Ready for the Next Leg in Nevada
New Zealander Callum Millward has placed third at Ironman 70.3 Boulder and is now focused on the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Las Vegas, which takes place on 8 September. Millward talks to triathlon…
Blog Archives
Catton’s Favourite First Line Unfolds Breathlessly
Man Booker nominee New Zealand author Eleanor Catton chooses her favourite first line for a Guardian catalogue, and it’s from another of our own, Janet Frame’s 1961 novel Faces in the Water. Faces in the…
Shifting into Another Gear Ahead of Baltimore
New Zealander Scott Dixon, who has the most wins (31) in the 17-year history of the Indy Racing League and who is the only driver to finish in the top five of both runnings…
America Better Watch Out
The “unflappable” Lorde, 16, “hypnotises” at her first concert in the United States introducing “her collection of immaculately drawn pop compositions with a confidence and demeanour well beyond her years”, Billboard’s Jason Lipshutz writes…
Invaluable Volunteer Helps out in Arundel
New Zealander Andrew Wood, 26, who has been in the UK for the past 18 months, has been “the stalwart” of Arundel’s annual nine-day festival, “proving an invaluable volunteer”. Originally from Christchurch where…
It XXXXX XX Up at Sydney’s MCA
Sydney’s latest public artwork created by Dunedin-born artist Mike Hewson, 28, is certainly hard to ignore, covering more than 2000 square metres and spelled out in 14 metre-high upper-case letters on the temporary scaffolding…
Fighting for Recognition in a New Field
New Zealand stuntwoman Zoë Bell’s film Raze is screening at the Imperial Theatre as part of the one of the most influential genre film festivals in the world, the Fantasia International Film…
From One South to Another
Formerly of Gore, singer-songwriter Jackie Bristow, who has been based in the United States for the past eight years, recently performed two shows at the Neutral Ground Coffeehouse and House of Blues in New…
Artful Combinations Cross Cultures
New Zealand chef, London-based Peter Gordon, “the godfather of fusion cooking,” is the inspiration behind recipes recommended in an Irish Times article, which include a frittata topped with Greek yoghurt and sumac. “Gordon really…
On a Mission to Advantage the Disadvantaged
New Zealand-born Audette Exel, 50, lives a double life, Bloomberg Market Magazine reports. In New York, London, Bermuda and Sydney, she’s a company director and the owner and head of Isis (Asia Pacific) Pty,…
Big Brownie Takes Rod and Wheel World Record
Tauranga angler Otwin Kandolf, 71, has landed an all-tackle world record for the biggest brown trout taken on a rod and reel. Kandolf caught the massive 19kg brownie in March while fishing in Ohau…
Moore’s Los Angeles Runway Show a Hit
New Zealand designer Andrea Moore’s American debut was a “highlight of the evening”; the runway show part of Los Angeles clothing boutique Stylehaüs’ two-year anniversary celebrations held at the Sofitel Hotel. Dunedin-born Moore said…
James Bond Would Be Impressed
Ivan Sentch, an Auckland programmer and Aston Martin devotee, has decided to build a full-scale 3D printed replica of a 1961 Aston Martin DB4. “He’s already made considerable progress, with much of…
Famed Computer Hacker Fondly Remembered
Celebrated New Zealand computer hacker Barnaby Jack, who exposed vulnerabilities in bank ATMs and sparked safety improvements in medical devices, has died in San Francisco. He was 35. Jack was one of the world’s…
McEwan Takes on Politically Charged RBS Leadership
New Zealander Ross McEwan, 56, has been named the new chief executive of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), “one of the highest-profile and politically charged roles in the banking world.” The Guardian’s city…
Do You Pass the Test?
Here are some of the 31 signs you are the child of New Zealand expatriates, according to viral news site, BuzzFeed. The site also recommends not forwarding the information to people with Australian parents….
