Yawns this Side of Midnight: An Ode to GBS

Yeah, am certainly tired, but I am a snapshot-of-life freak, so something's gonna give. If that is my sleep, then so be it.

Let us start with Gateway Broadcasting Services (GBS), the satellite provider that stormed what looked like Accra only a year ago. Twelve months on, it has pretty much stormed the nation. Or at least the Central region. Forget the fact that GBS has a huge billboard here, [continuing Saturday morning as sleep became me!] GBS can be found at the Shell Shop in the quintessentially-historic market town of Mankessim; around some hotels and houses dotted around the region,

including this hotel here.

The hit-show "Bones" that I believe is its third season or so in the US, which features former "Buffy the Vampire slayer" brooding-but-reformed-vampire-lover-of-Buffy played by David Boreanz, was on last night on "G-series" to an audience of, erm, who knows? Point is, it was on; with the DsTV package looking like it has been cancelled, or expired.

Looks like the GBS Revolution is on!

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My Mid-Week Madness: GBS Goes Gaga on Three; Driven to Distraction

Justbefore I disappeared for ten nights away from home for UNCTAD XII, I was anxious to see the new stations that GBS had promised.

After the three new channels -- G-Series; G-Africa; KidsCo -- "arrived", I next had a question for the ages: how on Earth did GBS procure Lipstick Jungle, which is an entirely new show on NBC in the States? How on Earth, when the show started airing only earlier this year?

It's clear that those are some of the insider secrets that only GBS staff would know--and would not be willing to divulge--no matter how hard I tried to interrogate them;-)

I have to say that G-Africa has been the bomb in the sense that it's exploded in our senses and--my God!--our minds and whatever else it can explode into. Sundays these days are to die for, 'cos there's only one station we tune to--and that's G-Africa. You've got your series and your Nollywood movies all vying for our attention--and plenty of attention they get from us!!! ([note to Editor: $100? for this plug? come on! you can do better than that!] I've had enough now--it's simply good! In all seriousness, it's hard to believe that you can even get a monthly subscription as low as GHC11.00!! (circa $US11.00)

Friends and acquaintances comparing DsTV to GBS have great basis of comparison in the sense that the former offers its proverbial so much more. Question is: how much MORE tv can I watch?? I struggle even with these 17 stations that GBS offers in that I cannot watch even half of them regularly. We generally watch SKY news to catch up news in the UK; G-Prime; and MGM.


Driven to Distraction
I'm being lazy in formulating new, funky terms to describe my going back to school to drive, so I'm stuck with the one above, which is also featuring on my Reflecting Eccentric World of E.k.Bensah II here.

Point is: I have started doing the theory on driving since the beginning of this week. I was a bit patchy on my memory of INFORMATORY; REGULATORY and warning signs, so I backed a bit this lunch-time. Will get back to you on how well I do, but I feel more confident today.

Keep yer fingers crossed, merci bien!

Cats and Dogs
How can I forget about the rain? I never said I was not yellow! Yesterday night proved how much so I was when I dodged into a corner to sleep (!) to prevent any lightning strikes come the way of my room!

I value my life too much, thankyou!

As the Week Draws to a Close in Accra…There’s Something Good on TV Africa; DSTV Has a Run for its Money, Whilst GBS Enters Ghana

Akumba Ben is a typical example of an erudite man who carries a quiet confidence. A man with the ability to ask surprise questions, possibly think on his feet. Akumba Ben is the man interviewing all the Presidential aspirants—a good nineteen of them—from the incumbent NPP administration, as well as from the CPP on the Tuesday programme "I want to be President" on TV Africa.

To each candidate, he brings questions—some general, a few, more specific—that get right to the heart of what type of policy the aspirant wants to bring to being a President of Ghana. After thirty minutes of interviewing, the small audience, comprising usually journalists and the like, ask their prepared questions based on what they know or what they have heard of the aspirant at the studios.

These days, there’s something certainly good on TV Africa. Thankfully, it’s not just on Tuesday nights.

Saturday nights are a to-die-for: the highly-acclaimed "Prison Break" is on. It started some six weeks ago, and is riveting stuff. I sent a txt msg to a Ghanaian friend living in Canada the first Saturday I watched it exclaiming it was hit stuff. She got back to me recently explaining that in Canada, they’re in Season Three! Two years is not too behind if you consider how challenged the station was in terms of programmes.


That last two Thursday’s edition of "Graphic Showbiz" had one comment praising the station, as well as a celebration of where TV Africa is going these days underscores the validity and appeal of this growing popularity towards a station that projects itself as promoting "African values".

There’s a refrain on the station that often precedes programmes of African origin: "They ask. Always they ask. What is the story of Africa?"

Therein, in fact, lies a small paradox.

For with a station that purports to promote African values, the values of 24, and "Prison Break" are seriously inimical to the putative African values!

In the long run, it’s all about balance.

Since you cannot have too much of a good thing, then it stands to reason that you cannot have too much African stuff on TV Africa!

DSTV Here Today, Gone…When?

There's a new satellite service provider in town, and I'm sure DSTV isn't too happy, even if it's enjoying its current monopoly like no-one's business. I heard on the radio yesterday that it's slashed its prices to GHC139 (US150) as start-up for its decoder, satellite and whatnot.

Meanwhile Gateway Broadcasting Services--owned by a Brit, Julian McIntyre, -- has been on the African continent for the past six months, and in Ghana for almost a month. It really has been giving people's TVs a new life!;-)

It has fifteen channels, and is aiming to get a "G-Africa" by the end of the year, where it will show African movies only. I am happy to see that 2006-launched NBC hit HEROES, which started airing on the UK's terrestrial station BBC2 only this year is in its 13th episode on G-Prime, which is the major channel by GBS that features movies--both classics (as in popular 80s and 90s films) and otherwise.

Having been brought up to be awakened to the sensitivities of the underdog--whether putative or not--I am happy to say that though there remain some serious catching up by GBS over DSTV, I for one am not going to run to DSTV any time soon!

Enjoy the weekend!!