The BBC's Bluey is now barking in Zulu, Afrikaans, Swahili and Nigerian Pidgin with BBC Studios that is making the beloved Blue Heeler animation series available in several African-dubbed languages for the very first time.
The BBC made the dubbing announcement at MIP Africa 2025 running in Cape Town, South Africa and further expands on the ongoing dubbing into African languages done by studios ranging from the BBC to Paramount Africa, Paramount's African unit.
Podcaster Nonkanyiso Conco known as Laconco will voice Bluey’s mum in the Zulu-dubbed version, while Omotunde Adebowale David known as Lolo1, will voice Bluey’s mum in Nigerian Pidgin.
The BBC says the dubbing of the BAFTA award winning animated series "marks a significant step in making quality children's in making quality children’s programming reflect African voices".
"Bluey has always celebrated the magic of everyday family life and now, more children can experience that magic in the language they speak at home," says Barbara Jerzyk Alvarez, Head of CEEMA Content Sales at BBC Studios.
"By localising Bluey in four African languages, the show continues to foster connection, imagination, and emotional learning for even more young audiences across Africa."
Nonkanyiso Conco says "Voicing Chilli has been a deeply personal and joyful experience. Bluey’s stories are universal but hearing them in our own languages makes them feel even more special. It’s a gift to our children.”
Omotunde Adebowale David says “Voicing Chilli has been a whirlwind of emotions, from feeling humbled to excited. This marks my very first voice acting project.”
Produced by Ludo Studio and created by Joe Brumm, the series follows Bluey, a loveable, inexhaustible, Blue Heeler dog, who lives with her Mum, Dad and her little sister, Bingo. Bluey uses her limitless energy to play games that unfold in unpredictable and hilarious ways.
The series is available in over 140 countries and the new African episodes have been dubbed by Blac Duo Media. The third season of Bluey is currently airing on the version of CBeebies in Africa and Disney+.
BBC Studios will broadcast its new ASIA natural history series from Monday 24 February at 20:00 on BBC Earth (DStv 184), with the 8-episode cinematic series, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, exploring remarkable places and unseen, extraordinary animal behaviour across Asia.
Filmed over the course of nearly four years, this is the first time that Asia - home to the highest mountain range, the deepest ocean, the tallest jungles, and the biggest cave - has been the focus of a BBC Studios wildlife series.
In Nepal, ASIAwill follow rhinos playing "kiss chase" in a bizarre courtship ritual. In the foothills of the Himalayas, amidst forests of bamboo, viewers will meet Asia's shyest and possibly cutest mammal: the red panda.
Five thousand meters up on the Tibetan Plateau, audiences will witness a lone wolf relentlessly hunting a herd of antelope for hours on end.
In Sri Lanka, the show will join elephants that have learned to become highway thieves - holding up buses to get food from the passengers. And in the rich waters of the Western Pacific, cameras will swim with sea snakes that have learned to team up with fish to hunt.
ASIA will also explore the conservation challenges facing the continent and shine a light on the potential solutions being championed by the region's conservation heroes.
From the vast Gobi Desert to the jungles of Borneo, and from the polar wilderness of Siberia to the coral seas of the Indian Ocean, this series will showcase the breathtaking diversity of Asia's wildest places.
ASIA, with 7 episodes and one "making of" episode, is produced by the BBC Studios Natural History Unit, co-produced with ZDF and France Télévisions.
ASIA's executive producer is Roger Webb and the series producer is Matthew Wright.
Asia episode synopsis:
Episode 1: Beneath the Waves
Asia has the longest coastline of any continent, and the most abundant coral reefs on Earth.
Its seas are connected by some of the world's most powerful currents and are home to over 60% of all marine species.
This groundbreaking episode features the charismatic creatures of Asia's oceans, never- before-seen spectacles and brand-new animal behaviour. From giants in the deep ocean, to tiny fish that climb trees, squid that glow in the dark, and grey reef sharks that hunt in their hundreds. Asia's waters are as spectacular as they are diverse.
Episode 2: Above the Clouds
Asia is the most mountainous continent on earth. From the forested slopes of the tropics to the hostile heights of the Himalaya, Asia's mountains are home to an astonishing abundance of specialized plants and wildlife.
In India, elephants live in high-altitude tea plantations; and in Thailand, mountainous caves hide the planet's greatest gathering of swifts.
In Pakistan, markhor lives life truly on the edge, fighting for mates atop towering cliffs; and in Nepal, the forested foothills of the Himalayas provide hiding places for one of Asia's shyest but most adorable mammals, the red panda.
Episode 3: The Frozen North
In northern Asia, life defies hostile extremes. In Russia's Lake Baikal, a seal pup must take evasive action when its ice den starts to melt.
