City of Tshwane Mayor Dr Nasiphi Moya has urged private water tanker operators to obtain municipal verification to ensure safety standards, as the Bronkhorstspruit water crisis has left 833 residents with gastrointestinal illnesses due to untreated water.

BlindSA has approached the Gauteng High Court over South Africa’s delayed accession to the Marrakesh Treaty, which facilitates the cross-border exchange of books in accessible formats. The Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities says urgent action is needed to remove barriers facing blind and visually impaired students.

M-Net is 40 today, which makes it officially an elder millennial: old enough to remember life before on-demand viewing, young enough to still be very much online about it. The channel first aired on 26 October 1986, and the milestone arrives with a delicious bit of timing. On the very day M-Net blows out 40 candles, it also premieres Hit Point, a slick new crime thriller, on DStv channel 101. Speaking in the impact of the local talent platformed on its channel, M-Net said; ask a South African of a certain age to finish the names Shaleen, Ashley, Trevor, Brümilda, Heinz or Nico and you’ll almost certainly hear “Surtie-Richards”, “Hayden”, “Noah”, “van Rensburg”, “Winckler” and “Panagio”.This inspired the team at The Citizen to take a look back at the glory days, the awkward phases and what’s still to come. The 1986 origin story M-Net began life as a press-backed experiment. A consortium of newspaper groups led by Naspers won the licence in 1985, and the rules were strict: reportedly no news, no politics and no advertising. When it first aired on 26 October 1986, it was South Africa’s first private subscription television service, and the first on the continent. South Africa's (first) pay-TV channel, @MNet , marks 40 years on the air today. pic.twitter.com/lkFhstR9Ap— TVwithThinus (@TVwithThinus) October 26, 2026 It started small, broadcasting 12 hours a day with a core team of 25 people. Its secret weapon was “Open Time”, an unscrambled slot that let non-subscribers sample the goods and, crucially, get hooked. Then there was the uninterrupted Sunday 8pm movie, always introduced by the Carte Blanche theme tune. “Seeing what has grown from a small channel broadcasting 12 hours a day with a core team of 25 employees to a powerhouse which has set the standard for pay-TV broadcasting is incredible,” says Waldimar Pelser, director: premium channels at MultiChoice, a Canal+ company. The glory days In 1988, Carte Blanche made Derek Watts and Ruda Landman two of the most feared and respected journalists in the country. In 1992, Egoli: Place of Gold became South Africa’s first daily soap. It ran until 31 March 2010 and, in December 1999, became the first local programme of any genre to reach 2 000 episodes. The 2000s were reality TV’s big bang. Big Brother South Africa arrived in 2001 and Idols South Africa followed in 2002, producing powerhouse performers (and plenty of water-cooler arguments) across 19 seasons until 2023. The channel also rebranded in 2001 with a new logo and the tagline “We Call it Magic”. Thabang Moleya directing an episode of the M-Net drama, Jacob’s Cross in Rosebank on 19 June 2007. Picture: Simphiwe Nkwali for Sunday Times via Gallo Images On the international side, the list of imports is endless: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Malcolm in the Middle, Friends, ER, Lost, True Detective and the NCIS franchise, plus a long run as home to the Taylor Sheridanverse. Former continuity presenter Ashley Hayden says it was “a remarkable time to have joined M-Net at the start of the station’s journey and to see how one pay-TV station grew into a streaming giant”. Actress Brümilda van Rensburg adds that Egoli “was part of the beginning of an incredible journey”. The awkward phases No 40-year-old gets through life without a few questionable decisions, and M-Net is no exception. It got off to a tough start and was reportedly R37 million in the red after its first year. An early news licence was also shelved in 1991 in favour of local productions. “Open Time”, the unscrambled slot that hooked a generation (and introduced some of us to shows like Angel’s Song) was withdrawn from the terrestrial feed from 1 April 2007, after a 2005 regulator ruling. A 2011 lineup change brought on the great reshuffle that saw Afrikaans and sport dropped from the satellite feed and the children’s channel K-TV shut down. Parent company MultiChoice admitted to breaching the Competition Act in 2017 and agreed to pay a R22 million penalty. SA Idols judges Gareth Cliff and Unathi Msengana and the M-Net crew assist a contestant who collapsed during her audition on 3 February 2016 at the Playhouse in Durban, South Africa. 18-year-old Nqobile Gumede from KwaMashu fainted after the judges told her that her audition was not “good enough” to get a golden ticket. Picture: Jonathan Burton for The Times via Gallo Images When M-Net confirmed in February 2023 that Idols SA would take its “final curtain call”, the reaction was mixed. Some viewers felt the show had run its course, citing winners who vanished after the finale and slipping ratings. Shrinkage continued as M-Net +1 was discontinued in 2021, and M-Net City and VUZU closed that year too. The parenting of M-Net has also changed. After Canal+ took over MultiChoice, Showmax was shut down on 30 April 2026, with Showmax Originals moving to DStv Stream and some titles to M-Net’s linear channels. Growing up and going digital M-Net did not stay in Gauteng for long. Broadcasts began in Lagos in early 1994 and reached Uganda, Namibia and Lesotho in 1995. Digital satellite service DStv launched in October 1995, kykNET followed in 1999 and the first Africa Magic channel arrived in 2003. The analogue terrestrial signal was later switched off on 31 March 2018. Today, M-Net is part of the new DStv Movies & Series package, priced at R500 for both streaming-only and decoder-based subscribers, which MultiChoice says puts the channel in front of more DStv subscribers than ever. The throw forward Hit Point is a six-part crime thriller from BAFTA-winning writer Howard Overman, the creator of Misfits. Picture: Supplied M-Net’s birthday present to itself is Hit Point, a six-part crime thriller from BAFTA-winning writer Howard Overman, the creator of Misfits. It premieres on M-Net (DStv channel 101) on Monday, 26 October at 8pm CAT and runs weekly until 30 November. The series combines the pace of a heist thriller with police drama, dark comedy and romance. It follows a detective, Bella (Saffron Hocking), and her partner Leo (Nick Blood), who are hunting for loot stolen from a French drug lord. The twist: Leo is in love with Bella, and he committed the crime they’re investigating. The cast also includes Peter Serafinowicz, Nadia Parkes, William Abadie and Brendan Coyle. Overman has described it as more of a thriller than a cop show. There’s also A conversation with Kgalema Motlanthe, a 70-minute documentary special hosted by Khaya Sithole set to air on Wednesday, 28 October at 9pm. A conversation with Kgalema Motlanthe, a 70-minute documentary special hosted by Khaya Sithole set to air on Wednesday, 28 October at 9pm. Picture: Supplied The Motlanthe special sees the former president reflect on the seven months he served as South Africa’s third democratically elected president, from 2008 to 2009, along with his journey from Alexandra to Robben Island and the Union Buildings. “Khaya Sithole is the ideal interviewer for this journey, bringing intellectual depth, curiosity and a deep understanding of South Africa’s political landscape,” says Pelser. M-Net has also teamed up with Quizzical Pictures, the production company behind Reyka and White Lies, on a new co-production series, with more details to be announced. As Pelser puts it, M-Net wants to “keep bringing the ‘Magic’ to more and more viewers”. At 40, it seems the channel is just getting started.

