Iden Wetherell He is being compared to Britain’s combative wartime leader Winston Churchill in local media tributes which border on the hagiographical. But whether this proves to be President Robert Mugabe’s finest hour ultimately depends on the outcome of the war he is busy directing in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In a decision that […]

Alex Sudheim `Make sharp, the picture is on!” yells the usher to the throng of patrons still jostling for popcorn and cooldrinks around the kiosk. Behind him, the 400-seater cinema is packed to capacity as the enormous screen flickers into vivid life. Its a cold, rainy Sunday afternoon in a deserted and windswept Durban city […]

Shaun de Waal What the Americans call “sell-thru” video -videos for sale -is beginning to take off in South Africa in a big way. The rampaging success of Disney titles such as The Lion King and The Little Mermaid, which appear to be addictive to children, spearheaded the influx into South Africa of an ever- […]

Wonder Hlongwa The absence of street names and house numbers in some townships and informal settlements is a permanent inconvenience for both residents and service providers. Companies like Telkom and ambulance services rely on locals for directions to their destinies. It can be a dangerous dependency in criminal- infested townships. For residents, the inconvenience is […]

Asian turmoil is hitting luxury goods in the wallet … and the handbag and the shoes, writes Sarah Ryle Patsy from Absolutely Fabulous might have said: “You can never have too many accessories.” If only it were true. The sad reality, from the viewpoint of fashion’s most prestigious houses, is that when the economic climate […]

Alex Sudheim `After 10 minutes time you’ll forget you’re watching a screen and you’ll feel like you’re in the same room,” promises Krish Moodley of his unique new venture, the 3-D Picture Palace on Durban’s beachfront. Whether or not you actually want to be in the same room as several dozen grunting, sweating, copulating people […]

Alex Sudheim On show in Durban Around 10 years ago in Pretoria, architect William Raats was looking at an Australian magazine which featured modern buildings decorated with beautiful Aboriginal art works. He thought to himself: “If only we had something like that here,” upon which he promptly realised that of course we do – and […]

The massacre of species at present rates has baleful consequences for Earth, writes Tim Radford A big fish is about to swim away, forever. The barndoor skate, Raja levis, seems close to extinction. In 1951 research ships found it in 10% of all trawls of the St Pierre Bank in the Atlantic Ocean off Newfoundland. […]

Andrew Muchineripi Soccer Au revoir France. Hello Mauritius, Gabon and Angola. As memories of the World Cup fade from the memory bank, Bafana Bafana must start preparing for another African Nations Cup campaign. No longer holders of the most prestigious football prize the continent has to offer, South Africa must go through a six-match qualification […]

One of the best goalscorers the game has produced has quietly joined Wrexham as player/ coach. Ian Ross hears how a Liverpool legend plans to dip his toe in the managerial waters It is generally accepted that anyone who has the misfortune to live out their life in the public eye can judge their continuing […]