Hokkaido's thermal springs are a haven for dancing red-crowned cranes. On the Tibetan Plateau, a lone Himalayan wolf hunts antelope. Fish owls thrive in the forests where Russia and China meet.
On the Kamchatka Peninsula, brown bears hunt salmon in preparation for winter. Elsewhere in Japan, bats hibernate beneath snow, while red foxes and sea eagles compete for food. In Arctic Russia, polar bears wait on isolated islands for the return of sea ice.
Episode 4: Tangled Worlds
Asia's jungles are exceptionally diverse, but while they provide shelter, food and opportunity, they are also full of dangers and hidden threats.
In monsoon forests, tigers tenaciously hunt their prey, and prehistoric-looking rhinos play courtship games akin to "kiss chase".
In tropical rainforests, female orangutans must search far and wide to find their perfect mates. And in the little-known forests of Iraqi Kurdistan, a new Persian leopard population is growing amidst minefields.
Episode 5: Crowded Continent
In Asia, the most densely populated continent, animals have developed extraordinary ways to seize the opportunities of the human world.
From tigers entering a city to hunt easy prey, to elephants stopping traffic to demand food from motorists. A small park in central Bangkok supports three hundred giant lizards while a flying squirrel in Taipei has made a cozy home in a school.
Yet, the changing human world creates unprecedented challenges: proboscis monkeys are forced to venture uncomfortably closer to humans and swifts in Jerusalem face tough competition for nest sites.
Episode 6: The Arid Heart
In the heart of Asia lie vast arid lands. These deserts and dry grasslands are so hostile, they push life to the limit.
Here, one of the rarest animals on earth, the Gobi Bear, searches desperately for water, and bizarre looking long-eared jerboas use their striking features to catch insects. Asiatic lions must do whatever it takes to find food and juvenile cormorants resort to cannibalism to survive.
On the arid grasslands, Pallas cats need ingenious ways to get close to their prey, Mongolian Gazelles must battle harsh winters and human barriers, and takhi horses are terrorized each night by Mongolian wolves. Life in the Arid Heart demands extraordinary resilience - those that live here are Asia's great survivors.
Episode 7: Saving Asia
Remarkable people are dedicating their lives to saving Asia's extraordinary wildlife, using ingenious solutions.
In Borneo, we follow a sun bear being released back into the wild; and in Java, we see how a breeding program is saving the Javan green magpie.
In Japan, orphaned shark embryos are being raised in an artificial uterus. And off Bali, fishermen are trialling new technology that could stop rare species being caught in their nets.
We witness a Nepali police raid disrupting the illegal wildlife trade, and also join a 24-hour wildlife rescue team saving Sunda pangolins in urban Singapore.
Episode 8: The Making Of Asia
This episode goes behind the scenes with the production team of ASIA.
The year's most-watched show on Disney+ is becoming a film in 2027, with the animated kids series Bluey coming to the big screen in 2025 with its first theatrical release.
Disney and BBC Studios announced that 2024's number one series on streaming on Disney+ will become a film in 2027 under the Disney banner.
Following the global theatrical release, the Bluey movie will stream on Disney+.
The Bluey film, written and directed by Bluey creator Joe Brumm is a Ludo Studio production done with BBC Studios, and will bring the adventures of Bluey - a loveable, inexhaustible, blue heeler dog, who lives with her mum, dad and her little sister, Bingo - for the first time to cinemas.
The Bluey film will use the same vocal talent from the Australian series, including Melanie Zanetti and David McCormack as Bluey's mum and dad, Chilli and Bandit Heeler, as well as music created by Bluey composer Joff Bush.
Joe Brumm, says "I really enjoyed the experience of working with a longer format on the episode The Sign in season 3, so going even further with a feature film feels like a natural extension of that".
"I've always thought Bluey deserved a theatrical movie. I want this to be an experiential event for the whole family to enjoy together."
In a statement, announcing the film, Alan Bergman and Dana Walden, co-chairmen of Disney Entertainment, said "Since its debut on Disney Junior (DStv 309) and Disney+, Bluey has become a global phenomenon, uniting families everywhere with its heartfelt stories of play, imagination and connection".
"We are so proud to expand upon our relationship with BBC Studios to bring the magic of Bluey to the big screen – for real life! – and we are deeply grateful to Joe Brumm for creating a world that continues to inspire and delight families everywhere."
In the statement, Tom Fussell, BBC Studios CEO, said "We are incredibly excited to take Bluey to cinemas given its extraordinary success on a global scale – it is some of the most popular IP in the world".
