The South African graduate whose heartfelt tweet of gratitude to her father made national headlines last year, when she thanked him for taking her to university “even though you are a security guard”, has sadly lost her father to an illness. Alfred Mabanga passed away on 25 January in hospital. Just as his daughter Thobile (Thoby) […]

A slow start against England converted into a classy display as the Blitzboks Sevens side booked their place in the Hamilton Sevens quarter-finals in New Zealand on Saturday. Wins against Papua New Guinea (36-5) and Russia (38-0) had come in their first two Pool B games and it was everything to play for in Game […]

A South African woman, Belinda Davids, who has been bringing the house down around the world… has finally come to the attention of her fellow South Africans, thanks to social media. In December, Belinda’s incredible rendition of Whitney Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ earned her a standing ovation at the prestigious Showtime At The […]

SA Rugby announced on Friday that it had reached an agreement with Springbok coach Allister Coetzee to part ways with immediate effect. The Rugby Department of SA Rugby will manage the coach’s responsibilities until the national team’s coaching and management group for 2018 is confirmed later this month. Coetzee and SA Rugby agreed to terminate […]

A sports injury clinic in the heart of London – with a predominantly South African team – is helping save the rhinos back home in SA. Each year Ultra Sports Clinic (USC) sponsors a different charity taking part in the London Marathon. This year they’ve selected Save the Rhino International, and will be treating all […]

The more than 900 mineworkers who were trapped underground for over 24 hours at Sibanye’s Beatrix Gold Mine near Theunissen in the Free State have all been safely rescued Friday morning, according to an SABC report (see below). Sixty-five miners had already been rescued yesterday in a very slow operation that allowed for only one […]

DA Leader Mmusi Maimane and Cape Town Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Waste Services Xanthea Limberg, visited the Strandfontein desalination plant on Friday, and confirmed they expect the plant to be online as early as March 2018. Maimane called it “great news” and said the plant will produce seven million litres of potable water […]

A huge rescue operation was launched Thursday in South Africa to rescue 1,100 miners trapped in a Free State gold mine. According to a Sibanya-Stillwater spokesperson, 300 have so far been rescued, but hundreds remain underground. UPDATE FRIDAY 07H30 – All trapped miners have been safely rescued. The miners at Sibyane Gold’s Beatrix Mine – […]

A series of tweets posted today by Western Cape paediatrician Alastair McAlpine have gone viral, trending in places as far away as Glasgow in the United Kingdom. The tweets reveal what children with terminal illnesses most appreciate and love about being alive… The Meaning of Life According to Kids – tweeted by Dr Alastair McAlpine […]

National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete says a request by the President to deliver the State of the Nation Address has been approved. Parliament’s presiding officers on Thursday briefed the media on the readiness of Parliament to host the State of the Nation Address (SONA) next week Thursday, 8 February. The joint sitting of the National […]

New water restrictions kicked off in Cape Town, South Africa, this morning, with residents now only allowed 50 litres per day per person, in a desperate bid to stave off Day Zero… currently set at 16 April 2018, when the taps will be turned off. Local blogger – Girl Unplugged – filmed the following scene […]

Check out this version of ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’, performed by a cockatoo, which has been going viral since last year and has attracted over 8 million views with no end in sight! As someone explained, part of the joy in watching the bird, believed to be an Indonesian cockatoo species, is recognising so many […]

If you look up right now, wherever you are, there’s a beautiful bright super-moon orbiting our planet. Today – 31 January 2018 – we’re blessed with a rare lunar occasion… the sight of a full moon, a total lunar eclipse (not visible from South Africa unfortunately), a blue moon and a super-moon all at the […]

In the face of panic that schools will be forced to shut in the event of Day Zero, Western Cape Premier Helen Zille has today reassured parents and principals that the provincial government will continue supplying water to schools in the drought-stricken province… although that means increased security will be necessary as the threat of […]

2018: A Better year – yes or no? writes Steuart Pennington. 18 Reasons why the answer is “YES” “Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is an absurd one” – Voltaire. In breezing through the Sunday papers, notably the Sunday Times and City Press I was struck by Mavuso Msimang’s question “is the clean-up in […]

A beautiful, yet sad, video filmed on Clifton Beach in Cape Town shows the impact that the longest ever drought in recorded history is having on all those who live in the Western Cape region of South Africa. A desperately thirsty bird drinks from the hand of local Cape Town resident Joel Graham. Joel posted […]

The Federal Executive of the Democratic Alliance (DA) has authorised the DA caucus in the City of Cape Town to lodge a motion of no confidence in Mayor Patricia de Lille… citing various reasons, including that upgrades to her home were irregular, that she actively withheld drought crisis information and that the Party has “lost […]

Mmusi Maimane – Leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) – has written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, requesting that this year’s State of the Nation Address (SONA), scheduled for next Thursday 8 February, be postponed until Jacob Zuma has been removed from office, and Parliament is afforded an opportunity to elect […]

The allegations made by US-based company Viceroy Research that South Africa’s Capitec Bank is operating as a loan shark – and which Capitec have dismissed as factually incorrect – are serious and should be investigated by the SARB (South African Reserve Bank), says David Maynier, DA Shadow Minister of Finance. Viceroy released a report on […]

Thanks to the water saving efforts of many Cape Town residents, Day Zero has now been pushed back four days to 16 April 2018. Mmusi Maimane, whose own family has cut down to 40 litres per day, said: “Pushing back Day Zero by 4 days may not seem like a lot. But actually it is […]

Tourists are still being encouraged to visit Cape Town, despite Day Zero looming (when taps will be turned off on 12 April 2018) and international headlines about South Africa’s Mother City running out of water. (Please see Tourists FAQ about the water crisis in Cape Town below.) Jayne Dickson, a British tourist, said she is […]

US President Donald Trump says he does not want elephants being “killed and stuffed and brought back” to the United States. Speaking in an interview with Piers Morgan, filmed in Switzerland, and aired on ITV on Sunday night, the President appeared to confirm that the ban on importing African elephant body parts – which had […]

A 75-year-old trophy hunter from Croatia has been killed by a stray bullet whilst taking part in a hunt on an alleged ‘canned lion’ farm in South Africa. “Hunter killed while hunting canned lions at Leeubosch Lodge, North West Province, South Africa,” said the producers of ‘Blood Lions’, a documentary which exposed the ‘canned lion’ […]

Hundreds of people joined outside the civic centre to protest against the City of Cape Town’s management of the water crisis. The Cape Town Water Crisis Coalition (CTWCC) is calling for government to remove water management devices, to stop any drought levy or water tariff increase plans and no privatisation of water supply. Shaheed Mahomed […]

An overjoyed Ladysmith Black Mambozo announced their Grammy Award on Twitter with capitals: “WE WON THE GRAMMY AWARD FOR BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM!! SHAKA ZULU REVISITED. Our 5th Grammy Award. Such an honor. Thank U Grammy Awards. Thank U fans and friends. Thank U South Africa!!” The South African band was performing on stage in […]