Jemaine Clement Talks Conchords and Vampires
Conchord and vampire Jemaine Clement is interviewed by The Guardian’s Alexander Bisley on his new film What We Do in the Shadows, share homes, and his Maori heritage. Clement is one of the most noted…
Blog Archives
Double Gold for New Zealand Ends Superb Campaign
Victories for double scullers Fiona Bourke and Zoe Stevenson, and single sculler Emma Twigg capped off a superb world championship regatta for New Zealand’s rowers in Amsterdam. Those wins lifted New Zealand’s gold medal haul…
Schmidt Wins New Zealand’s First Olympic Medal in Trampoline
Dylan Schmidt became the first New Zealand athlete to win an Olympic medal in trampoline when he bounced to gold at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games on Friday. “It’s pretty cool,” the 17-year-old said….
Young Kiwi Entrepreneurs Win FedEx Competition
Two teams from New Zealand won both first and second place at the FedEx Express/Junior Achievement International Trade Challenge Asia Pacific, in which students in the region competed with business plans for a beauty…
Heidi Klum Wears Kiwi Design to Emmys
Kiwi fashion designer Sean Kelly, who is currently participating in the latest season of Project Runway, had his dress worn by Heidi Klum at this week’s Emmys. The New Zealand designer and Massey…
Vista – New Zealand’s International Software Firm – Rising
New Zealand’s next big software company Vista Group climbed as much as 3 per cent on its first day of trading, after raising $92.6 million in its IPO last month. The New Zealand-based…
Tributes for Trailblazing Producer Caterina De Nave
The film and television industry has lost “a major figure in the New Zealand television landscape” in Caterina De Nave, who passed away on the weekend, following a long battle with illness, aged 67. De…
Auckland Ties with Melbourne for World’s Friendliest City
It’s great to be a tourist down under, with travellers naming New Zealand and Australia among the best vacation destinations – the cities of Auckland and Melbourne are the friendliest in the world. Kiwis and…
Milky Way Glows Over New Zealand in Stunning Photo
Space.com has featured a stunning image of the stars; proving New Zealand is one of the best places in the world to view the night sky. The image, by astrophotographer Amit Kamble, was taken on…
Fassbender to Film in New Zealand
Michael Fassbender is to shoot his new film, The Light Between Oceans, in New Zealand. Despite being set off the Australian coast, Derek Cianfrance’s big-screen adaptation of ML Stedman’s 2012 novel is to be filmed…
Kiwi Completes 40km Scottish Loch Swim
David Dawson has become the first New Zealander to swim solo the length of Loch Lomond in Scotland, the largest inland stretch of water in Great Britain. The ex-pat did the swim as…
Second Colossal Squid for NZ Museum
Seven years after a New Zealand museum captured the world’s attention with the first colossal squid, a second of the mammoth sea creatures has been added to Te Papa’s collection. Wellington scientists are excited by…
Michael Volkerling, Cultural Visionary (1948-2014)
One of the principal architects of New Zealand’s cultural and creative sectors, Dr Michael Volkerling, died suddenly on 13 June, 2014 in Sydney, aged 66. At the time of his death he was Principal…
Supermoon Appears in New Zealand Skies
New Zealand was the first country in the world to see the dramatic supermoon. On Sunday, the full moon reached the point in its orbit that is closest to the Earth, known as perigee. The Guardian…
Swimmer Lauren Boyle Sets New World Record
New Zealand swimmer and Commonwealth Games gold medalist Lauren Boyle has set a new world record in Wellington. Less than a month after taking silver in Glasgow, Boyle broke the 1500m freestyle world record at…
20 Facts About New Zealand
The Huffington Post has written a list of facts about New Zealand for tourists, featuring many things kiwis are proud to claim, from Baldwin Street to bungee jumping. Most of the facts on the list…
Mature Kiwis Stun Paraguay in U-20 Women’s World Cup
New Zealand have made a dream start to their FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Paraguay at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium in Canada. The junior Football Ferns have never progressed beyond…
New Zealand Launches Biggest Ever Cultural Charge to Edinburgh Festival
The New Zealand contingent at Edinburgh 2014 includes around 240 actors, dancers, musicians, Maori performing artists, producers and writers. One of these acts is The Factory – described as “the Pacific Les Mis” – exploring…
Scott Dixon Wins 5th Mid-Ohio IndyCar in 8 years
New Zealand racer Scott Dixon went from last in qualifying to capture his fifth win at Mid-Ohio in the last eight years. Dixon coasted in on low fuel Sunday to finally end his team’s victory…
Linda Villumesen Takes Time Trial Gold in Glasgow
