You're reading it here first.
I can be first to reveal that tonight - anytime from 17:30 on M-Net, the pay broadcaster will make the big announcement that the entry process for the new Survivor SA season set to be filmed in the Maldives that M-Net announced earlier in the week will be taking the form of a massive nationwide open audition process in which contestants will have to show up in the flesh to try and impress the selection panel in cities around South Africa.
M-Net will make the announcement this evening anytime from 17:30 and will run a promo telling viewers exactly how to enter for Survivor SA Maldives. I can tell you that nationwide auditions by Endemol SA will be taking place soon in three cities, most probably Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban. Contestants will have to show up in Idols style before the strict selection panel in the flesh and try to win them over with their personality and unique combination of looks, skills and maybe a rare talent. I can tell you that Survivor SA Maldives, the fourth season in the Survivor SA franchise will be filmed between the end of September and the end of December by Endemol SA somewhere in the Maldives, about 700 km south west of Sri Lanka. Contestants will have to be able to ''disappear'' for about a month.
I've reliably learned that M-Net - due to great viewer feedback - already decided during the broadcast of Survivor SA Santa Carolina to do a fourth season, although the final decision has only been taken very recently. Several island destinations were considered, but the pay broadcaster looked at islands like the Maldives with enough infrastructure to enable filming of the reality show, but that's still isolated enough to give that Survivor feeling. M-Net is once again filming Survivor SA Maldives on its own just like the previous season without the co-operation of international broadcasters or logistical or gaming support services.
I asked Lani Lombard, M-Net's head of publicity who says the new Survivor SA Maldives season is open for anyone to enter, although people who entered for Survivor SA before will have to do so again. ''The new Survivor SA in the Maldives is the chance of a lifetime. But people should not be blindsided by the beauty of the magnificent Maldives. It's going to be very difficult and tough. You have to be physically and mentally strong and have to be prepared to play the game. You have to be able to think strategically. You have to be a good swimmer, be older than 21 and be a South African citizen.''
Lani Lombard told me that contestants will ''have to prove that they can make good TV and why you think you can win. It always helps if you know what the show is about that you're entering for. Survivor SA is not about living in the lap of luxury on a deserted island. You have to survive and its a very strategic game.'' Tune in to M-Net from 17:30 to catch the promo and all the entry details.
