Scientists Assess Surprise Status of Ross Ice Shelf
New Zealand scientists have peered into one of the least-explored swaths of ocean on Earth, a vast region located off the coast of West Antarctica. It is locked beneath a crust of ice larger…
Blog Archives
Boy Fans Will Love The Breakers and Upperers
If you enjoy contemporary New Zealand comedies like Boy, What We Do in the Shadows, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, then you should put this Taika Waititi-executive produced title The Breaker Upperers on your radar, recommends…
Move Over Norway and Behold Fiordland
“If you’ve never heard of this national park, on New Zealand’s South Island, then you won’t know that it’s one of earth’s most staggeringly jaw-dropping wildernesses,” the Britain’s Daily Mail reports. The publication features…
Superorganism’s Harry Lets Us in on Band’s Mystique
Signing to Domino Records mid-2017, the fun pop eight-piece Superorganism has since kept a pretty exclusive profile, playing only a handful of shows throughout the entire year. With the release of their self-titled debut…
New Zealand’s Role in Apocalypse Now
“If you’re interested in the end of the world, you’re interested in New Zealand. If you’re interested in how our current cultural anxieties – climate catastrophe, decline of transatlantic political orders, resurgent nuclear terror…
Maryanne Redpath at Helm of Berlinale’s Generation
Within 10 years, former artist, teacher and filmmaker New Zealand-born Maryanne Redpath has turned the Berlinale youth section Generation into one of the most popular strands of the film festival, with a gem-packed programme…
Robyn Malcolm on Cleavage and Credibility
It is something of a surprise to see New Zealander Robyn Malcolm looking positively restrained, wearing a conservative skirt and blouse, for her role as Maxine Pavich in the new ABC television drama series…
Why New Zealand Has So Many Gang Members
“For a quiet country, New Zealand has a peculiar problem with gangs. It is reckoned to have one of the highest membership rates in the world. In a population of 4.7m, police count over…
Pirate Involved in Peter Blake’s Death Recaptured
Brazilian police on a remote Amazon River island have arrested a man involved in the murder of round-the-world sailor New Zealander Sir Peter Blake in 2001. José Irandir Cardoso had been a fugitive for the…
Rotorua the Southern Hemisphere’s Yellowstone
“The Rotorua region, one of the world’s most geothermally active areas, is the Southern Hemisphere’s take on Yellowstone – minus bison, bears and backed-up crowds,” journalist M.L. Lyke writes for The Washington Post. “Gases and…
Jacinda Ardern Graces Vogue’s Pages
Jacinda Ardern is clear-eyed about what a prime minister of New Zealand, a country with a population of under five million, can achieve on the world stage. “We’re small,” she tells Amelia Lester reporting…
Former PM Bill English Quits Politics
Former New Zealand prime minister Bill English, 56, has resigned as leader of the National Party, quitting politics after a 27-year career. “Now is the right time for me to step aside and embark on new professional…
Artist Francis Upritchard Describes Balata
A festive crowd of art-lovers gathered at Lux Art Institute in Encinitas, California recently for the opening of a show by the first of its 2018 resident artists, London-based New Zealander Francis Upritchard. Upritchard’s odd…
Unknown Mortal Orchestra Begin Promotion of New LP
The follow-up to New Zealand band Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s 2015 album Multi-Love, their fourth studio album, Sex & Food is out on 6 April. Bandleader Ruban Nielson described the impetus behind the album, saying he wanted to…
See If You Can Pronounce This Place Name
“Every world traveller knows the struggles of trying to fit into a foreign country’s culture. It requires remembering local customs, practicing appropriate etiquette, and (perhaps the most challenging) learning to speak like a local….
