LION
Channel: Disney+
TX Time: 10h00
Genre: Wildlife, Documentary Series
LION is an emotional, real-life drama that chronicles the remarkable four-year journey of a tiny lion cub named Kio as he becomes a king.
The four-part series debuts today on Disney+ and on National Geographic and Nat Geo Wild on Sunday 23 August.
LION brings to life the extraordinary true story of the Maasai Mara's lion kings, queens and a new hero named Kio.
The series goes beyond traditional wildlife documentaries to deliver a gripping, blockbuster drama rooted in documentary truth.
Hans Zimmer leads the musical score, with additional vocals from the Nairobi Chamber Chorus.
Drawing on recordings captured in the Maasai Mara, including local singers, instruments and even lion roars, the music blends the scale of a cinematic adventure with the emotional texture of the wild, while subtly weaving in rerecorded musical nods to The Lion King.
Four years in the making and filmed in Kenya's Maasai Mara, this is the first natural history production to document a lion's complete journey from vulnerable cub to king.
The crew, including local Kenyan filmmakers, logged nearly 1,400 filming days across 52 shoots, the most time ever spent in the field exclusively following a single pride.
Echoing the themes that made the beloved animated film a classic, the series is a sweeping coming-of-age saga of family, hope and courage that hopes to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Filled with drama, heart and high-stakes adventure, it offers a viewing experience for animal lovers, families and anyone drawn to epic storytelling.
LION is executive produced by The Lion King live-action director Jon Favreau and BBC Studios Natural History Unit's Mike Gunton.
Supercruising: Life at Sea
Channel: BBC Lifestyle (DStv 174)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Docu-Reality
An eight-part series that grants you an exclusive and aspirational glimpse into life on board two of Holland America line's most luxurious cruise ships.
Through an intimate lens, this behind-the-scenes documentary reveals the hard work and dedication that goes into providing nearly 3,000 passengers with the holiday of a lifetime.
From the captain to the florist, the headline singer to the head chef, this series offers a peek behind the portholes to reveal the dedication of the 1000-strong crew on each ship.
In the series premiere: It's the first time in a decade that a ship from the Holland America fleet has set sail for a full season from the UK.
First stop, a private island in the Bahamas, complete with a meticulously planned beach barbecue for thousands.
Izingane Zes'thembu 4
Channel: Mzansi Magic (DStv 161)
TX Time: 20h00
Genre: Reality
This show is an in-depth look into the lives of the Mseleku children and the challenges they face as they strive to carve their own identity.
The series features renowned polygamist Musa Mseleku's five older children and this season the series extends to focusing on his younger children too..
Gain a fresh and relatable look inside the lives of the Mseleku children, as the siblings share their struggles and triumphs of working towards defining themselves.
The show is a look at their lives as they try to find their place in the world.
Izingane Zes'thembu follows the children's struggles and triumphs, allowing viewers to gain an insight into the complexities of growing up in a polygamous family through the eyes of the next generation of the Mseleku family.
This season features returning cast members Mpumelelo, Sne, Lwandle, Abongwe and Mpiloenhle "Mpilo" Mseleku, alongside the younger generation of the Mseleku family, Mnini, Owami, Mawande and Thando.
Joining them are familiar faces, including Khwezi Mazibuko, Tirelo Kale and Amahle Biyela, who play an important role in the family's story.
As the Mseleku siblings step further into adulthood, they are forced to face the realities of life.
From revelations and struggling businesses to complicated relationships and the pressure of family tradition, each of them must find their own way.
With their father's health not being what it used to be, they have to grow up and step up in taking the legacy forward, they have to prove they are capable of building a future that goes beyond the Mseleku name.
In the Season 4 premiere: Mpumelelo takes the next step towards building his polygamous family, and Tirelo has questions of her own as to how things will play out.
Meanwhile, Lwandle embraces fatherhood.
DCI Banks 3
Channel: S3
TX Time: 20h30
Genre: Drama, Police Procedural
Stephen Tompkinson returns as Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks in three more gripping crime stories.
When a man and a woman claiming to be social workers come to Katy Heath's house and tell her that they need to take away her son Kyle, Katy complies.
But when they fail to return her son and are unknown by social services, DCI Banks is quickly drawn into a full-scale search for the missing boy.
Why has Kyle been abducted and what are the chances that he can be found alive?
When an investigative journalist is found dead in a holiday chalet in a remote village, Banks and his team are initially confronted by an overwhelming number of leads.
As Banks identifies a connection between Barber and a mysterious death in the 1980s revolving around the surviving members of pop band The Crystal Kiss, he must begin to unpick decades of lies.
In the final story of the season, a terrible chain of events is set in motion by the discovery of a loaded gun in a young girl's bedroom.
This puts Banks' daughter in mortal danger and sparks an internal investigation that threatens to break up Banks' team.
Elsewhere Detective Annie Cabbot returns from a year's maternity leave – is it time for Banks to admit how he really feels about her?
Or will work prevent the two from ever getting together?
