You're reading it here first.
It completely defies belief but it's really true: Part of what in my opinion is just more of the same perpetual disregard most South African TV channels feel for their viewers, is Mzansi Magic (DStv 107) now moving a reality show it started showing in primetime, to suddenly ... Saturday mornings!
How on earth I wonder will viewers suddenly know where their show went in which they've invested six week in? And how shortsighted and actually rude of a TV channel to lull you in as a viewer by presenting you with a show in a certain daypart, string you along, and then go dump it suddenly two episodes before the end in another daypart? Ri-di-cu-lous!
On Mzansi Magic (DStv 107) the reality show Your OWN Show, shown for the past six weeks in primetime on Wednesdays at 19:00 is suddenly gone. Not even I could puzzle it out.
With more episodes to go, even I couldn't find the show - and I was only checking next Wednesday's 19:00 timeslot before I was planning on writing something else. Something big is suppose to happen and I just wanted to make sure my plan correlates to the correct episode number and time time and day before I do a programming note.
How ordinary viewers will suddenly know why Your OWN Show just ''got taken off" (actually it got moved) I really don't know. Meanwhile the new upcoming episode seven is big. Viewers who record the show in its usual Wednesday timeslot in primetime or dutifully tune in, will suddenly get ... Culture Shock (although I think there will be other shock and anger too).
Why does a TV channel start a reality show in primetime and then not show it until its conclusion where viewers were introduced to it in the first place? Is it that difficult to keep the last two episodes - the big conclusion and pay-off for viewers who stayed with a show on your channel - in the same place? It's unbelievable.
Is it too much to ask to run a scrawl at the end of an episode with information of a date and time and notification of where its going to move to if you plan to move it?
I had to ask Mzansi Magic what on earth is going because I didn't know what is going on. I couldn't puzzle out whether the DStv EPG is wrong or whether tapes maybe didn't arrive, or what the problem is. And remember, I almost didn't even notice it - I only did because of another story I'm planning on writing to co-incide with the next episode.
"The show is still on the schedule it has been moved from Wednesdays to air Saturday mornings at 09:00 with a repeat the next day on Sundays at 08:30," said Mzansi Magic.
So, if you're looking for Your OWN Show on South African television, or the right new episode, let me tell you what appears to be happening.
This Saturday (12 May) Mzansi Magic will have episode 6 of Your OWN Show, which is also what was shown this week on Wednesday. So it's (luckily) not a new episode (hopefully?), it will be a repeat of this week's same already shown episode with Suze Orman.
Then, next Saturday (19 May) Your OWN Show should be at episode 7, with a repeat on Sunday 20 May.
Then on Saturday (26 May) Your OWN Show will have its finale at 09:00 in the morning (yes, ludicrous but very real), with a repeat on Sunday 27 May at 08:30.
