After many years of resistance by the South African government and on 5 January 1976, the South African television service (SAUK/SABC) officially opened with an Afrikaans broadcast and regular programming finally began. South Africans had a glimpse of what it was that they had been missing out on, and of what they could expect in the years to come.
It wasn’t long after that that we had the Soweto uprising in 16 June 1976 – looks like the old Nationalist Party guys were right in their assumption that television would accelerate their demise?
Dorianne Berry and Heinrich Marnitz welcome viewers to the “opening night” of TV in the country.