Oti Mabuse lands her own BBC One special exploring South Africa

Oti Mabuse is to star in her own show on BBC One.

She’s already queen of weekend TV thanks to her roles on Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing On Ice.

Now the dancer and choreographer is to appear in her very own special, Oti Mabuse: My South Africa, airing Thursday, 17 November at 9PM

In the one-off hour-long show, and ten years after she left home, Oti Mabuse is going back to her country of birth to show us her South Africa. It is a country that she feels is often misunderstood and she will show us a land of beauty, diversity, and hope.

A teaser from the BBC said: “She starts back where her family lived: the township of Mabopane, near Pretoria. Here she goes back to her first school and first dancefloor, and there are emotional reunions with her parents and with family and friends from her past.

“She tracks the journey her family have taken out of poverty and recounts the struggles for money, safety and recognition. Oti and her sisters sold flowers on the streets to pay for dance classes, and she meets up with Aunt Johanna, who is still running the flower stall.

“But the township is not the whole story. Oti takes a winding road trip across the country, through breathtaking landscape and unfamiliar places. Along the way, she finds new inspiration from the people she meets: musicians, farmers, dancers, and particularly from the strong women who are building the new South Africa.”

Oti Mabuse said: “To be asked by the BBC to do my very own documentary about something that is so close to my heart is an absolute privilege and I am deeply humbled.

“I can’t wait to show the viewers where I grew up and take them on the journey that got me to where I am today. I truly hope they love South Africa like I do.”

BBC’s Kate Phillips, Controller of BBC Entertainment, said: “We’re looking forward to taking BBC One’s dancing sensation Oti Mabuse back to her home in South Africa, to show us the country she believes is often misunderstood, in Oti’s South African Odyssey.”