Coronavirus: M-Net local soaps The River, Gomora and Isibaya will roll out new episodes from Monday 25 May on 1Magic and Mzansi Magic as their stream-viewing numbers on DStv Catch Up and DStv Now surge during March and April.

by Thinus Ferreira

More local South African primetime soaps that ran out of available episodes are set to return with the pay-TV drama series The River, Gomora and Isibaya that will all show new episodes on MultiChoice's DStv from this coming Monday 25 May.

All three M-Net commissioned series went off the air two weeks ago due to the weeks-long production break that saw all South Africa's TV shows shutter and studios lock their gates because of the Covid-19 national lockdown period to try and curb the spread of the coronavirus in the country.

While broadcasters and pay-TV schedulers had some stocked episodes in the kitty it wasn't enough and eventually left DStv subscribers with hastily padded schedules on 1Magic (DStv 103) and Mzansi Magic (DStv 161), while on public television SABC1's Uzalo produced by Stained Glass TV also ran out of episodes.

All of these and the country's other locally-produced soaps on the SABC, e.tv and DStv have since returned to studio lots for filming but Uzalo done from Durban will only broadcast new episodes from 15 June on SABC1.

M-Net's general entertainment division told TVwithThinus on Tuesday that The River, produced by Tshedza Pictures will be back with new episodes from Monday 25 May on M-Net's 1Magic channel.

Isibaya, produced by The Bomb Shelter and Gomora, produced by Seriti Films, which are both shown on M-Net's Mzansi Magic channel, will also be back with new episodes from 25 May, said publicist Gaaratwe Mokhethi.


Stream-viewing surge on DStv Catch Up and DStv Now
All of the shows - Uzalo, Gomora, The River and Isibaya - along with multiple others have seen their TV ratings surge in March and April in record viewership increases across the board for the SABC, e.tv and DStv as viewers stuck at home and with an end to Eskom loadshedding have flocked to their screens.

Besides just linear TV ratings these series have also showed remarkable growth in delayed viewing done through DStv decoders and stream viewing through MultiChoice's DStv Now video-on-demand service.

In March the top 5 DStv Catch Up shows watched as delayed viewing through DStv decoders had Mzansi Magic taking the top 4 spots with local content with The Queen at number one with 512 000 average views, Isibaya with 458 000 average views, Mnakwethu with 448 000 average views, Kwa Mam'Mkhize with 415 000 average views and the American procedural drama series 9-1-1 on M-Net (DStv 101) in the 5th place with 340 000 average views.

In April this surged with The Queen climbing to 526 000 average views in delayed viewing on DStv Catch Up through DStv decoders, Gomora rushing to second place with 478 000 average views, Madam & Mercy jumping to the 3rd spot with  396 000 average views, Lockdown in 4th place with 370 000 average views, and Mnakwethu at 364 000 average views.

Meanwhile M-Net's second season of The Bachelor South Africa with Marc Buchner, produced by Rapid Blue has been punching far above its weight.

Although on the top bouquet tier of DStv Premium, limiting access to the majority of DStv subscribers, The Bachelor SA was the 4th most stream-watched show on DStv Now during March with 63 000 average viewers. The others were The Queen in top position (88 000 views), followed by Isibaya (83 000 views) and Mnakwethu (62 000) all on Mzansi Magic, and The River (60 000 views) on 1Magic.

In April DStv Now stream-viewing surged as Gomora (98 000 views) climbed to first place as the most-viewed show, followed by The River (92 000 views), The Queen (80 000 views), The Bachelor (77 000 views) and Isibaya (69 000 views).

As the South African taxi-drama Isibaya on DStv's Mzansi Magic speeds along, so does MultiChoice in expanding the local production industry in the country as well as across Africa.

Set against the backdrop of South Africa's local taxi industry, it's not just the story inside its prime time soap Isibaya on Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) that is speedings along at a rapid pace - it's MultiChoice itself as well, with the pay-TV operator that is ramping up and expanding the scope of its local production capacity and local TV storytelling.

Listed since the end of February, the MultiChoice Group that is facing ever-increasing competition from global video streaming services and other broadcasters for its DStv, GOtv and Showmax pay-TV brands in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa, is charging full-steam ahead with established local, homegrown shows like Isibaya in South Africa, as well as looking to commission even more locally produced series in Kenya in East Africa and Nigeria in West Africa.

