TV with Thinus

Programming note: CNN International venturing inside Syria in the weekend special, Homs: City Under Siege.

2012-02-11T12:30:00.001+02:00

As violence continues in Syria, CNN International (DStv 401) will present a 30 minute special this weekend, entitled Homs: City Under Siege. Narrated by CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson, Homs: City Under Siege takes viewers inside Syria's third-largest city – and a flashpoint in the uprising. As bombs rain down on residential neighbourhoods, snipers shoot at those who

MOONRAKER. Space: 1999 to return to television as Space: 2099 in a brand-new remake of the iconic 1970's British sci-fi drama.

2012-02-11T12:16:00.000+02:00

Space: 1999 (the 1970's British science fiction series seen in 1983 in South Africa on TV1 dubbed in Afrikaans as Alfa 1999) and which got a rescreening since May 2010 on Fox Retro (TopTV 181) is getting a a new TV remake three decades later as Space: 2099. ITV Studios America, the American arm of the British production company ITV Studios, and HDFilms are behind the new version of the show

Sentech guilty of enabling pirate TV viewing; found negligent in test case over allowing people to watch SABC channels outside of South Africa.

2012-02-11T11:32:00.000+02:00

Sentech, South Africa's signal distributor of broadcasters' TV signals such as those of the SABC and e.tv, is guilty of negligence of protecting broadcasters' content, of allowing piracy of content and pirate viewing, and failure to encrypt broadcasters' digital TV signals on it's Vivid satellite TV platform. In a landmark judgement in a pivotal test case for not just South Africa's TV industry

Thelma Melk out as the SABC's company secretary; replaced by acting company secretary Jane Mbatia.

2012-02-11T10:49:00.000+02:00

Word is that Thelma Melk, the SABC's axed company secretary got a R3,2 million payout from the struggling public broadcaster just to go away. The SABC confirms to me that Thelma Melk is gone. Thelma Melk was suspended in September 2011, allegedly for ''poor work performance''. Before the suspension which made headlines last year, Thelma Melk had been linked to controversy at the SABC before,

RATINGS REPORT. The SABC's vaunted ANC Centenary coverage pushes SABC2's primetime viewership down.

2012-02-11T10:35:00.001+02:00

The SABC's effusive coverage of the ANC Centenary - with the public broadcaster dumping its primetime line-up on SABC2 for a whole week and adding double digit hours of weekend coverage on two TV channels including showing rehearsal footage of a celebration concert twice - proved a drag on the SABC's primetime viewership numbers. The SABC paid a big cost for its vaunted ANC coverage, as viewers

New TopTV CEO Eddie Mbalo: 'We have made mistakes and not delivered' but there is new thinking at TopTV - it's a new beginning.'

2012-02-10T07:37:00.000+02:00

In a very honest, very open, and at times actually painfully frank interview, Eddie Mbalo, the new acting CEO of South Africa's pay TV operator TopTV, exclusively answers every single question put to him by me a week after he took over the reigns of the troubled pay TV service provider from Vino Govender. Now Eddie Mbalo publicly speaks for the very first time about the pay TV business he took

BREAKING. With a month to go, the crazy starts for this year's 6th Saftas as the NFVF and SABC3 are thrown into sudden date moving drama.

2012-02-10T06:41:00.000+02:00

The drama around the 6th South African Film and Television Awards, better known as the Saftas, has started for this year's awards ceremony - TV with Thinus has learnt that the broadcast and ceremony has to change dates exactly a month before it's supposed to happen due to the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) having venue issues. I exclusively broke the news RIGHT HERE last month that

BREAKING. Gone cause of the wind: SABC2's breakfast show Morning Live to move out of the noisy foyer and to a brand-new studio.

2012-02-09T09:31:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. I can exclusively break the big news that SABC2's Morning Live is moving - with the longrunning breakfast show on the public broadcaster that will be vacating its long-used studio on the first floor balcony of the SABC's Auckland Park head office to a brand-new studio which will be unveiled next week, with further big changes in store for the show later in the

BREAKING. M-Net grabs The Secret Circle, but the new teen drama about a group of young witches won't be on Vuzu ...