Fairy Tale Television Role for Actress
New Zealand actress Rose McIver, 24, who starred in Peter Jackson’s 2009 film The Lovely Bones, has landed the pivotal season three role of Tinker Bell on the ABC fairy tale drama, Once…
Déjà Vu for California-based Royal Biographer
New Zealand writer Susan Maxwell Skinner, who lives in Charmichael, California, “knows much about the doings of England’s royal family”, writes The Sacramento Bee’s Bill Lindelof. As a young writer, Skinner moved to England…
South Africa and NZ Join Film Forces
Executives from the New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) have been meeting with producers at the Durban FilmMart (DFM) to research potential development and co-production opportunities. Representatives from the NZFC and the National Film &…
Tastes of NZ Imagined in Pittsburgh Test Kitchen
Over the next seven weeks, a New Zealand-inspired menu is on offer at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh’s Taste of Art Restaurant. The menu features traditional dishes from the region including breaded oysters with…
Mystery Making Process Paying off in US
Identified only as her stage name, Lorde, 16, the artist kept her true identity a mystery for months, Wall Street Journal correspondent Megan Buerger writes. The only available representation of her was a drawing…
Stretching the Limit with One Unique Talent
Rubberband Boy, aka New Zealander Shay Horay, is one of the world’s most unusual performers, twisting tight rubber bands across his face on stage to the delight of worldwide audiences. “Strangely enough,…
Keeping It Snappy with Local Shorts Screening
Eight locally made short films will screen at the one-session New Zealand Short Film Festival held on 14 August in Sydney and 22 August in Brisbane. The films will screen representing the very best…
Lighting Up the Longlist with Her Second Novel
New Zealand author Eleanor Catton, 27, has made the Man Booker Prize longlist for her novel, The Luminaries, which will be released in New Zealand on 1 August and in the US in October….
Archaeologist Made Extraordinary Contributions to Field
New Zealand-born archaeologist Mike Morwood, who was best known for discovering Homo floresiensis, has died in Darwin, aged 82. In 2003, Morwood led a joint Australian-Indonesian team of archaeologists, which uncovered what appeared to…
Jackson Live-Blogs The Hobbit’s Final Day
After more than two years, Peter Jackson has finished filming the final installment of The Hobbit trilogy. With the final scenes shot on 26 July, the award-winning director wrote on his Facebook…
Looking at the Top Figures
New Zealand’s rich are getting richer, with the total worth of those who made it onto National Business Review’s 2013 rich list up $3.5 billion on last year, reports The Australian. Graeme Hart once…
Long-Haul Visitor Numbers on the Up
There has been a significant growth in the number of international visitors to New Zealand this year, with a 10 per cent rise in arrivals during the first half of 2013, compared to the…
Thinking Even Bigger from Google in Silicon Valley
Scotts Ferry, Harvard University, Wall Street, the White House – Victoria Ransom’s journey from rural Rangitikei to an executive’s chair at the Googleplex is one of New Zealand’s most stunning success stories, The New…
Auric Qualities in Vivid Colour
Wellington-born Carlo Van de Roer doesn’t just capture a person when he takes their photograph, he captures the colour of their soul, writes the Daily Mail. In his psychedelic collection of images, New York-based…
New Singapore Role for Former Silver Ferns Coach
Ruth Aitken is taking up the role of Netball Singapore’s new technical director and national coach. Mastering the pronunciation of her new charges’ names may be tricky for the New Zealander, but she has…
Ammann Testament to General Motor’s New Culture
General Motors chief financial officer, New Zealander Daniel Ammann, talks with The Detroit News editorial board about how the automaker’s goal is consistent profitability in a cyclical industry. After a historic bailout and Washington-managed…
Timtimfed Makes Web Films on His Own Terms
Originally from Christchurch, Michael Shanks, 22, otherwise known by his pseudonym “Timtimfed”, is creating some of the best gaming parodies on the web. Shanks was one of the hosts of a recent PAX Australia…
Gibbs Amphibians Expands Across US
New Zealand-founded Gibbs Amphibians is on track to build 1000 Quadski amphibious all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) in 2013 and expects to have more than 100 major powersports dealers authorised to sell and service…
Skills Drain Reversal with More Work Options
New Zealand is currently experiencing its strongest immigration flows in four years, with returning citizens vying with foreign nationals for work, in a “nation whose economy is outperforming many of its developed peers”, writes…
Channelling Tricksters in Plexiglas for Vancouver Show
New Zealand sculptor George Nuku’s work is part of an exhibition called, Paradise Lost? Contemporary Works from the Pacific, on through 29 September at the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver. The Vancouver…
