Is this the golden age for African reality TV?

DISCLAIMER: This episode originally aired on 23 June 2022.

There’s been a noticeable change in the images of Africa we are now seeing on our screens.

These pictures are so different from the ones the media has often shown of the continent.

Gone are the children looking desolate and hungry with extended bellies, surrounded by flies, now it’s the images of rich, beautiful and increasingly famous people, living their best lives for the world to see.

This is the new opulent and glitzy reality world of African celebrities who are unapologetic about their wealth and riches.

It’s a world of reality TV shows where we are given a front seat to the fights and dramas from the private lives of African stars, just as we’ve seen over the years with American reality programmes.

Reality shows in Africa aren’t anything new. The Big Brother franchise, one of the first reality TV programmes in the world, has been on-going on the continent for decades.

So with shows like The Real Housewives of Lagos, Durban, Cape Town and the recent Netflix hit, Young, Famous and African, showing the opulent lives of rich Africans, is this the golden age of glitzy and glamourous African reality shows?

Host: Alan Kasujja

Guests: Peace Hyde, Young, Famous and African co-creator and Tosin Ajibade, founder of media house Olori Super Gal