- ✓Big 2026 change: Showmax shut down in early 2026, and its shows moved to DStv Stream — that’s now the main home for African series and Nollywood.
- ✓DStv Stream is geo-locked to Africa; a VPN with a Nigeria or South Africa server unlocks it as if you were home.
- ✓Nollywood lives on Africa Magic (its channels on DStv) and on Netflix’s Nigerian catalogue, which a Nigeria IP restores in full.
- ✓IROKOtv was built for the diaspora and can work in Ireland without a VPN — though its availability has narrowed over the years.
- ✓The big VPNs — NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark, Proton VPN — all have Nigeria and/or South Africa servers.
The quick answer
Most African TV — DStv Stream, SABC+, Africa Magic — is geo-locked to Africa, so from Ireland you connect a VPN to a Nigeria or South Africa server for an African IP and open the service you’ve subscribed to. The one thing that’s changed in 2026: Showmax has closed, and its shows now live on DStv Stream. For Nollywood specifically, a Nigeria IP also unlocks Netflix’s full Nigerian catalogue.
Since Showmax closed, DStv Stream is the home of African series — reach it with a Nigeria or South Africa server.
The big 2026 change: Showmax → DStv Stream
If you’ve gone looking for Showmax lately and found it gone, you’re not imagining it. In early 2026, MultiChoice shut Showmax down after eleven years and moved its catalogue — including the well-known Showmax Originals — onto DStv Stream. So the practical answer for 2026 is simple: the content didn’t disappear, it changed address. Point your VPN at South Africa or Nigeria, sign in to DStv Stream, and the African series you were after are there. We’re calling this out plainly because a lot of older guides still tell you to “get Showmax” — that advice is now out of date.
The main African services
With a Nigerian or South African IP, here’s what opens up:
- DStv Stream — MultiChoice’s streaming service and, since 2026, the home of the former Showmax catalogue: live channels, sport, news and series.
- SABC+ — South Africa’s public broadcaster’s free streaming app, geo-locked to the region.
- Africa Magic — the Nollywood channels, carried on DStv Stream.
- Netflix Naija — Netflix’s Nigerian catalogue, which it narrowed to African regions in 2024; a Nigeria IP restores the full slate on your existing account.
- IROKOtv — a dedicated Nollywood service built for the diaspora, which can work in Ireland without a VPN (see the honest note below).
Nollywood & Africa Magic
For many in the community, Nollywood is the reason to bother — and there are three routes to it, which is worth knowing so you don’t pay twice. Africa Magic’s channels stream through DStv Stream with an African IP. Netflix carries a deep Nigerian catalogue that a Nigeria server unlocks fully on the subscription you already have. And IROKOtv is a Nollywood-only service that was built specifically for Nigerians abroad — so it’s the one option here that may not need a VPN at all. Between them you can reach the vast majority of Nigerian film and series from your sofa in Ireland.
The honest bit
Two honest notes. First, IROKOtv’s reach has narrowed over the years as the streaming business in Africa consolidated — it was built for the UK, US and Canadian diaspora and can work directly in Ireland, but check it covers what you want before relying on it. Second, as always, a VPN only reaches a service you’re entitled to — your own DStv or Netflix subscription — and it never justifies a pirate stream or an unlicensed “African channels” box. Those boxes are exactly what we steer people away from; the routes here are the legitimate ones.
How to watch, step by step
Start to finish is about four minutes:
- 1Pick the right country server
For DStv Stream and most pan-African content, a South Africa or Nigeria server both work. For Netflix’s Nigerian catalogue specifically, choose Nigeria. Your VPN’s app lists both.
- 2Get a VPN with African servers
You need a provider with servers in Nigeria and/or South Africa. NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark and Proton VPN all have them and unblock DStv in our testing — see the picks below.
- 3Connect to Nigeria or South Africa
Open the VPN app, sign in, and connect. You now have an African IP, so DStv Stream, SABC+ and Africa Magic treat you as a local viewer.
- 4Open the app and play
Launch DStv Stream (or the service you want), sign in to your account, choose your show or match and press play. If a stream won’t load, switch to another server in the same country and reload.
Which VPNs work
The job is a reliable server in Nigeria or South Africa with good DStv unblocking and the speed for HD. From our testing, NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark and Proton VPN all handle it — NordVPN has particularly broad African coverage (Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and more). Our top three:
See the full picks in our best VPN for streaming ranking. Unlocking Netflix Naija on your own account? Our change your Netflix region guide walks through it, and our best VPN for Ireland ranking has the overall picks.