Entertainment is a way of relieving stress after a hard day’s work. Of course as the popular nursery poem goes ‘ All work and no play, make Jack a dull boy’, our fore fathers knew this right from the onset that is why they had their ways of entertaining their families after a hard days work. Yes, ‘by the fire side’ where all the lovely ‘Ananse’ stories were told.
So that was just a flash back, but perhaps, you are not old enough so you never experienced any of such but how about when televisions were introduced in Ghana and the tide changed from ‘by the fire side stories’ to Television series.
Ghana has come to witness great television shows that have made Ghanaians rush home from where ever they were to get home and watch. These programs got Ghanaians all glued to their TV screens to catch the next episode to see how the story unfolded itself.
But what do we see today? Isn’t is baffling to see Ghanaians go for foreign movies and even take the pain of translating them into our local dialect? So what if the time and resources apportioned to promote and inculcate the cultures of Indians, Mexicans, Philippians, Malaysians just to mention a few are used to rather develop the African-Ghanaian stories and culture?
Instead of the usual Kumkum Baghya, The Promise, Timeless Love, Veera, Jodha Akbar etc that have dominated our TV screens these days, can’t we just for once put our TV sets on and see Tales of Ananse, How Yaa Asantewaa Led Men To War, The Great Stories of Otumfour, The Wonders Of Okomfo Anokye, The Mysteries Of Togbe Tsali, The Woes and Sufferings Of African Slaves in the Hands Of Their Colonial Masters among others? Are these too much to ask for. I’m sure many of us don’t even know how Gold Coast became Ghana but we can remember all the telenovelas including their soundtracks that we’ve ever watched. Can’t companies or industries just sponsor our own? Think about it, do you know the number companies sponsoring these telenovelas to be aired four to five days a week and continuously for six to three years as I learnt some of them can even go beyond three years?
So with this and we expect children of this generation to pay heed to their parents or even consider chastity when all they ever see or watch is quite the opposite?
Let’s refresh our memories today as Ghaflagh.com brings you five very interesting and educative Ghanaian TV series that have been killed by Telenovelas.
1. HOME SWEET HOME
This was a family packed series that dealt with almost every aspect of being a family. It had much to teach husbands, wives and their children on how to relate as a family. Missing an episode was like loosing a gold coin.
2. TAXI DRIVER
The TV series was centered on the life of an ordinary taxi driver who had extraordinary conversations and expeditions with his passengers while trying not to get on the bad side of his boss (Master Richard, played by Nikki Bekoe) by making sales.
The driver, T.T ( played by Psalm Adjeteyfio) was always being threatened by his boss who was known as a professional braggart anytime he visited the house. The highlight of the TV sitcom was how the driver always signed off at the end of each episode with “see ya” (See you). It was very hilarious and educative.
3. THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE
The series was centered on adolescent life and then challenges that come with it. It depicted the typical community life of the Ghanaian and was a model for relationships and how to manage peer pressure.
The series featured some popular characters such as Jackie Appiah( as Enyonam) and Adjetey Annan who was known in the series as the vagabond “Pusher”,Majid Michel(as Shaker).
The show has been brought back to life with a new name YOLO (You Only Live Once) with some of the old casts still in and it is doing well.
4. KEY SOAP CONCERT PARTY
The live comedy show was more or less like a talent hunt show and was one of the most viewed in the country. The TV show had two sections with the comedy featuring comedians preceding the show to be followed by a short drama which was full of humor and moral lessons.
The highlight of this live show was a competition to find the best comedian in Ghana dubbed, “Who is Who?” The competition run for a number of years and many comedians were adjudged “The Champions of Comedy”. The show was one for the whole family.
The show did produce a lot of veteran comedians including Bob Okala and Nkomode, Agya Koo among others.
5. AGORO
Agoro was very popular quiz program produced by Charter house that aired on GTV on Saturdays. The competition was hosted by veteran actor David Dontoh and consisted of contestants who practiced their knowledge of Ghanaian proverbs by attempting to answer some of the questions that were being asked. Winners walked away from the show with prices worth thousands of Ghana Cedis. This Show has however been revived as ‘Agoro Keteke’ which airs on Sundays at 2:00 pm on Metro TV with Babie Dapaah as the hostess.
6. INSPECTOR BEDIAKO
Omgghana.com referred to this show as the all time favorite show “Csi- Ghana.”
The series, full of action and suspense was centered around the life of an incorruptible police officer who was bent on fighting crime and bringing criminals to justice.
It was so popular and interesting to the point that many people started mimicking the life of the main character, Oscar Provencal. The series did not have a dull moment since the law (Inspector Bediako) and its perpetrators (Criminals) were always at each other’s throat.
8. KYEKYEKULE
The popular kids’ program was a joy to watch because it educated as well as informed and entertained children. It was hosted by Uncle George Laing as he and his TV crew moved from one school to the other to entertain, educate as well as learn learn with the children. Many kids were fascinated by the English prowess of Uncle George. It was shown mostly on Saturdays.
9. BY THE FIRE SIDE
The Children’s story telling show was based on the life and escapades of the folklore character, “Kwaku Ananse”. The spider was noted for his amazing mischief and sly character.
The show consisted of popular actors like Maame Dokono (Grace Omaboe), Wofa Yaw, Dr. Rokoto and others telling stories of the legendary Kwaku Ananse and other folktale stories which were acted out by enthusiastic and talented children with singing and dancing. It was telecast on Saturday afternoons.
10. LOCAL DRAMA
The local drama had come to be generally called “Akan Drama” since Twi was one of the dominating languages. The local drama was aired in different languages and starred actors from different drama groups. The TV show caught the attention of all and sundry since the local language was easy to understand.
The local drama series took over the airwaves and was aired on Sundays. It got many people finishing their chores on time to be able to watch the drama series which was produced in Twi.
Of course, these were indeed the good old days. But there is always ‘Sankofa'(It’s not taboo to fetch what is at risk of being left behind). We can promote our culture if we want to. So which one of these was your favorite?
