Peter Makurube Kora awards The All Africa Kora Music Awards have come and gone with as much fanfare as a meeting of tannies sharing koeksisters and a bit of gesels en skinner. Hell, this is supposed to be the best thing on the continent. Expectations are high among the citizens of Africa and each time […]

John Crace First Person Madonna, Michael Jackson and Lenny Henry did it last month. Caroline Quentin, Jennifer Saunders, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sean Bean, Gary Oldman, Sharon Stone and Rik Mayall did it earlier in the year. And come November, Jamie Lee Curtis will be doing it, too. Not so long ago, 40 was old. It was […]

unionists Union investment has achieved success beyond Cosatu’s expectations, writes Ferial Haffajee Faced with the growth of a generation of trade union millionaires, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has moved to rein in its investment companies. Last week Cosatu called the heads of investment companies and union leaders to its Johannesburg head […]

brothel Michael Finch Commonwealth Games Noise curfews, group photo- graphs, airport delays, buses and goodie bags that offer toiletry sets, shower shoes and, wait for it, a doorstop. Glitz and glamour? More like a stint in the army! That’s what awaited the likes of Chester Williams and Shaun Pollock when they arrived in Kuala Lumpur […]

Chris Roper On show in Cape Town Their name makes me think of some kind of League of Super Heroes, and I picture them in tights and colourful costumes, ta-dahing off into the lurid sunset in pursuit of their evil nemesis, Bad Taste Man. A ridiculous fantasy, brought on by the early hour at which […]

Christian Figenschou Old cars are generally more of an emotional investment than a financial one, but the rand’s recent slide has widened the scope for speculation in classic cars as commodities. Sought-after collector’s cars have always lagged in value in South Africa compared to overseas markets, and the crumbling of the rand has opened up […]

She’s the queen of country music, a Dollywood legend, America’s Princess Di. People warm to her sentimental ballads and silicon looks, but something is missing … William Leith reports To me, an Englishman, Dolly Parton was always a small, mysterious figure on the edge of my consciousness. She was a wig, a quavering voice with […]

Who are . . . the Congolese Rebels? Ann Eveleth When Congolese rebel commander Jean- Pierre Ondekane vowed this week to “intensify” the rebellion against embattled Democratic Republic of Congo President Laurent Kabila, he spoke with a confidence his opponent has never enjoyed. Unlike Kabila, whose 1997 Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of […]

Emma Durden Dance in Durban The Kwa-Suka Theatre, usually home to Durban’s experimental drama offerings, is currently awash with rich swirls of tangerine, pimento olive and deep wine. Camino Flamenco is an exuberant hour and a half of traditional Spanish dance put together by Linda Vargas of the Spanish Dance Company and her husband, the […]

Sechaba ka’Nkosi The council of the Vaal Triangle Technikon was scrambling this week to stave off threats by Minister of Education Sibusiso Bengu to suspend its state grants and disband the council. Bengu sent a memo to the technikon last Friday, advising the council of his readiness to take such action if it does not […]