Aaron Arthur Ferguson (30 April 197430 July 2021), professionally known as Shona Ferguson, was a Motswana actor based in South Africa, executive producer and co-founder of Ferguson Films, alongside his wife,

Connie Ferguson Constance Connie Ferguson (née Masilo; born 10 June 1970) is a South African-Motswana actress, filmmaker, producer and businesswoman. She is best known for her lead role as Karabo Moroka on one of South Africa's most popular soap operas, '' Gen ...

Early career

Ferguson started his journey into the world of entertainment in

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

as a club DJ at The Palace Hotel Night Club in 1992. After moving back to

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

his focus shifted to the corporate world and he ended up in the IT business. Having started as a salesman, he worked his way up to become a respected businessman where he won multiple achievement awards, including Top Sales Manager Award 1998–99.

Acting career

Ferguson's first major acting role was as Dr Leabua in the South African

Venda language Venḓa or Tshivenḓa is a Bantu languages, Bantu language and an Languages of South Africa, official language of South Africa and Zimbabwe. It is mainly spoken by the Venda people (or Vhavenḓa) in the northern part of South Africa's Limpop ...

soap opera '' Muvhango''. He left the show in March 2007. He then starred as Itumeleng from 2011 to 2013 on ''The Wild'', a

M-Net M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

soap opera. He, along with wife

, established Ferguson Films and both starred on their film production's first series '' Rockville''. He starred as JB from 2013 to its final episode in 2016. He also starred on 2014's ''The Gift'', a Ferguson Films series, and starred as Jerry Maake on '' The Queen'', also a Ferguson Films series that started in 2016. His other TV appearances include '' Isidingo: The Need'' as Tyson and '' Scandal!'' as Alex.

Ferguson Films

In 2010, he started Ferguson Films with wife and actress, Connie Ferguson. Their productions included '' Rockville'', “Kings of Joburg”,''iGazi'', ''The Gift'', ''The Throne'', ''The Herd'', '' The Queen'', and ''The Imposter''. In 2020, they produced a

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

six-part series called '' Kings of Joburg''.

Movies

Ferguson was cast in the 2010 film ''Mrs. Mandela''.

Personal life

He met actress Connie Masilo on 31 July 2001. They married in November of that year.

Awards and nominations

He received the Golden Horn Award for Best Actor in a TV Soap and Golden Horn Award for Best Achievement by a Lead Actor in a Made for TV Movie.

Death

On 26 June 2021, Ferguson was admitted to Pinehaven Hospital with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. With his condition getting worse, he was airlifted towards the mid-days of July to

Milpark Hospital The Milpark Hospital is a private hospital in western Parktown, Johannesburg, in the area known as Milpark, and owned by Netcare Limited. It has a level 1 accredited trauma unit, and cardiology and cardio-thoracic services. It has 346 beds, o ...

in Johannesburg, where he died on 30 July 2021, aged 47. He was buried at the Fourways Memorial Park, after a private funeral. A memorial service was held two days later, where the attendance was limited to 50 due to COVID-19 lockdown regulations.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Shona 1974 births 2021 deaths Tswana people South African male actors People from Gaborone Botswana emigrants to South Africa South African people of Botswana descent Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa