Innholdsfortegnelse for 12/31/2020 i TV Plus English

No matter who says what, your holiday season is meant for catching up with loved ones, unwinding from this rollercoaster year called 2020 and definitely stuffing your face with snacks while watching TV screens. So ho-ho-ho, here comes DStv with a sack loaded full of drama series that you can watch on Catch Up with your cousin who’s overstayed their welcome. There are also cooking shows with a modern twist to give you ideas for preparing that family Christmas leftover lunch. And reality shows and comedies that will have you laughing long into 2021. THE COMEY RULE This four-part 2020 miniseries is based on the tell-all book A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, And Leadership by ex-FBI director James Comey (Jeff Daniels, Will McAvoy in drama series The Newsroom, 2012-2014) who…

It’s been a wild ride for the kingdom of Thathe as the royal house was torn in two, friends and families were split apart, and tragedy struck repeatedly… HIDDEN SECRETS Vho-Masindi’s (Regina Nesengani) secret that she’s not of royal blood put her leader son Chief Azwindini (Gabriel Temudzani) in a tight spot in January because he wasn’t allowed to rule as a result of her confession. Waiting in the wings was elder and royal advisor Gizara (David Sebe) who usurped Azwi and took the throne. Azwindini’s half-brother Mulalo (Sydney Ramakuela) wanted to sit on the throne too and the feud over the chieftaincy flared up again in October. Mulalo roped in the courts to force Gizara to anoint him official new chief, while Azwindini turned to his old frenemy Tenda,…

Seeing that it’s the first Christmas that doctor-turned-gangster Sibonelo (Wiseman Ncube) and his salon assistant wife Nonka (Thuthuka Mthembu) are spending as a married couple, they should be exchanging gifts and decorating a gingerbread house together. “But their Christmas is far from merry,” says Wiseman. The reality is that Nonka has already checked out of her union after just six month. In fact, she sends her sister Lilly (Noxolo Mathula) to serve him with divorce papers this fortnight. “Sibonelo isn’t surprised that Nonka wants to leave him, but he is rather disappointed. As of late, their marriage has been crumbling and they don’t see eye-to-eye. But Sibonelo thought that Nonka would have the courtesy to deliver the documents in person,” explains the actor. To add insult to injury, Sibonelo spots…

The Bhengus and Rampersads faced an incredibly tough year with one tragic story after the other, while there were good amounts of deceit and deception, and a sprinkle of romance for Imbewu’s audience. GUNNED DOWN The world came to a grinding halt for the Rampersad family in July when patriarch Pranav (Koobeshen Naidoo) was found dead. It was thought to have been a suicide, but in September it was revealed that the Maphumulo criminal gang had a hand in his demise. The biggest shock came in August when head of the family Ngcolosi Bhengu (Tony Kgoroge) was gunned down by masked assassins, with the mystery being solved in December (read further on). DETECTIVE DUO Ngcolosi’s half-brother son Nkululeko and Zithulele (Nkanyiso Mchunu and Raphael Griffiths) were relentless in trying to…

One of Blossom Khuse’s (Slindile Nodangala) regrets in life is giving up her newborn son for adoption when she was a teen. While sitting on her couch contemplating on what could’ve been, she recently received an early Christmas gift: a young man by the name of Mose (Mpho Sebeng, Goitseone in telenovela The Throne, 2018-2019) arrived at her doorstep, claiming to be the son she abandoned at achurch nearly two decades ago. “Blossom is a mixture of emotions. She’s been waiting for this moment for years and she is thrilled to reunite with her son,” explains Slindile. Without conducting a DNA test or asking intricate questions about Mose’s past, Blossom invites him to stay at the Khuse house so that they can make up for lost time. “Blossom’s desperation to…

COVID-19 might’ve keep everyone at home from March, but there was a silver-lining to that cloud: there was no excuse not to tune in for the action on brand-new Mzansi Magic telenovela Gomora that kicked off hard in April. And the show kept the punches coming – especially when the mothers took centre stage! MOTHERS & DAUGHTERS Episode 1 introduced us to high-flying glamour mom Thathi (Katlego Danke). She was living the fancy life in a Sand-ton mansion, married to super rich bank-owning Mbongeni (Themba Ndaba) and mom to teenagers Langa (Siyabonga Xaba) and Buhle (Ama Qamata). But that fantasy world came crashing down during a highjacking gone wrong and Mbongeni was shot dead. But it’s not so much the fact that Thathi was now a widow – instead, she…

