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Isidingo's 2000th Episode Party (With Boozy Pics)

Written by Tashi from the blog Tashi's TV on 29 Jan 2007
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Papa G FinalTo celebrate the 2000th episode of Isidingo that was broadcast last Thursday night (25 January, 2007), SABC3 hosted a party for the show at a shindig held at the old train station in downtown Jozi.

It all happened at the same time as the episode went out with the party starting at 18h00 - to get guests organised and ready by 18h30 so we could catch the episode together. Or so I thought.

TVSA was invited to get into the groove of the festivities, I hotfooted along to it (wearing silver shoes to bling-out) and was very disappointed 'cos they had big screens up everywhere but when 18h30 arrived there wasn't a sign of the episode on any of them. How ridiculous is that?? 19h00 arrived and no-one even mentioned it.

From what I've heard about the episode there was as little fuss made about the momentous footage in the action that happened too. It would have been so perfect if they'd stuffed the episode full of fun references to the occassion and also, they should have let something HUGE happen - like knock off Cherel in a double whammy of legendary wow. Imagine how entirely cool that would have been.

As a result I was iffy by 19h05 and decided to drown my sorrows by guzzling down three mystery cocktails that had a tasty pineapple zing. I then snooped around the venue - which has to go down as the most impressive party spot I've seen.

The way the organisers transformed the old train station into a magical world was faboo. The station's set up high off the ground and as you went up the red-carpeted stairs and stepped into the venue you were engulfed by glistening round party tables and rose petals.

It really felt like you were going from the world of dusty, industrial mines to the world of moolah and glitz that's so synonymous with both Jozi and the aspirations of Isidingo's characters.

Here's a picture of it from the outside to give you an idea of what greeted everyone as they arrived:

Isidingo Party venue

As you can see from my creative side-angled shot, a boozy buzz was rushing my veins by this point, I took the pic and then hit the party as if there was no tomorrow.

In between supper and various speeches (by SABC peeps and the show's producers) I got chatting and snapping with the Isidingo cast. I gathered goss on who was there with who and asked some of the actors this important question: Across all 2000 episodes, what's your most memorable moment of all time?

Chris_Emmanuel

Chris Beasley and Emmanuel Castis arrived at the same time - alone. Emmanuel's girlfriend, actress Tanya van Graan, couldn't join him 'cos she's currently living out his dirrty fantasies in a play called Debbie Does Dallas at the Civic Theatre.

Chris on the other hand was alone out of choice and had this to say about why he didn't have a dynamo on his arm: "*bleep!* dates baby. I don't have a date and I'm quite happy about it thank you."

He also couldn't think of his most memorable moment on the show saying he needed to do a lot of thinking about it before committing to an answer. Each time I caught up with him through the evening he was still thinking. As soon he gets back to me I'll let you know.

Lesego
 
As you can see Lesego Motsepe was looking gorge - and was zipping around the party like a light. She stopped for some quiet time and reflected back on the show:

Lesego: My most memorable moment is the first scene I ever did. It was nerve-wracking. There were so many different ideas about what was gonna happen and I'd never done it before.

Tashi: What exactly did you have to do in the scene?

Lesego: We were coming from Thaba Nchu and we were looking for the house where Zeb lives. We all looked dusty, like we were from the bundus - which the characters were from.

We had to play the vulnerability when someone rural comes into Jo'burg - the lights, the fast pace, the confusion, the anxiety and the excitement - all of that together. I had to capture all that.

Kim

Also looking super was Kim Engelbrecht who was there with her bo Garnett Kruger cricket player). He was sweet and shy and clearly not into being in the spotlight - espesh when I asked about when they'll be getting married considering they've been dating for three years. Both of them went verry quiet, hee.

Tshepo Maseko Lolo

Tshepo Maseko was there with his wife Lolo who has the best eyelashes in the world. I scrutinised them very closely (without her knowing of course) to see if they were fake but they're totally not.

Tshepo: My most memorable moment was when I said to Nandipha: "I want you to be my wife."

Marraige is a big step and with her HIV status it's even bigger. It has to be real and you know that every single second counts 'cos tomorrow she might not be there so you make it work.

I think that should be the recipe for South African - let's love each other as if there's no tomorrow.

panos_michelle

This was a scoopy snap 'cos I've always wondered if Michelle Botes has got a man in her life and it seems she does. His name's Panos Lazanas and I cunningly used the fact that I'm half-Greek to get on his good side to get the goss.

Apparently the two have been "good family friends" for forever and are connected by four kids. He explained how the four kids being interconnected was very complicated to go into - which immediately made me assume that the two've been through thick and thin together and just don't have the ring.

Through the evening I also spotted that Panos smokes loads of massive cigars.

Michelle: My most memorable moment was with Chan Marti - who played my daughter. Tthe first time I looked into her eyes I saw we had such a connection.

I realised there was such a connection acting-wise that however deep I could go, I could go there with her. That was such a feeling 'cos it was the first time that Cherel loved someone absolutely unselfishly. I looked her in eyes and just knew we could go anywhere.

Another moment was the very first time Cherel killed someone. I couldn't keep my eyes open when I was shooting when I was supposed to. I kept closing my eyes.

Jack

Jack Devarain defs gets the prize for looking the Most Suave out of everyone through the evening. He spent his time standing looking zen, sipping from a bottomless brandy glass. He also spent copious amounts of time laughing while talking about his Most Memorable.

