New Series Alert: A Lot Can Happen Over Coffee, A Telegu Based Series Debuts On Zee One This Month

Last month, it was reported that Star Life will be rolling out two new shows in the coming weeks, Beyond Life and Evil Affairs. Now Zee One is also looking to debut show in the month with a new Telegu drama, A Lot Can Happen Over Coffee (Rajeswari Vilas Coffee Club).

A Lot Can Happen Over Coffee depicts the story of Rajeshwari, a compassionate cook aspiring to keep her mother’s hotel thriving, challenges Rudra, an elite chef when he decides to usurp her hotel to grow his premium food business.

It starred Likitha as Rajeshwari, Rudra Nelakanta as Akarsh, Vishwamohan as Viswanatham, Sheelasingh as Kamakshi and Prasad as Subbarao. 

Produced by Indian broadcaster Zee Telegu, A Lot Can Happen Over Coffee debuted sometime in 2022 with 398 episodes having being filmed so far. It serves as an ongoing drama at the moment as seen with other Zee TV series like Twist Of Fate and Radha Mohan.

A Lot Can Happen Over Coffee will replace My New Mother In Law on Zee One from 7 April. Prior to this, the pay-tv version of the channel Zee World will rollout a new female led drama Sister Wives not to be mistaken with the reality show from TLC. 

News Shorts: Alice's Wonderland Bakery Cancelled On Disney Junior After Two Seasons And The Iron Heart To Rollout On Novela E Plus Alongside A Rebroadcast Of Betty In New York On Telemundo

Disney axes another program 

Back in 2022, Disney announced a brand new animated series for preschoolers and their families called “Alice’s Wonderland Bakery” that was inspired by the beloved world of “Alice in Wonderland.” The series debuted in 2022, with a second season renewal coming shortly after its premiere.

Centred on Alice, the great-granddaughter of the original heroine and a budding young baker at the enchanted Wonderland Bakery, each episode features two 11-minute stories about Alice’s recipe adventures with her best pals—Fergie, a white rabbit; Hattie, her madcap friend; and Rosa, the Princess of Hearts.

Disney has announced via the Disney Junior Instagram account, that the series finale of “Alice’s Wonderland Bakery” is going to air on the Disney Junior channel in the United States on April 15th 2024, indicating that the show is now coming to an end.

The Iron Heart debuts on Novela E Plus

Apollo Adelantar is an undercover agent who goes on a dangerous mission to bring down a crime ring name Altare unaware of his trusted friend when his two of his trusted allies becomes a enemy. Fueled by a bitter and painful past, Apollo and his allies face grueling tasks that will challenge his resolve and strength.

It starred Richard Gutierrez as Apollo "Pol" Adelantar, Kyle Echarri as young Apollo, Albert Martinez as Engr. Priam dela Torre, Dimples Romana as Selene Larisa and Sue Ramirez as Venus Z. Magbanua.

The series will air daily on Novela E Plus at 18:50 from 6 April.

Telemundo loads up on repeats

Based on the 1999 Colombian telenovela Yo Soy Betty La Fea, the romantic comedy Betty In New York followed Beatriz Aurora Rincon Lozano as she embarks on a new journey in New York when she takes on a job as a secretary at V&M Fashion.

The series will air daily on Telemundo at 18:00 from 13 April.

Mzansi Magic Presents Code 13, A Race To Capture Dangerous Escaped Convicts Starring Zolisa Xaluva & Lunathi Mampofu

Crime, corruption, and betrayal of the highest level are set to be the driving themes for Mzansi Magic’s new drama series Code 13, premiering on Sunday 14 April. 

 

Set in the gritty heart of Joburg, Code 13 follows the story of Bheki Ndlovu played by Zolisa Xaluva a no-nonsense Jozi detective with a knack for connecting the dots and solving complex cases. Together with a hard-edged police unit, he is tasked with recapturing six of the city's most dangerous criminals who escaped while in custody from a police van.

 

However, this already challenging case presents him with hurdle after hurdle at every turn as his efforts reveal a web of corruption, betrayal, and secrets at the very top. Moreover, Bheki’s work life is not the only one that seems to be ‘adventure-packed’, but his personal life plays a significant role as he tries to balance the two, especially when his love interest turns out to be a colleague.