While for viewers watching Isibaya it'sall about  drama and entertainment, for MultiChoice it's about business - remaining relevant in a rapidly changing video entertainment market while growing and expanding the local entertainment and TV industry while investing in more new voices.

While DStv subscribers watch international drama series like HBO's Game of Thrones on M-Net (DStv 101) - an American series that was predominantly filmed in Ireland that meant thousands of new job opportunities and a massive capital injection in Ireland's film and TV industry - MultiChoice is hard at work at trying to do the same for South Africa and the African continent.

A show like Isibaya is brought to life every day by literally hundreds of people besides just the actors and who are working behind-the-scenes; people who work behind the lens but who are part of building South Africa's vibrant and expanding TV biz.

"I am a storyteller and I want the audience to feel what I am feeling whilst they are watching our show," says Menzi Ngubane, who appears in Isibaya in the role of Judas. "I want them to feel the raw emotion and be engulphed in the entertainment that we are bringing into their homes".

Sayitsheni Mdakhi plays Saddam in Isibaya produced by The Bomb Shelter. He landed his first starring role in 2016 and today is working as a writer and a producer in the South African entertainment industry.

"The entertainment industry is evolving and customers are changing what they watch, when they watch it and how they watch it. It is up to us, as actors, to notice changes in viewing behaviour and bring the best TV to viewers' lounge," he says.

The Isiyaba cast and crew say their aim is to convey the realities and passions of modern-day South African viewers - balancing escapism and realism in the story that they produce and bring into the lives of ordinary South Africans, whilst providing riveting entertainment.

"We are committed to creating these platforms for storytelling and to making opportunities available for more actors and a wider audience as increased local content is a key driver of increased viewership," says Yolisa Phahle, the head of general entertainment for the MultiChoice Group.

"We have invested substantially into locally-produced content and understand that economic times are tough in South Africa, and that our customers are under pressure to make every cent they spend count".

"That's why we're making every effort to ensure DStv remains as affordable and accessible and our viewers get the best entertainment experience – the best local stories through series and movies," she says.

MultiChoice through its set of M-Net and SuperSport channels produces over 4 500 hours of local content per year, working with local production companies in South Africa and across the African continent, using production companies, production facilities and 10 studios across Africa stretching from Cape Town in South Africa to Lagos in Nigeria where the upcoming new season of Big Brother Naija will be filmed.

"As actors and being a part of an award-winning show, re-energizes everyone to want to do more and perform better and excel further than we thought possible," says Abdul Khoza, another of the Isibaya actors.

"This is one of the biggest sets that we have in South Africa and one of the best productions in Africa".

MultiChoice now has over 40 000 hours of local content in its library and spends over R2.5 billion on local productions per year. 

M-Net has renewed Isithembiso, produced by The Bomb Shelter, for a 2nd season on Mzansi Magic; says the migrant telenovela's good performance justifies its extension to include episodes on Fridays.

M-Net has renewed its millennial migrant telenovela, Isithembiso, on Mzansi Magic (Dstv 161) at 19:30 for a second season and increased the weekly episodes to include a Friday episode, making it a weekday show from this week, with the first Friday episode on 6 April.

Isithembiso, produced by The Bomb Shelter, will have a second season of 260 episodes that will play out over 5 days a week.

M-Net tells TVwithThinus that Isithembiso has performed well for Mzansi Magic, prompting the renewal as well as justifying the upping of its run from 4 to 5 episodes per week.

"Isithembiso has been well received by audiences in the past 12 months and extending it to 5 days a week, as it goes into the second season was a natural progression," says Reneilwe Sema, M-Net's director of local entertainment channels. "The same was done in the past with The Queen and Isibaya." 

Set in Johannesburg, the second season of Isithembiso will leave rural girl Simi (Nandi Mbatha) devastated while  Zamani (Zamani Mbatha) learns the hard way that love comes at a price. Meanwhile Claudia (Chichi Letswalo) and Kero (Meshack Mavuso Magabane) are determined to claim their power as Palesa's (Tshenolo Seabi) world falls apart.

Actor Andile Gumbi of Mzansi Magic soap isiBaya arrested and jailed for assault after allegedly hitting his wife and dragging her on the floor.

Actor Andile Gumbi of the Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) channel's soap isiBaya was arrested and jailed for assault after allegedly hitting his wife.

In the latest case highlighting South Africa's ongoing scourge of violence against women, Andile Gumbi was arrested and charged with assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm after he allegedly attacked and punched his wife and dragged her on the floor.