Music Man Keeping the Harmonies in Check
Timaru-born emeritus professor William “Bill” Hawker is in Port Macquarie for six weeks as the guest conductor of Hastings Choristers. The academic and musician lives in Akolele on the south coast of NSW. He…
Get Ready for the Vintage of a Lifetime
New Zealand wines look like they’re about to get even better, according to Forbes.com contributor Larry Olmsted. “Much better. You probably already know Kim Crawford, New Zealand’s famous producer of sauvignon blanc, but now…
Committing to Biculturalism in Education
Newton Central School in Grey Lynn, Auckland, is the subject of a story about how New Zealand, and Newton Central in particular, is making biculturalism in education work. Special advisor on education…
Wild Cards Still Making Music on the Outer Limits
New Zealand underground rock trio The Dead C have been making music at the outer limits for 25 years, using geographic isolation to develop one of the most original strains of underground rock of…
Invitation to Jump the Ditch and Get Hitched
New Zealand fashion designer Annah Stretton is celebrating the fact that same-sex marriage in New Zealand is to be legalised from 19 August by launching ‘Come on Oz, Say “I do”’. The
Clonakilty Women Have Their Say in New Book
New Zealand-born author Alison Wickham, a resident of Clonakilty in Cork, Ireland, launches a self-published book this week called Women Speak, which tells the stories of 14 very different women, now aged from their…
Ada Would Not Have Surfaced Says Campion
Jane Campion has revealed she wanted a bleaker ending for The Piano, with the character of mute Ada McGrath, played by Holly Hunter, drowning with her beloved instrument. It is one of the most…
Multi-talented McLaren Transformed Racing
In his all-too-brief life, New Zealander Bruce McLaren, who died in 1970 at the age of 32, managed an impressive list of successes, writes Jason Stein for Wheelbase Media. “His European driving career began…
Gamers Promote Powerful Women Leads
Game developer New Zealander Lucy Morris, who lives in Düsseldorf, this week participated in a 48-hour game jam – or a fleeting arcade of game developers planning and creating a game over a short…
Dean of New Oxford Business School Reflects on a Year
The New Zealand-born dean of Oxford University’s new Blavatnik School of Government, Ngaire Woods describes the first year as “terrific. Fun. Challenging. Great,” without pause. “It has been a whirlwind.” It might…
Cooking Up Raspberry Pi with the Internet of Things
New Zealand developer Nathan Broadbent was inspired to hack into his microwave after reading a post on Reddit about using matrix barcodes to instruct microwave ovens. Broadbent then cooked a raspberry pie using the…
Madrid Festival Awards for Murder Mystery
New Zealand filmmaker Alex Galvin’s feature film Eternity has won two awards at the Madrid International Film Festival. Eternity won best editing, alongside Nick Swinglehurst and best supporting actor for Wellington actor…
New Zealand’s Answer to The Killing
Jane Campion’s television series Top of the Lake, “set in the staggeringly beautiful landscape of the South Island”, has been called New Zealand’s answer to The Killing. Obstreperous and tunnel-visioned, detective Robin Griffin has…
Magasiva, Moon and Paquin Make the Crush Cake List
New Zealand, “more like Babeland”, according to blogger Laura Vincent who writes about who she fancies for Vice magazine’s regular column, “Crush Cakes”. “Though my crushing is as vast as the majestic Lake Taupo,…
Fit Runs in the Family
Originally from Opotiki, Grant Goes, 32, Dubai’s 2012 Fittest Man, has just completed the gruelling Give Me 3000 challenge, in which he completed 300 repetitions of 10 key exercises in under five hours. The…
Another Win for IndyCar Racer Dixon in Canada
New Zealander Scott Dixon has won the 31st IndyCar race of his career with victory in the first of two street races in Toronto. The Honda Indy Toronto win has moved Dixon into a…
Who Invented This Country?
New Zealand does not seem of this earth according to Outside Magazine contributing editor Peter Heller, who writes that it’s “like a kid asked a genie to make a world full of everything fun…
Push for Australian Immigrant Law Changes
Gold Coast-based New Zealanders are calling for an immigrant law change arguing tough restrictions prevent long-term residents from having the same rights as Australians. The Oz Kiwi movement is gaining momentum among…
Successful Planting of Our Natives in UK Gardens
A selection of New Zealand plants ideal for UK gardens feature in a Guardian picture gallery this week. “If you squint a bit, parts of the New Zealand landscape can look familiar to the…
Lawless Set to Razzle Dazzle in Chicago
Television star Lucy Lawless, 45, will join True Blood’s Stephen Moyer and Les Misérables’ Samantha Barks for a special three-night performance of the Broadway smash Chicago, which will run from 26 July to 28…
