TELEVISION
Celebrities to kick off new series of ‘Come Dine With Me SA’
Sitting down to other people’s dinner dos without physically having to suffer awkward silences, dodgy dishes or unhinged hosts makes for surprisingly gripping entertainment.
Come Dine With Me South Africa, once again narrated by the acerbic but endearing Dave Lamb, is back with a bang.
Season five of the hit reality show premieres on BBC Brit on Monday. This time two of the 13 episodes were filmed in Port Elizabeth, though screening dates for these have not yet been finalised.
The friendly city, it seems, delivers just the right mix of mad, memorable dinner guests (who can forget Trish Difford’s body shots and biker antics) who have made the show so appealing around the globe.
The series kicks off with a celebrity episode in which actress and presenter Candice Modiselle, Real Housewives of Johannesburg star Christall Kay, designer to the stars Gert-Johan Coetzee and drive-time radio DJ Lucky du Plessis will cook for each other in the hopes of snagging the R10,000 prize – only this time the winner will donate it to a charity of his or her choice.
Media guests including yours truly were treated to a preview screening of the celebrity episode in Johannesburg last Thursday, but were sworn to secrecy on the outcome until it airs.
The four celebs were there in person and joined us as we watched them squirming under the stress and ripping into one other’s cooking skills and presentation.
Guests at the screening also got a taste of the dishes the four had made on their respective hosting nights.
Following the screening, Modiselle confessed she was a complete novice at hosting dinner parties and so had roped in a friend, who happens to be a chef, to help her prepare ahead of the show.
“This is the craziest, most daunting thing I’ve ever done,” she laughed, adding she’d even learnt how to pronounce bruschetta correctly!
Kay said her most stressful moment involved getting the timing right for her risotto main course. “The more I was stirring the less it seemed like it was cooking,” she lamented.
“But that’s French cooking for you.” (Risotto is Italian).
Coetzee, a mentor on Project Runway SA, said being a couture designer meant he was “extremely specific about details” and this came in handy when hosting dinners.
“Let me give you a tip: Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. I rehearsed my dinner three times before I did it [for the show].”
Coetzee said he regretted having been over-critical of Du Plessis’ dishes while the DJ admitted he felt bad about how he had critiqued Kay’s dishes.“It was hard watching it,” Du Plessis said.
“You don’t realise how spicy you’re being until you see it afterwards.”
The series was again made for BBC Studios by production company Rapid Blue, whose team also filmed in Jozi, Cape Town and Durban.
“We always find crazy, wonderful, fun and amazing people for the show,” Rapid Blue CEO Duncan Irvine said. Come Dine With Me SA starts at 8pm on Monday on BBC Brit, channel 120.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
This article is reserved for HeraldLIVE subscribers.
A subscription gives you full digital access to all our content.
Already subscribed? Simply sign in below.
Already registered on DispatchLIVE, BusinessLIVE, TimesLIVE or SowetanLIVE? Sign in with the same details.
Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@heraldlive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00.