. Climate change is next

"Free wine and complimentary Covid tests": These property bosses are offering major incentives for renters

Real Estate News

“Free wine and complimentary Covid tests”: These property bosses are offering major incentives for renters

Other perks include: free high-speed internet, laundry cards and coffee gift certificates

"Our goal now is 10,000 pizzas a day": How the pandemic—and $13 million—is turning General Assembly into a frozen-pizza powerhouse

“Our goal now is 10,000 pizzas a day”: How the pandemic—and $13 million—is turning General Assembly into a frozen-pizza powerhouse

We spoke to CEO Ali Khan Lalani about his supremely successful pivot

"More sightings don’t necessarily equal more coyotes": We asked a wildlife advocate if coyotes are really taking over the city

“More sightings don’t necessarily equal more coyotes”: We asked a wildlife advocate if coyotes are really taking over the city

Lesley Sampson on why it’s important to follow the science (not the hysteria) and what pet owners can do to coyote-proof their lives

"Better safe than sorry is the motto of a police state": Cara Zwibel, a civil liberties lawyer, says Canada's new quarantine hotel rules may violate the Charter

“Better safe than sorry is the motto of a police state”: Cara Zwibel, a civil liberties lawyer, says Canada’s new quarantine hotel rules may violate the Charter

Is it legal to force Canadians to pay for a three-night hotel stay just for leaving the country?

"It's likely we'll see another pandemic in the next 20 years": The Toronto scientist who invented the Covid vaccine technology says we need to prepare for the next virus

“It’s likely we’ll see another pandemic in the next 20 years”: The Toronto scientist who invented the Covid vaccine technology says we need to prepare for the next virus

A decade ago, the Scarborough biologist Derrick Rossi discovered modified mRNA, a revolutionary new cell technology. Now his creation is about to save the world

"This time, there will be no warnings": Toronto's top by-law enforcer has a message for people breaking the rules

“This time, there will be no warnings”: Toronto’s top by-law enforcer has a message for people breaking the rules

A Q&A with bylaw czar Carleton Grant on scofflaw businesses, anti-maskers and where illegal gatherings are still happening

Anita Anand is calling the shots

Anita Anand is calling the shots

She was a low-profile MP with an obscure portfolio. Suddenly, she became Canada’s most important public servant: the person in charge of acquiring vaccines

"I had clients offering to pay cash under the table": This woman petitioned the government to declare dog-walking an essential service

“I had clients offering to pay cash under the table”: This woman petitioned the government to declare dog-walking an essential service

Many of Nicola Smith's dog-walking clients are front-line workers who can't be at home with their pets during the day

Simu Liu makes the leap from Kim's Convenience to the Marvel pantheon

Simu Liu makes the leap from Kim’s Convenience to the Marvel pantheon

His debut blockbuster, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is coming this year

"It just doesn't make sense": Blue Mountain resort president Dan Skelton on the postponement of ski season

“It just doesn’t make sense”: Blue Mountain resort president Dan Skelton on the postponement of ski season

"It was horrible. Merry Christmas, you’re laid off"

“Most people would rather see their money go right to the restaurant”: A Q&A with the founder of Not Uber Eats, a no-commission guide to Toronto takeout and delivery

“Most people would rather see their money go right to the restaurant”: A Q&A with the founder of Not Uber Eats, a no-commission guide to Toronto takeout and delivery

"We've had 35,000 visitors to the site in the last couple of days"

Toronto chefs, restaurateurs and regulars pay tribute to the restaurants and bars we lost in 2020

Toronto chefs, restaurateurs and regulars pay tribute to the restaurants and bars we lost in 2020

We asked them to eulogize their favourite haunts

Novelist Ashley Audrain is the buzziest thing in literature

Novelist Ashley Audrain is the buzziest thing in literature

Her debut book, The Push, out this month, has already been snapped up by Hollywood

"We’ve had 350,000 visits in a couple of weeks": How the 27-year-old founder of Not Amazon became a local shopping crusader

“We’ve had 350,000 visits in a couple of weeks”: How the 27-year-old founder of Not Amazon became a local shopping crusader

Ali Haberstroh, a content manager, bought the URL for $2.99 on a whim

How one Toronto bar pivoted to become a fake Italian restaurant with really good spaghetti

How one Toronto bar pivoted to become a fake Italian restaurant with really good spaghetti

Bar Mordecai is now West Side Maria's, a ghost kitchen with a soul

Membership cards, 5,000 VHS tapes and to-go cocktails: How one Toronto bar became a mid-'90s video store

Membership cards, 5,000 VHS tapes and to-go cocktails: How one Toronto bar became a mid-‘90s video store

The East Chinatown bar is making every night a Blockbuster night

Bob Rae on how to tell someone to go to hell (diplomatically)

Bob Rae on how to tell someone to go to hell (diplomatically)

A Q&A with Canada's new ambassador to the UN

Summer Camp Guide

Summer Camp Directory 2026

Summer Camp Directory 2026

Discover our top-rated summer camps for kids of all ages

Best New Restaurants

Toronto Life ’s Best Restaurants returns for its 10th-anniversary edition on June 8

Toronto Life’s Best Restaurants returns for its 10th-anniversary edition on June 8

General admission tickets are now on sale for Toronto’s biggest culinary night, featuring top chefs, restaurants and drinks

Big Stories

Dead Reckoning: The executor of their estate was supposed to divide it among their friends and family. Instead, he bankrupted it

Dead Reckoning: The executor of their estate was supposed to divide it among their friends and family. Instead, he bankrupted it

When Sami and June Suomalainen died, it fell to the executor of their wills, a lawyer they hardly knew, to sell their million-dollar midtown home and split the proceeds among their inheritors. Seven years and six lawsuits later, the beneficiaries haven’t seen a cent

