From Bachelorettes to Kardashians, RuPaul to Queen Latifah: DStv Compact Plus is all about big personalities and personal stories this March
March is getting-to-know-humans month on DStv Compact, with big shows focused on big personalities, both good and evil.
From Will Smith to Eddie Murphy and Tiger Woods, Kim Jong Un to Adolf Hitler, DStv Compact Plus documentaries get personal this March. And they explore our journey from Neanderthal days to the colonisation of Mars and beyond.
Reality fans have plenty to look forward to this March with the return of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, The Bachelorette and Temptation Island.
The women are bringing the action to DStv Compact Plus series this March with Queen Latifah in The Equaliser, Serinda Swan in the new season of Coroner, and Victorian detective Miss Scarlet walking the streets.
The brand-new Korean entertainment pop-up channel tVN (DStv channel 134) launches on Monday, 1 March, and with two reality series focused on K-Pop bands, you can see why everyone on the socials is going gaga for BTS.
kykNET (DStv channel 144) has six new movies full of personality for you to enjoy. And it’s time to get glammed up for the awards season because kykNET is presenting the Fiëstas, and Trevor Noah is hosting the Grammys.
There’s plenty for the kids, too, with new shows like Elliott From Earth to the return of Spider-Man, the Spyders and Coop & Cami.
Sneak peeks
New pop-up channel tVN
Awards season
March brings us the start of the real 2020-2021 awards season madness, with most of the ceremonies getting inventive to work around social distancing and travel lockdowns. You can keep up to date with all the lists of nominees and winners so far on DStv’s special awards season page.
kykNET (DStv channel 144) will honour South Africa’s creative work during the trying 2020 art season at the 11th kykNET Fiëstas on Sunday, 7 March, on kykNET at 20:00. This year’s ceremony will be held as a televised event and nominees and artists like Corlea Botha, Lynelle Kenned, Devonecia Swartz and Elandré will be bringing viewers some stylish entertainment.
Watch music’s biggest awards event, the 2021 Grammy Awards, hosted by South African funnyman Trevor Noah, on Monday, 15 March, on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 20:30. Or wake up early to catch the broadcast live from the US at 03:00 and catch all the red-carpet action with E! (DStv channel 124) just after midnight, at 00:00 on Monday morning.
Watch The Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards 2021 on Wednesday, 17 March, on Nickelodeon (DStv channel 305) at 16:50. The host is Saturday Night Live superstar and comedian Kenan Thompson, and viewers will be taken on a hi-tech journey from Bikini Bottom to outer space and celebrities’ homes.
The brand-new Korean entertainment pop-up channel, tVN (DStv channel 134), launches on Monday, 1 March, with a host of dramas, comedies, action shows, supernatural fantasy series, along with two K-Pop reality series that will make you a K-stan if you haven’t already been swept up in the global phenomenon yet. The channel will be available for four months and all series will show from start to end, some dubbed into English in the US, and others with English subtitles. Check out what’s to come:
Watch from Monday, 1 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 21:15
Cheese In The Trap S1
Watch Mondays-Fridays from Monday, 1 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 20:00
Another Miss Oh S1
Watch Mondays-Wednesdays from Monday, 1 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 18:45
Signal S1
Watch Mondays-Fridays from Monday, 1 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 22:30
Tale of The Nine-Tailed S1
Watch Mondays-Fridays from Tuesday, 16 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 21:15
Revolutionary Love S1
Watch Mondays-Fridays from Tuesday, 16 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 20:00
Watcher S1
Watch Mondays-Fridays from Thursday, 18 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 22:30
I-Land
Watch from Thursday, 4 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 18:30
NCT World 2.0
Watch from Friday, 5 March on tVN (DStv channel 134) at 18:45
Super series
Queen Latifah brings some spy action magic to the brand-new series, The Equaliser, Serinda Swan returns in a new season of Coroner, and there’s a new cop on the block in Victorian London in Miss Scarlet and The Duke. All this, and a new season of Snowfall, too! This March on DStv Compact Plus.
