kykNET shocked that background check failed to find Boer Soek 'n Vrou farmer's criminal record for physical assault and starts investigation: 'Gender-based violence has no place in our society'.

by Thinus Ferreira

kykNET is reacting with shock and surprise that its system of background checks into reality show participants failed to find the criminal record of a Boer Soek 'n Vrou farmer for physical assault of a woman, with kykNET saying an investigation has now started into the serious flaw and that it strongly condemns gender-based violence.

The latest issue of Huisgenoot magazine on Friday reported that the Boer Soek 'n Vrou ostrich farmer in Oudtshoorn, Francois Fourie (51) has a criminal record on the police computer system for physical assault which he didn't reveal to the producers.

Wolflight which produces the Afrikaans Boer Soek 'n Vrou according to the Fremantle format, wasn't aware that Francois Fourie had physically attacked a woman.

Francois Fourie admitted guilt and paid a fine with police records showing he was involved in a case of physical assault in 2013 in which he used his hands to "strike, hit, beat" a woman. 

Fourie couldn't immediately be reached on Friday for comment but admitted to Huisgenoot in a sit-down interview that he was involved in a fight with an unnamed woman and that he "pushed and shoved a little here and there". He says he wasn't aware at the time that he was paying a fine as an admission of guilt of physical assault.  

The failure to pick up the criminal record is raising red flags for M-Net's system of background checks, as well as its so-called duty-of-care policy which sets out guidelines for content makers to keeping contestants and participants in reality shows safe and out of harm's way. 

kykNET on Friday told TVwithThinus that the M-Net channel as well as the production company conduct "thorough background checks on all the participants of each season of our reality-TV shows" and that contestants are also obliged to declare any criminal charges laid against them.

According to kykNET, the correctness of information supplied by all participants - including both the farmers and potential romantic matches - is verified by an independent assessment company which collects and compares information from various platforms, including the database of the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Company and Intellectual Property Commission, as well as the department of home affairs.

kykNET says that during the vetting process for Boer Soek ‘n Vrou in 2022 no criminal record or any payment of a fine that would constitute an admission of guilt was found for Francois Fourie and that the channel became aware of the R200 fine over the 2013 assault earlier this month.

The channel "immediately conducted an investigation into this matter".

kykNET tells TVwithThinus that the independent company which conducts background checks on its reality TV shows is in the process of conducting an investigation to determine why Francois Fourie's criminal record wasn't detected last year "to ensure that this does not happen again in the future".

"kykNET advocates for the safety of not only the public and our viewers but also our co-workers, which includes all the participants in our TV programmes. Gender-based violence has no place in our society and we condemn any acts of violence in the strongest terms," the channel says.

kykNET's farmer-love reality series Boer Soek 'n Vrou to announce 10 new farmers Sunday, broadcast of 13th season pushed to 2021 due to Covid-19 and written letters switched to cyber messages.

by Thinus Ferreira

On Sunday night kykNET (DStv 144) will still announce the top 10 farmers who have been selected for the next season of its Afrikaans reality series Boer Soek 'n Vrou but the broadcast of the 13th season has become another victim of the Covid-19 pandemic and has been shifted to 2021.

On Sunday at 20:00 kykNET will announce the new 10 farmers from across South Africa who have been shortlisted to take part in the new season.

However, where a season is usually broadcast between October and January of the next year, the 13th season with new presenter Marciel Hopkins will only start on Thursday 21 January 2021 because of production and filming delays because of Covid-19. It will still consist out of the usual 13 episodes.

After Sunday night's broadcast "entries" will open for people to write to the farmers but here there will also be a change - with the show ditching the South African Post Office and with nobody allowed to send written letters or parcels any longer.

Because of Covid-19 it will now all have to be digital entries that can include a video.

"The safety of the participants and the production team is the priority and several strict measures have been put in place to ensure that," says Wilmer Müller, Boer Soek 'n Vrou publicist.

The 5 farmers who garner the most reaction and responses from viewers will undergo a love-seeking journey in the new season.

Marciel Hopkins says she's excited to introduce the new 10 farmers to the public.

"I've been looking forward for so long to the filming of the new season and I'm so thankful that the time has finally arrived to start with that."

"In uncertain times like now, Boer Soek 'n Vrou is a wonderful opportunity for singletons to meet someone new in person - something that they wouldn't have been able to do during lockdown regulations."

Gay farmer Damian arrives man alone at Boer Soek 'n Vrou reunion show; gets applause 'for guts he had to do what he did' from other farmers for taking part in 12th season.

The 12th season of the Afrikaans farmer dating reality show Boer Soek 'n Vrou ended on Thursday night on kykNET (DStv 144) with three couples who managed to stay together and pitched up for the reunion show - although gay farmer Damian arrived "man alone" but in the end received applause from all of the other farmers.

Damian Engelbrecht (37), a cattle and sheep farmer from Bapsfontein, made history earlier this year when he became the first-ever gay farmer who took part in the farmer-wants-a-lover reality format show, produced by Marche Media.

He made the list of top 5 shortlisted farmers after he garnered the most letters from potential love interest out of all of the farmers, although his inclusion and journey through the season wasn't without controversy.

On Thursday night Boer Soek 'n Vrou concluded the 12th season with a special reunion show that saw all of the farmers back - although some arrived alone.

