Top 10 Most Popular African TV Shows

The Most Popular African TV Shows

Feeling bored? Here are ten of the most popular African TV Shows to keep you entertained. Look them up and join the conversation.

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Most Popular African TV Shows 

The Wild – South Africa

The Wild – South Africa

The Wild is one of Africa’s TV shows that gives viewers a double offering of drama and the beautiful scenery of the African wild. The Lebones, the van Reenens, and the Tladis families struggle to get along but they cannot go their separate ways because they all have an attachment to a special piece of land.

On this piece of land sits a popular five-star lodge with mouth-watering cuisine, expensive champagne, game drives, and the ultimate relaxation sessions. The staff and the guests that visit from time keep viewers glued to their TVs in anticipation of the drama that accompanies them.

Isidingo - South Africa

Isidingo - South Africa

Isidingo is another of Africa’s TV shows by Gray Hofmeyr. It is a spinoff of another soap opera created by Hofmeyr, The Village broadcasted during the apartheid period.

The cameras of the Isidingo show zoom in on the lives of the wealthy Haines family and the Matabanes, and the inhabitants of the mining town Horizon Deep.

Barker Haines, a millionaire, likes to intrude on the lives of the mining town’s inhabitants. Leone, despite being his daughter or maybe because she is his daughter, is one of the inhabitants most affected by his schemes.

The Rhythm City – South Africa

The Rhythm City – South Africa

South Africa seems to the home of Africa’s many TV shows. The Rhythm City is a South African TV Series. Premiered in July 2007, Rhythm City continues to entertain and hold Ghanaian and South African teens in its suspenseful grip.

Rhythm City shows the pain and struggle that comes along with trying to enter the music industry. Viewers also get insight into the dark side of the music industry.

The drama portrays the addictions, infidelity, heartbreaks, and backstabbing that those who have been successful in the music industry receive and dish out to others. Though not the first drama of its kind, with each episode the ratings of Rhythm City continue to climb.

Scandal! – South Africa

Scandal! – South Africa

Scandal! A South African soap opera draws viewers from all over the world. Viewers are entranced by the storyline which focuses on characters connected by The Voice Newspaper.

The characters of Scandal! are all fighting to achieve their goals at any cost. Some are charming their way to the top while others scheme to knock their competitors out of the way.

Shuga – Kenya

Shuga – Kenya

The Shuga TV series, first aired in Kenya, came about for noble reasons. MTV Africa, along with the government of Kenya and several other bodies, commissioned the series to educate the masses about safe sex and tolerance.

It became wildly popular, forty African countries and over seventy international TV stations aired the series. In 2013, producers moved the show to Nigeria and it informs youths on HIV, safe sex, and teenage pregnancy.

Season three had over 550 million viewers worldwide. I hope this means that at least half of these people are now practicing safe sex.

INkaba – South Africa Generations – South Africa

INkaba – South Africa Generations – South Africa

Produced by Urban Brew Studios, INkaba is one of Africa’s most popular English TV shows. INkaba captures South African viewers by weaving a tale of rivalries between families and fashion houses spanning several generations.

Set in Johannesburg, the interaction between the rich and poor provides relatable but entertaining scenes.

Persons on both divides work to fulfill their dreams and in the process provide drama, suspense, romance, and everything else that comes with a good show.

53 Extra – Several African Countries

53 Extra – Several African Countries

53 Extra is not like the other TV shows mentioned above. The hosts of 52 Extra travel across Africa bringing new and interesting developments in food, fashion, film, and lifestyle. From time to time, celebrities join the hosts to make the episodes even more interesting.

Mashariki Mix – East Africa

Mashariki Mix – East Africa

If you want to learn about the culture of East Africa then Mashariki Mix is one of the best TV shows for you. Mashariki Mix features famous East African personalities, musicians, models and business moguls.

Hosted by, heartthrob Nick Mutuma, the show also allows viewers to live vicariously through the host. Nick goes from trampling in swamps one episode to sampling delectable looking dishes from famous chefs in another episode.

Tinsel – Nigeria

Tinsel – Nigeria

Produced by M-Net, Tinsel is without a doubt one of the most successful TV shows in Nigeria. Suspense-filled drama, passion, and red hot romance are the defining attributes of this soap opera.

To ensure that viewers keep on coming back episode after episode, producers employ some of the most talented actresses and actors in Africa. The show has long passed its 2000th episode.

Big Brother Africa – South Africa

Big Brother Africa – South Africa

Big Brother Africa just happens to be the African version of the Big Brother TV Show. Created by John De Mol, Big Brother Africa is the most popular TV show in Africa. A country sends one man to represent them.

The men then have to live together in an isolated house monitored by cameras and microphones. Viewers of the show can vote for the one they want to remain in the competition. The man that lasts the longest wins thousands of dollars in cash and prizes.

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