Who’s who on 2022 SAFTA nominee Suidooster

Currently in its eighth season, Suidooster is the soap-opera gift that keeps on giving, with all seven previous seasons ready to binge-watch on Showmax, where new episodes of Season 8 also arrive express from the kykNET broadcast from Monday to Thursday.

In 2022, Suidooster has bagged not just one but 10 SAFTA (South African Film & Television Awards) nominations!

“Being nominated for awards is an honour and a privilege for everyone at Suidooster,” says co-producer of Suidooster Films, Bradley Joshua.

“For us as a production, it is first and foremost important that Ruiterbosch (the fictional suburb where Suidooster takes place) is a home for all our viewers, and that they can call the characters and stories their own. We realised from day one that soap operas are an entertainment genre that become an active part of viewers’ everyday reality. That’s why, for almost seven years, Suidooster has been trying to tell credible stories that are not only an example of diversity, but that especially also promote tolerance.”

Veteran actors such as the legendary Denise Newman (Bridgette Jacobs), Cedwyn Joel (AB Samsodien) and Jill Levenberg (Mymoena Samsodien) all received nominations for Best Actress and Actor in a TV Soap and Richard September (Bennie) for Best Supporting Actor in a TV Soap.

“With any nomination, like with the SAFTA awards, it’s great to get such recognition from the industry, says actress Denise. “Thanks to my fellow actors, who are part of this magic we create. This is especially a team effort from everyone in my Suidooster family. kykNET (DStv Channel 144) also deserves a lot of recognition for allowing us to tell a true Cape story.”

Cedwyn says he appreciates the recognition for the hard work, because the reward is the cherry on the cake. “Thanks to the role of AB, I, the other Suidooster actors, and the rest of our team, get the chance to tell unique stories, which broaden viewers’ frame of reference and horizons.”

“It is a great honour and privilege for me to be nominated for this SAFTA award,” says Richard “Thanks to the wonderful Suidooster team, who make the role of Bennie an absolute pleasure.”

Suidooster is also nominated for Best TV Soap and even though the competition they are up against is fierce, Suidooster might just have the chance to win this category. Want to know why? Go check out Seasons 1-8, currently streaming on Showmax. Here is a guide to who’s who in the cast.

Sharleen (Mrs J) Jacobs: played by Theresa Sedras

Sharleen Jacobs – or Mrs J as everyone calls her – is the matriarch of this big family. She’s also the one who looks out for the kids, and there’s nothing she won’t do for her children, blood or not. She’s the mother of Bridgette and Lee-Ann Jacobs, who own the big, successful property development company in Ruiterbosch. Her late husband, Henry, was a great spirit in the community. Years before, he built the Suidooster Centre around which all the action now happens.

Mrs J often has to broker the peace between her two children. She’s a kind, Christian woman who’s involved in the church and bakes the best milk tart in Ruiterbosch.

Bridgette Jacobs: played by Denise Newman

Mrs J’s oldest, most difficult daughter. We originally met her as Ian October’s social butterfly wife who enjoyed nothing more than having lunch with her artsy friends. But when the scales fell from her eyes and she realised her husband was untrustworthy, she changed her life.  

She is CEO of Jacobs Property Development and will do anything for her company and her family. She’s an emotional person who reacts to problems impulsively and finds courage at the bottom of a glass (or bottle) of wine. She hasn’t always gotten on with her sister, Lee-Ann, but since Lee-Ann’s return, they’ve learned to navigate their differences better.

Lee-Ann Jacobs: played by Portia Joel

Mrs J’s long-lost daughter who after years in hiding eventually appeared in Ruiterbosch to make amends for her past. She was blamed for her father’s death because she was involved in the drug business and he had to come to her rescue, but now that is water under the bridge, she has to integrate herself into the community once again.

Until recently she was the councillor for Ruiterbosch but now she’s working with her sister at the former Suidooster Properties, now known as Jacobs Property Developers. She’s a moralist for whom there is only one path, and that’s the path of righteousness. She is married to Ty the mechanic.

Zoe October: played by Lauren Joseph

The princess of Ruiterbosch, a status she attained when she rocked up at her Uncle Ian and Aunt Bridgette’s and became their adopted daughter. She was a fitness instructor, but she quickly got a job at JPD. She initially turned up her nose at anyone who referred to her stormy past in Riversdale (a father who became abusive when drunk and a mother who endured it for too long).

She falls in love with Wade, who’s from the wrong side of the tracks, much to the disappointment of her snobby aunt, but she soon changes her mind and marries the more eligible architect Tim du Plooy (see below). She is the kind of person who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and she knows what she wants out of life.

