The show must go on
All the glittered wasn’t gold as miners went on violent riots, witchcraft was used in wars and a solid marriage crumbled.
If a touchy subject is on the news or trending on social media, it is going to make its way to our screens on Isidingo. From racism and prostitution rings to black magic, the soap dished it up for dinner. But there was also a lot to celebrate in the small Horizon Deep mining town – Isidingo turned 20 in July, with episode 5 000 airing in August. Sechaba (Motlatsi Mafatshe) proved that dreaming big paid off when he opened his fancy hotel in April, while new faces also joined the soap including Sibeko Gold CEO Ntando (Lerato Mofokeng), Clive (Stefan Ludik) and widow Lungi (Jo-Anne Reyneke), who helped turn up the action ahead of 2019’s arrival.
BITING THE BULLET
The year started off on a high note for master manipulator Nina (Khabonina Qubeka), whose plan to get revenge on Nikiwe (Linda Sokhulu) for kicking her out of Sibeko Gold took shape when Nina got Nikiwe’s ex Gabriel (Aubrey Poo) in her pocket. Nina paid to keep Gabriel out of prison for physically and emotionally abusing Nikiwe last year – and she went one step further by drugging Nikiwe with pills that made her hallucinate in early February and have conversations with her dead boyfriend Frank (Kevin Smith).
UNTIL NEXT TIME
Businessman Rajesh (Jack Devnarain) had no reason to stay in town beyond March thanks to his devastating breakup with Kgothalo (Katlego Danke). After 15 years of business, romance and drama in The Deep, Jack called time and shut the door on his Horizon role. But that wasn’t the last viewers would see of Jack – he joined Imbewu as slippery, slimy business mogul and ultra-Mr Mean Sanil Maharaj (see more on p23).
NO PAIN, NO GAIN
Reformed convict Wendy (Michelle Beling) was thrown off balance when her ex-boyfriend and con artist Clive aka Jacques (Stefan Ludik) settled in town in June with his new wife Seline (Rosa Anthony). She knew that his arrival could only mean one thing: trouble. Not only was Clive unapologetic about sending Wendy to prison when they were dating offscreen, he ran a prostitution ring with Nina at the Bokamoso Hotel when he was hired at the hotel’s manager. He continued to throw his secrets in Wendy’s face until October when Seline caught onto his dodgy new business and he strangled her to death. Worse yet, Clive was a serious psychopath and took pleasure knowing that Seline had seduced and was sleeping with her personal trainer Zandre (Dèanré Reiners) – Wendy’s nephew. For once, the law took its course and Clive was arrested before he could skip town.
NO LOVE LOST
Fans who thought that Sechaba and his businesswoman wife Lerato (Tema Sebopedi) would be the couple to stick it out were disappointed in July when their non-stop fighting ended with a divorce. While it was a civil split (as far as soapie divorces go), Lerato packed her bags and left town before a tear had run down Sechaba’s cheek. All he had left besides a hole in his heart was his hotel and his position as mayor.
WITCHCRAFT WAR
What started out as Nina trying to distract Lincoln (Lindani Nkosi) from getting payback for her ruining his daughter Nikiwe’s life ended with Nina blind and barely escaping being burnt alive in her shebeen for being a witch in October. They had both used muti on each other but Lincoln’s was more effective because his sangoma Gatanga (Amos Ketlele) was able to reverse and double Nina’s spells. While Nina was arrested and thrown in jail feeling sorry for her blinded self, Khabonina offscreen welcomed her new baby in early October.
WHAT WE WANT IN 2019
Nina has gotten away with her evil plotting for far too long and we’d like to see her where she belongs: behind bars and paying for ruining the Sibeko family’s lives. But where would the fun be if she stayed there? How about bribing her wardens to let her escape through the sewer system? Sechaba deserves a break and a solid relationship, while as for the Lategan family – even the smallest bit of good news will be like hitting the jackpot for them.