A black commercial farmer in the Free State claims to have been sabotaged by some of his white counterparts, writes Ann Eveleth The vultures started descending on Isaac Khumalo’s Vredefort farm soon after he took the plunge into commercial agriculture in December 1995. Thirty-one-year-old Khumalo, the Free State vice-chair of the Emerging Red Meat Producers […]

Charl Blignaut On show in Johannesburg Should you happen to walk all the way to the back of the large, depressingly cold main entrance level of the Civic Theatre in Johannesburg; and then should you stumble down a couple of stairs and take a turn to the right; there you will come upon a tiny […]

Gregory Mills French President Jacques Chirac’s visit to South Africa this week occurs at a moment of transformation in France’s relationship with Africa. It also comes at a particularly bad time for Africa, with a number of states moving in status from “transition” to “upheaval”. Just four years ago, Paris’s compulsion to remain engaged with […]

Roy Collins World Cup As the Nigerians jump to the instructions of coach Bora Milutinovic in the shadow of their magnificent temporary home, the Chateau de Belinglise at Elincourt-Sainte Marguerite, 64km north of Paris, it is clear that one player is working in splendid isolation. The Nigerians being less happy campers than the Dutch or […]

Bruno Peltier During the first press conference he has given in his own country for six years, the Swedish film and theatre director Ingmar Bergman seemed relaxed. He had quit his island retreat in the Baltic to announce that he is working on a screenplay. It is clearly a project close to his heart. Bergman, […]

Neil Manthorp in Cambridge Cricket The arrangement of storms and lulls, peaks and troughs has been clever so far on tour, by and large. Cambridge is a lovely city and the combined universities provide talented but not fierce opposition. Most importantly, Cambridge provides the perfect opportunity to allow the ripples and tremors from the Lords […]

Andrew Worsdale Interview: John Landis Last month I was very privileged to have a phone interview with one of my favourite comedy directors of all time John Landis. Youve got to love the man who made Kentucky Fried Movie, An American Werewolf in London and The Blues Brothers. His follow-up to that car-smashing, head- banging,rhythmnblues […]

Christine Gordon With Angola’s peace process at breaking point, the government in Luanda is mobilising its army to block any further advances by opposition movement Unita. No direct fighting has been reported, but the government is preparing for war. Unofficial estimates put Unita’s military capacity at 30 000 armed troops, a militia of 60 000 […]

Shaun de Waal CD of the week I aint down here for your money, I aint down here for your love, sings Nick Cave on the first song of the new Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (DGR). Im down here for your soul. Whether playing the hellfire preacher or the devils advocate, […]

Suzy Bell On show in Durban IF there are at least two reasons for deciding not to emigrate to New Zealand, they are Durban actors Bheki Mkhwane and Ellis Pearson. But while us fickle Durbanites flocked to see the Americans (Jim Rose Circus) in their hundreds at the Playhouse Opera last week, this smaller, less […]