Jack:  I was doing a love scene with Hermali - who's Krijay - and the whole set was decked out with these beautiful drapes and candles and pillows and in the heat of the scene the curtains caught fire. One of drapes blew and caught a pillow.

It was a long scene and we in the last two or three lines of dialogue - we'd really been worried about the scene and it was the perfect scene and then it ended in smoke and flames. We had to start from the beginning, which was heartbreaking. It was very typical - a love scene ending in flames of passion.

Tashi: So you'd say it was the sexiest love scene you've done?
Jack: Ja, and the most scary as well!

Karin

Also fully into sultry scenes was Karin van der Laag who I had a juicy catch-up with 'cos we've known each other for ages. Karin and I were at university together and enjoyed hanging out and doing stuff - like sewing our own  fashion creations.

Karin: I have two most memorable moments. One was my first on-screen kiss which was quite intense to do - with Grant Swanby who played Ryno. I'd never had to kiss on screen before and it was quite hard - there were literally like four cameras so it was very weird but very nice and sweet.

Tashi: I was gonna say - what was it like?
Karin: It was very gentle. You submerge yourself - like time stops a little bit.

Tashi: Would you like to do it again?
Karin: Oh yes. My second one was waking up next to Chris Beasley naked as has just happened.

Tashi: Were you totally starkers?
Karin: Underwear but the rest was starkers. It was so hot in the studio so it was a little bit challenging, but it was fun.

Tashi: But Chris was starkers.
Karin: No he had he underwear on that you couldn't see behind the cushion.

keketso

Keketso Semoko was a VIP at the party. She delivered one of the main speeches, read a cool poem during it and then once the party started in earnest she was in the thick of the jiving action, hanging out next to the dancefloor.

Keketso: My most memorable moment was a very small moment. It was when Ma Agnes was having a heart problem and Zebedee brought her a wedding band.

He said: "Before you die, if you die, I have to put a ring on your finger."

Mlageni

Mlangeni Nawa was in the thick of the action with Keketso and got lots of requests for pics with peeps. He gave a thumping answer to my Most Memorable question which, as you can see from my expression in the pic (I was pretending to be his third wife) freaked me out a lot:

Mlangeni: When I took a second wife was my most memorable moment. It's part of what I believe in. Polygamy, in our culture, helps us not to have children who don't have a sense of belonging. The more you have more wives, the more children will have a sense of belonging.

I actually orginated the idea about the storyline. I spoke to the producers and said: How about we come up with a story where ther's polygamy involved?

I believe every child has a right to have a home. As you know there are more women than men so we have to have more wives so that every child has a father and a sense of belonging.

Kevin

The person to dance like a crazy thing more than any other cast member was Kevin Smith. He was so into both his fierce jiving and the three or four chicks who were razzmatazzing around him he was in a world of his own completely.

Meschack

If there were ever a couple who are thick as thieves it's Meshack Mavuso and his wife Neo. As they chatted away it was clear why they're together - they're like two sides of the same sincere coin.

Meshack: My most memorable moment was when Zeb stood up. It was one of the best scenes we've ever done. We took an hour preparing that scene. It wasn't just rush-rush.

Neo: We talk about his scenes and I was there when they were filming it.

Meshack: Yes, Neo comes to support and she helps me with my script.

Neo: Yes, we do the script together.

Tashi: What was it about that scene that blew you away? Was it the acting of it or the subject matter?

Meshack: For the first fifteen minutes we were acting but after that it was us doing the scene. We understood what we doing and all of us were in a trance.

Neo: Yes, after that scene everyone was crying.

Meshack: Even the crew.

robert

Aha - the biggest troublemaker of the evening. Trust me when I tell you that all the mischief Barker gets up to in the show isn't simply good acting on Robert Whitehead's part but rather it's part of who he is.

He was sooo smashed you have no idea and was with a toyboy who was so concerned about him he wouldn't let him out of his sight for even a milli-second.

I didn't even ask him to be in the pic with Robert 'cos he was suspiciously watching me like a hawk. In a moment of him looking away Terence Bridget grabbed Robert and started wildly dancing with him - which is when I snapped my pic and asked him about his most memorables.

Robert: I have absolutely no idea at all. I couldn't possibly answer the question - I can't even remember what my name is! I would have said when I said: "Oh Cherel - is that you??"

I remember you - you do this *bleep!* to me. You ask me questions like: "What's the most fabulous thing Cherel ever said to you?"

Tashi: When's your birthday?
Robert: 23 September. 1984. I'm a lying swine. I'm fifty. I'm the result of baby boomering.
 
And so it was my evening came to an end at about 23h30 and as I left I had a good chuckle at seeing Robert walking to the car with both his toyboy and someone else holding him up while he went along looking happy.

In between all this chittery action, at 22h00 to precise, everyone at the party made a toast to the show. We all got champers, stood up, SABC3 said a special something and lots of stuff happened including fireworks that went off all along the sides of the building.

I couldn't help the tears that sprung in those moments and still don't know if it was the fireworks (they always finish me up) or my feelings for those who've achieved such success with the show. I think it may have been a combo of both.

-----

More Pics ...

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2 Comments

Rowann
29 Oct 2008 14:19

very interesting read, now thats y i love watching Isidingo...

Buchomaverick
27 Jul 2011 12:20

This is the most up to date soapie for Mzanzi, there is none like it & there can
never be one to replace it!! The storyline is so in touch with our lives not forgetting
the fact that they always remind us of the happenings around us!!
Pick-upsss for Isidingo...


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