Gareth's Guests

Slikour has been as busy as ever in the world of entertainment. Having released a new book, he joins Gareth Cliff and Lebang Kgosana in studio for a tell-it-all interview about his life, career, and recent realisations about the world. One hour with the South African hip hop mogul is not nearly enough to unpack his legacy, as well as his new platform that will change the music industry on take-off. We also find a common connection between Lebang and Slikour from way back when. www.cliffcentral.com

Daisy de Melker... a widow and nurse living in Johannesburg, South Africa became a notorious offender worldwide in the 1930s. This serial killer with blatant intent and disregard for the law is covered by South African author, Ted Botha - who had no intent on writing this book, but stumbled upon the largely untold story and decided to do a little digging.

Harry Oppenheimer is an icon of South African history, with an extraordinary life wrapped up in a nexus of politics, business, and wealth. Author Michael Cardo has been granted first-hand access to the Oppenheimer chronicles and historical documents from within the family - to script a truthful, but gripping biography. Gareth sits down with Michael to discuss some of the behind-the-scenes experiences with the Oppenheimer family and his fascination with their heritage and history on both the local and international stage.

Meet the man behind the political commentator! Solly Moeng - a columnist, expert in brand reputation, and regular contributor to the Burning Platform - joins Gareth in-studio to discuss his life overseas as a part-time lecturer and full-time South African. Due to political reasons, he has been chased out of the country and is waiting for his chance to return. Solly divulges some interesting information about his personal life and more in this special interview.

A man of history, a man of culture, multiple personas... and one proudly South African legend. Pieter-Dirk Uys sits down with Gareth Cliff to discuss his life, career, family and precious moments. Hear about where he grew up, his family, the influences for his satiric characters, and some heartwrenching moments that changed his life.

Michael Jordaan, FNB’s youngest CEO and a notoriously successful entrepreneur - both locally and internationally - has a one on one with Gareth Cliff to discuss his incredible career and the current entrepreneurial space in South Africa and the world. Don't miss this inspirational and patriotic conversation on South Africa’s business landscape.

Samsung’s former African powerhouse, Sung Yoon sits down with Gareth Cliff to discuss his journey around the world, working for one of the biggest and most competitive organisations on the planet. He also describes his love for South Africa, and the consumers on the African continent.

Dr John Laband is a Professor Emeritus of History at Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada. He has authored, co-authored and edited over 20 books on warfare and military culture in Africa, specialising in the Zulu kingdom and in 19th-century colonial conflicts in southern Africa. He speaks to Gareth about his latest book, where he explores the strategies of both the Trekkers and the Zulu Empire run by Shaka Zulu.

UnCancelled brings you another thought-provoking conversation, this time featuring Prof Mamokgethi Phakeng. In this episode, she sits down with Gareth Cliff and Phumi Mashigo to share her thoughts on higher education in South Africa, and discuss the controversy around her split with UCT. As a respected academic who is unapologetic about setting out to make education fashionable, Prof Phakeng holds nothing back in this discussion. She provides insightful perspectives and valuable insights that are sure to resonate. Plus, a live Q&A session with the audience.

Gareth Cliff and Simon Sebag Montefiore finally meet in person for another history geek out session. They delve into the process of writing about historical people and events, ancient empires, and modern wars. Plus, some fantastical fun as they imagine travelling back in time to some bygone eras.

Gareth Cliff catches up with John Hunt on the day of the big celebration, for a nostalgic trip down memory lane. www.cliffcentral.com

Troy Ruhanen (President and CEO of TBWA\Worldwide) and Luca Gallarelli (CEO of TBWA\South Africa) sat down for the final interview to give us an absolute tour-de-force overview of the culture of TBWA, the future of advertising, managing creatives and disrupting everything in your path. In this thoughtful discussion, these two visionary leaders take us through their assessment of the state of communication, marketing and technology - looking ahead to 2025 and beyond. They also offer insight into what makes Hunt Lascaris such an important example of excellence, giving credit to John Hunt and Reg Lascaris on the way. www.cliffcentral.com

Lorna Mlonzi was shot 9 times in Nyanga, Cape Town. She survived after buying her own taxi fare to the hospital, which dropped her off unconscious at ICU. After three days in a coma, she woke up and decided to change the world.

Sitting at the helm of TBWA Hunt Lascaris Johannesburg are CEO, Karabo Denalane and Executive Creative Director, Carl Willoughby. Karabo and Carl share their more recent experiences in the storied tale of the business. Karabo’s tenure has included a monumental transformation of the agency into what it is today, a truly radically open creative collective with culture at its core... while Carl has been acknowledged at all major local and international awards shows, and in 2021 was ranked #1 ECD in South Africa - according to the local Loerie awards. www.cliffcentral.com

Dr Andrew White is a Senior Fellow in Management Practice at Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. He works globally with leaders to understand how they can transcend the internal and external strategic challenges they face to ensure they deliver sustainable high performance. In this role he oversaw leadership development, change management and strategy transformation with government, civic and corporate leaders globally across China, India, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Abu Dhabi, Germany, USA and South Africa. Gareth Cliff finds out more about his work, research, and his meditation practice. www.cliffcentral.com

Yoseph Haddad is the CEO of Together Vouch for Each Other, and a IDF combat veteran. At age 18, Yoseph - an Arab - volunteered to serve in the Israeli Defense Force. After being critically injured in the war, he decided to dedicate his life to showcasing the truth about the State of Israel abroad, fighting BDS, and working to improve relations between Arabs and Jews by bridging social gaps in Israel.

Promoting trade between the United States of America and Africa, Minister Counsellor for Commercial Affairs for Sub-Saharan Africa at the U.S. Consulate, Cynthia Griffin chats to Gareth Cliff about her life and work in the foreign service. Opening up the trading portal between the U.S. and fellow African countries for market expansion is one of Cynthia's primary areas of focus, promoting and facilitating U.S. economic and commercial interests in the region. www.cliffcentral.com

Legendary South African funny man, Barry Hilton walks Gareth through his Covid business expansion, from corporate card games, to a new concept titled ‘My Life in 3D’ - a talk about Barry’s trifecta of struggles. He does a deep dive with Gareth about his journey over the years… moving out of the East Rand and into the Western Cape, as well as his journey through the “nut house”. No stone is left unturned in this interview, all while leaving you in stitches.

Hazel Feldman has stories for days about some of the many performing artists she helped bring out to South Africa to perform at Sun City and many other venues. From working with Sol Kerzner as he created his dream in the desert, to working with the likes of Queen, Elton John and countless others. Go on a nostalgic journey with this legend of the South African entertainment industry!

What is behind the success of 40 years of winning? It’s the people! Carol Soames (Group Operations Director) and George Low (Creative Director) - both with decades of stories to tell - are two of the long-standing “Hunts People” who have helped shape the DNA of the agency’s creative culture in the ever-changing media landscape. While George is quite familiar with collecting shiny statues, Carol (who joined in 1986 when there were only 15 employees) is the superglue between clients and all the departments. www.cliffcentral.com