Andile Gumbi portrays the character of Zweli in isiBaya that is produced by The Bomb Shelter for M-Net's Africa Magic channel on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform.

According to reports, Andile Gumbi's wife allegedly locked him out of their Randburg home, after which he allegedly broke down the door, attacked her, physically punched her and dragged the terrified woman across the floor.

A case was opened at Douglasdale police station and Andile Gumbi was arrested. The soap actor spent Freedom Day behind bars and appeared in the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Andile Gumbi was released after his court appearance. He will have to appear in court again later this month.

There's been no statement from Mzansi Magic regarding the actor.

COWABUNGA. Cows stolen off the isiBaya TV set; cattle call to find the missing Mzansi Magic moo-moo's yields no results; 'they were part of the family,' says production.

Cowabunga! Cows were stolen right off the isiBaya set of the hugely popular Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) show.

Producers have been desperately searching for their missing Mzansi Magic moo-moo's - with no luck so far.

The producers of the soap will now have to find new cattle to populate the background of the weekday soap opera.

"Yes. All of our cows were stolen beginning of the year," Desiree Markgraaff, executive producer of isiBaya tells TV with Thinus.

"We had about 8 cows. It happened at night and we only discovered in the morning that the cows were gone. We loved those cows. They were part of the isiBaya family."

The Bomb Shelter production will now have to find new moo-moo's as isiBaya extras where their appearance have helped with the realistic depiction of the ongoing family feud between the Zungus and Ndlovus in the Thukela Valley.

"We will have to get new cows," says Desiree Markgraaff of the show filmed in Soweto, the title of which means "the kraal".

So far a cattle call for the lost cows has not yielded any results. "We do have people still searching all over for the cows, but eventually we'll have to get new ones."

The cattle theft was reported to the police. No word yet on whether TV set insurance in South Africa pays out for the loss and theft of this type of television movable asset.

THE END OF THE ROAD: Mzansi Magic cancels The Road; dramatically cuts back episode order of The Bomb Shelter's failed multimillion rand telenovela.

The Road on M-Net's Mzansi Magic (DStv 161), the telenovela produced by The Bomb Shelter, has been effectively cancelled and its episode order dramatically reduced by almost half, making the Sophiatown show-set-inside-a-show production likely the most expensive local production flop in Mzansi Magic history.

Originally commissioned and envisioned to run for 208 episodes, the axe came down on the expensive multimillion rand Bomb Shelter produced show with its elaborate 1950's era sets filmed in a lot in an abandoned factory in Jeppestown, with Mzansi Magic deciding to cancel and end The Road as soon as possible that's been suffering from tepid viewer response and barely there ratings.

The Road as a Monday to Thursday telenovela with Gail Mabalane, Sthandiwe Kgoroge, Darlington Michaels and Muzi Mthabela on M-Net's Mzansi Magic supplied channel to MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform will now end on 31 March after 128 episodes.

"The Road will draw to a close in March 2016," says Mzansi Magic, noting that "audiences have appreciated this groundbreaking drama that in many ways was a first for South African television and has kept viewers glued to their screens."

That's not quite true: The Road debuted in August 2015 with 437 000 viewers and plunged to a barely registering just over 120 000 viewers - a far cry Mzansi Magic's top show, the telenovela isiBaya at 754 000 viewers.

Asked why The Road was cancelled and its episode order cut down, Bongi Potelwa-Metsing, Mzansi Magic publicist tells TV with Thinus that "as the story progressed new twists and turns became evident giving life to a faster build-up to the storyline climax".

With lackluster ratings for an expensive show, Mzansi Magic made the decision to cancel The Road late last year.

Asked how the cancellation and change in episode order affects the production and impact on the original story the show wanted to tell, Mzansi Magic says "contracts with our suppliers are confidential" but says the story as it was written will come to an end as planned.

"As  with all great stories, by the time we reach the final episode, viewers will be taken on a journey with our characters, revealing a resolution as planned and ending on a high note".

Although liked by TV critics for its innovative dual story despite the wooden acting of some of the actors, The Road, set in two time periods - both the present and olden days Sophiatown, together with a murder mystery - proved too high-brow, intricate and meta-media for Mzansi Magic viewers.

Mzansi Magic's latest telenovela The Road conjures up Sophiatown as a TV show set behind a TV show, with a murder mystery in two time periods.

Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) is going both high-brow and old school with its latest telenovela The Road starting tonight at 19:30 - a love story set against the backdrop of iconic Sophiatown filled with murder, mystery, politics and music.