2012-02-09T08:39:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. My dear Cassie, I can exclusively break the news that M-Net - the pay TV broadcaster - has acquired the broadcasting rights to the new ''teen witches'' show, The Secret Circle - but here's where it gets interesting: Only I can reveal that the show won't be on the youth channel Vuzu (DStv 123). ALSO READ: Vuzu still negotiating for the broadcasting rights to The

BREAKING. The longrunning medical drama House ending its run after 8 seasons in America in May.

2012-02-09T07:58:00.000+02:00

The longrunning medical drama House with Hugh Laurie who played dr Gregory House will end its run in May at the conclusion of its 8th season, the Fox network in America just announced. The show mostly became a victim of its own success, with House gradually becoming very expensive to produce due to salaries. ''While it's with much regret, and a lump in our throats, we respect the decision

BREAKING. An omnisexual time travelling space captain from the future is coming to SABC1 which acquired Torchwood.

2012-02-09T00:35:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. My guess would be that SABC1 doesn't really have any idea what it bought: I can exclusively reveal that SABC1 has acquired the broadcasting rights to a futuristic space captain with a rampant libido who sexes all kinds of genders and aliens - SABC1 nabbed the show Torchwood with Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman). How exactly SABC1 will be handling the first

BREAKING. SABC2's youth slot Hectic Nine 9 to add new presenters before the end of the month and completion of the audition process.

2012-02-08T23:43:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. I can break the news that SABC2's Hectic Nine 9 is set to already add at least one - possibly two - brand-new presenters before the end of this month, and then more presenters later, when the afternoon youth block on the channel immediately becomes an hour long show. An open casting call went out last month for the show produced from Cape Town but even though

Hollywood Uncensored with Sam Rubin on Star! is renewed for 26 more episodes.

2012-02-08T23:40:00.000+02:00

Hollywood Uncensored with Sam Rubin, seen in South Africa on Star! (TopTV 179), has been renewed for another 26 episodes. Sam Rubin, who can also be seen in Hollywood Dailies on the same channel, assembles an interesting and clever group of celebrities for Hollywood Uncensored - a kind of ''talk show'' panel discussion on Los Angeles' TV and film industry who share their surprising insight on

Programming note: The second annual Big Cats Week coming to Nat Geo Wild from this coming Monday with a roaring list of documentaries.

2012-02-08T23:01:00.000+02:00

The second annual Big Cat Week is coming to South African viewers on Nat Geo Wild (DStv 261) from this coming Monday, 13 February at 19:00. Nat Geo Wild's first Big Cat Week last year was highly successful, prompting a repeat. The whole week from this coming Monday Nat Geo Wild will show multiple big cat documentaries in primetime. Documentaries will range from cougars struggling to survive in

History goes dead with Grave Trade, a new 6 part documentary series looking at death and burial practices.

2012-02-08T22:15:00.000+02:00

History (DStv 254) has ordered a brand-new 6 part documentary series following a funeral home, entitled Grave Trade. Grave Trade will be a fly on the wall of the funeral home T Cribbs & Sons and has been commissioned by A+E Networks UK. Grave Trade will look at the culture of burial and death in British history and will also follow archaeologists as they work on Roman, Saxon, medieval and

Gerhard Zeiler the new president of Turner Broadcasting International, will oversee 130 channels in 200 countries.

2012-02-08T20:43:00.000+02:00

Gerhard Zeiler is the new president of Turner Broadcasting International, the Time Warner-operated owner of TV channels seen in South Africa such as CNN International (DStv 401), The Cartoon Network (DStv 301), TCM (DStv 109) and Boomerang (DStv 302). As president of TBC International Gerhard Zeiler will be in charge of over 130 TV channels in 200 countries (excluding North America). He will

TOLDJA! The Edition with presenter Vuzi Zion starting on the eNews Channel; trendy magazine show will look at popular culture.

2012-02-08T14:50:00.000+02:00

I broke the news exclusively RIGHT HERE last month thata new weekly show entitled The Edition is coming to the eNews Channel (DStv 403) from tonight, 8 February, - today after I asked around again yesterday, e.tv send me a press release that The Edition is starting tonight at 21:30, exactly as I said would happen. The new show in 13 episodes is positioned as a trendy magazine show that will be

DStv Film Talent Celebration announces the 5 respected industry judges for the short film competition.