"BBC Studios has a long history of bringing the very best children's television to the world in new and exciting ways, so working with Joe and the team, we felt a feature-length film was the natural next step."
BBC Studios says it has achieved record-breaking performance for its linear channel business, with standout growth in Africa, alongside remarkable results across the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region.
In Africa, BBC Studios' linear portfolio on MultiChoice's DStv - including the BBC Lifestyle, BBC Brit, BBC UKTV, BBC Earth, and BBC News TV channels - expanded its reach by +14% in 2024.
According to BBC Studios, this growth marks the highest-ever performance for CBeebies and BBC UKTV, while BBC Lifestyle achieved its best results since 2017.
Additionally, BBC Primetime, a bespoke two-hour content block on SABC3, has increased its reach by 24% compared to the same period last year.
According to BBC Studios, in the Netherlands, BBC First - BBC Studios' premium drama channel in the Netherlands - saw 2024 topping 2023 as its biggest year since launching in 2015. The channel has delivered a 2.3% 4+ market share to date in 2024, up +16% from last year.
In Poland, BBC Studios' channel portfolio of BBC Earth, BBC Brit, BBC First, BBC Lifestyle and CBeebies is also on track to deliver its highest share in 2024 (0.82%, 4+) since the portfolio launched in 2015.
Here BBC Earth and BBC First delivered the highest annual share ever in 2024.
In the Nordics, BBC Nordic - BBC Studios' multi-genre linear channel available in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland - has ranked as the biggest international channel in its competitive set in Norway in October and November.
In November, the channel delivered the highest share since launch (1.2%, 4+), and the channel has seen a +53% increase in share in 2024 compared to 2023, when it launched.
Arran Tindall, chief commercial officer, EVP, EMEA Key Markets, in a statement, says "2024 has been a record year for our channels business in EMEA".
"We have seen incredible numbers across our whole channel portfolio in the Netherlands, Poland, Africa and the Nordics, and I am extremely proud of the growth we have seen this year."
"This success is a testament to BBC Studios' extensive breadth of high-quality content and the careful curation by our teams to deliver engaging schedules that resonate with local tastes and audiences in each of our markets."
MultiChoice is developing an Afrikaans version of the satirical comedy series The Office in South Africa, licensed from BBC Studios and produced by Rapid Blue, which will start filming and debut in 2025 as a Showmax Original and simultaneously broadcast on kykNET (DStv 144).
The Afrikaans version of The Office will be the 14th version of the mockumentary sitcom. MultiChoice has experience with the format with kykNET's long-running Hotel and the recent Pronk Primêr which is similar to Abbott Elementary.
On Friday morning Showmax was asked but declined to say whether the title would be something like Die Kantoor, or what the initial episode order is, saying that more information about the production will only be made available later.
Nicola van Niekerk, M-Net's head of premium content and co-productions and now also Showmax's acting head of content, on Friday morning told media at kykNET's 2024 12th Silwerskerm film festival in a press briefing that South Africa will get the 14th adaptation of The Office on partnership with Ricky Gervais.
"We recently signed and we're developing in conjunction with Rapid Blue. We're extremely excited. We've started the process and will look at how is going to play the weird office boss," van Niekerk said.
"In Australia it's a woman. Will South Africa get a man or a woman? Will they be old or young? How will the office make-up look? This is one of the most exciting projects we've worked on in years," van Niekerk said.
"The reason you take a project like this is because of the expertise like the BBC comedy team and Ricky Gervais. But they don't have the writers internally for a South African adaptation. We're crewing up completely locally and we're going to get some of the best Afrikaans writers in the writers' room and make it as strong as possible."
"The thing that makes different versions of The Office so good is the adapted nuance of the writing. The cultural nuance and authenticity is critically important. You can't just take a script, translate it and think it will land. It won't land. So it will be a long development period."
Ziyanda Ngcaba, Rapid Blue managing director, says "We are proud to be producing the first African version of The Office for Showmax and kykNET".
The Office created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant made its debut over two decades ago as a British series and was successfully adapted in other territories like the United States and recently Australia.
The BritBox video streaming service is shutting down in South Africa and exiting in August just three years after it launched in South Africa and forms part of the ongoing trend of global streamer operators closing the taps on their money-guzzling video-on-demand plans for the African continent.
BritBox SA, run by BritBox International as a joint venture between BBC Studios and ITV, launched in South Africa in August 2021 as the fifth territory and only African region it expanded to.
Earlier this year BBC Studios bought out ITV's share and took over full ownership of BritBox, also shutting down BritBox as a standalone service in the United Kingdom.
BBC Studios runs the existing portfolio of BBC branded linear TV channels like BBC Brit, BBC Lifestyle, BBC Earth and CBeebies on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV service.
