LET THE RIVER RUN. Sindi Dlathu to shock as devil diva in 1Magic's new diamond drama.

The new diamond drama, The River, will start as a new locally-produced telenovela on the new 1Magic channel on Monday 29 January 2018 with M-Net that's managed to lure well-known TV talent like Sindi Dlathu, Hlomla Dandala, Don Mlangeni and Motshidi Motshegwa to put a face to the new channel.

Like SABC3's Isidingo produced by Endemol Shine South Africa, The River, produced by Tshedza Pictures, chose a South African mining community as the fictional setting where a clash between downtrodden yet aspiring blue collar workers and high-society wealth-wielders will play out when the telenovela starts on weekdays at 20:00.

Similar to the first local drama forays of Mzansi Magic, The River will combine the conflict inherent in township struggles where ordinary working class South Africans have bigger dreams, but are in part prevented from realising those aspirations due to capitalist greed and pervasive corruption within the upper classes.

The River will be the flagship show on the soon-to-launch 1Magic (DStv 103) that is replacing the VUZU AMP channel after three years that tried to court a younger viewership.

The creation of 1Magic is signaling M-Net's latest shift to a bigger focus on broader, general local entertainment through telenovelas and dramas to try and lure a wider audience than just youth viewers, something that the VUZU and VUZU AMP channels have struggled with.

"The River is just the type of drama that fans have been waiting for," says Reneilwe Sema, the M-Net director of local entertainment.

"The storyline combines the allure and ruthlessness of the business world, with the raw essence of township struggles, making for the type of story lines our viewers love."

Sindi Dlathu who left SABC2's Venda-soap Muvhango for this new top billing role, will now appear as Lindiwe, the ruthless matriarch of a mining family.

It will be a stunning role-reversal character portrayal for Sindi Dlathu, beloved by millions of South African viewers for her Thandaza Mokoena character in Muvhango, with viewers who are going to be shocked and bowled over by her cunning, vicious and "love to hate her" new evil on-screen persona.

When the stiletto'ed Lindiwe, living in an upper-crust mansion one the one side of a river, discovers that a township community on the other side is unaware that they're sitting on a valuable diamond treasure, she is adamant to secure the land and riches and will let nothing stand in her way.

Desperate to unearth the diamonds, she is as quick to put bodies into the ground when people stand in her way.

Hlomla Dandala who was in Isidingo and headlined M-Net's very first "Africa drama" Jacob's Cross a decade ago in 2007, returns to M-Net as Zweli, the husband of Lindiwe.

Newcomer Larona Moagi plays Itumeleng, a young character from the township, described as a "feisty rebel who refused to be silenced and roll over when her family and community become casualties of greed and excess" and who wants to put an end to Lindiwe's "ruthless gluttony" at the expense of the local mining community.

The veretan actor Don Mlangeni plays Thato, Itumeleng's dad, with veteran actress Moshidi Motshegwa appearing as her mom, Malefu, a "pillar of strength in the family and township community".

Lawrence Maleka will appear in the role of Zolani, the adopted son of Lindiwe who "bites into forbidden fruit" and is the eyewitness to a terrible tragedy.

Isidingo dumps the struggling SABC3 soap's last original roots with South Africa's black middle class, as the Matabane family is written out.

SABC3's struggling local weekday soap Isidingo produced by Endemol South Africa got rid of its last original South African middle class roots as Ma Agnes, the last original character of the beloved Matabane family, exited the soap on Tuesday evening.

Keketso Semoko's character of Ma Agnes Matabane left The Deep as hotel manager for a farming business in Thaba 'Nchu - her on-screen husband Zeb Matabane (Don Mlangeni) already gone and written out and not appearing on screen due to acrimonious fighting behind-the-scenes - as the soap finished the family's storyline after 16 years on South African television.