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2026

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2026

This year’s list includes a 150-square-foot omakase counter, a Parisian brasserie in the Annex, Korean comfort food, Filipino karaoke and a Summerhill seafood spot that’s reinventing the raw bar

Hoop Dreams: Inside the making of the Toronto Tempo, the city’s newly assembled WNBA team

Hoop Dreams: Inside the making of the Toronto Tempo, the city’s newly assembled WNBA team

After years of false starts, months of nail-biting negotiations between the league and the players’ union, and an 11th-hour scramble to build a roster, Toronto finally has its own major-league women’s basketball team. Now it just has to live up to the hype

Live From New York: Inside the slay-or-be-slayed world of Studio 8H with SNL rookie Veronika Slowikowska

Live From New York: Inside the slay-or-be-slayed world of Studio 8H with SNL rookie Veronika Slowikowska

Slowikowska is the first Canadian to join the cast of Saturday Night Live in more than 25 years. She’s also this season’s breakout star. Now all she has to do is keep crushing it

Better Call Deepak: Meet drug lord Ryan Wedding’s self-styled cocaine lawyer

Better Call Deepak: Meet drug lord Ryan Wedding’s self-styled cocaine lawyer

The man who represented the infamous drug lord is unapologetically flashy—he has a Lamborghini and two Maseratis and wears $1,200 Louboutins. But did he become an accomplice to his client’s crimes? Deepak Paradkar says he was just doing his job. The FBI says he crossed a line

The Redemption Tour: The Blue Jays are back. Can they finish what they started?

The Redemption Tour: The Blue Jays are back. Can they finish what they started?

We’re not over it, but they are. Six months after that devastating defeat, the Jays take the field once more, bent more than ever on winning the World Series. Dispatches from the dugout

My Life as a True Crime Spectacle: My father’s crimes fractured our family. Then came the press

My Life as a True Crime Spectacle: My father’s crimes fractured our family. Then came the press

My dad was the infamous Rolex Killer. The news of his crimes nearly broke me. And ever since, my family has been hounded by reporters, podcasters and true crime fanatics—a whole new circle of hell

Robby on the Line: Out and about with Robby Hoffman, comedy’s equal opportunity assassin

Robby on the Line: Out and about with Robby Hoffman, comedy’s equal opportunity assassin

Larry David is the indisputable king of brutal honesty. But if anyone comes close, it’s Robby Hoffman, the suddenly everywhere comic from whom no group is safe

Notes on an Academic Scandal: Why did TMU demote a leading advocate of DEI?

Notes on an Academic Scandal: Why did TMU demote a leading advocate of DEI?

Pamela Sugiman, a former arts dean at Toronto Metropolitan University, was a key player in the school’s push for diversity, equity and inclusion. When the backlash against DEI arrived, she was demoted. The school says it was a coincidence. She disagrees

City of Renters: The dream of home ownership isn’t dead. Maybe it should be?

City of Renters: The dream of home ownership isn’t dead. Maybe it should be?

Scenes from the rent-for-life revolution

This generation was pummelled by Covid high school. Now the job market wants to replace them with AI

This generation was pummelled by Covid high school. Now the job market wants to replace them with AI

It’s hard out here for a 20-something

The High Price of Hope: Inside Toronto’s white-hot fertility market

The High Price of Hope: Inside Toronto’s white-hot fertility market

Desperate wannabe parents are betting their life savings on unproven treatments and false promises

Man vs. Machine: ChatGPT caused him to spiral into delusion. Now he’s suing OpenAI

Man vs. Machine: ChatGPT caused him to spiral into delusion. Now he’s suing OpenAI

Last spring, a chatbot convinced Allan Brooks that he had discovered a revolutionary mathematical theory. He says it nearly destroyed him

Smart City: 20 mind-blowing Toronto inventions that are changing the world

Smart City: 20 mind-blowing Toronto inventions that are changing the world

Homegrown innovations that will transform lives for the better

293 Days Without My Son: I gave up everything to rescue my kidnapped child from my abusive husband

293 Days Without My Son: I gave up everything to rescue my kidnapped child from my abusive husband

When Valentino was abducted, I knew three things: he’d been taken by his father, he was somewhere in India and I would not rest until I found him

The Violent Life of a Tow Truck Driver: How an unremarkable profession turned Toronto into a war zone

The Violent Life of a Tow Truck Driver: How an unremarkable profession turned Toronto into a war zone

The towing industry has been hijacked by criminals and kingpins who fleece customers, beat up dissenters and shoot their enemies. Inside the brutal turf war for the city’s wrecks

Street Fight: Inside the battle raging over Toronto multiplexes

Street Fight: Inside the battle raging over Toronto multiplexes

If this city stands any chance of solving the housing crisis, it will need buildings with multiple units in residential neighbourhoods—a move that has many residents saying, “Anywhere but here!”

Just Listed

For Sale: 92 Arjay Crescent

For Sale: 92 Arjay Crescent

As luxury buyers become increasingly focused on wellness, privacy, and long-term livability, a new generation of custom homes is emerging – one defined less by excess and more by thoughtful design

For Sale: 171 Durant Ave

For Sale: 171 Durant Ave

This rare property features 2 houses on 1 lot

For Sale: 50 First Avenue

For Sale: 50 First Avenue

A testament to time presiding over one of Uxbridge's most storied streetscapes, this magnificently preserved circa 1880 residence commands its prominent corner lot with the quiet confidence of a true architectural landmark

For Sale: 7 Bentley Drive

For Sale: 7 Bentley Drive

A commanding architectural statement in prestigious Stonegate–Queensway, this newly completed custom residence by Bali Homes Group presents a refined interpretation of contemporary luxury living

For Sale: 75 Queen Street

For Sale: 75 Queen Street

Guelph is having a moment