In a statement, BritBox SA says "Sadly BritBox will be closing. Subscribers can watch all their favourite shows until August". BritBox joins the list of failed streamer attempts in South Africa like Altech Node, PCCW's OnTAPTV, Cell C's Black, Telkom ONE and Vodacom's Video Play.
BritBox SA's PR company in South Africa in response to a media query says "BritBox is refocusing on its more established markets and the areas of the business that will have the highest opportunities for growth".
"A large proportion of the content on BritBox has been exclusive to the service in South Africa; however, we expect some of this great British programming will find a new home on other platforms and channels in the territory in the future. There is also a suite of BBC Branded channels on DStv - BBC Earth, BBC Brit, BBC Lifestyle, BBC UKTV, CBeebies and BBC World News".
It's unclear with how many subscribers BritBox exits South Africa and why BBC Studios felt that continuing with the investment into BritBox for the territory wouldn't bear fruit.
A year after BritBox launched in South Africa, Reemah Sakaan, BritBox International CEO, noted that the company was pleased with the performance of BritBox SA, that it had "a really fantastic start" in the country and had "thousands and thousands" of users.
The shuttering of BritBox SA comes after the abrupt exit of AMC Networks' Acorn TV, another British streaming service, from South Africa in November 2022 after four years.
The shuttering of BritBox SA is part of a larger trend of the ongoing funnel of investment into streaming services in South Africa and across the African continent being markedly decreased.
It follows after a reset and decrease in budgets for content spending for streamers in the United States and with these decisions rippling outwards globally.
Earlier this year Amazon MGM Studios shocked producers in South Africa and elsewhere on the African continent when all further projects and all TV and film projects already under development for its Amazon Prime Video service were abruptly cancelled. Amazon also retrenched its South African and Nigerian content commissioning teams.
Last year Netflix also said that it's decreasing its investment on content spending for African Originals, while Disney+ - which is only operational in South Africa in sub-Saharan Africa - also saw the culling of already-commissioned and filmed projects for the EMEA region.
MultiChoice's relaunched Showmax streamer as a joint venture with Comcast's NBCUniversal and Sky is the one African streaming service that has upped its capital expenditure and content investment over the past year to try and radically increase subscriber acquisition on the continent.
Paramount Global, which is struggling and under immense financial pressure in the United States, took too long to launch in South Africa and shelved plans to launch Paramount+ as a standalone service in the country.
Instead, it recently opted to partner with MultiChoice and become just a branded studio tile destination within the relaunched Showmax service. Warner Bros. Discovery is yet to indicate when or whether it still plans to launch its streaming service Max in South Africa.
Showmax, Netflix SA, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV+ are the main video streaming services aggressively trying to scoop up subscribers in South Africa. While battling each other, they also contend with smaller services like SABC+, eMedia's eVOD, PCCW Media's VIU, Marquee TV, PrideTV and CineMagic all trying to make inroads into the space.
In a groundbreaking deal, South Africa's public broadcaster has acquired a raft of premium BBC content from BBC Studios that will play out as a 2-hour primetime block on weeknights on SABC3 from May in the SABC's attempt to try and revive the ratings and fortunes of the ailing TV channel.
From May the South African public broadcaster is joining with Britain's public broadcaster in unlocking an archive avalanche of high-quality content that until now was only accessible to MultiChoice's DStv subscribers who had access to the collection of traditional pay-TV channels run globally by BBC Studios.
The curated BBC Studios content as part of a multi-million rand licensing and partnership deal with the SABC will run on weeknights between 21:00 and 23:00 on SABC3 and will also be made available on the SABC+ video streaming service.
Dubbed "BBC Primetime" it will include award-winning British drama series, documentaries, lifestyle programming and factual entertainment ranging from Top Gear (seasons 14 to 17) and Luther to Death in Paradise.
Initial titles in the 2-hour block will include Cheaters, We Hunt Together, Top Gear, Billion Dollar Downfall, Sex Actually with Alice Levine, Louis Theroux Forbidden America, Undercover, Secrets of Sugar Baby Dating, Death in Paradise, Our Girl, Luther, MotherFatherSon, Critical, Louis Theroux Dark States, Trafficking Sex, Press, as well as Nigeria's Female Suicide Bombers.
The SABC hopes to lift viewership and lure advertisers to SABC3 as the public broadcaster's only commercial TV channel but also its most troubled and the most ratings-challenged of its three legacy TV channels.
"I
am so excited to launch our first BBC branded block in Africa with SABC," says Pierre Cloete, BBC Studios Africa commercial director.
