Watergate
Channel: HISTORY (DStv 186)
TX Time: 20h15
Genre: Docu-Drama, History, Documentary Series
Watergate is a detailed documentary series that chronicles one of the biggest criminal conspiracies in modern politics.
The series features a roster of some of the most important media, legal and political figures from the scandal, including Carl Bernstein, Bob Woodward, John Dean, Jill Wine-Banks, Richard Ben-Veniste and many others.
On the night of 17 June, 1972, a security guard in the Watergate office complex in Washington, DC called the police when he found a door repeatedly taped open.
The police discovered five men dressed in business suits who were in the process of installing bugs and photographing documents in the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee.
Thus began the most explosive scandal in American history.
Watergate tells the full story of the conspiracy led by Nixon and his White House staff, and how they were brought to justice.
Among the incidents covered in the series is:
- the leaking and publication of the Pentagon Papers,
- the spreading of false news on behalf of the White House to destroy the candidacy of Senator Edmund Muskie, then the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1972,
- the revelation that Nixon secretly tape-recorded every conversation in the Oval Office,
- the Supreme Court fight for the tapes following subpoenas by the special prosecutor and both houses of Congress,
- the infamous Saturday Night Massacre, when Nixon fired special prosecutor Archibald Cox, leading to the resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus,
- the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment proceedings,
- and the final "smoking gun" tape which recorded Nixon conspiring to cover up White House involvement in Watergate just days after the burglary.
It is a story that touches on Vietnam, the unrest of the 1960s, a near World War, the opening of China, and the moment when an unlikely group of heroes from both political parties band together and bring down the White House.
The film explores many of the same issues being debated today on a national level, including executive privilege and the handling of Presidential misconduct.
Surviving R. Kelly Part II: The Reckoning
Channel: Lifetime (DStv 131)
TX Time: 20h50
Genre: Documentary Series, True Crime
In this follow-up new survivors come forward, with interviews and commentary from:
- investigative journalist and author Jim DeRogatis,
- music industry insiders Damon Dash, Mathew Knowles and Jimmy Maynes,
- #MeToo founder Tarana Burke
- comedian and host W. Kamau Bell
- actress Sheryl Lee Ralph
- radio personality Angela Yee
- cultural critic Jamilah Lemieux,
- and state's attorney for Cook County Kimberly M. Foxx, women's rights attorney Gloria Allred and more.
They offer insights into the ever-growing case of the R&B singer, who is currently facing federal and state charges in the United States.
In the days following the debut of Surviving R. Kelly earlier last year, vital conversations erupted throughout the world.
#MuteRKelly activists were galvanized to protest for R. Kelly's record label to drop him. Public outcry ensured the survivors would not be ignored and more women came forward with allegations of abuse.
Seven weeks after the debut of the docuseries, the Cook County attorney's office indicted the R&B singer on 10 felony counts of aggravated sexual assault involving alleged four victims and spanning over a decade.
Then in July 2019, R. Kelly was arrested on charges including child pornography and kidnapping, facing a total of 18 federal charges.
The Lost Women of NXIVM
Channel: IDx (DStv 171 / StarSat 223)
TX Time: 21h00
Genre: Documentary, True Crime
This chilling investigation delves into the sinister world of the controversial organisation, NXIVM, which has been accused of abuses by former members.
With layers still unravelling, this documentary explores what happened to four women who were members of NXIVM who either vanished or died in mysterious circumstances.
Mixed in with the official accounts of suicide or illness, are contested evidence, tainted police reports and after years of investigation, one investigator believes, murder.
Layered with special testimony from former members speaking out for the first time, this special explores how each of the four women have connections to the origins of NXIVM, delving deeper into Keith Raniere's cult than ever before.
The Voice UK 2020
Channel: ITV Choice (DStv 123)
TX Time: 19h00
Genre: Reality Competition, Music
The Voice UK Is back and there's a brand new coach on the panel as the blind auditions begin.
Olly Murs, Tom Jones and will.i.am are joined in their iconic red chairs by music sensation Meghan Trainor in their search for a superstar.
Trainor burst onto the music scene with the single All About That Bass in 2014 – a song that made her one of only five female artists to achieve a Diamond certification.
Thus far, she has achieved eight multi-platinum singles and two platinum albums, sold out three world tours, and has not only penned hit songs for herself but written for a variety of artists across pop and country, including JLo and Rascal Flatts.
Now she's hoping to discover the next winner of The Voice UK. She takes up her seat alongside will.i.am, Sir Tom Jones and Olly Murs and the series will commence with the Blind Auditions.
The awesome foursome will each be searching for 10 standout acts to fill their teams.
The next round sees the Battles where the Coaches reduce their teams by half but, with the opportunity to steal one act each from another coach, they will take six through per team to the Knockouts.
Make it through the Knockouts and singers will earn a place in the live semi-final where the public will decide who makes it through to the final.
Ultimately the viewers will choose their winner in the spectacular live finale.
The winner will be set on the road to realising their artistic ambitions scooping a prize of a recording contract with Universal's label UMOD.
Emma Willis is back to host the competition.
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Channel: Vuzu (DStv 116)
TX Time: 20h30
Genre: Comedy-Drama, Miniseries
American romantic comedy miniseries based on the 1994 British film of the same name, developed by Mindy Kaling for Hulu.
Maya (Nathalie Emmanuel), the young communications director for a New York senatorial campaign, receives a wedding invitation from her college schoolmate now living in London.
She leaves her professional and personal life behind, in favour of traveling to England and reconnecting with old friends and ends up in the midst of their personal crises.
Relationships are forged and broken, political scandals exposed, London social life lampooned, love affairs ignited and doused, and of course there are four weddings... and a funeral.
Minding the Gap
Channel: SundanceTV (DStv 108)
TX Time: 21h00
Genre: Documentary
Three young men bond together to escape volatile families in their Rust Belt hometown. As they face adult responsibilities, unexpected revelations threaten their decade-long friendship.
First-time filmmaker Bing Liu's documentary Minding the Gap is a coming-of-age saga of three skateboarding friends in their Rust Belt hometown hit hard by decades of recession.
Bing, a Chinese American 25-year-old, returns to his hometown and reconnects with two skateboarders: Keire, an African American 17-year-old; and Zack, a white 23-year-old.
Bing's investigation of trauma in their homes culminates in him confronting his own estranged family, and over the next three years, Bing and his friends' freewheeling lives unravel as they struggle with a rocky transition from adolescence into manhood.
Vir Das: For India
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00
Genre: Comedy, Special
Parle G, Hitler and an Old Monk walk into a Vir Das show...
From the Vedas to Vasco da Gama to vacuous Bollywood plotlines, comedian Vir Das celebrates the history of India with his one-of-a-kind perspective.