Main content

Poison: Episode 1 - The Chuckling Pensioner

South Africa’s ex-President believes he’s being poisoned. But by whom? And why? When police arrive to arrest him, his supporters warn the country is on the brink of an explosion.

South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma believes he has been poisoned, repeatedly. He claims to be the victim of a long, sophisticated, and unfinished plot to assassinate him. But who would want to kill a man still celebrated for his role as a fighter in the struggle against apartheid? Could it be linked to the allegations of massive corruption against him? Or is there a broader conspiracy at work – an international plot to silence a man who claims to be speaking up for South Africa’s neglected poor? In this five-part series the ´óÏó´«Ã½â€™s Africa correspondent, Andrew Harding, digs into a mystery that links a case of poisoned underpants, to a plot to kill Nelson Mandela, to this year’s riots that left 300 South Africans dead. In this episode, Zuma's early years.

'Poison' is the story of one man's toxic obsession and the battle for South Africa's future.

Presenter: Andrew Harding
Producer: Vauldi Carelse
Sound mix: James Beard
Series editor: Bridget Harney

Release date:

Available now

15 minutes

Featured in...

Nazanin and the mystery of a decades old tank debt

Nazanin and the mystery of a decades old tank debt

Has an old tank debt with Iran cost Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe her freedom?

Seriously... Archive

Even more seriously interesting documentaries from Radio 4.

Seriously... Reads

Read more about some of the amazing stories in Seriously...

Podcast