The Regime
Channel: M-Net (DStv 101)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Comedy-Drama, Miniseries
Starring Kate Winslet, The Regime tells the story of one year within the walls of the palace of a modern authoritarian regime as it begins to unravel.
After not leaving the palace for quite some time, Chancellor Elena Vernham (Winslet) has grown increasingly paranoid and unstable when she turns to a volatile soldier, Herbert Zubak, as an unlikely confidante.
As Zubak's influence over the chancellor continues to grow, Elena's attempts to expand her power eventually result in both the palace and the country fracturing around her.
Among others, the limited series also stars Martha Plimpton and Hugh Grant.
Soos Dag en Nag
Channel: eExtra (Openview 105 / StarSat 489 / DStv 195)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Telenovela, Afrikaans
A young couple, Martin and Tereza, and their son Jakub live a happy life.
Though Jakub has Asperger's syndrome, they are unaffected and manage to lead a perfectly normal family life.
However, when registering their son for school, Martin realises that something is not right: Jakub has a different blood type to both his parents.
There seems to be only one explanation for Martin - that Jakub is not his son.
Tereza must have cheated on him and has been lying to him all these years.
But the solution to this mystery is actually far more complicated: their biological son lives in a different town, in the large family of a train driver Karel and his wife Olga.
The boy's name is Tomas and he is very much loved by all his family. They too are not aware of the swap.
But after a checkup in hospital, it turns out that Tomas is not their biological son.
The boy's swap affects not only the two families with ties to a small town, but everyone else living in that town as well.
As the search to understand what happened with the boys goes on, both sets of parents find themselves in a moralistic mire, as they decide what makes a family a family.
These heavy questions take a toll on their relationships, while more difficult questions are raised and historical events exposed around them, with more and more people becoming involved to work out what really happened six years ago.
In the series premiere: After enrolling their son, Jakub in school, Martin and Tereza discover that they aren't his biological parents.
It emerges that there was a mix-up in the maternity ward and their biological son, Tomas lives with Karel and Olga.
The original title of the Czech series is Kukacky, also known as The Swap in English.
MORE:
Soos Dag en Nag Teasers - March 2024
42 - The Answer to Almost Everything
Channel: Curiosity Channel (DStv 185)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Documentary Series, Science, Technology
What would we be without mucus? Can we live on water? How much does life weigh?
Finding out the answers is the aim of this science show.
In a nod to Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, where the figure 42 is the ultimate answer to all questions, 42 tries to provide the answers.
The show navigates through the big and small questions of humankind.
Associative, original, outside the box and cleverly inspired, each topic is rolled out.
Are we all hearing the same thing? Will we love robots? Should we dream more? And how does time travel work?
42 continues to ask about causes and solutions. Apparently light, but always with weight.
In the series premiere, "What if there was no fear?": How beautiful life would be without fear: we could cross rocky gorges on a tightrope carefree, or dare to perfrom breakneck actions.
But unfortunately we are afraid of many things - even those that are not dangerous at all.
Why does fear have such a hold on us? And wouldn't it be much better if there were no fear at all?
In the second episode of the weekly double bill, "Do we all hear the same?": Does life actually have a soundtrack?
From the first moment we are surrounded by noise and sound. No matter where we are, no matter what we do, we hear something.
To what extent do noises and sounds influence us? Do we even all hear the same thing?
And when we hear a sound, do we all hear it the same way? Or different?
Truth Be Told
Channel: S3
TX Time: 21h00
Genre: Documentary Series
Truth Be Told is a six-part documentary series that puts South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) process under the microscope.
Very few of the several hundred cases that the TRC recommended for prosecution or investigation more than 20 years ago have been pursued by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
The first instalment in the series explores the murder of Phila Portia Ndwandwe, who was only 23 years old when she was tortured and killed by Apartheid security police in KwaZulu-Natal in 1988.
The documentary looks at Ndwandwe's murder through the eyes of her son, Thabang Mabuza, now a chartered accountant in his 30s who suffers from transgenerational trauma and is still trying to cope with the loss and anguish caused by his mother's death.
The documentary's title, Breastfeeding Warrior, alludes to the fact that Mabuza was just five months old and still being breastfed when his mother, an Umkhonto weSizwe soldier, was murdered.
Using heart-rending archival footage from the exhumation of Ndwandwe's remains and TRC archive material and intimate interviews, the documentary explores issues of trauma, reconciliation, accountability and forgiveness in South Africa.
In a sense, Ndwandwe is given a voice through the documentary as her exhumed bones start to "speak" back to us and invoke her spirit.
The film unpacks questions such as whether Mabuza can reconcile himself with the trauma of his mother's death as he goes in search of answers as to why she was killed.
Was his mother's sacrifice worth it?
The series is aimed at unpacking the impact of the apartheid era's gross human rights violations, which extend beyond each single criminal incident and continue to affect South Africans individually and collectively.
The series explores six disturbing cases: those of Ndwandwe, Bheki Mlangeni, Ntombi Kubheka, Topsy Madaka, Richard and Irene Motasi, and Matthews Mabelane.
In each case, the adult children and family members of the murdered activists take centre stage, giving searing accounts of transgenerational trauma and how it has affected their lives.
The selection of stories aims to provide a tapestry of past events that still resound in the present as the film asks why the NPA failed to rise to the task of investigating and prosecuting those to whom the TRC did not give amnesty or those who did not apply for amnesty.
Tom Kerridge's Sunday Lunch
Channel: The Home Channel (DStv 176 / Openview 113)
TX Time: 10h00
Genre: Food
Sunday lunch is Chef Tom Kerridge's favourite meal to cook and eat.
Taking inspiration from the best seasonal ingredients and the most exciting dishes from home and abroad, Tom guides you step-by-step through each delicious menu so every dish is perfect.
In the series premiere, "Summer": Tom makes a summer Sunday lunch inspired by flavours of holidays abroad.
The menu includes barbequed chicken legs marinated in Middle Eastern spices.
Trucking Hell 5
Channel: CBS Reality (DStv 132 / StarSat 170)
TX Time: 13h35
Genre: Docu-Reality, Motoring
Follow the experts who transport huge and unusual loads across the UK.
This is an adrenaline-fueled observational documentary series following rescue drivers working for two of the UK's leading heavy rescue specialists, Crouch Recovery and Lantern Recovery.
We follow the work of the drivers as they endeavour to solve the problems caused by large and heavy vehicles when they roll, crash, or burn.
We get to know the drivers and the supporting staff at the two firms and hear many pearls of wisdom along the way.
In the Season 5 premiere: Disaster strikes on the M42 when a 12-and-a-half-tonne transporter carrying four brand new electric Audis goes up in flames.
In the Hertfordshire countryside, Lantern operator Sea is faced with a painful recovery.
Storage Wars 15
Channel: HISTORY (DStv 186)
TX Time: 18h10
Genre: Reality
Storage Wars, which makes entertainment out of items getting seized from Californian storage units and then sold off at auction, is back for a new season.
Bidders, who are desperately trying to outdo each other and pocket bucketloads of cash, range from 20-somethings out for fun and adventure to husband and wife teams looking to make fast and large cash.
In each episode of Storage Wars, the cast of characters head to storage units and wait anxiously for the big reveal of what is behind the door.
The owner of the facility will cut the lock and raise the door for the first time, allowing bidders to peer inside for a brief moment, aided only by a flashlight.
This short glimpse is their only opportunity to evaluate whether they think the unit holds rags or riches.
Then, the bidding begins.
In the Season 15 premiere, "All Hail, King Brandi: The Rule-Her of West Covina": In West Covina, Brandi makes a serious land grab and it pays off handsomely.
Meanwhile, Rene can't resist the mystery of a good safe.
Also, Kenny can't seem to satisfy his hunger, while Barry takes an opportunity to poach from the competition.
Deal or No Deal 2
Channel: SABC2
TX Time: 18h30
Genre: Game Show, Quiz Show
A second South African version of the international television game show created by John de Mol for Endemol Netherlands in which the core idea in all countries is the same: one contestant in a high thrills face-off with mystery suitcases.
The series features one contestant, one host, a banker and a battalion of suitcases each containing a different amount of money between R1 and R250,000.
This is the second South African version of the show -
the first aired for two seasons on M-Net, from 2007-2008.
This version is hosted by Katlego Maboe.
The Game
The money suitcases are brought on set and opened by a bevy of gorgeous leggy models.
To start the game, the contestant must pick a suitcase in which he or she hopes to reveal the million bucks - a one in 26 chance.
This suitcase is potentially the contestant's prize, i.e., what they can take home... if, of course, they do not take the deal.
Then the game of choice begins: the contestant must open the remaining 25 suitcases one at a time.
The suitcases are opened and the amounts revealed are struck from a big screen money grid, bringing us ever closer to knowing what amount is held in the contestant's case.
But there's a catch.
The Banker can buy back the contestant's case, based on what amounts are left in play and on what the banker feels the case is worth.
So at predetermined intervals the contestant is given a bank offer.
The contestant now decides whether it is a "Deal!" or "No Deal" - to take the bank offer or to continue opening cases.