 

The series, produced by Seriti Films also stars Lunathi Mampofu as Bongi Nkosi, a police detective, and Bheki’s love interest, Aluve Mjali as Marcus ‘Mamba’ Moagi as a highly skilled hacker, and Primo Baloyi as Veli ‘Veja’ Mohalanyane who is deeply connected to the community which makes him a reliable informant.   Other cast members who will star in the series include Zikhona Bali as Azania, Saint Seseli as Patrick, and Thami Mngqolo as Dr Pitso.

 

The big question is: Can Bheki trust his team of over-qualified and egotistical law enforcers to recapture this group of dangerous escapees and expose a web of corruption that reaches the highest levels of power before the city descends into irreversible chaos?

To get all the answers and to see how it all unfolds, tune in to Code 13 premiering Sunday 14 April at 8 pm on Mzansi Magic Channel 161.

Recap To Last Month: Purged Programming From Former DStv Channel NWTV Launches On Soweto TV

A few months ago, MultiChoice had axed two provincial channels on the DStv platform, One Freestate Televisual and NWTV. After residing on the platform for less than 3 months, MultiChoice had silently axed the channels without any prior notice.

Since then, One Freestate Televisual remained on StarSat with the TV channel that had attempted to negotiate a new agreement with MultiChoice. NWTV on the other hand is not viewable anywhere in Africa thus concluding its run as a linear channel.

MultiChoice in these endeavors had removed seven additional channels: 1Magic, Me, People's Weather, Emmanuel TV, B4U Movies, Ginx eSports TV and Deutsche Welle. Since then only select shows from a minority from these brands were available for viewing. 

As seen through the programme guide, Soweto TV scooped up rights to one of the few programs from NWTV, The Girl. It followed a young girl named Belky who grew up in a jungle after being abducted had escaped years later and united with her family. 

The problem pertaining to The Girl's return on TV screens would be the broadcaster, Soweto TV. NWTV was catered to multiple countries within Southern Africa while Soweto TV is only situated in South Africa therefore alienating an audience from programming. 

The Girl airs daily at 08:30 and 17:30 on Soweto TV. 

Recap To The Week: 1Max Has Been Excluded From The DStv Compact And Family Packages

During the week, MultiChoice had launched the standalone 24 hour service to Showmax, 1Max. After promising Compact+ consumers a rebranded offering, 1Max debuts on channel 103 with content already seen on 1Magic with a major boost from Me.

After having closed Me on channel 115 which targeted consumers on the Compact and Family packages. MultiChoice had opted alienate them from viewing further shows from M-Net and this includes Yellowstone and The sixth season of The Good Doctor.

Consumers on Compact+ confused and frustrated over the switch to 1Max as various traits from 1Magic had surfaced on the channel. This includes sitcoms Moesha and One And One with further additions of content viewed on Africa Magic and KykNET. 

From what we've grasped, 1Max is a Showmax tailored channel basically BBC UKTV and Nicktoons - secondary network. All the premium bonanza was axed when the premiere of Champions moved from 1Magic to Mzansi Magic. 

Honestly speaking, 1Max's debut on DStv almost seems rushed as the programme guide still includes 1Magic's termination card. On top of that, further details as to the name and programming was only unveiled by yesterday.

MultiChoice in these regards opted to unveil further details about 1Max through content highlights on their website. They didn't think to even brief the media beforehand not even a press release leading some to question MultiChoice's confidence on 1Max.

One of two theories come to mind over the lack of marketing first being its current positioning as the latter is on Showmax. If anything, its likely that the availability has to do with some content viewed on channel like Ted and Red Ink.

MultiChoice Chair To Stay On Until Canal+ Transaction Concludes

Imtiaz Patel will remain as chair of MultiChoice until the conclusion of the Canal+ transaction, the pay-TV operator said on Tuesday.

French broadcaster Canal+ has made a mandatory offer to MultiChoice investors to take up all the shares that it does not already own by April 8.

The MultiChoice board said it had reached an agreement for Patel to stay as the continuity would be beneficial. Patel agreed to extend his tenure until the conclusion of the Canal+ transaction or sooner, depending on the progress of the transaction.

Elias Masilela, a long-standing non-executive director and the chair, became the deputy chair of the MultiChoice board on April 1. He will also become lead independent director in place of Jim Volkwyn, who will step down as lead independent director but remain as a non-executive director.

 

At the start of February, Canal+ made an offer to buy the rest of the company at R105 a share, or just more than R31bn, in what would have been the biggest M&A deal so far in SA in 2024.

The DStv owner snubbed the offer as too low for the business and its prospects, even though it is at the top end of the target price range that analysts and brokers have for the stock. 

Canal+ then raised its offer to R125 per share on March 5, valuing the deal at about R37bn.

