Maureen Barnes Down the tube One of the advantages of being a TV critic is being able to watch television at odd times and since Oprah left SABC3, I’ve been tuning in at 5pm. I rather liked the Canadian series, Side Effects, set in an urban clinic, but that ended after a couple of weeks […]

Kate Herbert Imagine a room with two views: one a dusty, arid moonscape; the other lush, green and wet. This is the luxury “home from home” set- up at the Savuti Elephant Camp and Xaxaba in the Chobe Game Reserve in Botswana. The room at Savuti is too opulent for its “tent camp” status. It […]

the racing world An often dogged and sometimes disheartening slog from the ranks of the Formula One has paid off for 1998 world champion Mika Hakkinen. Alan Henry reports Mika Hakkinen of Finland clinched the 1998 Formula One world championship with a flawless flag-to-flag victory in the Japanese Grand Prix, a success which also gave […]

Not CDs of the week: Shaun de Waal It was reported a while ago that David Bowie had declined to be involved in Todd Haynes’s new glam rock movie, Velvet Goldmine. The reason given was Bowie’s desire to hang on to his seminal Seventies creation, Ziggy Stardust, for future exploitation by himself. I suspect, however, […]

Andrew Worsdale Movie of the week Ever since the release of Ozzie director Peter Weir’s Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975) and, perhaps more significantly, Bruce Beresford’s `Breaker’ Morant (1979), South African film-makers have been notoriously envious of the Australian film industry, and with good reason. `Breaker’ Morant, which tells the story of three Australian soldiers […]

Friday night :Xoli Norman There is something unrelentingly inviting about the Newtown art and entertainment scene, especially on Fridays. The sparsely peopled district brings on a dense nostalgia evocative of the good old days of a vibrant Market Theatre precinct. Today the place retains an edgy vibe, but for different reasons. What people fight for […]

Janyne Simon-Meyer The rand may be down and interest rates up, but South Africans are not sitting at home these holidays. The mainstream traveller is seeking out good value destinations – like Asia – and sensible savings like all-inclusive or cut-rate package deals. Internationally, Thailand and Malaysia are the hottest best-value holiday spots. The shopping […]

On a Warner Brothers press junket to Los Angeles Alex Dodd found a flip side to the dream factory For someone as hopelessly addicted to the glittery escape of celluloid as I am, the prospect of a trip to Los Angeles had me surfing waves of fantasy. Images of wild, wild Nicholas Cage cruising down […]

Andy Capostagno Cricket Whatever the outcome of the ongoing talks between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and its players association, the squad preparing for a five Test tour of South Africa will not be representative of the best the islands can muster. At the time of writing the captain, Brian Lara, and the vice-captain, […]

Janyne Simon-Meyer Heavy booking has already taken up many of the special deals, but you may still get lucky with these packages: l Beachcombers is offering seven nights in in Grand Baie, Mauritius, for R3 990 per person. Call Sure Travel Agents for details. l Flight Centre has a five-night stay in Langkawi for R4940. […]