"We hope our viewers will enjoy the authentic, sweeping love story set through an famous era's glamour and music," says Nkateko Mabaso, the M-Net director for local interest channels.

The Road with its high-brow concept hopes to capture the same success with audiences as Mzansi Magic did with Isibaya, although the intricate tale might be too difficult for some viewers.

The Road is set in two time periods - both the present and olden days Sophiatown - together with a murder mystery. Then there's the somewhat mind-bending aspect of the real-life actors playing characters in the story who are actors. These "actors" play characters in a Sophiatown setting, when a murder occurs.

Production company The Bomb Shelter describes it as "the beautiful singer Stella and talented writer Themba are star-crossed lovers longing to be together, but only destiny will tell if they end up in each other's arms".

"A heavyweight TV producer eager to tell and capture the touching story takes on the challenge, leading to spell-bound actions he couldn't have predicted".

The reality however is that the story is much more intricate that this, and it remains to be seen whether viewers will stick around for the viewing that requires some effort and concentration amidst the lavish beauty of 1950's recreated Sophiatown.

"This is a major milestone for us," says Nkateko Mabaso. "The Road marks our fourth venture into the genre and we've gone all out to create a high-quality, compelling drama for our audiences."

"We want them to feel immersed in the emotions of the characters and the demands of their worlds. The aim is to make a visually stunning, storyline-driven drama that will keep viewers enticed."

The Road will try to infuse and pay tribute to the sounds of the 50's and some of its greatest musicians into the story - and to then contrast that to modern-day Johannesburg.

The Road stars former Isidingo alum Darlington Michaels who has vowed to never return to the SABC3 soap saying he was badly treated and viewers can forget about "ever seeing me on Isidingo again".

Other The Road actors include Muzi Mthabela, Nandi Ngoma, Tsholofelo Maseko, Moneoa Moshesh, Solomon Sebothoma, Sithembiso Khoza, Gail Mabalane, Neo Ntlatleng and Sthandiwe Kgoroge.

M-Net turns Isibaya telenovela on Mzansi Magic into a weekday soap; adds new characters, new storylines, new backdrops.

One of those open secrets in the South African TV industry was just confirmed with M-Net finally admitting/revealing/confirming that the Isibaya telenovela on Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) is becoming a weekday soap.

The pay-TV broadcaster commissioned and started Isibaya as a close-ended telenovela of 208 episodes but will now be exploiting the on-air property following strong viewership for the story about conflicting Johannesburg families set in Jozi's taxi industry where the Zungus and Ndlovus love and conspire in the vein of Shakepeare's Romeo & Juliet.

While Mzansi Magic's first telenovela iNkaba can now be considered a flop since it didn't prove a strong enough launchpad as a disguised soap in the making, Isibaya - produced by The Bomb Shelter - will start rolling out new episodes on every day of the week from 17 March.

The production has already added new characters to help flesh out the demand for new story and much more screen time.

"Mzansi Magic has decided not to leave Isibaya fans in the lurch and has now commissioned the series into a full-on soapie!" says the channel in a statement, exclamation mark included.

"The response to Isibaya has been fantastic," says Yolisa Phahle, the channel director of M-Net's general entertainment channels.

"Viewership exceeded the expectations we had when we launched in March 2013, with the show now consistently surprising viewers with fresh and interesting storylines. We are thrilled to now be able to offer our viewers a dose of Isibaya every weekday as the show enters a new era".

In a media enquiry made Tuesday and asked when Mzansi Magic took the decision to turn Isibaya into a soap and no longer a telenovela, Yolisa Phahle tells TV with Thinus that Isibaya has been on air for about three months "when we realised that the characters and the story had captured the imagination of our audiences in a way that was different to anything we'd seen before".

"It was a no brainer as our philosophy has always been to listen to the audience and try to produce more of the content they love. I am not keen of boxing the production into a genre, as I think it is different to anything that has been seen before".

How Isibaya will remian able to bring viewers those "fresh and interesting storylines", Yolisa Phahle says Isibaya has "a wealth of new storylines, new characters and new backdrops".

"We have actually had more time to develop this story than previous telenovelas as some of the key characters remain. Ultimately however the viewers will have their say, and we will respond to our audience".

Regarding the odd, lets-start-this-as-a-telenovela, lets-change-this-to-a-soap, Yolisa Phahle says "there are no hard and fast rules. At this point in time we were given an opportunity to take the story further which has resulted in it continuing".