[Televisionary]

Apartheid is an ugly word, conjuring up images of racial segregation and hatred from a time in the not-too-distant past of South Africa. PBS' new political thriller Endgame , which airs Sunday evening as part of the public broadcaster's Masterpiece Contemporary wheel, dramatizes not the plight of the common South African man and woman under the draconian decree of apartheid but rather the machinery operating behind the scenes to bring an end to apartheid once and for all. Written by Paula Milne ( Second Sight ) and directed by Pete Travis ( Vantage Point ), Endgame revolves around a series of secret talks between the ANC and the South African government brokered by Consolidated Goldfields, a multi-national company with vested financial interests in South Africa. The talks took place at an estate in England, far away from the violent rebellion in South Africa, and despite the risk in bringing together these enemies, the open lines of communication actually did bring about stun

Golden Globe nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor is perhaps best known for his work in such diverse films as American Gangster, Dirty Pretty Things, Serenity, Love Actually, Redbelt, and Kinky Boots . The British actor has made a career of playing deeply complex individuals, from cross-dresser Lola in Kinky Boots to Dirty Pretty Things ' cab driver and former doctor Okwe. In PBS' gripping apartheid thriller Endgame , which airs Stateside this Sunday as part of the new season of Masterpiece Contemporary , Ejiofor, recently appointed an OBE by Queen Elizabeth, plays South African political figure Thabo Mbeki, a key player in secret negotiations between the African National Congress and the South African government that were brokered by Consolidated Goldfields. Remarkably these talks resulted in an end to apartheid in South Africa and Endgame , written by Paula Milne and directed by Pete Travis, dramatize the secret talks, which occurred at Mells Park, an estate in England. In addition to