They were travelling on the Queen of the North - the ill-fated ferry that would run aground and sink in 2006 with the loss of two lives. Halfway through the fair, organizers decided to give the hard-working robot a dedicated spot at the kids’ area underneath the Cambie Street bridge.Įrnie ended his short but highly publicized life in the private sector after being purchased by Jimmy Pattison at a post-fair auction for $53,000.įrom left, Prince Charles, Premier Bill Bennett and Princess Diana approach Canada Place in Vancouver harbour during the opening days of Expo 86. “You know, kids used to ask Ernie if he was married and he’d say, ‘No, I was engaged to a parking meter once, but she expired,’” said Wheeler, giving an example of bantering and improvisation skills needed to play the wisecracking robot.ĭuring the fair’s busiest days, finding Ernie was akin to a game of Where’s Waldo. He didn’t get the respect he thought he deserved, though - pointing out indignantly in his clipped British accent that organizers stuck him in cargo class.Įxpo Ernie worked overtime at the fair, where he was often mobbed by pint-sized fans, faced down hecklers, and quipped, wheeled and entertained his way into people’s hearts.Ĭraig Wheeler, then a 22-year-old acting student at Langara, one of the voices of Ernie. Photo by Peter Battistoni / PNGĮxpo’s official mascot went on a whirlwind global tour in early 1986 as an ambassador for Vancouver and its world fair. Article contentĮxpo Ernie gets a kiss from six-year-old fan Kimberly Materi of New Westminster.
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