Conflict behind the scenes between the soap producers and Don Mlangeni which Endemol South Africa decided to make public, as well as a creative decision to try and renew the soap with new working class characters, led to the decision to jettison the Matabanes after 15 years on South African television.

That decision also meant the loss of Keketso Semoko's character of Ma Agnes, who got an undignified send-off in the soap, leaving alone and walking off of the empty set that served as the Matabane home.

Don Mlangeni's last day on the Isidingo set at Sasani Studios was on Tuesday 29 April, so neither he nor the character was on-set or present for the final real exit scene of Ma Agnes and the Matabanes which was broadcast on Tuesday evening on SABC3.

Following the disciplinary hearing of Endemol South Africa with Don Mlangeni, there hasn't been any further developments between the production company and the actor, however, he won't be back and Keketso Semoko remained a month longer to film further final scenes for the arranged Matabane family exit from the soap.

The script however kept referencing the character of Zebedee after his on-screen departure, and Keketso Semoko filmed her last scene - broadcast this evening - a month after Don Mlangeni's last working day - on Friday 30 May.

Bad backstage vibe continues behind-the-scenes at SABC3's Isidingo, as Endemol SA has disciplinary hearing for soap actor Don Mlangeni-Nawa.

The bad and toxic backstage atmosphere continues at the Endemol South Africa produced soap Isidingo on SABC3, with Endemol SA which held a disciplinary hearing today for the soap actor Don Mlangeni-Nawa.

It follows after Don Mlangeni-Nawa in the latter part of 2013 made his displeasure public about not wanting to mention Standard Bank in his lines in Isidingo which formed part of ongoing in-show product placement that's never overtly disclosed to viewers.

Paid-for product placement where actors basically end up hawking brands, products and services are rife in South African soaps and TV shows which force actors to promote brands in shows as part of their story dialogue.

Last year multiple entertainment reports simply lifted a tabloid tale, without checking and doing their own original reporting, that Don Mlangeni-Nawa was fired from the show for refusing to do the Standard Bank shilling.

TV with Thinus had to report that Don Mlangeni-Nawa was definitely still employed and still working on Isidingo.

That employment status could now very likely change soon, as Endemol South Africa publicly chose to apparently pro-actively worsen the relationship between the production company and the actor in the eyes of the public.

That could see the character of Zebedee Matabane be the next to abruptly leave the soap.

The shocking statement - which is in very bad form for a South African production company to make - indirectly also serves as a warning shot to other Isidingo "complainers".

Ironically it inflicts more public reputational damage, willingly and deliberately, to the brands of Isidingo, Endemol South Africa and SABC3.

Today Endemol South Africa publicly embarrassed one of its own - shaming, by own volition and choice - its own on-air talent.

That shocking lack of decorum dents the brands of Isidingo and SABC3 in the process; even more so it reveals the ongoing string of tensions behind-the-scenes at Isidingo.

At a happy TV soap the drama is all playing out on the screen. Endemol South Africa is making it clear that at Isidingo drama is happening behind-the-scenes - drama which detracts from producing the best TV soap that Isidingo can be.

Publicly telling South Africa that your own soap's actor is getting a disciplinary hearing, partly appears to be an effort to stave off and "warn" the remaining Isidingo actors to toe the line and not to "overstep" by speaking out publicly about things they're unhappy with.

The Endemol SA soap has seen an ongoing exodus of both crew as well as on-air talent for several months now, with many who've left saying that they haven't enjoyed working there for a long time.

Today Endemol South Africa felt it good to wash its own dirty laundry in public, informing the South African TV industry that Don Mlangeni-Nawa is having a disciplinary hearing today "as a result of the actor's disregard for conduct codes and lack of discipline while contracted to the Endemol produced daily drama".

"No one actor or crew member is bigger, or has the right to compromise any part of what makes Isidingo the great show it is today. This disciplinary hearing is unfortunate, but  necessary," says Sivan Pillay, Endemol South Africa's managing director.