Linda Villumsen, 29, dug deep in the final stages of the time-trial to beat professional cyclist Briton Emma Pooley by six seconds, winning gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Villumson finished with a time…
Kiwi Students Win Big at Microsoft’s Imagine Cup
A group of aspiring technologists from the University of Auckland have taken out one of three grand prizes and won $50,000 at Microsoft’s Imagine Cup in Seattle. Kiwi team Estimeet won the Innovation category at…
Kiwi Directs New Katy Perry Video
Joel Kefali has directed music videos for Lorde, The Naked and Famous and David Dallas – but he’s just released his biggest one yet. The Kiwi director is the man behind Katy Perry’s latest video, This…
Rocket Lab launches Commercial Space and Satellite Service
New Zealand is bracing to get a big slice of the global satellite launch market with its unique space programme getting ready to blast off by 2015. Peter Beck, founder and CEO of private initiative…
Sainsbury’s Invests in Techion Cloud Technology
A small New Zealand-based agri-tech company Techion Group have received a research and development fund from UK supermarket giant Sainsbury’s. The grant of 400,000 Euro will go towards further developing Techion’s cloud-based system for diagnosing…
New Zealand Wine Favoured by British
New Zealand can claim another victory over Australians with research showing British wine drinkers prefer New Zealand vino to theirs. New Zealand is now the second most popular country of origin for premium wine sold…
Greg Foran Named New Wal-Mart USA CEO
Wal-Mart, the world’s biggest retailer, has announced New Zealander Greg Foran as CEO of its US business, responsible for 4,700 stores and accounting for 60 percent of the company’s total global revenue of US$476b. Foran,…
The Musket Room Offers Impeccable New Zealand Cuisine
“The Musket Room serves New Zealand cuisine with an impeccable presentation, adding a bit of whimsy with touches, such as edible flowers. And it is shaking things up with a revamped cocktail menu”…
Comic-Con Kicks Off Featuring Strong Kiwi Contingent
Comic-Con begins in San Diego today, with the New Zealand representatives ranging from Peter Jackson and the Hobbit producers to a small movie made by an Auckland animation school. The Hobbit will be a major…
New Zealand’s Coromandel Peninsula Well Worth a Visit
“Bake in the sands of Hot Water beach, then take in the art, stunning views and craft beer of the Coromandel peninsula” says Will Macpherson in The Guardian’s Travel Guide. The Coromandel’s charms are no…
Lydia Ko Becomes LPGA’s Youngest Millionaire
At just 17 years old, Lydia Ko is the youngest millionaire on the LPGA Tour, ever. The New Zealander won the Marathon Classic in Ohio to become the youngest player to surpass $1 million in…
“Bilbo Baggins Slept Here” in New Zealand
“It’s dinner and a movie … set” reports Ashley Winchester of the New York Times, who describes the Lord of the Rings guided tour as “straight out of Middle Earth”. The Hobbiton Movie Set in…
Diver Captures Footage of Undiscovered Cave in New Zealand
A diving instructor has found an undiscovered cave half a mile underground in New Zealand, posting incredible footage of the discovery online. Martyn Farr, 63, was diving through a 350-feet-long underwater passage, before he emerged…
Teenage Girl Tackling Men’s Club Rugby
A teenage girl in Southland has been allowed to play with the big boys, with April Miller, 18, taking to the field at lock in what is typically men’s club rugby. Despite admitting to some…
New Zealand-Based Booktrack Launches Writing Contest with Hugh Howey
Booktrack, the New Zealand-based eBook soundtrack company, has partnered with best-selling author Hugh Howey and digital writing community Wattpad to launch a competition that will reward creativity in words and music with up to…
New Zanada is Officially The Nicest Country In The World
BuzzFeed has compiled a list of how great two of the nicest countries in the world would be if they were put together. The joined nation of New Zealand and Canada, dubbed New Zanada, has…
Sean MacPherson Lights Up New York’s East Village
New Zealand-born New York hotelier Sean MacPherson’s new hotel The Ludlow is the sixth and largest in his growing empire of soigné, Downtown lodgings and restaurants, reports the New York Observer. The Ludlow…
Reading More Online but Taking in Less, New Zealand Study
The internet is making more information available than ever before, but it’s not necessarily making us smarter, New Zealand researchers have said. In a study titled Is Google Making Us Stupid? The Impact of the Internet…
Architecture Full of Romantics – Mark Wigley, Retiring Columbia Dean
New Zealand-born Mark Wigley has stepped down after 10 years as dean of the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (GSAPP) at Columbia University. Under his leadership, the school has built on its…
Kiwi Punter Makes Global News with Germany – Brazil Prediction
A New Zealander who bet $2 on the exact score between FIFA World Cup Semi-finalists Brazil and Germany has made global headlines. The semi-final, which ended 7-1 to Germany and has been called “Brazil’s worst…
I Love Ugly to Open Store in LA
Founders of menswear label I Love Ugly have reluctantly stepped into the spotlight as they prepare to go global. The New Zealand entrepreneurs are about to open their first international store in LA on…
NZ Security Expert – ISIS Positioned to Develop Chemical Weapons
In the course of its Blitzkrieg in northern Iraq, ISIS captured the Al Muthanna complex, which contains remnants of Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons stock, buried in underground concrete bunkers and left undestroyed by American…
New York via Te Papa for Flax Art
Fifty woven panels by 40 Maori artists are to hang permanently next to the entry of the General Assembly Hall at the UN Headquarters in New York. The tukutuku panels, a revered art form in…
Kiwi’s Photo of Star System Shortlisted for International Award
A stunning image entitled “The Turbulent Heart of the Scorpion” by New Zealand photographer Rolf Wahl Olsen has been shortlisted in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. The photograph is of the multiple star…
Meet the New Zealander Who Wants to Colonise Mars
Wellington-based scientist Hari Mogosanu is unperturbed by crude pop-culture imaginings of Mars, like the 1990 sci-fi classic Total Recall, writes Danielle Street for Vice. Three years ago, the she formed the New Zealand chapter of…
App Turns Colouring Books into 3D Art
A kiwi invention is taking the beloved pastime of colouring-in to a whole new, high-tech level, allowing kids’ colouring creations to come to life. New Zealand company Puteko’s colAR Mix app allows users to print,…
Kiwi Doctor to Perform Double Arm Transplant
New Zealand Doctor Simon Talbot will lead a surgical team to give a quadruple amputee both his arms back. Will Lautzenheiser, filmmaker and former BU professor, lost all four of his limbs three…
Artist Transforms iPhone Into Modern Soldier Tribute
A leading New York based New Zealand photographer Henry Hargreaves, has created a new art series featuring Vietnam War style messages on mobile phones. In his new series “War Phones”, Hargreaves worked with a prop stylist…
Boeing Delivers First 787-9 Dreamliner to Air New Zealand
New Zealand will be home to the first Boeing 787-9 plane after Air New Zealand officially acquired the first of the 10 new models yesterday. “Boeing is proud to have contractually delivered the first 787-9…
Richard Branson Hosts New Zealand Scientist on Private Island
A New Zealand scientist has spent a week with Richard Branson on his private Caribbean island playing chess, eating sushi and discussing technology and sustainability. Auckland University lecturer Dr Michelle Dickinson was one of eight…
Day-Night Test Likely Next Year
Negotiations are moving closer to make the first ever day-night test cricket match between Australia and New Zealand official. Adelaide and Hobart are battling for the honour of staging the first ever Test cricket day-night…
Gibbs Adds Two-Seater To High-Speed Amphibian Range
Gibbs Sports Amphibians, founded by New Zealand entrepreneur Alan Gibbs, has added a new high-speed model to the company’s impressive range of amphibious vehicles. The Gibbs Quadski XL model will be added to the lineup…
Drysdale Powers to World Cup Gold
Mahe Drysdale has won gold in the single sculls at the Rowing World Cup, one of New Zealand’s five gold medals at the regatta in France. Drysdale produced a storming finish in the single sculls…
Whittaker’s Chocolate Officially Enters Malaysian Market
Iconic Kiwi company, Whittaker’s Chocolate, is confident they will be the leader in Malaysia’s premium chocolate segment in two years. Whittaker’s, which has been sold in duty-free stores in Malaysia for the past 10 years,…
IT Expert Joins Growing Group of Female Tech Leaders
Dell Australia and New Zealand has appointed Angela Fox as the managing director, making her part of the growing list of female leaders of big technology companies in Australia, including Twitter’s Karen Stocks, Google’s Maile…
On Form Willis Sets New Zealand 3000m Best
Kiwi middle distance star Nick Willis continued his outstanding build-up to the Glasgow Commonwealth Games with his second personal best inside a week. Willis broke the New Zealand record for the 3000m, clocking 7:36.91 and…
Significant and Bittersweet Victory for New Zealand Equestrian
New Zealand equestrian Tim Price has won the prestigious Luhmuhlen four-star three-day event in Germany, an event marred by the death of local rider Benjamin Winter in Saturday night’s cross country phase. Price and his…
