Wellywood Weighs In
An Anna Fifield Financial Times feature reviews the remarkable growth of the NZ film industry in the wake of its latest coup: Peter Jackson’s King Kong. “For the country’s film industry, the project marks…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
Shooting from the lip
Legendary NZ-born war correspondent, Peter Arnett, has again found himself in the midst of political controversy. NBC and National Geographic fired Arnett after he stated on Iraqi state television that the initial US war…
Edge and Ivory
Professor Malcolm Grant joins fellow NZer John Hood (newly appointed Oxford VC) in taking over Britain’s ivory towers from the top. Currently the pro-vice-chancellor at Cambridge University, Grant will take the reins as the new provost of…
Survival of the Hippest
Karen Walker continues her reign as NZ’s leading fashion export, scoring extensive coverage in some of the international media’s hippest publications over the past month. She was profiled in i-D as one of their…
Creative Curriculum
A Times article deploring the state of the British education system holds up its New Zealand counterpart as the benchmark for quality and creativity. “Look at New Zealand, which manages to incorporate dance into maths classes, drama…
Local Film; Universal Message
Niki Caro’s Whale Rider was the star attraction at the annual Boston International Festival of Women’s Cinema. According to organisers, the “breathtakingly luminous” film perfectly captured the festival’s central theme of “becoming the person…
The Book of Fame (and fortune) for Lloyd Jones
Lloyd Jones’ The Book of Fame has won the $40,000 biennial Tasmania Pacific Fiction Prize, Australia’s most lucrative literary award. The Book of Fame is a poetic national myth-making account of the 1905 All…
Jackson (and NZ) goes ape
Watch out Sky Tower: Peter Jackson is to direct a remake of King Kong for Universal Pictures. The epic production will be filmed on location in NZ and released globally in 2005. Says an…
Screen-worthy Scenery
Baltimore Sun travel writer discovers the joys of the South Island road trip. “Driving on the South Island is not just to get you from one highlight to another – the whole blessed island is a…
Paddy Meets His Match
Paddy O’Brien became New Zealand’s most capped referee in Test rugby after officiating at the Six Nations game between Wales and France in Paris. The match marked O’Brien’s 27th Test and 181st first class game. O’Brien:…
Winning hearts through stomachs
Noel Turner’s US eatery, Turner New Zealand, continues to attract epicurean praise with it’s gourmet cuisine sourced with principled fidelity from the freshest NZ product. A “wide-waisted wordsmith” reviews for Orange County Weekly….
Icarus Down-under
Richard – “Bamboo Dick” – Pearse profiled in China Daily as New Zealand celebrates the centenary of his (world?) first flight. Says biographer Gordon Ogilvie; “He was an inventive phenomenon in a small community where farming was…
Captain Kirk
Aucklander Kirk Penney is one of the brightest stars on the American college basketball circuit. Penney captains and is the highest point-scorer for the Wisconsin Badgers, a team he has lead into the top 16. A…
Fact and Fantasy Collide in The Remarkables
Post-Gazette travel special includes NZ in its homage to Oscar-worthy locations. Special mention is given to The Remarkables, site of Dimrill Dale in The Fellowship of the Ring.
