Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00 (all episodes)
Genre: True Crime, Documentary Series
A zoo owner spirals out of control amid a cast of eccentric characters in this true murder-for-hire story from the underworld of big cat breeding.
Among the eccentrics and cult personalities in the stranger-than-fiction world of big cat owners, few stand out more than Joe Exotic, a mulleted, gun-toting polygamist and country western singer who presides over an Oklahoma roadside zoo.
Charismatic but misguided, Joe and an unbelievable cast of characters including drug kingpins, conmen and cult leaders all share a passion for big cats, and the status and attention their dangerous menageries garner.
But things take a dark turn when Carole Baskin, an animal activist and owner of a big cat sanctuary, threatens to put them out of business, stoking a rivalry that eventually leads to Joe's arrest for a murder-for-hire plot.
The series reveals a twisted tale where the only thing more dangerous than a big cat is its owner.
Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Channel: Travel Channel (DStv 179)
TX Time: 20h15
Genre: Documentary Series, Variety
Awe-inspiring talents, unusual objects, strange phenomena and mind-boggling feats are explored in Travel Channel's reboot of the iconic series Ripley's Believe It or Not!.
Hosted and executive produced by actor Bruce Campbell, the 10-episode, hour-long series is inspired by Robert Ripley's obsession with the awesome and his keen eye for what keeps viewers mesmerized.
Seventy years after Ripley hosted the first eponymous series, you still can't resist his challenge to "Believe it, or not!"
One hundred years ago, Ripley went on a quest to the farthest reaches of the globe in search of the extraordinary and unusual.
Now, hosted from the famed Ripley's Warehouse in Orlando, Florida, Campbell introduces the next generation to astonishing and one-of-a-kind stories.
In the premiere episode, Campbell shines the spotlight on six individuals who possess such uncanny ability, outrageous talent and fearlessness that they are known as "Natural Born Thrillers."
Ohio native Rick Smith tosses playing cards at 92 miles per hour making them as dangerous as daggers, while Dai Andrews, "master of pain," terrifies crowds by swallowing curved swords that can kill with the smallest wrong move.
Tyler Scheuer thrills stadium crowds with a bizarre gift for balancing any object - of any size - on his chin.
In Toronto, Twisty Troy, the "human pretzel," was born with extraordinary flexibility and can run upside down, while a California couple risks their lives to walk down a thin net "aisle" strung 800 feet above a canyon - and into their marriage ceremony.
Twisted Love
Channel: IDx (DStv 171 / StarSat 223)
TX Time: 21h00
Genre: True Crime, Docu-Drama, Documentary Series
They say that love makes the world go around – but in some extreme cases, this most powerful emotion can have deadly consequences.
This series, executive-produced by Khloé Kardashian, explores what happens when love and affection spiral into a twisted web of extreme obsession and jealousy.
From a scandalous affair between married father and his 14-year-old stepsister, to a home health care nurse who falls in love with her married, wheelchair-bound patient, these compelling cases are mired in tragedy.
Each episode follows investigators as they dissect complicated relationships between spouses, friends and family members to answer the question: Who felt a love so strong it drove them to kill?
The Letter for the King
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00 (all episodes)
Genre: Fantasy, Drama
A young knight in training contends with ancient prophecies, magical powers and fickle companions as he sets out on an epic quest to save his kingdom.
When a ruthless prince threatens to cast the world into darkness, a young knight in training named Tiuri embarks on an epic quest to deliver a secret letter to the king.
Along the way, he unexpectedly finds himself at the centre of a magical prophecy foretelling the rise of a hero who can defeat the prince and restore peace.
If he's going to survive the journey, Tiuri will have to learn what it means to be a true knight — and a true leader.
The story is based on the best-selling novel of the same name.
Celebrity Game Night
Channel: Universal TV (DStv 117)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Game Show
A South African version of the NBC show hosted by Jane Lynch, in which celebs act silly in a variety of challenges.
The local version is hosted by Anele Mdoda. Joining her as team captains are Jason Goliath and Ayanda Thabethe.
In each episode, two teams of celebrity guests face off as they play outrageous party games that test pop culture knowledge, acting skills and nerves of steel.
As host, Anele will guide African celebrities over the course of each episode, alongside team captains Jason and Ayanda.
Legacies 2
Channel: M-Net City (DStv 115)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Superhero, Drama, Fantasy
Set in the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young and Gifted, Legacies tells the story of the next generation of supernatural beings as they learn what it means to be special in a world that may never understand.
Typically a school for vampires like MG, werewolves like Rafael and witches like twins Lizzie and Josie Saltzman, the kids and their beloved headmaster Dr. Alaric Saltzman were stunned to come face to face with a series of monsters and creatures they had only ever heard of in myth and lore.
A dragon. A gargoyle. The Headless Horseman.
The evil behind the real-life resurrection of these formerly fictional beings proved to have a horrifying connection to the school's newest student, Landon Kirby.
This led his first and only love Hope Mikaelson, the school's shining star, to sacrifice her place at the school - and in the world - to protect Landon from a terrible fate.
The new season will show us a world without Hope Mikaelson and all the chaos that goes along with it.
All the while, Hope will be trying to find her way back to the school she has learned to call home and the friends she has learned to love like family.
It will be filled with new monsters and more romantic and emotional surprises than ever.
In the Season 2 premiere, "I'll Never Give Up Hope": After discovering that there may be a way out of Malivore, Hope becomes more determined than ever to find her way back to Mystic Falls.
Alaric, who is still reeling after being voted out as headmaster by the honor council, continues looking into the mysterious night Malivore was destroyed.
Elsewhere, as the students leave for summer vacation, Landon stays behind to keep an eye on Rafael, while MG heads to Atlanta to spend time with Kaleb's family.
Finally, while Lizzie spends the summer in Europe with Caroline, Josie searches for answers about the mysterious ascendant that Alaric was keeping from them.
Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00 (all episodes)
Genre: Drama, Period Drama, Miniseries
Based on a true story, an African-American washerwoman rises from poverty to build a beauty empire and become the first female self-made millionaire.
Octavia Spencer stars as Madam C.J. Walker, the trailblazing African American haircare entrepreneur who was America's first female self-made millionaire.
Inspired by the book, On Her Own Ground written by Walker's great-great-granddaughter, the series brings the uplifting story of this cultural icon to the screen for the first time.
Against all odds, Walker overcame post-slavery racial and gender biases, personal betrayals, and business rivalries to build a ground-breaking brand that revolutionised black haircare, as she simultaneously fought for social change.
The four-part limited series also stars Blair Underwood as her husband C.J. Walker, Tiffany Haddish as her daughter Leila, Carmen Ejogo as Walker's business rival Addie Monroe, Garrett Morris as Walker's father-in-law, Kevin Carroll as her longtime lawyer Ransom and Bill Bellamy as Ransom's cousin Sweetness.