"BBC Primetime will be hand-picked for S3
audiences, packed with a selection of incredible programming from our
award-winning catalogue. From intense thrillers, crime dramas and inspiring
documentaries, this marks our first block for free-to-air audiences in South
Africa, giving 13 million homes access to BBC
Studios shows. I can't wait for the 2024 launch."
Asked how the deal came about, Cloete said "the DNA between the BBC and the SABC is almost the same - the BBC's got the same mandate as the SABC. That connection is very important".
"We understand public broadcasting, we understand audiences. When we spoke with the SABC it was a no-brainer to work together and to bring something special and unique to audiences."
Binge-watch BBC dramas
Pierre Cloete said "drama we know is super important - but not in the old, traditional way of scheduling drama one episode, once a week.
"BBC dramas will be scheduled Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays as a strip on SABC3, so you can basically binge-watch these, plus get it on SABC+ as a 14-day catch-up so you can watch a whole series in one go, which I think is amazing".
"We're also pushing documentaries - I think there's a huge demand for that on SABC3. Thirdly, we're also putting entertainment into the mix. We're taking proven content, we're taking premium strategies and implementing it into this block."
David Makubyane, the SABC's head of TV channels, says "One of the important things that we had to look at is the commercial sustainability of the SABC".
"You can go with the old way of doing business. That's why we started looking at different models. There are a variety of models that we look at. This one in particular looks at a BBC block of content on SABC3 from 21:00 until 23:00. This will now be a BBC-branded block. This is a new model for the SABC. We're not talking about library content. We're talking crème de la crème BBC."
"It's the latest BBC crème de la crème content that's going to sit there, with us partnering and making sure that the brand of SABC3 brings in audiences. At the same time the partnership ensures that we remain commercially viable."
"The content works because we are both public broadcasters. We know this is content that will resonate with the South African audience."
Asked about whether there could be any original BBC-SABC co-production for SABC3, Makubyane said "this is only the beginning".
"At the moment, it's obviously finished product but the relationship with the BBC is one where we are seeing how do we collaborate - how do we do co-productions? So yes, hopefully in the future we will start seeing that the SABC and the BBC co-produce content together."
Sane Zondi, SABC programming manager, says "This partnership with BBC Studios is born out of
the need for us to fulfil our commitment in delivering high-quality
international content to our viewers".
"We are excited to have access to a vast
catalogue from the BBC and the unlimited world-class entertainment our viewers
will be able to enjoy through BBC Primetime on SABC3. The deal allows us to bring back some of the
iconic BBC titles to our viewers which formed weekly habitual viewing, with Top
Gear being the most notable one."
"We look forward to seeing some of the sentiments and reactions across
our social media platforms on this great new era on our channel."
The SABC has picked up a further raft of game show format titles through Primedia Studios like Raid the Cage, and Wheel of Fortune, while it's partnering with Netflix on a Winnie Madikizela-Mandela documentary series and is adding a 2-hour block of premium BBC content for SABC3 primetime in a deal with BBC Studios.
The SABC said viewers will see its three TV channels going through a mutation over the next three years.
The South African public broadcaster on Tuesday evening made several show announcements at an event for media, advertisers and other partners dubbed "SABC Video Entertainment Content Festival 2024" in Fourways, Johannesburg - the first of what the SABC said would be a new type of content showcasing event.
The broadcaster used to have quarterly content screenings for SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 which fell by the wayside years ago but on Tuesday said it planned to communicate about its content, schedules and programmes more again.
Lala Tuku, the acting head of SABC video entertainment, said the SABC is "on a mission to reimagine how we entertain our audiences".
To celebrate 30 years of South Africa's democracy the SABC will curate library content from its archives which will be played out across SABC1, SABC2, SABC3 and on a pop-up channel as part of "Shifters and Shakers: 1994 - 2024", showcasing iconic moment in programming on the public broadcaster.
"Viewers will get an opportunity to see some of the greatest moments again and we will showcase some hits," Tuku said. "We understand that we're in a competitive landscape but we stand proud of the archives we have as the public broadcaster. We've got a rich history of content in sports, arts, culture and religion and education."
"We're not blind to the plethora of competitors and content providers that have come into the space, but we stand firm and believe that the new content offering that we are going to showcase and give to our viewers will really put us into a competitive edge."
David Makubyane, head of SABC channels, said changes like Skeem Saam moving to a later timeslot on SABC1 and Afrikaans content shunted from SABC2 to SABC3 is because of changing content consumption patterns and the entrance of multiple video streaming services like Showmax, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+.
"Twelve years ago we commanded as the SABC about 54% of market share with our three TV channels. Now we fast forward, we've got new entrants into the market. The media landscape has changed completely. Why we launched SABC+ is to also respond to this. The changes that you see on our channels is a response to this change that we are talking about."
