Top Locations to Visit in New Zealand
New Zealand is one of Huffington Post travel writer Sophie Hannah Davis’ favourite places in the world. Davis shares her top locations, including sailing in the Bay of Islands, white water rafting on the…
Blog Archives
Antarctic Meteorologist Receives Polar Award
Auckland-born meteorologist Agnieszka Fryckowska has received the prestigious Polar Award for her service with the British Antarctic Survey, joining the ranks of Sir Edmund Hillary and Sir Ernest Shackleton. Fryckowska was flown from her home…
Kakapo Conservationists Celebrate Breeding Success
The kakapo, the world’s heaviest parrot, a critically endangered bird that only lives in a remote part of New Zealand, has had its most successful breeding season since conservation efforts began more than two…
NZ Adopts Jet And Battery Power For Buses
“When it comes to reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, we’re increasingly hitting the law of diminishing returns when it comes to cars and other light duty vehicles,” according to Sam Abuelsamid writing…
Getting into Character with Cliff Curtis
Cliff Curtis wasn’t the first choice to play Genesis Potini, admits Dark Horse director James Napier Robertson, who was in Washington recently to promote the film to US audiences. Robertson says he never even considered…
Margot Henderson’s Fish Recipe Makes Luncheon
“London’s most cherished chef” New Zealander Margot Henderson offers up the very first meal she ever cooked for her now husband, the celebrated British chef and owner of St. John restaurant, Fergus Henderson, for…
GoPro Poaches Apple’s Design Man Danny Coster
California-based action camera manufacturing company GoPro has poached a member of Sir Jonathan Ive’s design team at Apple, New Zealander Danny Coster, who will become vice-president of design, reporting to Nick Woodman, chief executive. Coster…
Lorde Magnetic with Disclosure at Coachella
Lorde surprised festival-goers as she joined English group Disclosure on stage on Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California performing the hit Magnets, the most successful song from Disclosure’s album Caracal in Australia…
Greg Semu Exhibit Celebrates Pacific Cultures
A new photographic exhibition by New Zealand-born Greg Semu on at Cairns Regional Gallery celebrates the tradition and culture of Pacific nations and challenges commonly held beliefs about the region’s colonisation. Semu has a 20-year…
Michael Ashton Reveals Adele Eyeliner Flick Secret
Adele’s make-up artist New Zealander Michael Ashton has revealed the secret of how to recreate her Sixties-inspired look at home in a new YouTube tutorial, which has notched up over 1.5 million views since…
Outside Magazine Fancies New Icebreaker Range
New Zealand garment manufacturer Icebreaker get the Outside Magazine endorsement, their new MerinoLoft insulation “coveted” by the publication. “Icebreaker’s MerinoLoft is exceptionally warm, outperforming both down and synthetic alternatives, especially when wet,” Wes Siler writes…
Welcome to World’s First Ever Pastafarian Wedding
The world’s first official Pastafarian wedding, held by The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and officiated by Martyn, the ministeroni, has taken place in Akaroa. “The groom, Toby Ricketts, vowed to always add salt…
Ronald Syme’s The Roman Republic a Masterpiece
New Zealander Sir Ronald Syme’s The Roman Revolution, written under the cloud of fascism, is a compelling account of the decline of the Roman oligarchy in favour of a principate, according to author Joseph…
Suzie Bates World’s Leading Female Cricketer
Dunedin-born skipper Suzie Bates, 28, has been named Wisden’s 2015 Leading Woman Cricketer in the World, scooping the accolade ahead of Australians Meg Lanning and Ellyse Perry. The right-hander joins New Zealand men’s captain Kane…
Joël Penkman Painting Mouth-Watering Treats
Joël Penkman, a New Zealander based in the UK, is someone who loves to paint as much as she loves to eat, Katy Cowan writes for art and design blog Creative Boom. “So when…
Actor Manu Bennett Returns to TV Roots
Rotorua-born film and television star Manu Bennett, 46, one of the big drawcards at the recent 2016 Supanova Pop Culture Expo, cut his teeth as an actor on the Gold Coast back in 1993 as…
Phillip Island V8 Win for Scott McLaughlin
Christchurch-born Scott McLaughlin, 22, has claimed a commanding V8 Supercars win in Race 1 of the WD-40 Phillip Island SuperSprint in Australia after winning his first pole of the season. McLaughlin, who is the youngest…
NZ-Michigan Penpals Connected for 40 Years
Berwyn Arthur, 87, of Waimate and Wilma Christian, 91, of Michigan have been writing to each other for more than four decades and though the two women have been communicating since 1971, the international…
Cecil Low’s Churchill Cartoon Rallied a Nation
Renowned political cartoonist and caricaturist New Zealander David Alexander Cecil Low, who worked for the Evening Standard from 1927 to 1950, rallied Britain behind the new leader Winston Churchill producing “an inspiring exhortation to…
Simon Richardson’s Mila Portrait off to Top UK Show
Dunedin artist Simon Richardson’s portrait of his seven-year-old daughter Mila is believed to be the first by a New Zealander to be chosen for the BP Portrait Award exhibition at the National…
Jonny Kennaugh Uniting the Citizens of Dubai
Jonny Kennaugh was passing through Dubai while travelling the world with his wife Aimee-Rose Stephenson. A two-month visit became five years when the New Zealanders decided to launch social initiative, The Sameness Project, with…
Liz Young Keeping it Fresh at Cooking School
New Zealander Liz Young and Swede Tine Roche run Cambridge Cookery School and Café, a showcase for the UK school’s “fresh, seasonal, honest” brand of food. “ something I missed from home: the…
NZ Spider Could Have the Fastest Jaws in the World
New research undertaken by scientists at the Smithsonian Institution in the United States has highlighted a species of New Zealand spider that could have the fastest jaws in the world, with strikes so fast…
Relaxing with Designer Karen Walker
Designer, managing director, and the face of her brand, Karen Walker, apparently also has time for tennis. The New Zealander talks to the Australian Financial Review about how she unwinds. “I had lessons as…
Art Dealer Denis Savill Bows out after 35 Years
New Zealand-born art dealer Denis Savill, 75, doyen of the Sydney and Melbourne saleroom scene, is retiring – with Sotheby’s Australia handling a special sale of some of his 120 works by blue-chip artists…
Atea Oceanie Gets A-list Endorsements
Right now in Hollywood, low-key style is defined by sophisticated, nondescript basics – and none are as popular than those from Atea Oceanie, a fashion label founded by 37-year-old New Zealander Laura Myers. In just…
Peter Bale at the Crux of Panama Papers Leak
Chief executive of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Public Integrity, former Wairarapa Times-Age and Evening Post journalist Peter Bale, is the New Zealander central to the Panama Papers leak from Panamanian law firm Mossack…
The Dark Horse Opens to Acclaim in US
James Napier Robertson’s film The Dark Horse, starring the “magnetic” Cliff Curtis, has opened in the United States to glowing reviews from critics. Robert Abele, writing for the Los Angeles Times, said: “star Curtis is…
Writer Maria Lewis Outdoes Tarantino
New Zealand-born journalist and author Maria Lewis has morphed from a crime reporter on the Gold Coast to pop-culture extraordinaire, has nabbed an international publishing deal and caught Quentin Tarantino’s attention, all by the…
Kakapo May Need Parasites to Survive
Conservation biologists are doing everything they can to keep the critically endangered kakapo from vanishing. And so, when they discovered a few years ago that a pair of captive kakapo were infected with tapeworms,…
1080p Founder Richard MacFarlane Taped
Founder of Vancouver-based cassette label 1080p, New Zealander Richard MacFarlane is making a name for himself for a brand, which “uniquely inspires producers while consuming the attention spans of aesthete trend-seekers in electronic music,”…
Sound Fossil of the Huia Echoes in Munich
As inhabitants of the Anthropocene age, in which our influence on the planet is so profound and terrifying, the Guardian asks how our writers and artists are responding to this crisis. Included in an…
Makelight’s Joanna Alpe Winning High Tech Praise
Co-founder and creative director of Makelight, a mobile device platform for live events, New Zealander Joanna Alpe, who is based in London, is included in a Huffington Post feature on tech femmes as part…
Emilia Wickstead is Classic with a Twist
Eight years ago, New Zealand-born Emilia Wickstead, was working from home in the sitting room of her flat in west London. Now her clothes are worn by the Duchess of Cambridge, Gwyneth Paltrow and…
Blair Reeve’s New Children’s Book a Classic
Hong Kong-based New Zealander Blair Reeve, who mentors students at Chinese University in creative writing, has just published children’s book Hogart the Hedgehog Turns Nink, “an enormously fun book, and a gratifying one to…
After WWII NZ Navy Rocked With Peaceful Mutinies
As far as navies go, the Royal New Zealand Navy is a relatively young one. For most of New Zealand’s time as a British colony, the country was protected by the British Navy. It…
Explore Otherworldly New Zealand by Drone
After one swooping panoramic, filmed with a 3D Robotics drone, you’ll see why New Zealand is such a popular place to go, according to Travel + Leisure magazine. “I was out exploring New Zealand …
