Katlego Danke (born 7 November 1978), is a South African actress, radio DJ and TV presenter. She is of

Tswana Tswana may refer to: * Tswana people, the Bantu languages, Bantu speaking people in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and other Southern Africa regions * Tswana language, the language spoken by the (Ba)Tswana people * Tswanaland, ...

ethnicity. Danke is known for her extensive role playing on South African soap operas, ''

Backstage Backstage may refer to: * Backstage (theatre), the areas of a theatre that are not part of the house or stage Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1917 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1919 film), a silent film starri ...

'', ''

Generations A generation is all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. Generation or generations may also refer to: Science and technology * Generation (particle physics), a division of the elementary particles * Genera ...

,'' '' Gomora'' and ''

Isidingo ''Isidingo'' was a South African soap opera, with dialogue mostly in English and isiXhosa. The series premiered on SABC 3 in July 1998 and was broadcast evenings on SABC 3 from Monday to Friday at 19:00. Until 2001 it was titled ''Isidingo: The ...

''.

Early life

Danke was born on 7 November 1978 in the North West, having stayed her childhood in places like Mahikeng, Ga-Rankuwa, Mabopane, and Potchefstroom.

Career

Katlego was performing in theatre before getting into television. She obtained her BA in Theatre and Performance at University of Cape Town in 2001 and is renowned for stage performances in theatre productions such as ''Beyond the Veil'', ''The House of Kalumba'', ''The Town that was Mad'', ''Crimes of the Heart'', ''King Lear'', ''Miss Tertiary Feel'', ''Occupational Therapy Project'', and the Opera performance of ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

''. From 2002, she played a role on

e.tv e.tv (commonly referred to on-air as e) is the first and only privately owned free-to-air television station in South Africa. Founded in 1998, the company is headquartered in Cape Town. It is the fifth terrestrial television channel in the ...

's ''

''. She appeared on ''

'' from 2006, receiving a best actress award from the

South African Film and Television Awards The South African Film and Television Awards (sometimes referred to as the Golden Horns; often simply called the SAFTAs) is an annual South African awards ceremony hosted by the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), to honour creative exce ...

. She has also appeared in commercials for Vanish, Clover, and

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

. She completed a diploma in Management Studies in 2010, with Wits Business School. In 2015, she landed the lucrative contract of brand ambassador to the international baby products brand Philips Avent. In both 2006 and 2011, she was voted as one of FHM's 100 sexiest women in the world. In 2010 she was nominated for a YOU spectacular award for Favourite Actress. She was nominated Best Screen Villain in the Duku-Duku 2004 Awards, and Best Dressed Actress in 2009 at the South African Film and TV Awards. In 2016, following her departure from ''

'', Danke began playing a recurring role in South African soap opera,

. On the show, she plays the character Kgothalo. ''Isidingo'' ended its 21-year run on 12 March 2020. Prior to ''Isidingo's'' conclusion, it was announced that Danke would have a starring role in '' Gomora,'' a new South African telenova on digital satellite and entertainment channel

Mzansi Magic Mzansi Magic is a South African digital satellite and general entertainment channel created by Multichoice and run by M-Net's local interest division, and is broadcast on DStv. History The channel launched in mid-July 2010 on channel 107 as ...

. In 2023 she took a maternity leave in Gomora because she is pregnant.

Filmography

Television

Drama

* Beyond The Veil * The House of Kalumba * The Town that was Mad (based on Under Milk Wood) * King Lear * The Suit * Miss Tertiary Feel

Awards and nominations

In 2010, Katlego received the best actress award at the South Africa film and TV awards (SAFTAS) for her character as "Dineo Mashaba" on Generations.

Royalty Soapie Awards

! , - , rowspan=2, 2023 , rowspan=2, Herself , Outstanding Lead Actress , , rowspan=2, , - , Viewer’s Choice: Best Actress ,

References

External links

*
Divas inc. interview
* https://okmzansi.co.za/10-things-dont-know-katlego-danke/ * https://www.news24.com/amp/drum/celebs/katlego-dankes-first-new-role-after-isidingo-revealed-20200310 * https://www.news24.com/drum/News/katlego-danke-opens-up-about-motherhood-20170728 {{DEFAULTSORT:Danke, Katlego South African soap opera actresses Living people 1978 births University of Cape Town alumni People from North West (South African province) South African Tswana people