Boyens on Rings writing
Writer Philippa Boyens speaks out on her own epic quest; adapting the Lord of the Rings trilogy for the screen. With her collaborators Walsh, Jackson and Sinclair, Boyens battled against political misreadings, weird names…
One GPS to find them all
Detroit Free Press feature on Rings tourism recommends Ian Brodie’s Lord of the Rings Location Book. One for the truly dedicated, the guide offers the exact coordinates of incidental sites for those equipped with…
Edge intelligence: Donaldson delivers
Observer reviews The Recruit, the latest Hollywood offering from one of NZ cinema’s pioners, LA-based Roger Donaldson. “Slick and highly enjoyable … scenes of induction and seduction have an almost documentary feel and the…
Voters Under Ring’s Influence
The Lord of the Rings trilogy was voted second most influential movie/s of the last 75 years in a poll for BBC News Online, ahead of Citizen Kane, the Godfather series and 2001: A…
For Those About the Rock the Globe
The Datsuns have mounted a full-scale global aural assault: Boston Daily Globe: “It’s a high-energy assault with mammoth guitar riffs, strutting bass, and raw vocals that cartwheel into tomcat wailing.” New York Post:…
Jackson fan club continued…
Michael Scragow, former staff writer for The New Yorker and Rolling Stone, airs his opinions on this year’s Oscars. “I am just floored that Peter Jackson was not nominated for best director … I…
Sacred Hill Win on Sacred Turf
Sacred Hill’s 2001 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay became the first NZ wine to win gold at the prestigious Chardonnay du Monde competition in Burgundy, France. Sacred Hill marketing manager Duncan Elliott: “This is like winning the French equivalent…
NZ Provides Aid To Iraq
The NZ government is contributing NZ$3.3 million in humanitarian aid to war-torn Iraq. The announcement by Foreign Minister Phil Goff came just days after the U.S and its allies commenced war in the Middle East. The…
Gattaca Genetics
Ground-breaking research into congenital birth abnormalities by Otago University professor Stephen Robertson has been published in leading scientific journal, Nature Genetics. Robertson has identified a previously unknown gene responsible for severe malformations in infants. His success makes…
Auckland Loves Lucy
American broadcaster CBS is the latest offshore company to take advantage of New Zealand as a production location. Currently shooting in Auckland is Redhead: The Lucille Ball Story, a 3-hour television movie.
Bee Conga Line
Canterbrian entymologist Barry Donovan has won the prestigious Khwarizmi International Award, in recognition of his ground-breaking theory on how bees forage. The award – named after the 9th century Iranian scientist – was presented to Donovan by…
A Fond Farewell
Washington Post pays tribute to Donald McCarten, the NZ-born former art director of US News & World Report magazine. McCarten studied art in NZ and London before moving into graphic design in the US….
Mike Moore: A View from the Top
Former PM Mike Moore speaks to the Independent about his latest publication, A World Without Walls. The book deals with his experiences as director-general of the WTO; his greatest challenges, mistakes, and success stories, from Seattle forward….
What becomes of the faint-hearted?
Monica McWilliams of Northern Ireland’s Women’s Coalition names Once Were Warriors as her all-time favourite flick in a survey by Belfast Film Festival organisers. She describes it as “a powerful role for a…
Everest: The Next Generation
Peter Hillary and Jamling Norgay have collaborated on a National Geographic documentary about Mount Everest to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their fathers’ pioneering climb. Both have reached the famous summit themselves, and are…
The singing accountant
Front page Weekend Australian feature on “Kiwi heart-throb” Teddy Tahu Rhodes hails the former accountant from Christchurch as “Australian opera’s new lead.” “While his body, all 192cm of it, caused titters in the audience…
Winning-over Delhi bellies
The Taj Palace Hotel in Delhi held a NZ food festival in honour of The Two Towers‘ Indian release. The event, organised by the NZ Trade Commission, aimed to win the hearts of…
A Life Story
NZ scientist Maurice Wilkins is the least recognised of the three discoverers of DNA; a fact which is finally being rectified by this year’s 50th anniversary celebrations. 2003 will also see the release of Wilkins’ long-awaited autobiography,…
Octopus’s Garden
Work by NZ artist Ani O’Neill is currently on show at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art as part of an exhibition exploring artistic interaction with the ocean, Liquid Sea, alongside Doug Aitken, Hiroshi…
Sir Ed on “Knocking the Bastard Off”
The Guardian interviews Sir Edmund Hillary in the lead up to the 50th anniversary of his Mt Everest ascent. “He talks about his experiences with the bluff modesty of a Boys’ Own adventure hero Perhaps…
Children of the Revolution
“New Zealand is leading the mobile revolution in Australasia,” says BIZ IT managing director John Kennett. Telecom’s recent launch of Mobile JetStream has paved the way for radical innovations in the very near future; including high-speed mobile…
Hollywood hits the west coast
A charity screening of Andrew Niccol’s Simone was held in his hometown of Paraparaumu, March 24. According to father Don Niccol, Simone “cocks a snook” at Hollywood by attacking “several dearly held Hollywood clichés.”…
First Lady of Style
Lower Hutt-born Anouska Hempel (Lady Weinberg) featured in The Times‘ list of iconic women over 50 in a piece by writer Paul Theroux on ‘the older woman’. Hempel is the creative force behind ultra-hip London hotels Blakes…
Hart Food
Graeme Hart, edge entrepreneur and controlling stakeholder at Burns Philip, has completed his $2 billion takeover of Australian food group Goodman Fielder. Burns Philip is now a certified trans-Tasman superpower, with such iconic Aussie brands as Uncle…
Celebrity chef
Kiwi chef Alex Mackay is one of the bright sparks leading Britain’s ongoing gastronomic revolution. After working in England and Italy, Mackay now runs an acclaimed cooking school at Le Baou d’Infer in Provence…
Age No Barrier
16-year-old New Zealander Chris Pither came second in the Formula Ford Track Attack at Albert Park, Melbourne. Pither has been racing since the age of seven, and already has three national karts titles to his credit….