The Equaliser S1
In this reboot of the series of the same name from the mid-’80s, retired intelligence agent Robyn McCall (Queen Latifah) has a lifetime of special skills and underworld contacts at her fingertips. Leaving her shadowy spy past behind, she hopes to use these skills to help people who need to get out of tricky situations, find lost loved ones or want a guardian angel. After the success of her first case, Robyn posts an online message offering help to anyone who has the odds against them. Watch from Tuesday, 9 March, on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 20:30
The season starts in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic with Jenny and her colleagues at the coroner’s office, including new pathologist Melanie (Uni Park), thoroughly overwhelmed by the flood of bodies – not all of whom were victims of the virus. In her personal life, Jenny, who’s now single again, will embrace some unusual therapies as she gets to grips with her past trauma. And Detective Donovan will have to come to terms with his own looming health crisis. Watch from Monday, 8 March, on Universal (DStv channel 117) at 20:00
This fun period drama follows Eliza Scarlet (Kate Phillips) as she takes over her late father’s detective agency, refusing to marry to escape her now dire financial situation. But since she’s living in Victorian England, she isn’t allowed to own and operate a business without a male business partner – enter her reluctant childhood best friend, William “The Duke” Wellington (Stuart Martin), who’s also her father’s former protégé. Now, how long will it take these detectives to spot William’s crush on Eliza? Watch from Monday, 8 March, on BBC Brit (DStv channel 120) at 20:00
The battles for control of the crack cocaine market are heating up in South Central as Franklin tries to put a halt to all-out gang war while he wrestles with his conscience. Local reporter Irene Abe tries to figure out what’s happened to her previously poor, but relatively peaceful, neighbourhood. And Gustavo and Teddy have practical matters to address, like how to keep drugs flowing smoothly to their customers despite the chaos around them, tensions back in Mexico, and the attention of the drug cops. Watch from Tuesday, 16 March, on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 21:30
March brings back favourites like RuPaul’s Drag Race UK S2, and the Kardashians for a final season of KUWTK. And if you’re looking for a little saucy romantic fun, there are brand-new seasons of The Bachelorette and Temptation Island too. If you prefer your reality grittier, the series, Released, offers a compassionate look at what it takes to get back into society after spending time behind bars.
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK S2
The brand-new 8-episode season of this drag competition brings Michelle Visage and RuPaul back to the UK, where they and judges Graham Norton and Alan Carr (along with special guest judges like Liz Hurley and Dawn French) will meet some astoundingly talented and funny drag queens as they take on weekly design, comedy, singing, dancing, acting and makeover challenges. A word of warning: This season is merciless and some queens who you might pick as winners are going to be early outs for dubious reasons.
Watch from Tuesday, 23 March on BBC Brit (DStv channel 120) at 21:00
As the Kardashians return for their final season, Kim and Kayne are talking divorce, while Khloe and Tristan Thompson discuss the possibility of baby #2. Kim and Kylie discuss catching Kourtney having a nap on the sofa with her ex, Scott Disick, and the possibility of a reconciliation. The family also deal with the news that this will be their final season together and reflect on their years on the series. It looks like the only Kardashian-Jenner who’s opting out this season is Caitlyn.
Watch from Sunday, 21 March on E! (DStv channel 124) at 19:05
4 couples at a turning point in their relationships are put to the ultimate test as they are separated from each other and placed in a house with a bunch of singletons who test their faithfulness. For a whole month, their only contact with their partner will be via a short video clip that they see at the end of the week. And in the meantime, those sexy strangers will be going all-out to make them stray. Host Mark L Walberg is promising “shocking, messy stuff” this season.
Watch from Thursday, 11 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 20:30
In this unusual split season filmed in 2020 during the pandemic, there are 2 Bachelorettes in play. The season starts with Clare Crawley, runner up of S18 of The Bachelor, but when she believes that she has found her true love by only episode 4, she asks that they be allowed to leave the show together. Tayshia Adams, runner up of The Bachelor S23, then steps in and continues the journey, with 4 extra men brought onboard to join her suitors.
Watch weekdays from Friday, 12 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 18:00
A new generation of survivalists is headed for the Alaskan wilderness and they’re willing to exchange modern conveniences and comforts for living at nature’s pace, and by their own rules. Michael Manzo has adopted a nomadic lifestyle. Alex Javor comes from the temperate climate of Virginia to build his dream cabin up North. The Rowlands family are hoping to teach their children survival skills. And new couple Brent and Ida are working flat out on their business while exploring life together.
Watch from Monday, 1 March on National Geographic (DStv channel 181) at 19:00
This documentary reality series from the OWN Network follows 6 men and women who’ve just completed prison sentences of up to 26 years, during their first 90 days back on the outside. See how they reconnect with loved ones, mourn their losses, try to repair their personal lives, and set about finding stable work. For some, it’s the first time out. For others who’ve been behind bars as many as 6 times, it’s a lot harder to re-establish trust with the families who’ve had to shoulder their responsibilities.
Watch from Thursday, 25 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 21:30
Rick and Marty Lagina continue their excavation in the swamp where they claim to have found evidence of an 18th-century sailing ship. And while they search for the ship itself, they’ll also continue their Oak Island money pit dig. Additional funding has allowed the Laginas to buy up more of Oak Island, along with land on a neighbouring island, and this season they uncover a stone road or slipway buried by the swamp and make some connections to our old buddies the Templars again.
Watch from Friday, 26 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 20:15
Settle for some hot dish, whether you prefer it in the living room or the kitchen, with Nigella and Graham Norton this March.
