You're seeing it here first.
They're bubbly, beautiful, totally telegenic and naturally expressive: Liezel van der Westhuizen, Ewan Strydom, Michael Mol and Kia Johnson who are the presenters of the brand-new morning breakfast show Expresso. Expresso kicks off today, Monday October 4 at 05:30 to 07:30 on SABC3 and only I have the first on-set photos of the Expresso presenters.
I was the first TV writer to get access to the Sea Point chic set yesterday, a mere day before today's Expresso launch broadcast. Construction on the Expresso set is currently about halfway done on the 7th floor penthouse of The Equinox Building in Cape Town. Its from here that Tswelopele Productions will be doing the lifestyle orientated Expresso for SABC3 on weekdays, starting today.
Katlego Maboyi wasn't there yesterday when I visited the set, but an infectious exuberance and excitement among the presenters and crew of Tswelopele Productions were palpable in the afternoon Cape Town sun where they all lounged around on the roof of the building. The friendly and longtime Tswelopele Productions producer Bradley van den Berg was on hand keeping an eye on things. I also ran into the always pleasant uber producer Patience Stevens who's also the managing director of Tswelopele Productions. As always Patience Stevens is very hands-on with all her TV shows and Expresso will clearly be no exception.
Chris van Niekerk from The Fold Architecture in Cape Town who's responsible for the look and design of the sleek, multi-use and high end Expresso set graciously gave me a tour of the penthouse area. Here the presenters would be able to move seamlessly from the lounge to the gleaming kitchen, to a roof terrace, a gym (not completed yet) and a performance area.
For more exclusive first photos of the Expresso presenters on set, click on READ MORE below.
Just add some orange to the white and you could almost imagine yourself it being the private rooftop terrace of the fictional frightfrau Wilhelmina Slater in Ugly Betty. Expresso presenters Liezel van der Westhuizen and Michael Mol were lounging around at the outside area, sporting astroturf and white leisure seating with flowing lines. Cheerful chatter was everywhere yesterday as the presenters and crew prepared for today's first Expresso broadcast.
Expresso presenters Ewan Strydom and Michael Mol shared some guy talk soaking up the Cape Town sun in the one corner of the Expresso terrace with a simply magnificent view of Sea Point. Ewan Strydom will be the resident fitness expert of Expresso, while Top Billing's Michael Mol will drop by as the resident doctor with health and advice on healthy living and medical issues. He is a real doctor after all.
The Expresso group easily posed for a few photos (no diva drama here), possibly pointing towards an as relaxed on-set atmosphere behind the scenes as what Expresso will no doubt try to convey to early morning viewers on SABC3. Kia Johnson has also joined Expresso and will be handling the traffic reports.
Pierre du Plessis and Chris van Niekerk joined Expresso's Liezel van der Westhuizen for a quick photo. They're from The Fold Architecture in Cape Town and responsible for the brand-new set design of Expresso.
Expresso, weekdays, SABC3, 05:30 - 07:30