"You're going to see this mutation of our brands as we go through into the next three years."
"SABC1 is really going to be about the youth - focused on young people, their dilemmas and issues. SABC2 is a family proposition channel. We're looking at the entire family and the diverse representation of family that we have in this country. SABC3 is focused on the millennials, the millennial lifestyle, the progressive audiences of this country who are also global thinkers."
In factual content the SABC is partnering with Netflix South Africa on The Trials of Winnie Mandela, while SABC will broadcast Just call me Arch about the life of Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Following pickups of The Masked Singer SA and Deal or No Deal SA for second seasons, as well as Ready Steady Cook SA that just started on SABC3 and taking over MasterChef SA from M-Net for SABC3, Primedia Studios also acquired new game show formats like Raid the Cage, as well as Wheel of Fortune SA from Paramount Global for the SABC.
The Voice South Africa that was on MultiChoice's M-Net channel on DStv for three seasons is also being revived by Primedia Studios for SABC1 which will bring the singing competition to a public audience for the first time for a 4th season from 28 September at 18:00.
SABC1: Revamped Seli
SABC1 also has Sjava's 1-Man Show starting on 15 June at 20:00, with the travelogue show Breaking Down Borders airing from 3 July at 18:00.
The lifestyle show Selimathunzi is getting revamped as Hotspot Selimathunzi or abbreviated as Hotspot Seli, from 4 July at 18:00. The 2024 MetroFM Music Awards will broadcast on SABC1 on 27 April at 20:30.
Roxic, starting 8 October at 18:00 on SABC1 is a new talk show "confronting the toxicity in relationships as we counsel them through therapy on the journey to healing".
SABC2: Raiding in the cage
A new season of Taste Master will start on SABC2 on 23 April at 19:00 while Primedia Studios and Rose and Oaks Media are producing the new game show Raid the Cage that will start on 27 May.
In Raid the Cage, two teams battle it out to win prizes. One contestant has to answer questions in order to win time for the teammate who has to run and grab prizes and move it out of a cage - perhaps even pushing a car out - before the doors slam shut.
Big Day for 25K starting in June follows couples who plan their big wedding day with a R25 000 budget.
SA's Got Talent is also getting revived by Primedia Studios, which is also returning to SABC2. After the show that started on SABC2 switched to e.tv for several seasons, SA's Got Talent will now see a 9th season on SABC2 from 5 June at 19:00, with two episodes a week on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
SABC3: BBC primetime and Wheel of Fortune
In a partnership with BBC Studios, the SABC is adding a 2-hour block of premium BBC content - dramas, talkshow, documentaries and lifestyle programming.
Previously only seen on pay-TV on MultiChoice's set of BBC channels on DStv, a raft of BBC shows which will now be seen on SABC3 on weekdays from 21:00 to 23:00.
The second season of The Masked Singer SA, a Primedia Studios and Rose and Oaks Media production, starts on SABC3 on 13 April at 20:30. The 5th season of MasterChef SA, a Primedia Studios and Homebrew Films production, will start on SABC3 on Saturday 22 June at 19:30.
Wife Swap SA is also coming to SABC3 from Monday 1 July at 18:00.
Crown Chasers, a reality show built around the Miss SA pageant competition will start for a second season on SABC3 from Saturday 22 June at 20:30, with the finale of Miss SA 2024 - hosted by Bonang Matheba - on Saturday 11 August at 19:30.
The 11th season of Tropika: Island of Treasure starts on SABC3 on Saturday 21 September at 18:30.
Primedia Studios also acquired the Paramount format game show Wheel of Fortune for South Africa.
The SABC says that the game show, hugely popular in America, will run as a weekday strip on SABC3 on weekdays from 8 April.
As part of the time-warp of the times the British science fiction series Doctor Who is the next TV shows jumping straight to streaming with the total travels of the TARDIS which will whirl from the BBC to Disney+ outside of Britain from 2023.
Following the switch from M-Net (DStv 101) of This is Us, Grey's Anatomy, Station 19 and other shows all moving from premium pay-TV and linear broadcast television to Disney+, the BBC and Disney announced that the complete library and new series of Doctor Who will be switching to Disney+ outside of the United Kingdom as well in 2023 as part of a new partnership contract.
David Tennant will play the 14th Doctor for three upcoming Doctor Who TV specials at the end of the year, before Ncuti Gatwa takes over the role as the 15th Doctor.
In South Africa Doctor Who used to reside on BBC Studios' linear TV channels like BBC Entertainment and BBC Brit for a number of years, after which MultiChoice's video streaming service Showmax acquired a few seasons that were co-incidentally filmed in South Africa while Jodie Whittaker was the Doctor, but it lasted only a short while after which Showmax dropped the series from its catalogue.