Jemaine Clement Plays Joseph Banks in New Podcast
Jemaine Clement returns to radio playing Captain Cook’s botanist Lord Joseph Banks in the podcast The Mysterious Secrets of Uncle Bertie’s Botanarium, which is currently airing on the Howl app. Written by fellow New Zealander…
Tramping Tracks Offer One Spectacle After Another
New Zealanders work hard to make tramping attractive, according to a travel feature on local tracks in the Korea Herald. The maintenance is “impressive: crushed-rock trail beds; comfortable clearance even in the most dense…
Nikole Lowe’s Tattoo Parlour One of London’s Best
One of London’s best tattoo parlours, according to GQ magazine, is Good Times in Shoreditch, owned by New Zealander Nikole Lowe, who has previously made appearances on reality show London Ink. “Good Times…
Peter Bruntnell an Alt-Country Genius
Album after album, the Kingston upon Thames solo artist, Wellington-born Peter Bruntnell produces rich and refined song-craft, yet hardly anyone has heard of him. Could this be his time? The Guardian’s Angus Batey considers…
US Study Looks at How Islands Are Saving Natives
“In 1894, a pregnant house cat escaped from a lighthouse on Stephens Island, in the Marlborough Sounds. She had her kittens in the wild, where they went feral. Within 13 months, a native bird…
How to Ford a River
The New York Times asks retired firefighter, New Zealander George Spearing, who has crossed hundreds of rivers on solo wilderness treks, including a five-month, 4265km hike from the Mexican border to British Columbia and…
Game of Thrones Star Joins Top of the Lake
Gwendoline Christie, who plays popular Game of Thrones character Brienne of Tarth, will join Mad Men star Elisabeth Moss in a new season of the much-praised Jane Campion TV show Top of the Lake,…
Rocket Lab’s Rutherford Engine Lifts Off
A video has been posted of New Zealand-founded company Rocket Lab launching their new Rutherford engine. The burn lasts for a full two minutes and 40 seconds, completing an important flight qualification test. The company…
Simon Denny a Millennial Subversive
Look beyond the traditional spaces and what emerges are a group of Generation Y artists who are arguably more avant garde than ever, like New Zealander Simon Denny, 33. The Guardian enters a world…
New Zealand Is Mad for Pinot Gris
On a recent trip, the Telegraph’s wine columnist Victoria Moore was surprised to see how “crazy everyone in New Zealand seemed to be for pinot gris.” Moore wonders when Britain will catch on. “Growers were…
Cheryl Boyd’s Stringybark Garden a Magical Surprise
New Zealand-born garden designer and horticulturist Cheryl Boyd’s Stringybark Cottage garden is one of eight private Australian gardens featured in Phaidon’s account of worldwide gardens, The Gardener’s Garden. Sydney Morning Herald garden columnist Robin Powell…
Fulfilling Your Dreams in New Zealand
“Bungy jumping, whitewater rafting, skydiving and getting lost in an adult-sized maze all featured highly on my list but I never thought I’d get to do any of them. And then I arrived…
High-Octane Thrills amid Spectacular Scenery
“There are few, if any, other places in the world where you can do some scenic mountain sightseeing while plunging at a velocity of 200km/h for 3050m of free fall. In 60 seconds,” Jeremy…
South Island Has a Personality All If Its Own
“Many believe the South Island is less inherently New Zealand than its northern neighbour,” according to American travel writer Max Bonem, “But if you take the time to explore this stunning landscape, you’ll find…
Martin Henderson Not Taking Fame Too Seriously
Just how did the star of Grey’s Anatomy New Zealander Martin Henderson, 41, get so comfortable with the slings and arrows of a business which can literally plaster you sky high on billboards one…
South Canterbury Contractors Unearth Moa Bones
Contractors at a site in South Canterbury have made an unexpected find while digging a trench – dozens of bones belonging to the long-extinct moa. Workers spotted the bones during excavations in an area which…
Tom Walsh Throws Gold at IAAF World Indoor Champs
Tom Walsh, 24, from Christchurch, has hurled his shot put a personal best of 21.78m, taking the gold medal and bettering his previous mark in outdoor competition of 21.62m, at the 2016 IAAF World…
Lucy Lawless Separating Real Life from Xena
In an interview with Australia’s Sunrise breakfast television programme, New Zealand actor Lucy Lawless, who shot to fame with her role as Xena over 20 years ago, said she was more than happy to…
Sarah Bentley Curates Trans-Tasman Dialogue
Curator and art writer New Zealander Serena Bentley creates a dialogue between two Melbourne painters – Kate Smith and Meagan Wyke – and three Aucklanders – Schaeffer Lemalu, Patrick Lundberg, Campbell Patterson – in…