Tim du Plooy: played by Marco Spaumer

Tim is a complex person who takes life very seriously. His mother Rita (Ilse Roos) was schizophrenic, and his father was extremely hard working, and Tim, an only child, had to look after himself. This led him to the realisation that life is mostly a struggle and to survive, you must fight hard for what you want.

He’s walked a long road since he was a young, ambitious architect who was trying to inspire the world with his creations. He comes to believe that “good guys always come last” and that the world only respects money and power, and this is all that he now pursues. He’s ambitious, dangerous, and corruptible.

Chris du Plooy: played by Marcel van Heerden

Chris, who’s a builder and a handyman, was formerly in the police. Even though he did plenty of dirty work in the past for Bridgette’s ex-husband, his conscience has recently been troubling him. He now tries to do the right thing, but it’s easier said than done.

He has a reasonably good relationship with his architect son, Tim, but like many father-son relationships, there’s sometimes conflict. He knows a bit about everything and everyone in Ruiterbosch and in a later season he starts dating Kate (Annelisa Weiland).

Nazeem Jacobs née Samsodien: played by Irvine van der Merwe

Nazeem is the no-good half-brother of the innocent and honest pharmacist AB Samsodien. Years ago, he left his childhood home in the Cape and moved to the bright lights of Johannesburg, where he made a good living as an entrepreneur with a corner shop in Brixton. But he hasn’t made his money just through cooldrinks and sweets, he’s a loan shark on the side. He also bought and sold illegal substances.

There, he learned of his true origins: that he’s the illegitimate son of Henry Jacobs and therefore heir to the Jacobs fortune. When he appeared in Ruiterbosch, it was with the intention of demanding his share, to the horror of Bridgette and Lee-Ann.

His greed knows no bounds, and he’s always asking for more – no matter how he obtains it. Despite this, he’s a family man. He was brought up with the same moral values as AB, but sees AB as too moralistic and upright, and he’s learned through the years that life isn’t black and white. He wants his life to be a bit more exciting and to have more surprises.

Abdullah (AB) Samsodien: played by Cedwyn Joel

AB Samsodien is Ruiterbosch’s dependable pharmacist, a loving family man with a strong character and firm views. As a Muslim, good family values are very important to him, but he’s also learned that you need to approach life with your eyes wide open, especially when he faced his greatest challenge: he fell in love with another woman Farrah (Lee-Ann van Rooi) and took her as his second wife.

In the process, he almost lost the love of his life, his wife, Mymoena (see below). Mymoena is everything to him and he worships the ground she walks on. Despite the challenges they’re endured, their love always wins. He’s a soft person who never shies away from his fatherly responsibilities.

Mymoena Samsodien: played by Jill Levenburg

Mymoena is an extrovert and a strong woman. She’s a real chatterbox and loves nothing more than a good catchup with her nearest and dearest. She’s happy to sit and talk for hours with her best friends, Mrs J and Kate.

Mymoena is soft, loving, and motherly, but she doesn’t let anyone walk all over her or her family. In the end, she just wants her family and husband to be happy. Her marriage to AB has faced a few storms, like when her illegitimate daughter, Bianca (see below), suddenly appeared in Ruiterbosch, and when AB announced he intended to marry a second wife

Rhafiek Samsodien: played by Irshaad Ally

Rhafiek Samsodien could easily have been a fairy tale hero in another life – he’s not only good-looking but has a heart of gold and believes in the goodness of people. He’s one of twins and his brother, Rhiyaaz (Anton Jeftha), lives in London. Like his parents, he has good values and people like him, even though he’s a bit too self-righteous.

He has a strict moral compass, which also sometimes leads to his downfall when he finds himself in trouble and needs to make decisions fast. He originally worked for Jacobs Property Development but fell out with management and decided to open his own travel agency, Atlantic Adrenaline.

Bianca Fourie: played by Simone Biscombe

Bianca Fourie is a former waitress who’s now the manager of the popular restaurant Oos-Wes. She’s a single mother with a real fighting spirit who’s also a recovering drug addict. She’s frequently the victim of bad relationships but doesn’t lose faith in life.

Mymoena gave birth to her shortly after she finished matric and was pushed by her conservative community to give Bianca up for adoption. Bianca ended up with good adoptive parents and had happy childhood years in Kuruman, where she was especially close to her adoptive sister, Carmen (Desire Gardner). She always wondered about her biological mother and gathered the courage to look for Mymoena in Ruiterbosch.

