The People vs VBS
Channel: M-Net (DStv 101)
TX Time: 22h05
Genre: True Crime, Documentary Series
True crime documentary series about South Africa's biggest bank heist – allegedly orchestrated by the bank's own executives.
With court proceedings still unfolding eight years after the collapse, The People vs VBS revisits a scandal that remains far from resolved.
Imagine waking up to find your life savings are gone forever.
That's what happened to an 86-year-old woman, who'd saved R650,000 over 30 years as a nest egg for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren to go to college.
She lost it all in 2018, as did many others from rural and low-income communities.
The People vs VBS follows the money to show how a small mutual bank became entangled with multinational auditors, political parties, a royal household and a former president.
Many South Africans first became aware of VBS in 2016, when the bank loaned then-President Jacob Zuma over R7-million to pay back the money for the non-security-related upgrades to his Nkandla homestead – more than the bank's annual net profit at the time.
The Venda Building Society was formed in 1982.
The pioneering black-owned bank played a key role in development finance in South Africa, offering microloans and joint accounts for burial societies and stokvels.
Instead, after a change in leadership, the bank allegedly began operating like a pyramid scheme.
That required money to keep coming in faster than it went out: a classic Ponzi scheme problem.
The mutual bank began chasing bigger and bigger paydays, shifting its focus from microloans to municipalities and eventually state-owned enterprises.
When VBS started missing payments and was placed under curatorship in March 2018, it triggered widespread panic.
The documentary includes interviews with:
- VBS co-founder Madambi Muvhulawa,
- Lesetja Kganyago, governor of the South African Reserve Bank,
- Former Public Investment Corporation CEO Dan Matjila,
- Julius Malema, founder of the EFF,
- and award-winning investigative journalists.
Allegations in the documentary include R5-million in cash leaving VBS in a bag by helicopter; a mayor asking for "Christmas presents"; and the assassinations of whistleblowers.
Blue Ridge 2
Channel: Universal TV (DStv 117)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Action, Drama, Western
Based on the 2020 film of the same name, Blue Ridge follows Sheriff Justin Wise and his two deputies as they work to protect their small Appalachian town from the forces trying to rip it apart.
Every case tests their grit, loyalty and the limits of small-town peace.
Longstanding feuds, disgruntled criminals, unruly travellers and cold-blooded murderers wreak havoc - threatening the safety of the citizens Justin has promised to protect.
Season 2 explores the shifting dynamics within the community and the growing pressures that come with wearing the badge in a place where everyone knows your name – and your history.
In Blue Ridge, justice is personal and earned one fight, one mystery and one truth at a time.
Johnathon Schaech returns alongside Sarah Lancaster as Elli Wise, Taegen Burns as Maddie Wise and A. Martinez as Connor McGrath.
The series will also feature guest stars including Bruce Boxleitner (Babylon 5), Eric Close (Suits) and Sean Patrick Flanery (The Boondock Saints).
In the Season 2 premiere, "Hope, Deferred": Sheriff Justin Wise has his hands full when Bounty Hunter Hope Henry comes into town in pursuit of a fugitive who is accused of murdering her mentor.
Antiques Roadshow 48
Channel: BBC Lifestyle (DStv 174)
TX Time: 21h00
Genre: Reality
Fiona Bruce is once again at the helm as members of the public bring along their treasures and heirlooms, as well as the occasional car boot or charity shop find, in the hopes of finding out more about the history of their items and their value.
Dust off your family heirlooms and dig out those car boot bargains as the series is back on the trail of the UK's hidden treasures.
Antiques Roadshow's experts visit more of Britain's most sumptuous and unusual locations, inviting the public to bring their antiques for examination and share stories of how they came to own them.
The specialists in art, furniture and collectables advise on the history of the pieces and their likely value.
In the Season 48 premiere, "VE Day Special": Antiques Roadshow marks the 80th anniversary of VE Day with a special episode filmed in Berlin and at Bletchley Park.
It featuries interviews with veterans and the families of those who took part in the liberation of Europe.
Fiona travels to Berlin to visit Karlshorst, where Germany's final surrender took place on 8 May, 1945, bringing the war in Europe to an end.
The episode features interviews with a handful of people who played a part in the conflict, including:
- RAF pilot Colin Bell, 104 years old, who flew 50 missions over Germany,
- Hazel Halter, 100 years old, who worked with the secret codebreakers at Bletchley Park,
- and Jake Jacob, 99 years old, who travelled from the Caribbean to join RAF ground crew in England.
The episode includes an interview with Hans Muncheberg, now aged 95, who was wounded in battle during the Germans' last stand in Berlin.
He reflects on the evils of the Nazis' ideology.
Members of the public share moving stories and cherished items that provide a personal insight into the last year of the war, including:
- a pistol taken from a German general,
- stationery from Hitler's mountain retreat,
- model tanks from a training school,
- and a pair of miniature clogs gifted to a British soldier who was hidden from the enemy by a Dutch family.
Mark Smith sees a collection of photos that document the arrival of British troops at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
Also, Adam Schoon is moved to see a yellow star worn by a Jewish prisoner, who then gifted it to the Canadian soldier who liberated them.
XO, Kitty 3
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00 (all episodes)
Genre: Comedy-Drama
Kitty Song Covey returns for her final year at KISS with her perfect senior year mapped out.
She's going to make meaningful memories with her friends, grow closer to her relatives in Korea, and make big decisions about her future.
And she's going to define her relationship with Min Ho. For real this time.
But when surprise revelations throw her plans, and relationships, of course, Kitty will have to learn to embrace the unexpected.
Bad Chad Customs
Channel: Discovery Family (DStv 136)
TX Time: 17h35
Genre: Reality, Motoring
In a small, hand-built shop in a rural town lives a car artist like no other: Chad Hiltz aka "Bad Chad".
His one-of-a-kind creations spring from his imagination, a mind that never stops.
Isolated and without extra spending money, Chad always had to be creative and resourceful.
Using only basic tools and his limitless ingenuity, Chad will incorporate literally anything into his car builds - parts from a boat, airplane, even an old locker.
Part MacGyver, part Willy Wonka, if Bad Chad can imagine it, he will find a way to build it.
Bad Chad Customs chronicles this master builder and his tight-knit team who turn metal from the junkyards into award-winning cars.
Already a legend in his community, Chad is now ready to take on the world.
With the help of his Green Goblin Customs team - shop manager and fiancé Jolene, son Colton, lifelong friend and builder Aaron, and mechanic Alex - Chad builds one-of-a kind vehicles with whatever he can find.
His unique creations include The Bat out of Hell, which has kitchen cabinet door knobs and a dorsal fin; and The Green Goblin, which has its engine in the back, trunk in the middle, and no doors.
Each episode takes you into the mad mind of Chad as the team works together to build some of the most outrageous vehicles ever seen.
The excitement is in the journey, watching Chad's creative mind create one of a kind masterpieces on a workingman's budget.
The series also highlights the evolving relationship between Chad and his son Colton.
Growing up, the limited time Colton spent with his father had a great impact on his love for cars.
Now working with his father full-time as an apprentice, Colton dives head first into the world of custom cars.
And while Chad may be hard on him at times, Colton is thick-skinned and eager to learn the family business.
In the series premiere, "They Call Me Bad Chad": Chad builds an elegant one-of-a-kind coupe using spare parts, recycled metal, and a rusted out 1939 Studebaker Commander.