South African musher (dog sled driver) Gerhardt Thiart is currently making history as the first South African to ever qualify and compete in the iconic and extremely challenging Iditarod, the annual long-distance trail sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome, which takes place each March over the course of a week, in thick snow in […]

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – South Africa’s civil aviation regulator grounded Comair’s planes indefinitely on Sunday over unresolved safety issues, in a move that also affects low-cost airline Kulula and British Airways, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded… writes Wendell Roelf. A spokesperson for the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) said it had extended a 24-hour […]

“Sex education was a hot topic in our various editorial meetings this week,” says Carte Blanche, Executive Producer John Webb. “Should the government dictate how and when our kids learn about the birds and the bees, or are parents best placed to decide what’s appropriate? Controversial enough, but as is so often the case in […]

Many South Africans have joined the world in falling in love with a new kind of leader – Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky (also spelt Zelenskyy or Zelenskiy). In this video the BBC explores how 44-year-old Zelensky has risen from a comedian with no political experience (apart from studying law and acting as a President in […]

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says as the world strives to emerge from the economic devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic, neighbouring countries like Mozambique and South Africa must continue to deepen and strengthen the already existing ties between them. Speaking at a Plenary Session of the third South Africa-Mozambique Bi-National Commission (BNC) held in Pretoria, […]

Ashley Judd says she would have ‘bled to death’ if she’d been transported to Europe following her horrific injury in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in February 2021. Instead, luckily, Ashley was sent to South Africa. The Double Jeopardy star broke her right leg in four places and suffered a paralysed foot while hiking […]

Robben Island Museum (RIM) says it has noted with concern the incident on Wednesday in which some visitors, many elderly, sustained injuries while travelling in a bus, during a standard tour of the island. “We wish to extend our sincere apologies to the visitors, who were part of an organised group tour. RIM is committed […]

JOHANNESBURG – South African golf legend, Gary Player, spent this morning walking with former Springbok Jean de Villiers, who is Citadel’s Head of Philanthropy, around the grounds of the school he and his beloved late wife, Vivienne Player, established over 30 years ago. Since 1990, the Blair Atholl Pre-Primary School has provided impoverished children in […]

Sjoe, grab a tissue, in fact grab the whole box, to watch this hauntingly beautiful tribute by the Drakensberg Boys Choir to those we’ve lost along the way. It’s an incredibly moving cover of Maroon 5’s smash hit, Memories, and is filmed on location at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School in Cathkin Park, Champagne Valley, […]

South Africa abstained in a vote in the United Nations General Assembly on the resolution condemning the Russian invasion of the Ukraine, and demanding their withdrawal. By Keith Gottschalk, University of the Western Cape The South African government has explained that it enjoys good relations with both Russia and the Ukraine; hence it abstained in […]

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has had a private discussion with Russia’s President Putin concerning the Russian attack of Ukraine. In a tweet, Ramaphosa said: “Thanking His Excellency President Vladimir Putin for taking my call today, so I could gain an understanding of the situation that was unfolding between Russia and Ukraine.” President Ramaphosa says […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo as the next Chief Justice of South Africa with effect from 1 April 2022. The President’s decision follows consultation with the Judicial Service Commission and leaders of parties in the National Assembly on four nominees for appointment as Chief Justice. The process began in September […]

There were only tears of joy and relief this morning at OR Tambo International Airport in Joburg, South Africa, as ten students who had been studying in Ukraine, were safely returned home after being evacuated thanks to a partnership between DIRCO and Aspen Pharmacies. Medical student Vuhlari Mtonga, was just one of the South Africans […]

You don’t often see killer whales in Algoa Bay (in the Eastern Cape, South Africa), so you can imagine the excitement when Raggy Charters – Marine-Eco Cruises spotted TWELVE of them this week! “Initially we saw two males with their tall dorsal fins breaking the surface,” says Raggy Charters. “As we looked around our catamaran […]

The Speaker of the National Assembly has agreed to a request from the DA for an urgent debate on the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on South Africa. Yesterday, in the face of the national government’s ambiguous stance, the DA-led Western Cape Government issued a statement unequivocally condemning “Russia’s illegal invasion of a sovereign […]

The Telegraph newspaper in the UK has declared Cape Town, South Africa, “the greatest city in the world to visit right now”. Of course Capetonians already knew that, but it always feels so good when the rest of the world acknowledges it… and the compliments for Cape Town are bursting in this particular Telegraph article, […]

South Africa’s polar research and logistics vessel, S.A. Agulhas II, has helped enable an expedition team to find the wreckage of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship, Endurance… which was crushed by ice in the Weddell Sea, off the coast of Antarctica, back in 1915. For over a century, the Endurance has been one of the most […]

Due to further failures of generation units, Stage 4 load shedding (power cuts) is now being implemented in South Africa until 05:00 on Friday, in order to manage the emergency reserves. Eskom said in a statement on Wednesday morning: “It is with a great deal of disappointment that Eskom has to inform the public that […]

South Africa’s totally awesome Gift of the Givers – the largest disaster relief organisation of African origin – has begun distributions in the Ukraine. Distribution has begun some distance from #IvanoFrankivsk, the organisation confirmed on social media. “More distributions to follow in the coming days.” Supplies will also be sent to Kharkiv, they said. The […]

As #VaccineSideEffects and #Pfizer tweets go viral in South Africa, trending in the top two spots, SA’s fast food peri-peri chicken outlet Nando’s has joined the thousands of South Africans on Twitter, with its own tweet in response. “Nando’s never fails,” said one social media user. “Nando’s does it again,” said many others. The restaurant […]

South Africa’s golf legend Gary Player, joined his friend – and Irish musical superstar – Ronan Keating on Saturday evening in Cape Town for Citadel’s annual charity fundraiser… where they raised a remarkable R2-million in aid of sick, vulnerable, and impoverished children in SA. Wealth management specialist, Citadel, has hosted this event annually since 2018. […]

Breakdowns and shut downs at Eskom’s power stations have led to the implementation of Stage 2 ‘load shedding’ (in plain terms – power cuts) around South Africa. UPDATE: The loadshedding will continue until 05h00 on Saturday.  Eskom said in a statement at midday on Tuesday: “Due to the unreliability of the generators, and to prevent […]

Court orders Lindsay Maasdorp and Zwelakhe Dubasi to pay R200,000. By Tania Broughton The Equality Court has found office bearers of Black First, Land First (BLF) guilty of hate speech for celebrating the deaths of white school children. The complaint was lodged by the families of four children who died when a walkway bridge collapsed […]

The French government has further eased travel restrictions previously placed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, making it easier for tourists from South Africa to travel to France. Air France confirms that, effective immediately, South Africa has been moved to the ‘Green’ country list for France. The new regulations feature some significant changes – […]

CapeNature ranger Hilton Bocks bends down to point out a tiny succulent, one of many spread over the stony plains of the Knersvlakte Nature Reserve on the West Coast. The pebbles crunch under our shoes as we walk around. “This one is endemic,” says Bocks. “It’s young. I’m guessing five to six years. They take […]