Attention Fellow Strugglers: History ChanneI Will Be Free Just In Time For Roots

DStv’s History Channel, usually available only to Premium subscribers, is to be opened to Compact + and Compact subscribers between June 13 and July 11.

Liz Dziva, publicity and public relations manager of MultiChoice Zimbabwe, said theHistory Channel open month was aimed at increasing awareness of the channel and enhancing the Compact viewing experience.

“It’s a popular channel for Premium subscribers and Compact viewers will have a month in which to see just what has brought about this popularity,” she said.

 “During the four-week open-window period, History will also broadcast new and exclusive shows, along with top-rated return titles that Compact subscribers will not have had access to previously.”

 Within the open month, the new and highly acclaimed Roots series will make its debut on the History Channel. Starting on Wednesday June 15 (8.30pm) the four-part, eight-hour series developed by History and produced by A+E Studios, will relive the sensational storyline that excited viewers with the original series produced in the 1970s and 1980s, but which has been updated and has been well received internationally. Roots will be repeated on Lifetime channel on Sundays at 8pm from June 19, after its debut on History. Based on the best-selling novel by Alex Haley, Roots recounts the journey of one family in the time of North American slavery and highlights their will to survive and endure unimaginable hardship.

Starring in the series are Academy Award winners Forest Whitaker and Anna Paquin, Academy Award nominee and Emmy winner Laurence Fishburne, Golden Globe winning and Emmy nominated actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Tony Award winner Anika Noni Rose, Grammy winner Tip “T.I.” Harris, Emayatzy Corinealdi, Matthew Goode, Mekhi Phifer, James Purefoy and newcomers Regé-Jean Page and Malachi Kirby.

“We are pleased that the open month coincides with this huge development in staging a series that has made such an impact on international television audiences in recent months,” said Ms Dziva.