Monday, June 18, 2007

Bayete Nkosi!

I just realised that the excellent South African TV series depicting King Shaka's life is available in the USA on DVD (Netflix have it).

This was produced in the mid-80's when I was a young teen, and made a huge impression on me. It was a huge hit in South Africa, and the theme tune found its way into many people heads, so that you'd find walking around singing "Bum-bum-bum BA-bum BA-bum BA-bum... Bayete Nkosi!"

There was an urban legend that the actor that played Shaka, Henry Cele, was a garbage collector prior to being discovered, but I see from the Wiki entry that's not true (he was a goalie for several pro soccer clubs)

Some advice: The "sequel" (Shaka Zulu: The Last Great Warrior) is really bad. But then you probably knew that already since is starts The Hoff.

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