Friday 26 March: SA film Jerusalema shows gangs just before the fall of Apartheid. etv, 22:00.

Saturday 27 March: Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler star in Blended as the head of two dueling households. M-Net Movies 1 on DStv at 19:00.

Sunday 28 March: RuPaul’s Drag Race UK is back with ten queens vying to become the next drag superstar. BBC Brit on DStv at 22:55.

Monday 29 March: Josh Duhamel stars in Spaceman, a film about a baseball pitcher whose head is in the clouds. M-Net Movies 1 at 20:00.

Go to therapy with SABC3

The Red Room, a new Turkish telenovela, will be broadcast on Thursdays and Fridays at 18:30 from 8 April on SABC 3.

The Red Room is an important series that tells women’s stories at a time when the world is waking up to the challenges faced by those living oppressed lives in a patriarchal system. The stories play out in a therapist’s office in Istanbul. Vulnerable women, men and children pass through to get treatment and handle their traumas and problems.

At the same time we witness personal dramas involving the main cast of characters, and see how their relationships develop while they help those in need of their clinical support. The series is based on the real experiences of an Istanbul doctor and writer Gülseren Budayicioglu.

“Thematically the show deals with the idea of confronting past trauma to be able to come into one’s full potential life, it depicts woman dramatically dealing with past abuse to want to live again. All of the fictional characters dramatized stories are based on real life characters. This show will go out twice a week and it is meant to connect with the present South Africa we live in where so many women live with abuse in their daily lives – here in The Red Room we see dramatic stories of hope and recovery,” explains Pat van Heerden: Channel Head SABC 3 Bouquet.

The episodes are built around harrowing stories of the patients, while at the centre of the drama is the team of therapists in the clinic, and their own personal issues. These stories will be familiar to women, men and even children around the world and will open the eyes of many more.

“The Red Room is about reaching out as a real Public Service Broadcaster to show a program about overcoming violence and trauma in a community through therapy,” Pat concludes.

Friday 19 March: Guests are scored on the environmental impact of every dish on Feast to save the planet. BBC Earth on DStv, 20:00.

Saturday 20 March: 400 Frogs can be seen on World Frog Day. This documentary shows the efforts of Joburg Zoo to save rare frogs from extinction. People’s Weather Channel on DStv at 18:00.

Sunday 21 March: Couples get help to mend their relationships on Marriage Rescue. SABC2 at 19:30.

Monday 22 March: Adam is a film about two strangers. One is just stranger than the other. SABC2 at 21:30.
 

Allen vs Farrow

The four-part documentary series Allen vs Farrow is a premiere on Showmax.

Award-winning investigative filmmakers Kirby Dick, Amy Ziering and Amy Herdy goes behind the years of sensational headlines to reveal the private story of one of Hollywood's most notorious and public scandals: the accusation of sexual abuse against Woody Allen involving Dylan, his then 7-year-old daughter with Mia Farrow; their subsequent custody trial; the revelation of Allen’s relationship with Farrow’s daughter, Soon-Yi; and the controversial aftermath in the years that followed.

Along with new investigative work - pieced together via intimate home movie footage, court documents, police evidence, revelatory videotapes, and never-before-heard audio tapes - the series includes exclusive interviews on the subject with Mia Farrow, Dylan Farrow, Ronan Farrow, family friend Carly Simon, prosecutor Frank Maco, relatives, investigators, and experts.

Allen vs Farrow also examines the effects of trauma on a family, and features prominent cultural voices exploring Allen's body of work in a broader context and reflecting on how public revelations about the personal lives of artists can lead to re-evaluations of their work.

Friday 12 March: A judge investigates corrupt lawyers in Broken Trust. Etv, 23:55.

Saturday 13 March: A married man’s one night stand stalks him in Fatal Attraction. SABC2 at 21:20.

Sunday 14 March: A tech billionaire (played by Bruce Willis) tries to protect his valuable work in Hard Kill. M-Net at 20:05.

Monday 15 March: Elisa must prove a man’s innocence after he has pleaded guilty for murder in the brilliant British detective series Miss Scarlet and the Duke. BBC Brit on DStv at 20:00.

Tuesday 16 March: A mother tries to connect with her dead son in The other side of the door. Etv at 23:00.

Wednesday 17 March: Therapy sessions go awry in Atypical Wednesday. M-Net Movies 1 on DStv, 21:38

Thursday 18 March: It’s the kitchen reveal on The Block. M-Net, 17:45.

Friday 19 March: New sitcom Young Rock is mockumentary about the life of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. M-Net, 19:00.

Saturday 20 March: The last igloo is a documentary about the last Inuit to discover the art of igloo building. BBC Earth on DStv, 22:00.