How to Honeymoon in New Zealand
Wanting to take their time soaking in jagged mountains, rolling pastures, steep fjords, pristine lakes, raging rivers and scenic beaches, Indonesians Gwen Winarno and Yudha Budhisurya took a road trip in New Zealand while…
Anna Paquin Does Some Detective Work in Bellevue
New Zealander Anna Paquin plays Detective Anna Ryder in the Canadian television series, Bellevue. “Paquin, whose onscreen presence guarantees an otherworldly, alienating grace, is doing more work than is first apparent,” Variety TV critic…
Sriwhana Spong Considers Monuments to Oppression
“A quiet but intensely powerful exhibition at San Francisco nonprofit gallery Kadist refutes the idea that we can shed the pain of the history of oppression by turning away from it,” Charles Desmarais writes…
Inspiring Cancer Story Written by Petra Kotrotsos
Wellingtonian Petra Kotrotsos is not your average 21-year-old, according to Melbourne-based Greek community newspaper Neos Kosmos. A video blogger and aspiring filmmaker, she’s also a cancer veteran, having been through various treatments since she…
Opuio Releases Striking Ginger Lizard Video
New Zealand-born Melbourne-based producer Oscar Davey-Wraight, aka Opiuo, has released the official video for his brand new single Ginger Lizard, which is taken from his forthcoming EP, Syzygy 01 scheduled for release on 2…
Conductor Michael Joel Directs Fine Concert
Under the direction of New Zealand-born conductor Michael Joel, the Lakeland Sinfonia “presented a programme that was well-suited to their strengths,” according to the Westmorland Gazette’s Adrian Mullen in a review of a recent…
Ice Sculptor Tatiana Zimina Competes in China
New Zealander Tatiana Zimina has recently returned from northeast China where she competed in ice and snow sculpting with her partner and two friends in the annual Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival. The…
Marlon Williams Leads Fertile Lyttelton Music Scene
There is nothing like some personal trauma to fuel the muse of a songwriter. Acclaimed New Zealand troubadour Marlon Williams, 27, can attest to that, and the results are etched deeply into the grooves…
Virgin Media’s Tom Mockridge Connects UK Homes
Virgin Media, with New Zealander Tom Mockridge at the helm, has connected more than a million homes to its ultrafast broadband network, in the latest sign that the roll-out of high-speed internet services is…
Peter Beck’s Mission to Conquer Space
Rocket Lab entrepreneur Peter Beck’s recent launch into orbit of the 65-sided, carbon-fibre satellite Humanity Star drew a barrage of flak from scientists. But the New Zealander remains undaunted. Beck explains his decision to Ian…
Georgia Fowler Shoot Lauds Harper’s Anniversary
Georgia Fowler, 25, the youngest daughter of Australian golfer Peter Fowler, is quickly becoming one of the most recognisable faces in the world, twice taking to the coveted Victoria’s Secret runway. Fowler (pictured left)…
Athletics Role for Rowing Ireland’s Hamish Adams
Athletics Ireland has announced the appointment of New Zealander Hamish Adams as its new chief executive officer. Adams, who for the past five years has been Rowing Ireland CEO, will vacate that role and take…
Perpetual Guardian Announces Shorter Work Week
New Zealand trustee company Perpetual Guardian is on the cusp of granting its employees the ultimate in work-life balance: four days work for five days pay, Eleanor Ainge Roy reports for UK newspaper The…
Frisky Spokesbird Sirocco Comes out of Hiding
Sirocco, New Zealand’s superstar kakapo, is alive and well in Fiordland, according to the Department of Conservation. The conservation ‘spokesbird’ shot to fame after he got a bit too friendly…
New Zealand Captured in Dreamy Infrared
Interested in producing images on “the fringe of the otherworldly,” California-based landscape photographer Paul Hoi creatively combines science fiction with psychedelia. Using a camera modified for full spectrum infrared, Hoi transforms familiar visuals into…
New Zealand Publicly Funds HIV Protection Drug
New Zealand is about to take a pioneering approach to fighting HIV/AIDS – by publicly funding pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication Truvada, manufactured by US biotech giant Gilead. Taking this drug daily has shown to offer…
Chris Waller Humbled by Hall of Fame Recognition
All Sydney-based trainer Chris Waller wanted to be was a reasonable trainer when he started in the tough game of preparing racehorses in his homeland of New Zealand. Reasonable has been replaced by premier…
Cricket Legend Bevan Congdon Leaves True Legacy
Motueka-born Bevan Congdon, who captained New Zealand to its first Test win over Australia in 1974, has died a day short of his 80th birthday in Auckland. In total, Congdon played 61 Tests and captained…
Shotover Tech Wizards Score Early Oscar for Aerials
Queenstown design engineers John Coyle, Brad Hurndell, Vikas Sathaye and Shane Buckham have scored a jump on Margot Robbie, Daniel Day-Lewis and Meryl Streep a month before the Oscars. The group has just been…
Politicians Must Earn Back Trust Says Ardern
Jacinda Ardern is not your average prime minister, Times political journalist Alice Thomson quickly learns. The second prime minister after Benazir Bhutto, in 1990, to be pregnant while running a country, is down to…
New Zealand the Perfect Place to Shape Ed Hillary
