Johannesburg - This week, we feature actor, entrepreneur, and former Big Brother contestant, Ferdinand “Ferdi” Rabie.
Rabie is best known for being the first winner of the reality TV show Big Brother SA, winning the competition in 2001.
A year after winning, the first Big Brother SA winner was signed on as a presenter for Afrikaans station, Kyknet.
Rabie then embarked on a short stint in the television industry – joining Laugh Out Loud for the first two seasons of the popular comedy show.
He has also featured in the hit South African movie Stander, where he played the role of a police officer.
These days, Rabie is a dad and pours his energy into his tour company, Ferdinand Tours and Adventures in the Western Cape. He also owns an events company, Legends Events.
The single best moment of being in the Big Brother House was...?
After 109 days, I was so drained, and there were five minutes left. It was the longest five minutes of my life, but when they announced my name as the Winner of the first 24\7 and longest reality programme, Big Brother, that had to be the best moment. Words can’t describe it.
You are stuck in a house for a month with one South African celebrity. You get to choose the celebrity. Who do you choose?
Anton Goosen. He will have stories to tell every night about rock and roll in the 60s to today and how we have changed over the last four decades. What a humble guy.
The meal that most reminds you of your childhood is...?
Pampoen koekies and mieliepap
The one thing that most people don't know about you is....?
That I can be quiet as well, and Ferdinand’s Tours started six years before Big Brother, not after. Today, I am 47, and Ferdinand’s tours has been going on for 27 years. Also, I am the proud owner of Legend Events, and both companies were hit hard by Covid. We lost everything, but thankfully, we have saved over the years, so we were able to keep going and build again. “My motto is Good things come to those who never stop!”
If you could go back in time and change any one thing in your life, what would it be?
That I should have never started smoking. That is my biggest regret. I could have done way better in sport.
Tell us about the worst date you've ever had...?
I took a girl out in Camps Bay and said she could decide which restaurant to go to. She ended up choosing a sushi restaurant. Now I am from Worcester, and all I knew about sushi is that it's raw fish and it’s quite expensive. I was about 23, and my company was growing, but I only took cash not a card with to the date. I tried to see how much these different colour plates cost, but there was no pricing, and she was troughing it back like hell.
I saw these green things on the table thinking, it's avo and put it all on the salmon. It was my second big mistake, and then I phoned my mate to say, brother, you better come with that card down here. This chick is going for gold, and my nose and eyes were burning like hell. I just managed to pay the bill, but my mouth was still burning like hell. She wanted dessert, and I said we had a transfer I forgot about and needed to go. Lol.
Are you still friends with your fellow Big Brother housemates ? And if so, who are you closest to?
From all the Big Brothers over the world, I can say with surety that we are the only housemates in the world that are on a WhatsApp group and speak weekly. I might have won all out of all them, but we have such a special bond.
I cannot say I have a favourite housemate. I love them all, and that’s the honest truth. We all met with Emperors Palace for the 20th anniversary, and we still sold the venue out after so many years.
A chilled night in watching Netflix or a wild night out of partying?
Before Covid, it would have been a wild night out, but now, my time is best spent marking routes with my son on our bikes to discover new beautiful destinations.
You are able to take on any South African celebrity in a 12 round charity boxing match. Who do you choose to go up against?
Don’t think you can call them celebs, but rounds 1 to 11 would be the Guptas and their friends, and then the last round, Julius Malema. After the last round with Malema, I would like to have a cold beer with him and say don’t you think it’s time to build this country. How much money have we lost destroying things where we could have built a future for all SA?
What one thing has caught your attention on social media in the last week
Russia and Ukraine. We think Covid was bad, this is going to be massive and so not needed in this day and age. The sad thing is that the politicians sit and drink their tea, coffee and order their countrymen to fight, like it’s a chess game. In reality, they don’t feel a thing for how many people lives’ they destroy.