The ultimate sting

A midwife-led birth at a private home birthing centre is supposed to be a safe option for women with uncomplicated pregnancies. But it seems the business of birth has become a dangerous space, and new-born babies are paying the ultimate price. Find more exclusive content on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟭9 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. In the shadows of the arena a hulking figure stands, draped in a South African flag. After saying a prayer, his face is smeared in Vaseline, and he steps into an Octagon fenced by chain-link. This is the famed Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), probably the globe’s most brutal sport, and South African Dricus ‘Stillknocks’ du Plessis one of its best exponents. It’s taken Dricus months of training to get here, but these days he’s joined at the UFC’s regular fight nights by his protégé, Cameron Saaiman. At 22, his young understudy has already put on some dominant performances in the Octagon and is being billed as the sport’s future. As he and Dricus prepare for UFC 285, Carte Blanche is invited into their secretive fight camp where their physical and mental preparation pushes them to their limits. Find more exclusive content on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

In March 2023, we investigated a Swedish businessman and self-styled philanthropist who’d made sweeping promises to an impoverished community in the Limpopo town of Alldays. We uncovered how he’d failed to keep those promises, failing the area’s children and becoming embroiled in a dispute in which the local municipality appeared reluctant to intervene. It was an outcome for which the children and their desperate carers were paying the ultimate price. But happily, things have changed as the businessman has fled the country, and the children in need were finally given access to this life-changing centre. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟲 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. In the space industry, astronauts are vaunted as the ultimate explorers of the universe, rising far above the earth. But in the depths of the remote underground caves beneath the Cradle of Humankind, Dr Marina Elliot and Dr Keneiloe Molopyane are the extraordinary "Underground Astronauts," embarking on a courageous quest to uncover and study hominid fossils that have remained undisturbed for centuries. Their mission is simple: to boldly go where few have ever dared to go. And to date, they’ve had great success. Their groundbreaking discoveries challenge conventional beliefs about our evolutionary journey and shed light on the remarkable species known as Homo naledi. Carte Blanche meets the courageous paleoanthropologists unearthing the human story long preserved in rock and bone.  Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv