House of lies

Felicity fakes a miscarriage and moves to Cape Town.

Weekdays SABC2 (*192) 19:00

Hillside’s fashion designer Felicity Daniels (Melanie du Bois) is packing her sewing kit and moving out of the Laan – for good! On Thursday 6 October, it’s off to Cape Town with Felicity ready to start over, but before she goes, she plans to fake a miscarriage. She reckons that it will protect her stepson-babydaddy Willem (Markus Haywood) and give him the future that she thinks he deserves.

NO PAIN, NO GAIN

Felicity’s appearing pale and worried on Thursday 29 September and Melanie says that “she’s been to the doctor who told her that the chances are high that her baby will have Down’s Syndrome”. She’s trying to process the diagnosis when Willem’s girlfriend Petro (Carla van der Merwe) arrives to confront her later on Thursday 29 September – Petro claims that Felicity is keeping Willem away from her. The ladies get into a brawl and Felicity keels over with a stabbing pain in her abdomen, so Petro rushes her to the doctor despite their differences over Willem.

The next day, Friday 30 September, Felicity phones Willem. “She lies and tells him that she had a miscarriage. She thinks it’s better than telling him the doctor’s baby diagnosis. She can’t do that to him,” Melanie says.

With her plan in motion, Felicity asks her boutique assistant Pulane (Masego Sehoole) to take over on Tuesday 4 October and on Thursday 6 October, she surprises Willem with a plaque in memory of her late hubby and his stepdad Herman (Deon Coetzee) and Willem’s dead brother Louis (Leslie van Wyk). By the end of the episode, Felicity’s gone. “In her head, it’s the best. She can start over and Willem too,” says Melanie.

WHY SHE LEFT

Felicity is fleeing the Laan and Willem. After 16 years in Hillside, Melanie’s contract wasn’t renewed. Her last day on set was on Friday 22 July and it was emotional, “Especially when I said goodbye to the Meintjies family – there were lots of tears,” Melanie says. Since then, she’s transformed herself into a businesswoman and started her production house Du Bois Media Solutions. “I’m involved in making furniture with a partner [whose name she doesn’t want to reveal right now]”. She does miss her actress role though, saying that playing boutique-owner Felicity has taught her a lot: “It’s because of Felicity and her business brain that I’m veering in that direction now.”