BBC Christmas wishes.

I just received by courier a physical delivery of a beautifully handwritten Christmas card from the BBC.

Best wishes from BBC Worldwide Channels PR and Total Exposure.

Lucy, Laurie, Harriet, Diane, Onicka

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BREAKING. Reality show Supersterre back on SABC2.

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I can first and exclusively reveal that Supersterre is back on SABC2.

The TV channel has not yet confirmed the news to me (I have asked), but I can reveal that the talent seeker reality show Supersterre, produced by and starring Patricia Lewis, will be back on SABC2 from Friday, 19 March 2010.

The reality show that looks for new voices across South Africa and had its 1st and 2nd seasons in 2006 and 2007 respectively, will need to find at least one new judge: a chair is empty since judge Niekie van den Berg became a politician.

UPDATE (Tuesday, 12:45) - SABC2 just confirmed my BREAKING NEWS. ''Supersterre III will be returning to the channel for the 3rd season on 19th March 2010,'' says SABC2.

EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK! M-Net Face of Africa's Top 12 finalists.

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Here's the first photo of the top 12 finalists together in this year's M-Net Face of Africa. The reality show goes out on Saturdays at 17:00 on M-Net Series (DStv 110).

M-Net Face of Africa kicked off with 24 models from 16 African countries, but after a tough week of challenges, tasks and no shortage of drama, only these 12 have now made it through to participate in the prestigious Swahili Fashion week.

Here's who they are: Benedicta (19) from Accra, Ghana; Blessing (BB to her friends) (21) from Lagos, Nigeria; Diana (22) from Kakamega, Kenya; Ernania (18) from Maputo, Mozambique; Esperanca (nickname Hope) (21) from Luanda, Angola; Lilian (21) from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Lukundo (22) from Kabwe, Zambia; Marvis (20) from Delta State, Nigeria; Nardos (19) from Nardrit, Ethiopia; Roseanna (17) from Harare, Zimbabwe; Thembi (22) from Soweto, South Africa and Tholakele (23) from Harare, Zimbabwe.

EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK! All Access is working on SOMETHING BIG . . .

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I'm not going to spill everything just yet (but check back next Thursday, 31 December on the evening it gets broadcast and I promise more beautiful pictures) but All Access on Thursdays at 19:30 on M-Net has something special in store.

Episode 28 of M-Net's weekly entertainment magazine show All Access, - going out next Thursday, 31 December at 19:30 on M-Net, is ''going to be awesome'', I'm told.  

The very special episode (with bubbly on the set to toast in the new year!) is filled with the biggest local music stars from Heinz Winckler to Watershed who all came in to make some noise on New Year's Eve. All the presenters (Bridget Masinga, Jason Greer, Tammy-Anne Fortuin, Ewan Strydom, Koula, Mark Bayly and Pabi Moloi) dressed up to the nines and are all together on the All Access set for this special TV event.

Later next Thursday night, 31 December at 22:30 on M-Net you can also catch the annual Royal Variety Performance.

BREAKING. M-Net filming a New Year's music special tonight, for broadcast on 1 January 2010!

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M-Net is filming a hush-hush super something special somethin'-something TONIGHT in Johannesburg!

Oh, I'll stop being coy and just tell you everything: This evening the pay broadcaster is recording a very special, music M-Net New Year's Special that will go out on Friday, 1 January at 20:00 on M-Net.

The working title might still change, but make sure you sit ready for this fantastic local production that will be 2 hours long when it's broadcast on 1 January. I'm being told that it will feature hit songs, great music and very special appearances by several M-Net personalities.

BREAKING. SABC2 pre-empting Tuesday's schedule for a LIVE Manto funeral broadcast.

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SABC2 is pre-empting tomorrow morning's schedule to cover the funeral of the former health minister, dr. Manto Tshalalaba-Msimang LIVE between 10:00 and 12:30.

A few years ago, a former SABC2 channel head made the off-sides joke to me that SABC2 as ''the channel of the nation'' is actually ''the funeral channel'' because of all the high profile funerals of politicians that SABC2 has a unofficial ''must carry'' policy for.

SABC2 will carry the Manto funeral proceedings LIVE on Tuesday between 10:00 and 12:30.

Programs scrapped include: Takalani Sesame, Wild Touch, Mother of All Professions, Talk SA and
Motswako.

BREAKING. Binnelanders set to go MUCH BIGGER with 12 new cast members, new sets and A WHOLE NEW UNIVERSE!

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The M-Net soapie Binnelanders is going big. Very big. And that goes for the on-screen action (12 NEW ACTORS AND A WHOLE NEW UNIVERSE TO TELL STORIES IN) as well as behind the scenes.

The cast and crew just moved to their much bigger double story studio and production fascilities in Randburg where screen tests has alread been done to start the much bigger and better Binnelanders production in 2010.

Filming and production of the ''new'' bigger and better and hourlong Binnelanders will start in the new Stark Films production studio on Monday, 4 January 2010.

But before that, fans can look out for a spectacular on-screen New Years Eve soccer party with singer Munro du Toit on Thursday 31 December on M-Net.

But back to the behind the scenes production and what I can reveal here FIRST:

1. 12 new cast members are joining Binnelanders.
2. Massive, beautiful new studios now exist from where the production will amp up its output in terms of screen time to an hour in 2010. The space is so big, almost all of the former sets can fit into just one of the new big studios.
3. The new Stark Films studios are now the most technologically, state-of-the-art film and TV studios that exist anywhere in Africa.
4. All the sets, art department, writers, casting department and production crew has already moved over from Atlas Studios and moved into their new offices.
5. Because Binnelanders is turning into an hour long show, the action will still concentrate around the hospital and Binneland Kliniek, but viewers will see brand-new sets as well as A WHOLE NUWE UNIVERSE in which the stories and characters are set.

BREAKING. Generations celebrates 3 000 episodes in 2010!

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Generations, South Africa's biggest daily soap opera is celebrating its 3 000 episode early in 2010 and it will be a whopper! Generations on SABC1 has just filmed its 3 000 episode which will go out in January/February of next year. Sources close to the production tells me: ''spectacular'' and another one said: ''huge surprises''.

It was just two years ago, in March 2006 that Generations made the 2000th episode mark.

Although the soap opera genre is dying in America with two more soapies that got the axe this year (Guiding Light and last month As the World Turns), soaps are alive and well in South Africa.

2010 will be a bumper year for soap land. Soapie fans can look forward to several soapie special events and TV moments:

1. Generations on SABC1 making it to 3 000th episodes in Jan/Feb.
2. Villa Rosa on kykNET making it to 1 000th episodes in Feb.
3. 7de Laan on SABC2 turning 10 YEARS old (I broke that news HERE) in April.
4. Binnelanders becoming an hour long show with NEW SETS AND NEW STORIES from April.
5. Egoli ending just short of 18 years on air in March, followed by special tribute episodes (I broke that news HERE) and a special DVD box set to be released later in 2010.

FIRST LOOK! Discovery HD Showcase starting at 10:20.

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The brand-new high definition (HD) channel, Discovery HD Showcase that MultiChoice has just added to its DStv platform and which I was first to tell about on Friday right HERE will go live this morning at exactly 10:20.

Discovery HD Showcase will broadcast for 24 hours per day and kicks off this morning at 10:20 with Deadliest Catch, followed by Really Big Things with Matt Rogers. Mytbusters and Smash Lab is also on the schedule for today.

(As of this Monday morning at 09:00, DStv hasn't updated their website TV guide with the existence of the channel yet, or made any TV guide line-up for the channel available yet.)