2012-02-08T14:02:00.000+02:00

The judges for the DStv Film Talent Celebration are Kgomotso Matsunyane of Tom Pictures, Helen Kuun of Indigenous Distribution, Eve Rantseli of Women of the Sun; Teboho Mahlatsti of The Bomb and Steven Markovitz of the Encounters Film Festival. MultiChoice just officially announced their names. The DStv Film Talent Celebration is a competition for South African filmmakers in any genres. ALSO

BREAKING. 'Massive content improvements are what we need to do,' says Lulama Mokhobo, the SABC's new group CEO.

2012-02-08T01:24:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. The SABC's new group CEO, Lulama Mokhobo, admitted in a live sit-down interview on SABC2's Morning Live breakfast show Tuesday that ''massive content improvements are what we need to do.'' Talking to Peter Ndoro, she said that the SABC ''needs to refocus on what South Africans want to see and hear''. Lulama Mokhobo said that ''as a public broadcaster there is

BREAKING. SABC's new group CEO Lulama Mokhobo on advertising industry's reluctance: 'We've come out of a really bad patch.'

2012-02-08T01:01:00.001+02:00

You're reading it here first. The SABC's new group CEO Lulama Mokhobo says the biggest thing bugging South Africa's advertising industry about the SABC has been ''the reputational issues regarding the organisation'', telling Peter Ndoro on SABC2's Morning Live breakfast show that ''as you know we've come out of a really bad patch where so much was said about the organization - and the lack of

BREAKING. SABC's group CEO Lulama Mokhobo on TV production industry: 'We've got to treat them as partners - with a great deal of respect.'

2012-02-08T00:20:00.002+02:00

You're reading it here first. ''There are quite a number of pressure groups that have been very upset with how the SABC have managed South Africa's production sector. I have no doubt in my mind that we've got to treat them as partners - with a great deal of respect,'' said Lulama Mokhobo, the SABC's new group CEO who did a sit-down TV interview on SABC2's Morning Live and talked about the

BREAKING. SABC's new group CEO Lulama Mokhobo calls SABC 'an organisation whose core is fractured but is on its way to healing.'

2012-02-07T23:59:00.004+02:00

You're reading it here first. ''It never ceases to amaze me how committed the SABC staff really are, regardless of what's been going on at the top levels,'' said the SABC's new group CEO, Lulama Mokhobo who on SABC2's Morning Live breakfast show said that she's walking into an organisation ''whose core is fractured but is well on its way to healing''. ALSO READ: ''Massive content improvements

BREAKING. SABC's group CEO Lulama Mokhobo on the new 24 hour news channel: 'It will focus on news, current affairs, key documentaries'.

2012-02-07T23:44:00.004+02:00

You're reading it here first. The SABC's new group CEO Lulama Mokhobo who sat down for a wide-ranging interview on SABC2's breakfast show Morning Live told Leanne Manas this morning that South Africa's public broadcaster will announce ''in the not too distant a future'' when the new 24 hour news channel the SABC is planning will be starting. The 24 hour news channel has been beset by

BREAKING. SABC3's Expresso presenter Liezel van der Westhuizen to venture outside and visit viewers' homes early in the morning for coffee.

2012-02-07T22:57:00.000+02:00

You're reading it here first. Expresso presenter Liezel van der Westhuizen will be leaving the breezy penthouse Cape Town studio of the morning show (SABC3, 05:30 - 08:00) soon to have espresso in viewers' homes across South Africa during daybreak, the bubbly blond announced in today's show. Liezel van der Westhuizen told viewers that she and Expresso will be visiting viewers at home during

BBC World News commissions a second season of Horizons, looking at how mankind will work and live in the next decade.

2012-02-07T22:22:00.000+02:00

BBC World News (TopTV 400 / DStv 400) has commissioned a second season of Horizons which will start later this year and which will further explore how mankind will live and work in the next decade. The second season of Horizons will again travel around the world looking at ideas to solve the Earth's biggest challenges. Adam Shaw will again serve as the lead presenter of the programme, with Saima