Local soaps and telenovelas are dominating the small screen in South Africa. Fact.
This is an interesting switch from several years ago when international offerings were a big deal and everyone was obsessed with Brooke Logan’s latest conquest on “The Bold and the Beautiful”.
The past few weeks have been immensely exciting. Aside from the Royalty Soapie Awards 2020 celebrating this sector of the industry, we’ve seen two big telenovelas, “Legacy” and “Isono” – a first for M-Net and BET, respectively – make their debut.
Not only that, both offerings include the crème de la crème of our industry.
As you might have gathered, this edition homes in on the soapies and telenovelas that leave us yearning for more with incredible story arcs, well-etched characters and unforgettable heroes and villains.
Inside, we feature interviews with industry heavyweights, Siyabonga Thwala and Nthati Moshesh. While he is power-hungry in his role, she is a magnificently dark revelation in hers.
We also look at the most popular shows according to viewership stats as well as the hottest new faces on the scene.
For viewers who enjoy Bollywood, Spanish and Mexican telenovelas, we’ve selected the ones you should be tuning into and/or streaming.
We also caught up with Sandile Mahlangu, who was one of the actors heavily impacted by SA’s lockdown. Just as he was losing hope, a plum role on “Scandal!”” landed in his lap.
Last, find out how Mohale Motaung-Mhlongo is feeling after his guest role on e.tv’s “Rhythm City”.
Read issue 4 below:
IOL TV Issue 4_14 October 2020
This month's IOL Television magazine looks at soapies/ telenovelas, which have become an integral part of viewers' lives. In South Africa, these offerings have quadrupled in recent years, which is indicative of the popularity of homegrown content. More recently, Legacy and Isono - a telenovela first for M-Net and BET, respectively - made its small screen debut.