Dirty Deeds Earn Place on Hall of Fame
Oz-rockers AC/DC have been inducted to the American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as one of the top five best-selling bands in U.S history. NZ drummer Phil Rudd makes up one part of…
Believe the Hype
The Hyperfactory continue their good work at the forefront of SMS technology. Australian and British buyers are showing great interest in the company’s SMSJukeBox application, which has already gained over 70,000 members in New Zealand through ClubZM.
A view from the edge: Topp Twins bring the noise
NZ musicians The Topp Twins and Jenny Morris played at Melbourne’s 27th Port Fairy Folk Festival. While Morris’ act was comparatively apolitical, the Twins pointed the finger at “stupid men” starting wars at the…
Finn-less wonders
In a review of the recently released Anthology, the Toronto Star dubs The Clean “the most important and influential New Zealand band not to include anyone with the surname Finn A fascinating primer,…
Challenging Times Ahead for Team NZ
The NZ government has pledged $5.14 million in an effort to win back the America’s Cup. Says America’s Cup Minister Trevor Mallard; “This new funding will allow Team New Zealand to start the process of re-signing…
California Dining – From the Edge
Country style cooking? “We’re all familiar with restaurants featuring cuisines from countries and subregions around the world. What if a restaurant opened that featured the food products of a certain country rather than…
Clean and Clear?
New Zealand has been ranked third best in a United Nations survey of global water quality. Ironically, New Zealand was also fingered as one of the leading water-wasters in a recent (un-related) study.
Joining the Hoop
A NZ team is to join Australia’s National Basketball League next year, in a move sure to raise the sport’s profile even higher in this country. The Auckland-based franchise is yet to announce its name and…
The Woman with the Whistle
Kirstin Daly has been made the first woman in Australasia to coach a men’s basketball team at national level. The former NZ women’s captain is to take the helm at Hawke’s Bay. Says club management; “[The…
From Trash to Flash
A NZ company – Waste Solutions – has provided part of the technology behind a radical new energy-producing venture in western Sydney. The project in question is an $AUS36 million power plant which converts organic waste…
Toy Love a “clear winner”
NZ comedy Toy Love has won the Audience Award at Portugal’s Fantasporto 2003 film festival. Says writer-director Harry Sinclair; “I’m thrilled about the award. It’s a highly respected festival, so it will certainly…
Change of Pace
BBC series on ex-pat Brits profiles Jake Barnett, a London banker turned Christchurch viticulture student. Barnett has nothing but praise for the NZ wine industry, not to mention his adopted homeland. “The nearest we get to…
Owens Takes Top Title
NZ’s Carol Owens has taken over as women’s squash world No.1 after the retirement of Australia’s Sarah Fitzgerald. The Women’s International Squash Players’ Association announced the new rankings after Owen’s win at February’s Arader & O’Rourke Tournament…
Making Tracks
22-year-old Scott Dixon blitzed the field at the opening Indy 300 in Florida, making him the just the third competitor ever to win an IRL race on his season debut. Said Dixon of his second Indy-car…
Auckland: An Urban Paradise
Leap-frogging Sydney, Auckland is the fifth-best city in the world to live in, according to an annual survey by Mercer Human Resources Consulting. The ranking takes into account a variety of political, social and economic factors,…
Power Steering for Coutts
The victorious Alinghi campaign was described by Larry Ellison, head of Oracle as, “a fine Swiss watch with a few Kiwi parts”, none more influential than helmsman Russell Coutts. The win establishing him as one of the…