South African viewers have been left Doctor Who-less for a number of years with the series which didn't return to the BBC's linear pay-TV channels, but viewers will now be able to catch up and continue the show on Disney+ from next year.
The BBC and Disney Branded Television say they're bringing Doctor Who to Disney+ as they are working together to "transform Doctor Whointo a global franchise for UK
audiences and the rest of the world" as part of a new collaboration around the show which is produced in Wales by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios Production.
"I love this show, and this is the best of both
worlds – with the vision and joy of the BBC and Disney+ together we can launch
the TARDIS all around the planet, reaching a new generation of fans while
keeping our traditional home firmly on the BBC in the UK," says Russell T. Davies who is returning to Doctor Who as showrunner in 2023 after he helmed the reboot of the series in 2005.
Charlotte Moore, BBC chief content officer, says "We are thrilled to announce this exciting
global partnership with Disney who are the perfect partners to bring
this very British show to the rest of the world".
"Russell T. Davies' vision
for Doctor Who has always been out of this world and we are committed to
ensuring that audiences across the globe get the opportunity to enjoy the Doctor's
epic adventures with the scale and ambition that they deserve.
"Joining
forces with Disney will elevate the show to even greater heights and reach new
audiences so it's an extremely exciting time for fans in the UK and across the
world."
Alisa Bowen, Disney+ president, in the statement says "We're excited by the opportunity to bring new seasons of this
beloved franchise exclusively to Disney+ and introduce the show to the next
generation of audiences in more than 150 markets around the world."
"The series
is a perfect addition to our ever-growing catalogue of global content that
continues to make Disney+ the home for exceptional storytelling."
Ayo Davis, Disney Branded Television president, says "Doctor
Who has captivated the imaginations of families around the world for the past
six decades. We are so excited about this collaboration with the BBC, and the
opportunity to bring this iconic franchise – and Russell T. Davies' brilliant
vision – to life for a huge new global audience".
Jane Trantor, Bad Wolf executive producer and co-founder, says "For
Doctor Who to have the backing of two of the most innovative and respected
media organisations in the world is a testament to the unique drive and vision
at the heart of this show".
"Bad Wolf are beyond delighted to be once again
working with the genius that is Russell T. Davies and, with the exciting new
partnership between the BBC and Disney, we can together reach to even greater
heights, producing from Wolf Studios Wales ambitious stories through time and
space for audiences across the globe."
The BBC in the United Kingdom and eMedia Investments in South Africa were both left with egg on the face on the BBC's 100th anniversary today when their touted UKTV channel failed to launch on Tuesday on eMedia's Openview satellite TV platform as a free-to-air channel, without any prior warning to media or viewers that UKTV would no longer start.
Neither BBC Studios nor eMedia informed viewers before Tuesday morning that the promised UKTV channel launch in South Africa was scuppered, with viewers only getting told on Tuesday that the UKTV roll-out was no longer happening after they asked where the promised new TV channel was.
A physical launch event for UKTV set for this week in Johannesburg was also quietly scrapped and BBC Studios Africa and eMedia are not giving any reasons why it announced that UKTV would be coming to South Africa and failed to start on 18 October - as part of the BBC's 100th anniversary - as promised.
In late-September BBC Studios and eMedia announced that the Openview free-to-air satellite service in South Africa would be adding BBC UKTV from 18 October as Openview and BBC Studio's first free-to-view channel in South Africa.
Arran Tindall, senior vice president, for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) key market region at BBC Studios said that the launch of UKTV in South Africa as a free-to-air TV channel would mean a wider audience reach for the BBC's content, while Pierre Cloete, BBC Studios Africa commercial director, said that he was excited for even more families in South Africa to get access to BBC Studios' "bold, British shows".
Marlon Davids, group executive for programming at eMedia said that Openview was adding UKTV because it's in line with the operator's strategy to add content that appeals to a broad audience.
Openview used to carry BBC World News but Openview dumped that very well-liked TV news channel after a while.BBC Studios Africa already has a well-established set of TV channels on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV service in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa, including BBC World News, BBC Brit, BBC Lifestyle, BBC Earth and CBeebies.
BBC Kids has been added for MTN customers in South Africa recently. In Australia and New Zealand the version of BBC UKTV is a pay-TV channel.
BBC Studios promised that BBC programming that DStv subscribers have been paying before to watch, would now be seen free-to-air on South Africa, ranging from The Great British Bake Off and Rachel Khoo’s Kitchen Notebook to Mary Berry Cooks and motoring shows such as Million Dollar Car Hunters andTop Gear, and series like Casualty, Doctors and My Family.