Where the Wild Men Are with Ben Fogle 11
Channel: BBC UKTV (DStv 134)
TX Time: 19h55
Genre: Reality
Adventurer and broadcaster Ben Fogle is back with a new season of the unique programme which sees him meeting more brave individuals who have chosen to venture down an alternative path by setting up home in some of the most remote locations on Earth.
Once again, Ben ventures out to meet more people who've turned their back on the rat-race and set up home in some of the most remote and inhospitable parts of the world.
See Ben interact with the brave individuals who, coming from various walks of life, have chosen to venture down a very different path to what they are used to.
Throughout each episode, Ben discovers the reality of what it's like to leave your daily life behind in search of something different.
Is it daring, or just downright crazy?
In this season, Ben heads to the African continent to visit former army officer Mark, who, over 17 years, built a stunning home on the Moroccan coast.
Ben's journey also takes him to an off-grid home nestled deep in the forests of Canton, Maine, where he meets Arthur, a hunter-gatherer with a PhD in botany.
In the Season 11 premiere, "Bulgaria": Ben meets Brits Jordan, Lewis and their two children, who are renovating a dilapidated farmhouse in a Bulgarian village.
As he helps them, Ben learns of their challenging pasts and gains a deep understanding of their need for a new start.
Outer Banks 5
Channel: Netflix South Africa
TX Time: 10h00 (all episodes)
Genre: Drama
Outer Banks is a coming of age story that follows a tight-knit group of local teens (the Pogues) in the beach vacation destination of the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
Season 5 finds the Pogues at their absolute breaking point following the tragic loss of JJ in Morocco.
Stranded far from home and mourning the heart of their crew, they've lost the Blue Crown and continue to face a gauntlet of familiar threats.
With Chandler Groff still at large, Dalia and the Corsairs closing in and the Kooks ensuring the Pogues have no home to return to, John B, Sarah, Kiara, Pope and Cleo must rely on their scrappy instincts - and an uneasy alliance with Rafe - to keep from falling apart for good.
Their mission is now a desperate race to reclaim their future and finally win the freedom they've been chasing since the beginning.
It's the Pogues against the world as they seek to avenge their best friend and bring it on home... one final time.
Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter
Channel: Prime Video
TX Time: 10h00
Genre: Documentary, Sport
Novak Djokovic's story is not yet fully written, but his legacy already stands unmatched in tennis.
With 24 Grand Slam titles - the most in men's history - Djokovic has rewritten the record books and redefined what excellence looks like in professional sports with accomplishments that include
- over 1,100 career singles match wins,
- an Olympic gold medal,
- a record 428 weeks at world No. 1,
- and more Grand Slam appearances than any player in the Open Era.
By virtually every statistical measure, he is the greatest to ever hold a racket.
And yet, for all he has accomplished, Djokovic remains one of the most complex and polarizing figures in modern athletics - a champion whose greatness is undeniable, but whose story has never been fully understood.
Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter examines what makes this singular competitor tick, peeling back the layers of a man forged in extraordinary circumstances.
Born in war-torn Serbia, Djokovic grew up amid conflict and financial hardship as his family sacrificed everything to support his tennis career.
When he burst onto the professional scene, he was met not with open arms, but with resistance - perceived as an unwelcome intruder disrupting the beloved Federer-Nadal rivalry that fans had elevated to mythic status.
Where his predecessors carried themselves with measured grace, Djokovic was raw, passionate and unfiltered - a player who wore every emotion on his sleeve and whose intensity sometimes put him at odds with the very crowds he performed in front of.
Through exclusive behind-the-scenes access at major tournaments, his intense training regiment and softer moments at home with family and friends, the film offers an unprecedented and revealing look at Djokovic's world.
The documentary paints a portrait of a complicated figure whose difficult moments are inseparable from the fire that made him a champion.
It features intimate interviews with Djokovic himself, his wife Jelena, his family and leading figures from the world of tennis - including:
- Rafael Nadal,
- Andre Agassi,
- Pete Sampras,
- Boris Becker,
- Jim Courier,
And media personalities Mary Carillo, Patrick McEnroe, Howard Bryant, Chris Clarey and Matthew Futterman.
Grand Designs New Zealand 9
Channel: BBC UKTV (DStv 134)
TX Time: 19h00
Genre: Home Improvement, Reality, DIY
Hosted by Tom Webster, Grand Designs New Zealand shares the stories of creative and enterprising Kiwis who are taking on the challenge of building their own unique and inspirational homes.
No design is too ambitious, and no obstacle too large in their quest for the perfect house.
Following the Grand Designs format, the series sees the process of these incredible design projects, as well as the personal journeys of those building them.
It follows the initial blueprints, through to the long and often arduous task of turning the plans into practical living spaces.
Using archaic or new-school building techniques and material, and in locations from the beach, the mountains, and the hills in between, Grand Designs New Zealand features houses ranging from architectural designer mansions to DIY, never-before-seen kinds of homes.
In the Season 9 premiere, "Waiheke Wonder": Plans for an elegant “empty nest” home on Waiheke Island are swamped by a sea of mud and a tsunami of rising construction costs.