To keep the storylines fresh and exciting, the writers on fast-paced telenovela The Queen introduced the Sebata family to rival their leading Khoza and Maake characters in May. Their entrance was unmissable, specifically with patriarch and corrupt cop Hector Sebata (Rapulana Seiphemo) taking out a hit against his frenemy Harriet Khoza (Connie Ferguson). During a shootout, good-guy policeman Jerry Maake (Shona Ferguson) took a bullet to save Harriet and he was declared dead days later. Just like that, Hector occupied Jerry’s job as the Thembisa’s new police colonel, vowing to destroy the Khozas at all costs. ONE TOO MANY DEATHS The Maakes weren’t the only ones to lose a family member in 2020. Beloved drug-dealing mother Gracious Mabuza’s (Rami Chuene) affair with Skhumbuzo (Simo Magwaza) ended in disaster after Skhumbuzo’s…

The drama is endless as tlnovelas (*133) delivers more of the biggest stars and stories as 2020 wraps up. The channel’s newest Mexican telenovela Abyss Of Passion (2012, originally titled Abismo De Pasión) is an intricate love story based on author Caridad Bravo Adams’s 1959 novels Una Sombra Entre Los Dos and Al Pie Del Altar. In the tale, weekdays at 17:40, a fatal car crash has a town jumping to conclusions about a sordid affair between the victims Estefanía Bouvier de Castañón (Ludwika Paleta, Yolanda in 2016 telenovela Centauro’s Woman) and Rosendo Arango (César Évora, Nelson in 2020 telenovela I Give You MyLife). As a result, Estefanía’s daughter Elisa (Angelique Boyer) is something of a cursed child to her now-widowed father Augusto (Alejandro Camacho, Eugenio in 2020 telenovela Empire…

Fargo Season 4 Tuesdays (from 12 January) M-Net (*101) 22:30 There’s no joking around when comedy star Chris Rock (narrator of his biographical comedy series Everybody Hates Chris, 2005-2009) talks about his newest role, playing Loy Cannon in season 4 of crime anthology drama Fargo (2014-now, see p9). “This is the biggest season. The scale is tremendous, it’s like a film set. Fargo normally tells little stories that get out of hand. They are about ordinary people and then something happens and we get to see how evil ordinary people can be. This (season) is different. We start off with gangsters, so we’re beginning with bad people and it escalates.” GUNS BLAZING While the previous seasons stand alone and have been set more or less in the modern world, this…

As the newly reinstated chief of Thathe, Azwindini (Gabriel Temudzani) has a lot of responsibilities. He has to listen to his subjects when there are problems and come up with amicable solutions. He has again started consulting the royal council on issues affecting the first family and the community, and he has to keep his five wives in line. But the biggest responsibility weighing on his shoulders is to adhere to the rules and commands of the offscreen King of Venda. “As one of the many chiefs in Venda, Azwindini is responsible for the annual King’s Harvest and the proceeds from that harvest,” says Gabriel. Helping Azwindini is royal elder Phusuphusu (real-life music teacher Jacky Nethomboni), who is trusted to manage the King’s coffers until it can be physically paid…

There’s rarely a dull moment in Turfloop, but this year seemed more dramatic than most. From deception to jealousy, to troubled love – there was always something that kept us glued to Skeem screens. We also said goodbye to a few big names – both on-screen and in the real world. FINAL GOODBYE May gave viewers the shocking demise of Turf High pupil Jonas (Mashako Mokgale) as he was mauled to death by a lion during a disastrous school camp. Offscreen, the Skeem family said farewell to two fan favourites. In July, Karabo Mokhubela, who played Bontle’s (Keamogetswe Leburu) boyfriend Jazzy T and had been with the show since it started airing in 2011, passed away. His death came just two months after fans were left devastated by the news…

The dust hasn’t even settled yet after Thokozile (Nqobile Sipamla) found out in early December that her hitman Mpanza (Bonginkosi Kulu) got her kill order wrong and murdered her high school sweetheart Ngcolosi (Tony Kgoroge) and now Ngcolosi’s widow MaZulu (Leleti Khumalo) knows what she did. “This feels for MaZulu like her whole world has come to a sudden stop and she is having a really hard time dealing with the news,” says Leleti. “The immense pain, afeeling of utter loss and just total shock,” admits the actress, whose character was the original target but Ngcolosi was driving her car in August when he was shot dead. But there is also a sense of relief for MaZulu who now has closure. “She wants revenge and she’s going to get it,”…