Nigella: Cook, Eat Repeat
Nigella Lawson returns to BBC Lifestyle with a new six-episode series featuring her calm and sensual enjoyment of cooking. She’ll be using simple techniques to raise familiar ingredients to a different plane. Prepare to hum along with Nigella as she makes and enjoys chocolate peanut butter cake, rich and luxurious crab macaroni and cheese, and a fear-free fish stew. It’s all presented as a feast for the eye. Along the way, Nigella will explain the inspiration for her recipes, from her collection of vintage cookbooks to social media.
Watch from Monday, 15 March, on BBC Lifestyle (DStv channel 174) at 20:00
Host Graham Norton will be getting the hilarious truth out of his guests both in-studio and remotely, this season. The first episode includes the likes of Dolly Parton, Rupert Everett and Riz Ahmed. We can also expect Ewan McGregor to tell all about his new travelogue, Long Way Up. Singer Miley Cyrus performs Midnight Sky, Samuel L. Jackson discusses his documentary, Enslaved, and Dame Kristin Scott Thomas tells us all about her new Netflix adaptation of Rebecca and more.
Watch from Tuesday, 2 March, on BBC Brit (DStv channel 120) at 20:00
DStv Compact Plus is the place to be if you want to go inside people’s minds this March. They’re all in the spotlight, from the entertainers like Tiger Woods, Will Smith, Eddie Murphy and Brody Stevens, to the dictators like Kim Jong Un and Adolf Hitler. An Anne Frank documentary looks at the life of the young Jewish girl who Hitler’s policies destroyed while Escaping The Holocaust: Syndrome K reveals the daring plot of three doctors to help their Jewish patients escape the Nazis. And from the Neanderthals to life after the apocalypse, to life on the Moon and Mars, DStv Compact Plus’s documentaries reach for the stars this month…
Tiger S1
This 2-part documentary follows the rise and fall, and rise again, of golfer Tiger Woods. From toddlerhood to disgrace, to reclaiming his throne with a win at the 2019 Masters tournament, it’ll explore the roles that both his parents played in the making of a champion, both mentally and physically. It’ll also look at Tiger’s self-destructive impulses, substance abuse and infidelities. While Tiger didn’t contribute to the documentary himself, many key figures in his life have given their insights including his biographers, Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian.
Watch from Thursday, 11 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 21:30
Eddie Murphy has been 1 of the kings of comedy since the 1980s. Whether he’s a Beverly Hills cop, an African prince who’s Coming To America, a Nutty Professor or a Donkey in Shrek, his comic timing, delivery and charm have had audiences rolling. He’s also shown his dramatic chops in films like Dreamgirls. But he hasn’t been laughing all the way. Find out what Eddie has overcome and how he saved the legendary sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live in the early ’80s.
Watch on Tuesday, 9 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 21:30
This isn’t a rags-to-riches story. Will Smith’s journey to superstardom is about recognising your goals and reaching for them step by step. Will’s father agreed to bankroll him for a year and by 1985, Will was the MC of the Grammy Award-winning hip-hop duo, DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince. Using that success, his next step was the hit 1990-96 TV sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and from there, it was a short hop to the bigscreen, and becoming a producer.
Watch on Tuesday, 2 March on 1Magic (DStv channel 103) at 21:30
This documentary-style series explores the experiences, observations and hang-ups of stand-up comedian Brody Stevens, who’s living with obsessive compulsive and bipolar disorders. He’ll talk about how he came to tell jokes for money using a combination of live stand-up material, documentary footage and animation. The series deals with Brody’s hospitalisation following a psychological breakdown, and his recovery with the support of fellow comedians like Zach Galifianakis and Sarah Silverman. Brody died in February 2019 after years of battling mental illness.
Watch from Saturday, 6 March on Comedy Central (DStv channel 122) at 22:30
Experts, journalists, government officials and even an assassin explore North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s leadership decisions over the past 3 years, including his meeting with US ex-President Donald Trump, the country’s history of isolationism, and the rise of Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jung, and her use of fear and violence to maintain order. Among the rare and exclusive interviews in the documentary, for the first time ever João Micaelo, Kim’s former childhood classmate, speaks about visiting Kim in North Korea.
Watch on Tuesday, 2 March on National Geographic (DStv channel 181) at 21:00
This film about German-Jewish diarist Anne Frank and her family’s life in hiding from the Nazis during WWII won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 1996. Voiced by Glenn Close and Kenneth Branagh, it features previously unseen archive material and includes interviews with those who knew the Franks, including Miep Gies, who risked death to help shelter the family. The documentary also features an archive interview of Otto Frank talking about his daughters, who died in a concentration camp after those in hiding were betrayed.
