Desert Rose
Season 1 M-Net (*101) 20:30 Drama
The final episode of original local drama series Desert Rose airs tonight and it’s a shocker, says Daniah de Villiers (Maggie in Afrikaans soapie Suidooster, see p37), who plays Lucy Greyling. “Joh! The last episode is my favourite,” she says. “It’s full of action and fight scenes as the storyline builds to its crescendo that’s satisfying, and hopefully the Greyling family will finally find some peace.”
It’s been a bumpy ride as the family lost Rosie (Tinarie van Wyk-Loots, Lara Kruger in drama series Fynskrif) in a car accident. She was the eldest Greyling sibling as well as Lucy’s mom. “They had to find their way back to each other as patriarch Freddy “Fingers” Greyling (Neil Sandilands, Bernoldus in local thriller series Dam) – who abandoned them – retuned. “Strange enough, Lucy took her mom’s death well,” explains Daniah. “Rosie loved Lucy very much, but Lucy kept secrets from her mom, and in a way Lucy is like her granddad Freddy.”
The biggest secret is Lucy’s feelings for her netball coach and teacher Gus Dolly (Christiaan Schoombie, Dr Greeff in Afrikaans soap Binnelanders, see p33). Rosie was suspicious of Lucy’s relationship with Gus just before her death, and after Rosie died, Lucy distracted herself from her grief by focusing on her crush, which led to complicated consequences. “Lucy likes to play with fire,” says Daniah. “She’s a wildcat like they say on the show, and it’s because she has daddy issues.” And speaking of daddy issues – who is Lucy’s biological dad? “I can’t give too much away but by the end of the series he will make his appearance – and this will be another shocker,” adds Daniah.