Cecil Afrika has ended his celebrated 12-year Sevens career and unless called upon, South Africa’s highest point-scorer will not wear the national colours again after a mutual agreement between the player and Sevens management. The 32-year-old’s national contract will run its course at the end of July and with no international matches or tournaments scheduled […]

As the number of COVID-19 infection cases in South Africa continues to rise, with the national death toll now at 1080, President Cyril Ramaphosa has offered his condolences to the families of COVID-19 victims, who have succumbed to the virus. “Each one of these deaths is a tragedy. Each one represents a unique life: a […]

The lifting of the ban on the sale of alcohol since the beginning of lockdown level 3 in June has ushered in a surge in crime and murders after a lull between March and May. During lockdown there were between 20 and 30 murders a day, which by Sunday had spiked to 69. This was […]

Thirty general practitioners from Gauteng, South Africa, have come together during lockdown, put aside their stethoscopes for a few minutes, and sung a ballad to show encouragement to others during this particularly tough time. The Gauteng General Practitioners Collaboration celebrating the camaraderie of medical professionals as “Voices that Care” was posted by on the GGPC […]

In celebration of World Oceans Day yesterday, Shark Attack reached out to members of the public to get their views on the “bather safety nets” – aka shark nets – in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. There are currently 37 beaches along the KZN coastline that have “shark safety” gear installed. This shark safety gear is […]

Monday 7 June 2020 was the first day of school for Grade 7 and 12 learners across South Africa, under the COVID-19 learning environment – complete with face masks, screening and social distancing protocols. On the first day of the reopening of schools, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga visited various schools across Gauteng to oversee […]

This is one of the most iconic images in sporting history. It was shot by John Dominis, for Life magazine, during the medal ceremony for the men’s 200-metre sprint, at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City in October 1968… writes South African journalist and scriptwriter Gus Silber. In the middle, wearing the gold, is Tommie […]

Every year, the world produces about 300 million tonnes of plastic. Somewhere between 5 million and 12 million tonnes of it finds its way into the oceans, according to a 2015 study by Jenna Jambeck and colleagues. But only a tiny fraction of that is estimated to be floating at sea – around 200,000 to […]

South Africans in SA and around the world are called on to support (and enjoy!) the ‘Lockdown Legends online event, an initiative that’s raising funds for the South African music industry by members of the industry. Due to the devastating impact of Covid-19, artists and music industry professionals have been denied any source of income. […]

This Sunday Carte Blanche investigates allegations of historical abuse at a prestigious all-boys public school in Gauteng, and how the deadly coronavirus has left hundreds of restaurants across South Africa on their knees; plus former Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba talks about his political journey. You can watch the show on Sunday 7 June in South […]

An urgent intervention and investigation of a Durban quarantine facility is being sought by both the DA and AfriForum to resolve what the opposition party calls an “untenable situation”. About 160 to 200 South Africans are currently being quarantined in Durban hotel, Coastlands… which they claim is dirty and unsafe, and where they are allegedly […]

A plea has gone up for donations to help bring back to health a jackal that was close to death’s door after being held in a Bloemfontein petting zoo. “It is those two big pleading eyes that kept me up at night. Pleading for escape, pleading for relief of unimaginable pain, pleading for help!” said […]

South Africa’s government is proud that its response to Covid-19 relies on science. It might be prouder if it was also guided by knowledge of how society works. When South Africa’s Covid-19 lockdown began on 27 March, opposition from some quarters was inevitable. What was not expected was that the most vehement resistance would be […]

Wondering what to stream on these long nights in? Try these new series, movies and documentaries from Showmax. There are Hollywood highlights, some British gems and top local fare to keep you warm inside.   International Series Motherland: Fort Salem S1 Fantasy drama Motherland: Fort Salem is set in an alternate America where witches ended […]

“We want to love the police, but they don’t want to love or respect us”, “Black Lives Matter” and ”Refugee Lives Matter” read some of the placards laid on the ground outside Parliament in Cape Town on Wednesday. Small groups of people trickled past to place flowers and banners in a show of solidarity against […]

An execution in Cape Town, South Africa, at 10am on Saturday morning has made news headlines internationally after the incident was caught live on CCTV. The 30-second clip – which is being studied by police in South Africa – shows the gunning down of a gang member known as “Aggies”, who police say belonged to […]

In six months’ time the world’s gaze will be trained on what is gearing up to be a contentious and hotly contested presidential election in the US. Irrespective of who emerges victorious between the incumbent President Donald Trump and the Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, South Africa needs to start thinking about what it stands to […]

With British newspapers calling it ‘The Crate Escape’, thieves in South Africa managed to tunnel into a Joburg bottle store and steal about R300,000 worth of alcohol, during the Lockdown. The incredible theft was only discovered a few days ago when the manageress entered the closed premises to start preparing for the liquor store to […]

Although liquor sales are allowed from today, the two-month ban on the sale of alcohol, combined with a ban on exports, has had a devastating impact on the wine industry. According to figures released by Vinpro last week, about 80 wineries and 350 producers have gone out of business, and 18,000 workers have lost their […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has congratulated Pretoria-born global technology pioneer Elon Musk for his company SpaceX’s historic first commercial flight into space, saying he has made South Africa proud. Powered by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the company’s Crew Dragon spacecraft carried NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley into space on Saturday, en route to docking […]

It has been 9 weeks since the ban on the purchase of alcohol was announced in South Africa as part of Lockdown regulations. Filmmaker and photographer Martin de Kock from MDKafrica was on the scene Monday morning to capture these photos of the long queues of South Africans as bottle stores re-opened for the first […]

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga has apologised ‘wholeheartedly’ for the inconvenience following the reopening of schools being postponed to 8 June 2020. On Sunday, the Minister announced a delay to the reopening of schools by a week, following a series of consultations, and the meeting of the Council of Education Ministers (CEM) on Saturday to […]

The Drakensberg Boys Chamber Choir have released a beautiful a cappella version of the classic ‘Smile’, by Charlie Chaplin, arranged by Ben Bram. This is the second song which was produced in its entirety during South Africa’s national lockdown with the boys at their homes. The Drakensberg  Boys Choir said: “We thought this song perfectly […]

There is intense pressure on the South African government to lift the lockdown and open the economy. Sustainably lifting out of the lockdown is critical. But there is no roadmap. The stakes are high and there are no right answers, just ones that juggle uncertain probabilities. Diminishing growth over the past decade has weakened industry […]

Thousands of South Africans arrested for minor infringements of lockdown rules, and forced to pay admission of guilt fines (to stay out of jail), have now earned themselves criminal records. According to current affairs show, Carte Blanche, these people were going about lawful essential tasks of buying food, prepaid electricity and fetching their children. They […]