As predicted, a cold front swept into Cape Town and the Western Cape, South Africa, on Friday, bringing gale force winds, high seas, heavy rain and even snow over the weekend. https://www.facebook.com/snowreportsa/posts/2095228513937825?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARCsoYUG32kTCr45LBeIHD5EZWoMq8k2T7mWH_HF58EcmE1ge7Ph3qjju8DSj1XoILfsYFP7D6NLJH67WyENSJIUstbxgVhhB-6_R0BJZcwp0XwCXhujudQBQLmTE3ndIJKbWC-D7Oj21HfQ-wXlqx4zxlEq_v3ncHqrGoTyUAvGo4CY8iBZGN7sLLNUHwUk37lPyr58BtuGET9BNdGkArf5rXHrN_etHi8tBVSEtjEc5FXEj9f566QXiBfU-zGB4KKQNb68avMS-zacb1UfjsZxnMuKq66dpCgRhaxPjFYw2PY8jnSmQ9u63BYG8fg2Q7Opj1TlvDIcvyYTKzq5HfT5fg&__tn__=-R Some areas suffered power outages and road closures (including Franschhoek Pass where a  rock-fall damaged vehicles and left the road totally blocked). The […]

Here’s the line-up of hot topics that the Carte Blanche team tackle this Sunday 23 June – watch here if you’re in SA and available to stream from Tues 25 June on Showmax International for South Africans abroad in many countries: The War Underground A young couple is found gunned down on the side of […]

JOHANNESBURG – South African pay-television firm MultiChoice Group is planning to lay off more than 2,000 workers in South Africa in a shake-up of its customer care service, the company said on Friday. MultiChoice, which competes with Netflix in online streaming via Showmax, said in a statement it is launching a consultation process to cut […]

A South Africa without lions is unimaginable – an iconic species of the Big Five. But we could face a world without these magnificent African ambassadors… as the breeding of lions for commercial purposes continues to flourish, warns Four Paws, one of the largest welfare organisation in South Africa, fighting for the protection of our […]

An awesome South African doctor – Dr Ryan Coetzee – is bringing smiles to children in hospital in Northern Ireland, and to social media users around the world as a video capturing him singing as he goes about his work has gone viral. UTV Northern Ireland said: “Dr Ryan is the Singing Doctor and the […]

Hollywood star Tom Hanks popped in to visit a very special young South African patient in a London hospital this week. Six-year-old Alexandra Taljard, who is being treated at the Evelina Children’s Hospital for a rare kidney disease, got a wonderful surprise when the ‘Toy Story’ star visited her bedside and not only entertained her, […]

South Africa’s Reserve Bank will probably cut interest rates next month or in September to boost the country’s economy, a Reuters poll found on Friday. A median forecast from 24 economists, polled this week, suggests the economy will grow 0.6% this year, slower than last year’s 0.8% and weaker than the 1.1% predicted in a […]

How did you feel about #Sona, and how is it possibly not the top story? #ZindziMandela’s comments on Twitter made more impact than #Sona2019.  #Zindzi started a heated discussion surrounding land just before the Presidential event and Twitter rose to her defence while others were furious at her commentary (which included insults like calling white […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s rand weakened against the dollar in early trade on Friday, as markets digested President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state of the nation address (SONA) which some analysts said lacked detail on how he plans to fix the ailing economy. At 0640 GMT, the rand traded at 14.3800 per dollar, 0.2% weaker than its […]

We gather here at the start of the 6th Democratic Parliament, 106 years to the day after the Natives Land Act – one of the most devastating acts of dispossession, pain and humiliation – came into force. We recall the words of Sol Plaatje on that tragic event, when he said: “Awakening on Friday morning, […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa urged South Africans on Thursday night to dream of a better South Africa and to each take part and contribute to making the dream a reality… rather than standing on the sidelines and criticising (which is kind of what EFF leader Julius Malema did afterwards, referring to the President’s dreams as nothing […]

