The year was 1992, a show focusing on beauty, fashion, food, home decor, travel and weddings aired for the first time on South African television. Featuring the rich and famous, this show captured the minds and hearts of all its viewers. Friendly, beautiful looking people who easily walked into any home hosted it and although the lifestyle it celebrated was lavish, rich and often out of this world, the ordinary South African lived vicariously through the cameras and presenters of Top Billing.
Decades later, home improvements featuring expensive fittings, materials, furniture and renovations are now no longer exclusively for the higher echelon of society, in fact, you will find designer looking homes with interiors than make you think you’re still watching Top Billing in many hoods across Cape Town – often where you least expect it.
Heart Breakfast has endeavoured to celebrate those homes and its owners by way of a web series, called Middle Billing. Hosted by the glamorous and gorgeous, Julian Cranford (Naidoo), produced by the witty and irreverent, Aden Thomas and the official voice of the show is none other than the former Top Billing voice over artist, Tapfuma Makina.
Each week the team visits a new location, meeting the owners and to see how they’ve transformed their living spaces and captured it for the world to see. If you’d like to invite us to your home and show the world how you’ve transformed your home. Mail us and include pics to heartbreakfast@heartfm.co.za.
If you’ve missed an episode, you can catch up and watch below.
Middle Billing – Episode 1 | Belhar – Meagan Stellenboom
Here’s our first episode of Middle Billing, where we celebrate the BEST of the hood life!
Meet tonight’s home-owner, Meagan Stellenboom, an inspiring woman in construction who’s made her home in Belhar a beautiful sanctuary!
Middle Billing – Episode 2 | Tafelsig – Shawn Saunders
Welcome to the second episode of Middle Billing, this is where we celebrate the best of the hood life. We celebrate those homeowners who have created and transformed their living spaces into sanctuaries.
Meet tonight’s homeowner, Shawn Saunders, born in Kensington, raised and schooled in Tafelsig. Shawn has a heart for serving his community and his mission is to show the youth that you can live a better life, beyond your circumstances. He is the managing director of a successful debt mediation company based in town centre and after hours, besides for enjoying his beautiful home with friends and family, runs a non-profit organisation called PRO-JX (pr. PRO-JEX) a youth development initiative.
Middle Billing – Episode 3 | London Village – The Samaai Family
Welcome to the third episode of Middle Billing, this is where we celebrate the best of the hood life. We celebrate those homeowners who have created and transformed their living spaces into sanctuaries.
Last week we visited the Table View of Mitchell’s Plain, Tafelsig. This week we find ourselves in London Village, not the one in the UK, but the one in Mitchell’s Plain. Meet tonight’s homeowners, Muneer and Fierhana Samaai.