As expected, all three of the remaining couples were still together: Hentie and Hantie, Graham and Ilne, as well as Willem and Sanel, while Brandon arrived with Llani who he met while visiting the United Kingdom.

Damian, Theunis, Albert, Rohan and Gerrit all arrived alone without anybody in hand.

Albert said that he is seeing a woman who couldn't make it for the recording of the reunion episode, while Rohan said there is someone in his life although he doesn't want to expose her on television since they're taking things slowly. Gerrit said that he has met someone.

Farmer Franco arrived with Nicole who he and presenter Leah initially phoned, although they're not officially a couple - yet.

Damian, as the show's first gay farmer, was asked what his biggest lesson was from taking part in Boer Soek 'n Vrou.

"What's being said out there and the ideas that people have of you - to just start to cut that out because people's opinions are not your reality," he answered.

"I think and hope that a lot of people will look with new eyes at people who don't fit in into their framework but that they'll also see that we're not doing harm to anyone. Why do you want to crucify people who don't fit into the same frame that you're moving in?"

Presenter Leah asked the farmers who surprised everyone the most over the course of the season.

Farmer Albert said "We've had this discussion already and I think everyone can agree with it: I think that what Damian did, and the guts he had to do what he did on national television, I take my hat off to him."

"It's well done," said Albert as all of the farmers spontaneously started to applaud.

kykNET’s gay Boer Soek 'n Vrou farmer Damian says he’s done with Christians – not Jesus – following backlash.

by Thinus Ferreira

The gay farmer Damian in the latest season of kykNET's (DStv 144) Boer Soek 'n Vrou dating reality series says he is done with Christianity - but not with Jesus - following the backlash and negative reaction he received from Christians on social media.

Earlier this year Damian (37), a cattle and sheep farmer from Bapsfontein, became the Marche Media produced series' first-ever gay contestant and ended up making the list of top 5 shortlisted farmers when he got the most letters from potential love seekers.

"After the last few weeks I yet again realised that I'm done with Christianity, but not with Jesus ... because Jesus isn't yet done with me," Damian wrote on Facebook in Afrikaans.

"I'm not a Christian! Never want to be one, especially not over how the Christians on social media are going on about gay people! Loveless! With hate! From now on I'm just a Child of God," he wrote.

"Love your neighbour as yourself.' No other commandment is greater than these - Mark 12:31" wrote Damian, quoting a verse from the Bible verse.

In another Facebook entry he writes that "I often hear people saying that to be gay is a choice".

"For me it was never a 'choice'. I was 7 years old in Grade 1 and for the first time I realised that girls are not for me and that I'm already feeling a bit 'in love' with one of my friends. I didn't understand why I was feeling like this..."

"Throughout my whole school career I knew that I was "different'. I never realised that I was gay ... just knew I was different. In our house there were never discussions about such thing and I was anyway too young to realise what was going on," he wrote.

"There are indeed guys who have girlfriends, even get engaged and even get married and then later on realise that they can't continue to live 'this lie'. They've tried to be straight because of the church, family, social pressure etc and through that comes the confusion that they've now 'decided' to suddenly be gay. No. That person's always been gay," wrote Damian.

"I have friends who are divorced, friends who are married and who don't know what direction to next because of pressure from society. I feel for them because I know that they don't have it easy. It's something that's not understood but it's hell for them."

"Can we be angry at them? no. In certain cases there were churches who said that they must get married and then that 'gay thing' will go away. And now? Where do we then place the blame?"

"And for the women who are in such a situation, just know, you are enough. You are beautiful. It's not your fault. And for heaven's sake don't blame each other. Because this is something outside of either people's control ... Be love!"

kykNET's Afrikaans farmer love-seeking reality show, Boer Soek 'n Vrou, adds first gay farmer looking for a man.

The Afrikaans farmer love-seeking format reality show, Boer Soek 'n Vrou (Farmer Wants a Wife) has added a gay farmer - the Afrikaans version's first - looking for a man for the 12th season that will be broadcast from October on kykNET (DStv 144).

The openly gay Damian (37), a cattle and sheep farmer from Bapsfontein, is looking for man love with men who can now write him letters, along with the 9 other shortlisted farmers who are looking for women.

The singer Leah will again be the presenter of the new season, produced by Marche Media.

Men who like Damian can write for him in the hope that he is one of the farmers who manage to get enough letters from viewers in order to qualify to be one of the 5 farmers and their suitors who will appear in the season.

For the 12th season the farmer range between the ages of 26 and 51, including five from the Western Cape province, two from the Northern Cape, two from the Eastern Cape and one from Gauteng.

Angelique Gerber done with Boer Soek 'n Vrou on kykNET; won't be back for a 7th season of the reality show.

The Afrikaans soap star Angelique Gerber is done as presenter of the Afrikaans local version of Boer Soek 'n Vrou (Farmer Wants a Wife) on kykNET (DStv 144).

After doing the 5th and 6th seasons of the South African version, viewers can now see Angelique Gerber who was Clara on the SABC2 soap 7de Laan, as Joanne in the SABC3 soap Isidingo.

She won't be back for the 7th season of Boer Soek 'n Vrou.

The latest international version of the original Dutch reality show, Boer Zoekt Vrouw, has started on BVN (DStv 431) in which Dutch woman went in search of five international farmers living on farms in countries like Tanzania, Canada, France and Denmark.