This week, Carte Blanche investigates how perpetrators of heinous crimes are considered for parole in South Africa, and how can you know if a paedophile lives in your area, or even right next door? When 12-year-old Michaela Williams was found raped and murdered near her home, her parents couldn’t have imagined that her killer lived […]

Some of South Africa’s greatest musicians from the last few decades are uniting to perform a unique ‘Lockdown Legends’ online concert that will raise much-needed funds for the SA music industry, and entertain South Africans at home with famous household names. The event – on 7 June 2020 – will feature many of the legendary […]

Whether you’re looking for triumph over adversity, and underdog classic or silly antics on or off the field, SuperSport is serving the best sports movies of all time every evening from 8.30 pm. Subscribers, livestream them on DStv Now at now.dstv.com or pick your choice of football, motorsport, golf, boxing or even surfing movies on […]

South Africa’s ‘Zol’ song – making fun of Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma’s explanation about the smoking ban in SA – has not only gone viral, it’s also topped the Apple Music Charts in South Africa, made international news and become a Friends video meme. The BBC said – in a story titled “South African minister embraces […]

A UK newspaper has rated South Africa’s ‘Moffie’ as one of the best films so far this year. Following the movie’s successful digital launch in South Africa, Moffie was released for streaming on Curzon Home Cinema in the UK at the end of last month… where is was met with an overwhelming positive critical response […]

In celebration of Africa Day, 25 May, Mall of Africa will be having a virtual concert, “Sessions for Africa Day,” that will include Toya Delazy, Zolani Mahola and Lira. Starting from 7 p.m., the listen-from-home concert is free of charge, Mall of Africa said, but viewers can donate towards supporting local artists and the Attacq […]

This week, Carte Blanche gives us an insight into the other side of the Global Pandemic that has caused distress to homeowners and tenants worldwide. You can watch the show on Sunday 10 May in South Africa on DStv Now or stream it overseas in most countries from Tues 12 May if you’re abroad. COVID-19: […]

They’re fascinating and thought-provoking, leave our hearts warmed… or seething with rage. Be informed by proudly South African documentaries now streaming on Showmax.  1. How to Steal a Country How to Steal a Country documents the Gupta family’s rise from flea-market shoe salesmen to owners of a controversial business empire in South Africa in fewer […]

For those looking from the global North, African literature is often marketed in a narrow way, comprising worthy stories of resistance, written in an uplifting and sober realist mode. Seen from the continent itself, this view has long been brushed aside by the effervescence and animation of ongoing literary experimentation and creativity. I approached literary […]

In a salute to the frontline workers in the fight against the Coronavirus the members of the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Orchestra have created an incredible video of Cape Town seen from a drone while they play the “Intermezzo” from the opera “Cavalleria Rusticana.” It is part of a series of lockdown concerts by the […]

The South African wildlife crime documentary STROOP – journey into the rhino horn war, by director Susan Scott and television presenter Bonné de Bod, scooped the award for Best Natural History and Environmental Programme at the South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) on Wednesday night. This is the 28th award for the film which […]

The Drakensberg Boys Choir in KwaZulu-Natal has produced a wonderfully fun and light-hearted parody of Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’… starring not only the boys, but their teachers too. Deidre Alcock, from the famous South African school, told SAPeople: “Our school campus is a bleak and miserable place when there are no boys around and when […]

The Kiffness has given us so many fantastic songs during Lockdown, but this heartwarming video will be remembered as one of the most special – a duet with his father. Watch below as the father and son team sing (via Skype) a Cat Stevens (Yusuf) Lockdown Parody – based on, of course, ‘Father and Son’… […]

Multi-talented classic South African tenor Etienne van der Nest has been bringing Berlin to a stop each evening, as he sings magnificently from his balcony. As word has grown in the German city about Etienne’s performances, crowds have gathered to watch, to listen, to record, to applaud and to appreciate. To feel connected and in […]

The performing arts is one of the sectors hit hard by COVID-19, with tens of thousands of gigs cancelled across the world. While pop and electronic music has evolved with online platforms like YouTube as their natural habitat, jazz has remained more strongly tied to live performance, using social media and online videos mainly as […]

As South Africa went into Covid-19 lockdown in late March, over 50 performers encouraged the nation to do something powerful –  “to reflect on the lyrics of our anthem, as a source of inspiration and optimism, and to bravely sing it out loud.” Yesterday the man behind the concept – James Bassingthwaighte – announced: “1000+ […]

Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Freedom Day celebrations in South Africa will be marked using online platforms, says the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture. “Freedom Day, as South Africans know it, is very different this year… The COVID-19… pandemic has changed things… [from] the norm,” said the department ahead of Freedom Day […]

As schools enter a second month of lockdown in South Africa, parents and teachers are stretched to the limit to keep up with schooling at home. But while some learners can continue online, many have to cope with the challenge of sporadic communication with their teachers and a lack of connectivity and resources. Can learners […]

There could be no better time than right now, in the midst of the Cornavirus pandemic, to watch the thrilling yet sickening new film “How to Steal a Country.” The main thought that goes through your head – watching how the Gutpas systematically took down the government with the cooperation of Jacob Zuma – is […]

A barefoot South African expat, Lindi Nolte, who grew up in Rustenburg and now lives in Canada, received a standing ovation recently for her breathtaking poem: A Love Poem to Our Earth… which is inspired hugely by her childhood in South Africa. Watch Lindi at the TedX talk below. The sun-loving Afrikaner begins the poem: […]

Today – Saturday 18 April – some of the biggest names in music have come together for the One World: Together at Home concert, to generate further funds for the Solidarity Response Fund. But – says the WHO – it’s not just to raise funds… but “to bring the world together, because we’re one world, […]

Watch British singer James Blunt’s moving tribute to the brave workers in the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic, following his father’s lifesaving kidney transplant in January. The world-famous musician, who first released The Greatest, in October 2019, has released a new version containing visuals celebrating the ‘brave and powerful’ workers on the frontline of the […]

Take advantage of this awesome offer to keep the entertainment running for the next three months.   Whether you’re looking for HBO series, Mzansi favourites or action movies, streaming service Showmax has a unique combination of hit African content, first and exclusive international series, the best kids’ shows, and live news and sport, all with […]

With this week’s arrest of the Gupta brothers in Dubai, it’s worth watching ‘How to Steal A Country’ – a fascinating and shocking documentary, by an Emmy award-winning filmmaker, on the rise and fall of the Gupta family and how they managed to ‘steal’ South Africa. (Updated 8 June 2022) As hard as it is […]

Johnny Clegg’s family say they are “deeply moved” by the Stormers’ performance of the late singer’s ‘The Crossing’. In a statement posted by Johnny’s son Jesse, the musician’s family said: “We are deeply moved by The Stormers adopting The Crossing as their official team song. “Their heart and passion shines through in their performance and […]