Elisa Peacham, BBC spokesperson, told TVwithThinus on Tuesday in response to a media query that "We are
disappointed that the launch has not proceeded as planned, we are not in a
position to comment further at this time".
She didn't respond to specific questions asking why the BBC and Openview failed to communicate that UKTV would no longer be starting today in South Africa anymore, why UKTV didn't launch, or when it might.
Bennum van Jaarsveld, eMedia spokesperson told TVwithThinus on Tuesday in response to questions in a media query that "We confirm that we planned to launch the BBC UKTV channel
on Openview on 18 October".
"We are disappointed to announce that the much-anticipated launch had to be postponed. We are working on finalising details
for the channel. As a broadcaster we are continually striving to bring our
viewers the best in local and international content, and are looking forward to
the addition of the British entertainment channel."
BBC Studios is launching BBC Kids in South Africa in partnership with Switchmedia and MTN, where it will be accessible to MTN customers as paid-content through a daily, weekly or monthly subscription fee.
BBC Kids can be downloaded from the Google Play Store or the MTN Play Portal with BBC Kids which comes with a subscription fee of R5 per day, R15 per week or R25 per month.
BBC Kids carries award-winning BBC children's programming, curated according to age. BBC Kids has specific sections aimed at pre-school children and another for older primary school children.
For younger viewers, BBC Kids has series like Hey Duggee, Sarah & Duck, JoJo & Gran Gran, Yakka Dee and Swashbuckle, while older kids up to age 12 can watch Jamie Johnson and Harry Potter: A History of Magic, The Bagel and Becky Show, educational series like Horrible Histories and comedy like Gangsta Granny.
The BBC Kids app contains more than 100 hours of content for kids ages 12 and younger at launch.
"Switchmedia is thrilled to join forces with BBC Kids and MTN to bring safe, ad-free, education and entertainment to families across South Africa," says Mark Johns, Switchmedia CEO.
"Built using our award-winning MediaHQ solution, the dynamic new BBC Kids app features nearly 200 hours of content, a clean, easy to navigate interface and programme recommendations."
Nick Percy, BBC Studios president of global markets, says "BBC Kids provides parents with a go-to, trusted destination for award-winning children's programming that can be accessed anytime, anywhere. With inspiring, educational and exciting shows for preschoolers and older children at their fingertips, BBC Kids will be a welcome addition for families in South Africa".
BBC Studios' linear TV channel for pre-school children CBeebies (DStv 306) is carried on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV service in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa.
With Britain's BBC that is ending the separate BBC News TV news channel for viewers in the United Kingdom and BBC World News (DStv 400 / StarSat 256) TV channel for global viewers, the British broadcaster plans to launch the new combined service in April 2023.
The new "BBC World News" - with a new name that has not yet been announced - will be shown globally, although domestic British viewers will get shortchanged as part of the BBC's drastic cost-cutting measures since the focus on the new TV news channel will be on global stories at the cost of reporting UK-focused news.
The new BBC TV news channel will be without any ads in the United Kingdom,will contain feature shows built around some of its high-profile journalists, and these shows will be available across multiple platforms.
According to the BBC, a new live and breaking news team will provide "universally available coverage of global breaking news" and "when relevant a UK-only stream for domestic news events".
Sports programming on the BBC news channel will feature a mixture of domestic and new global sports shows.
The new BBC TV news channel will broadcast from London during daytime hours in the United Kingdom which means that little will be changing for viewers watching the channel on for instance MultiChoice's DStv in South Africa or across sub-Saharan Africa.
The BBC TV news channel will then switch to broadcasting from Singapore, and then Washington D.C. to bring viewers news from the United States while its daytime hours there. This will again not be much of a change since BBC World News' American broadcast block has been following the British block in late-night hours as seen in Africa.
"Our aim is to create the best live and breaking video news service in the world - on our web pages, our apps, on BBC iPlayer and on our new TV news channel," says Naja Nielsen, BBC News digital boss in a statement.
"The way audiences consume news is changing. In recent years we've seen a huge surge in audiences coming to our live coverage, with tens of millions following live pages when big stories and events unfold."
"As the world's most trusted source of news, with a huge depth and breadth of expertise, the BBC is uniquely placed to offer audiences the best analysis and explanation as these stories are unfolding. So we are investing in new capability to cover breaking news stories - and our news channel and digital teams will work hand in hand to bring the best journalism to audiences both at home and abroad."
BBC Studios will be responsible for securing revenue for the new BBC TV news channel outside of the United Kingdom - primarily through ad sales - with that money then going towards funding the BBC that can be reinvested in the company's journalism.
