Coming up on
Carte Blanche this Sunday 8 March 2026:
The Science of Laughter
In overstretched hospitals, a small band of entertainers is proving that laughter isn’t just comic relief: it’s an unlikely medicine.
They arrive in emotionally and physically demanding spaces with jokes, oversized energy, and a simple goal: to make sick children laugh.
A way to reclaim childhood in sterile hospital wards, a tool for dignity and relief in end-of-life care - laughter offers powerful healing.
And for these children enduring long, invasive treatments, it’s more than a distraction: it’s a lifeline.
Producer: Sinethemba Nogude
Presenter: Claire Mawisa
Sugar-coated Collapse
For more than a century, sugar built an empire along the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal, shaping communities and controlling valuable land.
Now, global competition and the collapse of a corporate giant threaten its future.
As cheap imports replace local product and liquidation looms, farmers face the loss of an existence that’s been in their families for generations.
Over a million livelihoods and decades of history hover on the brink as the industry faces a bitter reckoning.
Producer: Anina Peens
Presenter: Claire Mawisa
Limpopo Deluge Revisited
For communities across Limpopo and Mpumalanga, the year began in chaos.
As torrential rains swept the north of the country, roads were washed away, services cut off and families displaced.
As government declared a national disaster, our crew was on the ground to hear stories of narrow escape and celebrate the heroes rebuilding bridges and saving lives.
A month later, we revisit the damage to the Kruger National Park and get a glimpse of the recovery efforts through the eyes of an award-winning wildlife documentary filmmaker.
Producer: Sinethemba Nogude
Presenter: Claire Mawisa
Premiere episodes of Carte Blanche air on M-Net on Sundays at 19h00 and are on Catch Up afterwards.