“I ended up in boat-drunk summery Auckland because I wanted to figure out, 10 years after Sir Edmund Hillary’s death, how the first person to climb Mount Everest ever happened. I promise that is…
Aaron Jeffery Gets into the Head of Chopper Read
A quirk of fate could have changed the path of Australian film history and seen New Zealander Aaron Jeffery play Chopper Read nearly 20 years ago. “I auditioned for the original Chopper movie,” Jeffery, 47,…
Tape Face Gets Stuck Into Vegas
New Zealand silent comedian Sam Wills, aka Tape Face, is to embark on a three-year residency in Las Vegas. The Harrah’s casino has custom-built a cabaret venue for his mime show at a reported cost…
While Away the Weekend in Auckland and Northland
From breathtaking golf courses to pristine waterways, there are many amazing ways to enjoy New Zealand’s northernmost tip, Tourism New Zealand promotes in gallery format on Britain’s Guardian news site. “Legendary underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau…
World’s Loneliest Bird Nigel Dies on Mana Island
Nigel, a handsome gannet who lived on a desolate island off the coast of New Zealand, died suddenly last week. Wherever his soul has landed, the singles scene surely cannot be worse, Karin Brulliard…
Braindead as Outrageous as it is Brilliant
Peter Jackson’s 1992 “gore-fest” Braindead has been named one of the 30 most violent films ever made by entertainment website GamesRadar+. The list also includes Irreversible, Evil Dead and Cannibal Holocaust. Alex Avard writes for the…
London’s Frame Gym Finds Private Equity Backing
Frame gym, founded by New Zealander Joan Murphy, 36, (pictured right) and Briton Pip Black, 35, offers pay-as-you-go membership and classes, from ballet-inspired barre workouts to kitsch 1990s-style aerobics – imagine headbands, neon and…
KJ Apa to Star in Romantic Comedy The Last Summer
New Zealander KJ Apa is coming back to the big screen. Teen Vogue reports that the Riverdale star recently got a part in the new movie The Last Summer, a romantic comedy that centres…
Kimbra’s Third Album Primal Heart Out in April
Ahead of a recent show at Chicago’s Conchord Music Hall, New Zealand singer, songwriter and producer Kimbra, 27, spoke with Jim Ryan of ChicagoNow about her third studio album Primal Heart, its theme of…
Trouble Brewing Collaborates for Chinese New Year
Singapore-based craft beer microbrewery Trouble Brewing, founded by New Zealander Joseph Barratt, has teamed up with a local illustrator for a specially designed bottle, which contains beer styles such as its Summer Ale, Dutch…
PM Talks about Her Particularly Public Surprise
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern talks to Guardian contributor and Spinoff editor Toby Manhire about her surprise pregnancy and why she won’t stay quiet on sexism. “I did think about her quite a bit…
British and US Migrants Flock to New Zealand
The number of American and British residents choosing to live in far-flung New Zealand has risen sharply since the election of Donald Trump and the UK’s Brexit vote, according to new migration figures. The…
Celebrating 125 Years of the Female Vote in NZ
New Zealand Minister for Women Julie Anne Genter recently called for communities across New Zealand to celebrate women fighting and gaining the right to vote, 125 years ago. “New Zealand was the first country in…
Country Swelters Through Hottest Ever Month
January was the hottest month ever recorded in New Zealand, according to figures released by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), and experts say climate change is one factor. The heat has…
War Correspondent Kate Webb Read Her Own Obits
She was sitting on the steps of her hotel, in the middle of Saigon, when the military jeeps zipped by, headed toward the sound of gunfire. So that’s where Kate Webb headed, too. “I…
New Zealand Food Experiences You Can’t Replicate
“Known for its active volcanoes, Maori history and a landscape that swings between farmland, forest and foreshore, New Zealand’s North Island upholds its reputation for adventure. But look beyond Auckland’s restaurants and Wellington’s coffee…
Not All Fast Cars for Racer Brendon Hartley
You may have seen his wedding photos on social media recently, but Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley, 28, generally steers clear of the public eye – at least by F1 driver standards. The Formula 1…
Mark Bridgwater’s Breathtaking Outdoor Shot
Christchurch commercial and adventure sports photographer Mark Bridgwater’s shot of fellow New Zealander, skier Charlie Lyons flying down the slopes at Temple Basin in Arthur’s Pass, was recently included in a Guardian selection of…
British Actress Tackles Wilds of the South Island
Throughout British actress Jenny Agutter’s career, she writes in an article for the Telegraph that she has been “fortunate enough to be transported through time – whether to post-war Britain and the Sixties in…
Tips for Top Times to Visit New Zealand
Whether you want to hike, sun on the beach, or sip wine (or all three) Travel + Leisure magazine recommends taking note before planning your trip to New Zealand. “New Zealand is a dream destination,”…
Neville Crichton has Transformed Sailing Industry
New Zealand born and bred, Neville Crichton’s humble beginning on a farm in the South Island is a far cry from where he is today, 72 years later. Crichton is the executive chairman of one…