Interestingly, what is unfortunate but not necessary, is for Endemol South Africa to publicly put out such as damaging statement - deliberately damaging Don Mlangeni-Nawa.

Although it damages the actor, it also damages Endemol SA, Isidingo and SABC3.

According to the statement, Don Mlangeni-Nawa's disciplinary hearing is due to "the actor's disregard for conduct codes and lack of discipline while contracted to the Endemol produced daily drama".

"Don Mlangeni-Nawa's lack of discipline and general disrespect for the show, the company, its many great actors and the SABC, saw Endemol take action (both verbally and in writing) against the actor after his repeated transgressions on and off set".

"It is important to note that mutual respect, by and for the entire cast and crew of the show, is something we take very seriously," says Sivan Pillay.

BREAKING. Don Mlangeni, Zeb from SABC3's Isidingo, has NOT been fired; is still with Isidingo and will continue to be working on the show.

You're reading it here first. 

Because South Africa's mostly pathetic, unqualified, and tabloid pandering crop of so-called "entertainment journalists" are not doing their job, let TV with Thinus report facts: Isidingo actor Don Mlangeni HAS NOT BEEN FIRED from SABC3's soap Isidingo.

Daily Sun reported that Don Mlangeni, playing Zeb Matabane, has been fired.

Multiple, MULTIPLE publications picked up the tabloid report and went with it yesterday - zero of them digging back to find and verify the trurh from original sources, zero of them talking to pivotal, relevant executives (probably because they don't even have the deep contacts needed for this work), and all of them jumping gleefully on the wholly-ho wholly-wrong bandwagon to breathlessly "report"... well, essentially trash.

TV with Thinus didn't report anything. The only thing I do with trash is to throw it out when the bin is full.

So let TV with Thinus tell you that Don Mlangeni has not been fired from Isidingo.

Don Mlangeni has also not left Isidingo.

Don Mlangeni will continue to be in Isidingo, and Don Mlangeni will continue to work and appear as his character.

The tabloid tornado of utter sh*t reporting and litany of fake stories where fake trash is build upon more fake trash like a trash layer cake of common - because nobody in the hollow echo chamber cares to actually check with original sources - once again highlights the major problem(s) with entertainment journalism reporting in South Africa.

Sadly South Africa lacks accurate, decisive and fact-based original reporting, or original-sourced stories (from the television industry which is the subset within entertainment reporting which I try to cover diligently) - scared to do real stories, unable to find real news and largely untrained and unskilled in basic journalistic know-how.

Entertainment journalists are quick to go to events, drink and grab 'em goodie bags. Where are the stories afterwards? You see a trickle of the cesspool of so-called "entertainment journalists" and "columnists" who actually write or do anything. I know. I'm there. I see them. I read everything. And I'm constantly amazed at the bad or non-existent coverage of what passes for "entertainment stories" in South Africa.

The bulk of journalists covering the entertainment beat in South Africa in my opinion serves as an extension of PR companies' publicity machine - self-indulgent and extremely self-entitled so-called "journalists" in it for themselves; seemingly there to publish selfies with celebrities, to post "look where I was events", to twitter on social media instead of carefully crafting correct fact-based sentences for real publication of record articles and to listen and to ask relevant, informed questions during press conferences.

And let's not talk about the wholly running press releases and photos as is phenomenon - as if they're not really working for media institutions but for the companies who get uncritical coverage; serving not the reader and the public but corporations whose spin is passed on as "news".

South Africa largely sits with the entertainment and TV industry we have because our media and 4th estate covering it is so lame-ass weak, if not non-existent. When critical, accurate, in-time feedback exists within any industry, it gets better.

When you sit with a pandering press without backbone you get what we have.

Our industry struggles to get better because the reporting about it rarely consistently goes deeper than the superficial (and them mostly fake) fluff.

(Read the fake fluff elsewhere (and smile). Warning: When you read TV with Thinus you get no-spin truth and facts which might give you heartburn.)