If the contestant decides not to take the deal and he or she opens low value cases, then the next bank offer is likely to be higher (and visa versa).
But the banker may also decide to be risky.
The game continues in this way until the contestant takes a deal OR he/she opens the last case.
In taking the deal the contestant goes home with the money offered.
In playing to the last case, the contestant takes home what is in their case, be it R1 or R250,000.
The Risk
When the chips are down it's all about making the right decision and how much you can risk.
Can the contestant call the banker's bluff? Can he or she keep their cool and sail through the rounds?
Will the contestant dissolve into a heap of nerves and strike a deal... or will they play on and end up with nothing?!
TVSA Show Page: Deal or No Deal
Elsbeth
Channel: M-Net (DStv 101)
TX Time: 19h00
Genre: Drama, Police Procedural
Carrie Preston stars as Elsbeth Tascioni, an astute but unconventional attorney who utilises her singular point of view to make unique observations and corner brilliant criminals alongside the NYPD.
After leaving her successful legal career in Chicago to tackle a new investigative role in New York City, Elsbeth finds herself jockeying with the toast of the NYPD, Captain C.W. Wagner (Wendell Pierce), a charismatic and revered leader.
Working alongside Elsbeth is Officer Kaya Blanke (Carra Patterson), a stoic and ethical officer who quickly develops an appreciation for Elsbeth's insightful and offbeat ways.
In the series premiere, "Pilot": When a college theatre student is mysteriously found dead in her high-rise New York City apartment, Elsbeth immediately suspects foul play and enters a game of wits against the victim's popular theatre director Alex Modarian (guest star Stephen Moyer) who she believes is involved.
Throughout the evolution of the murder investigation, Elsbeth must balance her consent decree role with the NYPD and her uncommon methods to make her case and uncover the real killer.
Come Dine With Me South Africa
Channel: BBC UKTV (DStv 134)
TX Time: 19h00
Genre: Food, Reality Competition, Reality
Shot on location in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg, Season 1 follows five total strangers competing for the title of the ultimate dinner party host.
Each night for a week they will take it in turn to cook up their idea of the perfect evening.
As well as cooking, the rival hosts snoop around each others' houses and go to bizarre lengths to win the competition.
At the end of the evening, the host is judged by their guests and scored out of 10.
The contestant with the most points at the end of the week wins a cash prize and vouchers worth R10,000.
Come Dine With Me unites an exciting cross section of contestants from all social and cultural backgrounds not to mention ages and genders, through their love of food and entertaining.
A mix of food, conflict and competitive hosts makes for unforgettable and often jaw-dropping dinner parties.
Throughout, Come Dine With Me's narrator Dave Lamb never fails to make the most of the participants' fumbles and foibles.
Of course, with personality clashes at almost every dinner party, it's often not just the champagne corks that go with a bang as insults are traded, homes are snooped around, and the flowing wine loosens the diners' tongues...
The final episode of the season is a celebrity special in 2011 featuring Ashley Hayden, Neil Andrews, Shashi Naidoo and Sam Cowen.
TVSA Show Page: Come Dine With Me South Africa
NCIS 16
Channel: SABC2
TX Time: 21h30
Genre: Drama, Police Procedural
The 16th season returns one month after Director Vance was kidnapped by a terrorist who tortured Special Agent Sloane years ago in Afghanistan.
As Special Agent Gibbs assumes the role as Acting Director in Vance's absence, the team searches worldwide for their missing leader.
Diona Reasonover, who joined the cast as Forensic Scientist Kasie Hines last season, is promoted to series regular cast for Season 16.
In the Season 16 premiere, "Destiny's Child": Vance is still missing, and Gibbs is assigned as acting director while the team searches his whereabouts.
TVSA Show Page: NCIS 16
Real Health 18
Channel: The Home Channel (DStv 176)
TX Time: 18h00
Genre: Lifestyle, Talk Show
In an age where we lead faster, more complex and highly demanding lives, now, more than ever, we need to be taking care of our health.
Prevention, they say, is better than cure, and Real Health aims to give you the knowledge and insights to make the right choices to keep you healthy, both physically, mentally and spiritually.
Each week, wellness enthusiast Michael Porter chats to a variety of guests from the world of holistic health to find out more about quality lifestyle, nutrition, movement, and mental and spiritual wellness.
Together they discuss what we need to consider when it comes to maintaining good health, from the actions that we can, and should, be taking, to the risks that we face as well as the solutions to overcoming lifestyle and health issues.
Michael talks to integrative medical practitioners, life and wellness coaches, nutritionists, therapists, and experts from an array of other disciplines who have the expertise and knowledge that will support your wellness journey.