OTTAWA - Michael Ignatieff will get that one-on-one showdown he wanted with Stephen Harper -- sort of.
The Liberal leader will face off against the prime minister for a grand total of 12 minutes in next week's nationally televised campaign debates.
All four leaders will get six minutes of face time with each of their opponents during Tuesday's English debate and the April 14 French debate, both of which are returning to a more traditional format.
Gone is the round table from the 2008 debates that was supposed to liven up the discussion. The lecterns are back.
The decision to go with one-on-ones came up during negotiations with the leaders, said producer Mark Bulgutch.
Some people find the lecterns elicit a more classic debating style, with people on their feet being more aggressive, he said. Sitting down at a round table creates more of a "chat" environment.
Television viewers will want to tune in, he added.
"Here's really one of the rare opportunities for our political leaders to actually challenge each other on the issues of the day that Canadians themselves have raised," said Bulgutch.
"So that seems to me like a pretty compelling reason to watch the program, without having to say there's going to be dancing bears as well."
The debates, which have produced game-changing moments in the past, have been one of the most buzzworthy issues in the 2011 campaign.
Green Leader Elizabeth May touched off an online firestorm when she was barred from the televised discussions, appealing to Canadians to put pressure on the broadcasters' consortium to change their minds.
The Federal Court of Appeal has refused to hear May's court challenge before the first debate and the consortium has stood firm in its decision to exclude her from the event.
Ignatieff also added fuel to the fire last week when he went on Twitter to take up Harper on his suggestion the two leaders should have their own one-on-one debate. "Any time, any place," Ignatieff tweeted.
Harper replied to Ignatieff's challenge by saying the Conservatives originally proposed a one-on-one debate, only to be greeted by stony Liberal silence.
The exchange sparked a social media frenzy, prompting comedian Rick Mercer's offer to host a one-on-one debate at a Toronto concert hall, along with $50,000 to each of the leaders' favourite charities as an added incentive.
There won't be any opening remarks this time. Each 117-minute debate will start with a pre-recorded question from the public. The leaders won't know in advance what questions they'll be asked.
Two of the leaders will face off for six minutes, then the other two leaders will be able to join in for a 13-minute discussion.
The whole cycle will be repeated five times before closing remarks, which will be limited to 45 seconds for each leader for a total of three minutes.
"We didn't even want the closing statements but the parties pushed for it," said Bulgutch. "Giving up three minutes of time seems like a reasonable compromise to me."
Producers say there will be some flexibility to the format. Moderators will be able to insert follow-up questions, for example.
Stopwatches won't be used, so moderators will have to mete out some "rough justice" to keep the participants to their time, they said.