Canal+, a top shareholder in MultiChoice that had a 31.67% interest when it proposed the offer, raised its stake to 35.01% after the deal’s announcement earlier in February, just above the threshold that would require the company to make a mandatory offer to shareholders.

The Paris-based company said it would publish a firm intention announcement by April 8.

Development Alert: Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years Cancelled After Two Seasons On Nickelodeon

Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years is an American animated television series created by Stephen Hillenburg and developed by Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli, Andrew Goodman, Kaz, Mr. Lawrence, and Vincent Waller that premiered on Paramount + on March 4, 2021. 

The series is a prequel and spinoff of Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants, featuring younger versions of the characters as they attend summer camp. The camp is run by Mr. Krabs with Mrs. Puff overseeing camp activities. 

In August 2021, the series was renewed for a 13-episode second which is slated to be released in later in the year. Although, the series hadn't been officially cancelled the second season's commission was halved by the network. 

Unlike Baby Shark’s Big Show and That Girl Lay Lay whose episodes were burned off on secondary networks. Kamp Koral will be having its final prayers on Nickelodeon likely due to the purging of shows due in light of Quiet On Set and corporate write offs.

Nickelodeon's future as a network had since then remained in doubt. As the parent company embarks on a possible acquisition and shows like Avatar: The Last Airbender (live-action) and The Fairly OddParents: A New Wish rolling out on Netflix globally. 

From Old Favourites Like Moesha And Wura To Originals Like Tracking Thabo Bester And Red Ink: List Of Confirmed Shows For DStv's Newest Addition, 1Max

Not long ago, it was revealed that 1Max was the name of the TV channel set to replace 1Magic and Me on DStv. It is currently unknown if 1Max will also be included on Compact and Family as tests are also being conducted on 1Magic's channel number.

1Max from what we could figure based on the logo is a Showmax tailored channel. Unlike 1Magic which was catered to Southern Africa with a separate feed in West Africa, 1Max seems to be following its streaming counterpart and unifying this lineup.

The West African telenovela Wura after launching on the Africa Magic channels in 2022 will rollout on 1Max. Based on the 1Magic telenovela The River, Wura follows an iron lady who doesn’t care whose ox is gored in her path to get what she wants.

This will be followed by the Afrikaans romcom Troukoors (Wedding Fever) after debuting on KykNET in 2021. Starring an all elite cast, It followed a wedding planner who surrounded by friends and family is on a journey toward self discovery. 

There's also going to be some flash from the past shows from 1Magic such as One On One and Moesha which will form part of a classic sitcom block. Joining this lineup will be Me favourites such as 6th installment of The Good Doctor alongside Yellowstone. 

In hindsight, 1Max is basically 1Magic with a new coat of paint and additional content. Initially structured to offer an independent lineup from M-Net through 1Magic will also serve as an open window to shows exclusive and already seen on DStv Premium.

If we had to guess, MultiChoice will probably be putting more buzz on Tracking Thabo Bester, Red Ink and Sport Wives.

Tracking Thabo Bester is a four part miniseries based on the lives of the titular character alongside medical doctor Nandipha Magudumana. It debuted on Showmax last month and had the most views compared to any other doccie.

Red Ink is a eight-part thriller tells the story of a journalist turned publicist, Lucy Khambule, who is approached by an imprisoned serial killer to tell his story. Followed by Sports Wives, a reality show that follows the lives to wives of South Africa's sporting greats.

Development Alert: MultiChoice And M-Net To Rollout 1Max As A Replacement To 1Magic And Me On DStv

Earlier in the year, it was reported that MultiChoice was currently working on a TV channel with the letter X in its name. Not much details was shared about the content or when this channel would be ready for distribution to consumers.

As reported last month, MultiChoice and M-Net had shuttered the M-Net's Me and 1Magic channel on DStv. As they continue streamlining their portfolio further reducing the amount of linear channels available. 

Not long ago, the pay-tv company had begun experimenting on the reported Channel X brand which we now know is 1Max. It describes itself as the best TV channel for Showmax viewing offering shows such as Tali's #JoburgDiary, Wura and The Good Doctor. 

Considering that M-Net will be merging Me and 1Magic into a single TV channel. It would make a sense for the channel to be available to consumers as Me and 1Magic but MultiChoice had promised this channel would be available to their Compact+ consumers.

There's chances that certain DStv customers might be excluded from this offering. But considering that MultiChoice had failed to address the situation pertaining to the shows chances of that risk 1Max joining the latter to have been axed.