Watch on Sunday, 21 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 20:15
This 4-episode documentary series delves into the rumours and theories surrounding Hitler’s sexual predilections. While the Nazi leader’s public image was 1 of relative celibacy, the truth might have included everything from incest to stalking women, masochism and murder. Episodes focus on the body image he projected as opposed to the true medical state of his body, his abusive childhood and inappropriate love for his niece, Geli, the suspicious deaths of the women he pursued, and disputed evidence of a depraved secret sex life.
Watch from Sunday, 28 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 20:15
3 courageous Roman Catholic doctors at Fatebenefratelli Hospital in Italy saved Jews during WWII by convincing Nazis soldiers that those they were treating at the hospital (who had fled there from the Jewish ghetto in Rome) had been infected with a deadly and contagious new disease known as Syndrome K. They secretly advised all the patients on how to fake symptoms while the Nazi officers were barred from entering the ward. This film includes interviews with Dr. Ossicini, along with Syndrome K survivors.
Watch on Sunday, 28 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 21:10
Homo sapiens worldwide carry up to 4% Neanderthal DNA, traces of a species that disappeared 39,000 years ago. This documentary special will delve into what happened when Neanderthals encountered modern humans, and what led to the extinction of the Neanderthals using graphics, action sequences, and experiments that illustrate the difference between the 2 hominid species. The journey of discovery will take us around the world, from Greenland to the caves of Romania, from the last home of the Neanderthals in Gibraltar and the volcanic areas of Italy.
Watch on Tuesday, 2 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 20:15
Over the course of 4 episodes, each focussed on 1 key aspect of society, this documentary series will combine research into past precedents, modern data – including hundreds of hours of archival footage and modern 4k images filmed across the 5 continents – and interviews with 19 leading academics to piece together what the future of mankind could look like. Find out what trends in work, democracy, globalisation and climate suggest for our lives – especially how technological change could be impacting workers.
Watch on Friday, 12 March on History (DStv channel 186) at 19:25
This 2-part documentary looks at the Mars One project’s plans to land the first humans on Mars in 2027. It will offer both scientific and social perspectives on the possibility of colonising Mars while answering topics like why humanity should go to Mars at all, how to decide who should go to Mars, how they’ll get there, how they’ll survive on the distant planet, and why Mars One is planning a permanent settlement, with crews departing for the planet every 26 months.
Watch on Monday, 1 & 8 March on Curiosity Channel (DStv channel 185) at 21:00
Explore the role that the moon could play in man’s next attempts to explore space. While producing rocket fuel and fuelling rockets and ships on the moon itself would be significantly more efficient than launching rockets from Earth, the next space race could also see the Earth’s developed nations exploiting the Moon for resources to send back to Earth. Scientists like Dr. Paul Spudis of the Lunar and Planetary Institute discuss the advantages that the moon offers for mankind’s next step.
Watch on Monday, 15 March on Curiosity Channel (DStv channel 185) at 21:00
There’s something special for boys and girls of all ages this March. Coop & Cami and the Spyders are back with online madness for the tweens. Spider-Man unites with The Avengers and Guardians of The Galaxy for an amazing crossover season. And the new series, Elliott From Earth, whisks kids into space for intergalactic adventures. Plus, the Siyaya kids are back with some educational wildlife fun.
If you love local, kykNET (DStv 144) has plenty of movie treats in store this March with everything from comedy to moving dramas like Fiela Se Kind and Voor Ek Vergeet.
Sousie
Gershwin's life is a mess. He has no idea when it all started to fall apart, but perhaps he can pinpoint that instant and start to fix things with his ability to go back in time. With Dean Smith, Eldon van der Merwe and Megan Saayman.
Watch on Monday, 1 March on kykNET (DStv channel 144) at 16:30
Tatiana is a hush-hush, super discrete private detective, and Frik van Zyl is prepared to pay for her silence in exchange for helping him to deal with the woman who’s blackmailing him over doing certain things for him that his wife won’t do.
Watch on Friday, 5 March on kykNET (DStv channel 144) at 21:00
In this Dalene Matthee tale set in 1865, Fiela (Zenobia Kloppers) raises a 3-year-old boy who she found lost on her doorstep as if he is her own. Officials try to return him to his supposed family, but he and Fiela spend the next decade fighting to reunite.
Watch on Saturday, 6 March on kykNET (DStv channel 144) at 20:00
Andries boasts he can befriend anyone, but can he really? Alomtjom is a story about friendship in a time of loneliness and about what it takes to be a true friend to others and yourself, beyond a handshake and hello. With Luan Jacobs.
Watch on Friday, 19 March on kykNET (DStv channel 144) at 20:00
Afrokaans Film & Television (Survivor SA) is producing the 12-episode Showmax Original, which is expected to premiere in the first half of 2021. Add Showmax to your DStv bill to stream it first.
Sign up for DStv – it’s an online streaming service for all DStv subscribers. Watch the channels you watch on your decoder at home, on the Internet! Go to now.dstv.com on your laptop and Catch Up on the episodes you missed.