Scandal! lived up to its name this past year as viewers were treated to scandalous weddings, deception and fake deaths that left us shook. We were also introduced to a family that will be propelling the soapie into an entirely new direction for 2021. THEMBEKA DOWN The year 2020 had a chaotic start with Thembeka (Masasa Mbangeni) making her sudden return. Having skipped town in 2016, everyone was caught off-guard by her comeback – most of all her ex Quinton (Brighton Ngoma). But Thembeka was a different woman, more focused on fixing what was broken between Quinton and herself while also helping her man out of a financial hole. Clearly things didn’t go according to plan and barely six months after her return, Thembeka was bleeding to death after being…

It’s been three months since Durban Gen premièred on Monday 5 October and it’s already hit 2 million viewers. But when the doctors and nurses aren’t saving lives, their personal dramas keep viewers entertained and there was even a hostage situation that led to a promising young doctor’s death. It’s been a quarter of the year of suspense and jaw-dropping moments – and we wouldn’t have it any other way. LOVE LOST In the pilot episode, viewers were transported into timid medical intern Mbali Mthethwa’s (Nelisiwe Sibiya) world. Between arranging her upcoming wedding to her adoptive brother Sibusiso (Ntando Mncube) and settling into her new job at the hospital, it was clear that she was excited to start this new chapter in her life. But things took a slight turn…

Liam Neeson has been in showbiz for 45 years and despite saying “this is my last work” repeatedly, he’s surprised us time and again with new roles. And by that we mean a tough older character with a history in some or other secret service, saying something like “I have a very particular set of skills, skills that I have acquired over a very long career”. If you don’t know that quote, it’s from one of his most famous movies – playing retired agent Bryan Mills in the Taken trilogy of action films (2008-2014) – so perhaps it’s time you found a few hours to get to know Liam Neeson a little better. Showmax has some of his productions to entertain you, like… THE COMMUTER (2018) Liam brings dourness to…

There’s an ominous figure slinking around town and Turfloop is thoroughly creeped out. Following whispers of a mysterious woman on Block A requesting a lift, everyone wants to know: who is she? But two residents – Marothi (Macks Papo) and Celia (Shoki Mmola) – are less excited about the supposed wandering spirit as it could bring with it dark secrets from the past. “People keep talking about this ghost that is supposedly roaming around town,” says Macks. “But I am convinced this has something to do with Rachel (Lesego Marakalla), I’m sure of it!” RUNAWAY RACHEL In case you forgot, Marothi’s enraged wife Rachel pulled a disappearing act on us in May. While Marothi was convinced Rachel emptied his account and left town, her mom Celia suspected that her scorned…

After 13 years on air, Rhythm City writers flipped the soap on its head by killing off fan-favourite gangster David Genaro (Jamie Bartlett) in a gruesome shoot-out in February. The sudden death created a storyline between his murders and rivals Khulekani and Suffo (Mnedisi Shabangu and Mduduzi Mabaso) to draw the battle lines and fight against each other to claim David’s spot as Johannesburg’s most feared kingpin. With the soap ending in July next year, the gangsters will drag family and friends into their fight – and only one will stay standing. UNEXPECTED HOOK-UPS While Khulekani was at war with Suffo, he neglected his teen daughter Zinhle (Kealeboga Masango), who was struggling through her grief following her brother Theo’s (Ntokozo Mlaba) death in November 2019. Zinhle sought validation from her…

Where do we even begin? The drama brought drama – and then some! Viewers got fraud and corruption, prison stints, fake stalkers and even Cosmo (Ronnie Nyakale) had his moment in the spotlight. With all the awfulness 2020 threw our way, Generations certainly made up for at least some of it. POOR GAL Desperate for money, Palesa (Busisiwe Xaba) went to extremes to pay the bills. But her methods landed her in prison not once, but twice! First, she tried her hand at being a high-end escort in May only to get arrested for prostitution. Then her world came crashing down when her mom died from lung cancer that same month. And when she was told she couldn’t claim her mom’s life insurance, she went to criminal lengths to ensure…

Given the tragic events that took place in 2020, it’s astounding that the Dikanas and Mokoenas are still on their feet. When they weren’t laying family members to rest, their romantic relationships were crumbling and their friendship circles were falling apart at the seams. Despite the misfortunes, the families are closer than before as the year closes off. AT THE CENTRE OF A CATASTROPHE 2020 started on a high note for mechanic-turned-mining exec Itumeleng aka Tumi (Larona Moagi). She’d just married her crush Lindani (Lunga Shabalala) and they were starting on a clean slate. However, Tumi’s happiness was short-lived. Within days into the new year, she learnt that her biological mother Lindiwe Dlamini-Dikana (Sindi Dlathu) shot Lindani. In an act of retribution, Tumi sneaked into Lindi-we’s mansion and tampered with…