The Bulls are holding their breath for good news about key flyhalf Handré Pollard ahead of this weekend’s United Rugby Championship match against Scarlets in Pretoria. The experienced Springbok flyhalf hurt his hamstring in the win against Ulster at Loftus on Saturday and there are concerns his injury could keep him out of action for some time. He will undergo scans in the coming days to determine the severity of the injury. However, even if declared fit enough to play this weekend, Pollard may be withdrawn from Bulls duty if he is selected to the Springbok squad for next month’s Nations Championship matches in Europe. The Boks face Italy in Turin next weekend. They also face Ireland and France, before participating in the Finals Weekend. Curwin Bosch, who joined the Bulls earlier this season, could take back the No 10 jersey for this weekend’s match, even if Pollard is fit to play. Other injury concerns The other major injury concern in the Bulls camp is for wing Cheswill Jooste, who left the field on Saturday for a Head Injury Assessment (HIA). It was confirmed on Monday that he has in fact broken his cheekbone and undergone an operation. It will keep him sidelined for a few weeks and has probably ruled him out of touring with the Boks next month, if he was in coach Rassie Erasmus’ plans. Centre Sango Xamlashe, meanwhile, will also not be considered for selection this week after he completed HIA protocols following a concussion in Saturday’s match. His absence could see Stedman Gans return to the Bulls side. Meanwhile, utility back Canan Moodie has returned to training under the HIA return-to-play protocols, but will also not be considered for selection this week. He is likely to be part of the Bok set-up from later this week. In other injury news, scrumhalf Embrose Papier is recovering from an ankle operation and will be out for several weeks, also putting him out of Bok duty, while recent Bulls recruit, wing Thaakir Abrahams, is expected to recover from a hamstring injury within one week, but he won’t feature this weekend. After this weekend’s round of URC matches the competition will pause for the month of November, for the Nations Championship Tests up north. The Bok squad for those Tests is set to be named in the coming days.