Kaashifa Monsour: played by Jawaahier Petersen

Kaashifa is a bright-eyed young Muslim woman. She’s compassionate, conservative and doesn’t realise how beautiful she is. When we first got to know her, she still lived with her inflexible, and sometimes almost uncaring, grandmother Rabia (Na-aymah Ally Samaai), and at that stage she’d never had a job or a boyfriend. But our mother hen Mymoena took her under her wing and before long Kaashifa had come out of her shell and started her online cooking programme.

Meanwhile, her grandmother Rabia died, and she now navigates the big wide world on her own, with help here and there from the Samsodiens. She’s a lovely woman, but sometimes too naïve and often wears her heart on her sleeve. She is now the head chef at Oos-Wes as well as the co-owner.

Wade Daniels: played by Dean Smith

When we first meet Wade, he’s directionless and poor, but what he lacks in the wallet he makes up for in spirit. He’s an ambitious young man who’s not ashamed of his background. His parents died tragically when he was young, and he was taken away from his older brother. After years in foster care, he arrives at the Suidooster Centre looking for work at the juice shop.

Later he starts working as a barman at the new bar in the community called Die Anker, and currently he is a partner in his best bud Justin’s (see below) business, SoundBar.

Tyron (Ty) Daniels: played by Maurice Paige

Ty makes his appearance as Wade’s (see below) long-lost brother. The pair were separated after their parents’ deaths, and each landed in foster care for years until their paths crossed again in Ruiterbosch. He’s cocky, but he has a huge heart and he’s the love of Lee-Ann Jacobs’ life. You always know where you stand with him. He’s a bit conceited and cocky, but he has no hidden agenda and has good intentions.

Justin Potgieter: played by Eden Claassen

At first glance, Justin comes across as a guy who’s all about muscles and grooming. But he also has a talent for music, and even had his own group called Tamatiestraat, although no one took him too seriously. He works as a waiter at the restaurant Oos-Wes in the Suidooster Centre, but it’s not where his father wanted him to end up.

As a teenager, he endured living under the thumb of his slave-driving father for whom nothing was ever good enough. That’s why he decided to bid his law degree farewell and make a new start in the Cape. His music career hasn’t exactly taken off, but he’s the kind of person who believes that there’s no great rush in life. There’s only one thing he loves more than his guitar, and that’s a beautiful woman. He is soon reunited with Susan (see below), the one woman he’s had a true connection with.

Siyabulela (Siya) Thuli: played by Gantane Kusch

The young doctor at Ruiterbosch Hospital arrived thinking he was there to save lives, not realising that in the end, he would be the one who needed saving. Siya is a charming and charismatic young man who always tries to help little birds with broken wings.

This has led to many disappointments in life. He’s proud of his work, and his work ethic, and he helps to start the first free clinic in Ruiterbosch. He grew up poor: his parents were labourers and they had very little money, but he learned to work hard and fight for what he wants. Later he becomes a pastor and falls in love with Danni (see below).

Danielle (Danni) Hendricks: played by Vashti Prins

The beautiful, freewheeling secretary at JPD is easy on the eye but she’s a tough nut to crack. Her brother almost drowned as a child, and her father blamed her for that for years, leading to her trying to escape her family. Danni was appointed by Lee-Ann Jacobs, against Ian’s wishes, to organise the office and has had a lot of fun in Ruiterbosch.

She initially fell for the sexy Oos-Wes waiter Justin, but while she was trying to win him over, she transferred her affections to Tim, the successful architect. This tricky beginning spelled trouble from the start and their love didn’t last long. Fortunately, the charming Siya has swept her off her feet. Danni doesn’t shy away from trouble and she’s a good friend to Zoe.

Susan Naudé: played by Natasha van der Merwe

Susan is a party animal with a great zest for life. She is intelligent, lovely, charming, and unique. Susan and Elana (see below) met at a game reserve in Limpopo where Susan worked as a ranger while Elana and her team shot an advertisement there.

From there their romance blossomed and Susan followed Elana to Jozi, where they got married. Susan is fearless and takes on any challenge that comes her way. She takes risks and likes to work hard and play hard. Elana and Susan relocated to Ruiterbosch, where they started their own business, a local pub called Die Anker,

Elana Naudé: played by Esther von Waltsleben

Elana has been working in the corporate advertising world for years. She has a strong personality and does not back down from bullies. She is reliable, hardworking, and very responsible, but she also enjoys a party or two. One of her best qualities (or worst qualities, depending on how you look at it) is that she’s not afraid to be honest and tell it like it is.

It was extremely hard for Elana to accept when her marriage to Susan came to an end and Susan reconciled with Justin. But she soon found new meaning in life, and it still determined to start her own family one day.