Sunday 21 March: The gang is back to fight the world’s most dangerous game in Jumanji: The next level. M-Net, 20:05.

Keep an eye out for Murder in Paris

SABC 3 will premiere the first part of an intriguing new film Murder in Paris by award-winning filmmaker Enver Samuel on Human Rights Day 21 March at 19:30.

The second chapter follows at 19:30 on 28 March, which is the day before the 33rd commemoration of struggle hero Dulcie September’s death on 29 March. 

September was the ANC representative for Luxembourg, Switzerland and France and was mysteriously assassinated in the heart of Paris on 29 March 1988. The film explores why this former school teacher from Athlone and principled cadre was murdered through the investigations of veteran Dutch investigative journalist Evelyn Groenink who tried to piece together why Dulcie was killed.

“It is a well thought through account that carefully traces Dulcie’s steps to bring to life her seemingly less acknowledged valor. In a world where political leadership is dominated by men, Murder In Paris reveals some of the distressing dark deals that led to her mysterious murder; and they still haunt South Africa to this day. It shines the spotlight on the role played by women of her stature and veracity in the struggle to liberate our country,” said SABC Head of Factual Genre, Thando Shozi.

The film starts in a chance meeting on Freedom Day 2017 in Bern, Switzerland where Samuel was attending the Visions du Reel Film Festival. During the Freedom Day celebration at the South African Embassy he struck up a conversation with Randolph Arendse whose brother was married to Dulcie's sister. He had seen Enver’s award-winning documentary about Ahmed Timol called Indians Can’t Fly. By the end of the evening, Enver had agreed to make a film about Dulcie with the blessing of her family.

The film is the culmination of this four year journey and includes unique footage of the 30-year commemoration of Dulcie’s death in March 2018 in Paris as well as archive images never seen before in South Africa of this little-known liberation heroine.

“Dulcie’s life is a reminder to current day South Africa that the purpose of all the sacrifices and struggles of the past were not in vain and that a fair and decent South Africa is still a possibility. Her story needs to be told, it’s a story that will inspire those who strive for democracy and social justice and highlight the role of a selfless unsung heroine,” says Samuel. 

Friday 26 February: Mockumentary series How to … John Wilson teaches viewers how to split the check NY style. M-Net, 22:37.

Saturday 27 February: Meryl Streep can be seen as the editor of Vogue in the cutthroat world of fashion’s The devil wears Prada. M-Met Movies 1 at 19:00.

Sunday 28 February: The much-anticipated Love Island SA kicks off with beautiful people looking for love. M-Net at 20:00.

Monday 1 March: The awards season starts with the annual Golden Globe Awards. Live at 03:00 on DStv and repeated in prime time. M-Net at 22:30.

Always Sunny

Always Sunny in Philadelphia is back for its 14th season.

Often referred to as Always Sunny or simply Sunny, this legendary sitcom will premiere on M-Net on 5 March.

The series follows the exploits of "The Gang," a group of narcissistic friends who run the Irish bar Paddy's Pub in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The series was renewed for a fifteenth season, making it the longest-running live-action comedy series in American television history.

The series follows "The Gang", a group of five misfit friends: twins Dennis (Glenn Howerton) and Deandra "(Sweet) Dee" Reynolds (Kaitlin Olson), their friends Charlie Kelly (Charlie Day) and Ronald "Mac" McDonald (Rob McElhenney), and  Frank Reynolds (Danny DeVito), Dennis' and Dee's legal father. The Gang runs the fictional Paddy's Pub, an unsuccessful Irish bar in South Philadelphia.

Each member of "The Gang" displays unethical behavior and traits such as excessive drinking and drug abuse, dishonesty, cruelty, selfishness, and egotism. Episodes usually find them hatching elaborate schemes and often conspiring against one another and others for personal gain, vengeance, or simply the entertainment of watching another's downfall. They habitually inflict mental, emotional, and physical pain on each other and anyone who crosses their path. They also regularly use blackmail to manipulate one another and others outside of the group.

The Gang's unity is never solid, and they will quickly dump any of the others for a quick profit or personal gain regardless of the consequences. Despite this, they ultimately return to their usual group dynamic due to their toxic co-dependency. Everything they do results in contention among themselves and much of the show's dialogue involves the characters arguing or yelling at one another. Despite their lack of success or achievements, they maintain high opinions of themselves and display an obsessive interest in their reputations and public images.

The Gang has no sense of shame when attempting to get what they want and often engage in activities that others would find humiliating, disgusting, or shocking.

Except for certain rare occasions, Paddy's Pub does not do well financially. The

Passers-by avoid the bar because of the numerous stabbings (and deaths) that have occurred there. The Gang has been known to close Paddy's for extended periods without warning. When the bar is open, they shirk their respective jobs' responsibilities and choose to drink instead.