In a speech delivered at a time of great economic difficulty, President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced seven priorities that he believes will fast track South Africa’s path to prosperity. Delivering his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Parliament on Thursday evening, the President said the time for idle talk was now over – […]

The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued a weather warning for the Western Cape as an intense cold front is predicted to hit South Arica on Friday afternoon, resulting in adverse weather conditions in the Western Cape – including gale force winds, some flooding and snow. SAWS says strong westerly to north-westerly winds (40 […]

What began as a plea from a single mom for a R10 prepaid electricity voucher has turned into one of the brightest stories to come out of South Africa this year. Single mom, Thabisa Xhelithole (33), seldom uses Twitter… but in desperation she bravely tweeted a message on Sunday asking for help. The Khayelitsha mother […]

The ANC in the Western Cape has called on the DA to immediately suspend Memory Booysen – Mayor of the Garden Route District Municipality – for accepting an all-expenses paid trip to Indonesia. According to reports, Booysen visited Indonesia with the parent company of a German firm that has been given a controversial 50-year lease […]

Five African commercial banks – including Standard Bank and Absa – have partnered in a $375 million financing deal to build a new diamond mining vessel for a subsidiary of Anglo American’s diamond unit De Beers. Nedbank Namibia, RMB Namibia, Standard Bank, ABSA and Bank Windhoek agreed to provide 80% of the funding for the […]

Cyril Ramaphosa and the ANC have been returned to power. But what agenda will he set for the months and years ahead? Watch The State of the Nation address wherever you are on DStv Now. The State of the Nation Address (SoNA) is typically one of the highlights of the political calendar. In February this […]

Almost 40 plant species have gone extinct in the Western Cape since 1900, making it one of the hot spots for plant extinction on the planet. A new study, published in journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, found that across the world about 600 trees, flowers, and fruit-bearing plants have died out since 1900, a rate […]

GEORGE, South Africa – Olympic 800 metres champion Caster Semenya has accused the global athletics governing body of using her as a human guinea pig as it emerged that the IAAF had sought to have her declared a “biological male” in proceedings before sport’s highest court. The South African was reacting to the full 163-page […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa‘s rand rallied in late trade on Tuesday after the government signalled it will give additional support to power firm Eskom, and as emerging currencies were lifted by expectations the Federal Reserve could signal U.S. rate cuts. At 1400 GMT the rand was 1.76% percent firmer at 14.5475 per dollar, after early […]

Table Mountain Cableway will be hiring up to 150 seasonal staff for the peak tourist season, 1 November 2019 to 30 January 2020. Its annual online recruitment drive opened yesterday (Monday 17 June). With opportunities in Food & Beverage, Operations, Security, Cleaning and Retail as well as at the Table Mountain Café and Ticket Office, […]

A group of Capetonian firefighters who saved the life of a little baby in South Africa two weeks ago, enjoyed a tearful reunion with the baby and her grateful mom last week. The firefighters, based at Belhar fire station, made national news on 1 June with their lifesaving heroics… when they were called on to […]

An historic aviation challenge is currently taking place as 20 South African teenagers are flying a Cape to Cairo (and back) excursion in a self-assembled Sling-4 aircraft that uses ordinary motor fuel and was built in only three weeks! According to the BBC the aircraft has successfully made its first stop in Namibia! The excursion […]

CARDIFF – South Africa finally got a World Cup win under their belts as they eased to a nine-wicket triumph over Afghanistan on Saturday to keep alive their hopes of reaching the semi-finals. Leg-spinner Imran Tahir took 4-29, engineering an Afghani collapse after a 75-minute rain break as they were dismissed for 125. Chris Morris […]

South African Michelin star chef Jan Hendrik is bringing his international culinary expertise back to home soil. The Michelin Chef A flourishing international career and the culinary world’s most sought-after accolade – South Africa’s first Michelin-star chef Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen has been living the dream. His restaurant in France has been awarded the […]