The latest round of the URC competition came at a heavy cost as the likes of Andre Esterhuizen, Handre Pollard and Deon Fourie all suffered what looked to be serious injuries. According to the Bulls, Pollard has now undergone a scan on a hamstring complaint, and there are understandable concerns that it is an injury that could rule him out of the end-of-year tour. Meanwhile, the Sharks have also revealed that three out of the four players who picked up injuries last weekend will now return to South Africa for further assessments. Esterhuizen – who recently captained the Springboks- sustained a right ankle injury, and he is set to be ruled out of the November Tests. Phatu Ganyane suffered an injury to his right elbow, and Jurenzo Julius picked up a right hamstring injury. “All three players will undergo scans and consult with specialists on their return home to determine the severity of their injuries,” the Sharks added in a statement. Springbok players among the walking wounded In addition to the injury worry over Pollard, the Bulls released the following injury report. Canan Moodie (wing/centre): Moodie has returned to training under the Head Injury Assessment (HIA) return-to-play protocols. He will not be considered for selection this week. Cheswill Jooste (wing): Jooste has undergone an operation for a broken cheekbone. Having been concussed during the match against Ulster, he faces a mandatory two-week stand-down under HIA protocols, and extended rest has been recommended. Sango Xamlashe (centre): Xamlashe will not be considered for selection this week after he completed HIA protocols following a concussion in Saturday’s match. Embrose Papier (scrumhalf): Papier is recovering from an ankle operation and will be out for several weeks. Thaakir Abrahams (wing): Abrahams is expected to recover from a hamstring injury within one week. Stormers also assessing injured players Fourie is expected to be out of action for an extended period, and it could ultimately spell the end of his time at Springbok level, Hacjivah Dayimani will be sidelined for at least one more week due to a head knock, while André-Hugo Venter suffered an elbow injury. Stormers boss John Dobson praised his players for overcoming a series of injuries before holding on for a 52-40 victory over the Scarlets in round four of the URC competition. “That’s our game, the set-piece. And then minutes 60 to 80 is when the hurt is meant to be done, and then suddenly we had that taken away (due to injuries). “It was absolutely bizarre. That’s where I give them credit, because they weren’t getting it from the guys in the coaches’ box. “I thought actually the way we closed it, we were in ascendancy for the last 10 minutes, which was remarkable given no set-piece for a set-piece team. “The way we defended at the end there, it was probably our best period of defence.”

Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie claims South Africans would have forgotten about missing Joslin Smith if he and his party had not kept her disappearance in the headlines. The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture made the claim during a Facebook Live broadcast on Sunday evening, 25 October. According to a report, McKenzie credited himself and the PA with keeping Joslin’s case in the public eye, more than two-and-a-half years after she vanished from Saldanha Bay. His comments came days after Joslin marked her ninth birthday on Friday, 23 October. GAYTON MCKENZIE DEFENDS PA MEDIA BAN McKenzie made the remarks while defending the PA’s decision to stop granting interviews to South African media outlets. He announced the ban on Sunday, 18 October, after accusing the media of negative reporting about his party. During his latest live, McKenzie argued that the PA had played a crucial role in drawing national attention to Joslin’s disappearance. He claimed the public would have moved on from her case without his party’s involvement. The outspoken politician has faced criticism over his involvement in the investigation, but he insists he remains committed to finding the missing girl. ‘I BELIEVE JOSLIN IS STILL ALIVE’ McKenzie also dismissed suggestions that Joslin had died, insisting he still believes she is alive. “The moment I think Joslin is dead, I have to stop looking for her,” he said, translated from Afrikaans. “I believe Joslin is still alive. You may believe Joslin is dead, but I believe she is still alive.” McKenzie previously claimed to have obtained new information about Joslin’s disappearance and launched a foundation in her name earlier this year. JOSLIN SMITH STILL MISSING Joslin disappeared from her Middelpos home in Saldanha Bay on 19 February 2024. She was just six years old. Her mother, Racquel ‘Kelly’ Smith, Jacquen ‘Boeta’ Appollis and Steveno van Rhyn are serving life sentences for human trafficking. The Western Cape High Court sentenced the trio on 29 May 2025 and handed them additional 10-year sentences for kidnapping, which run concurrently. Despite the convictions, investigators have yet to find Joslin. Her disappearance continues to raise questions about what happened to her and whether she is still alive. Police have kept the investigation open.

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