Russell’s a lot to Crowe About
“Unlikely Hollywood hunk Russell Crowe may well have saved his best work for his latest film, a career-capping turn as an enslaved general in Ridley Scott’s sensational sword-and-sandal epic Gladiator“.
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
The seduction of sand: TimeOut falls for Long, Hot Summer
“Long Hot Summer is a joy to read. Someone stops breathing in the final scene and the reader holds their breath as well. Like the rest of this cleverly patterned novel, it…
CK Stead explores the dynamic of the network
Time Out reviews CK Stead’s Talking About O’Dwyer, a “cracking history lesson-cum-psychological profile” that takes in Oxford Dons, Maori makutu (curse) and the effects of distance and time: “As is the way even now…
With Time in Hand Tait Wins Rolex Three-Day Event
Blyth Tait of New Zealand, had a clear final round and no time faults to win on an untried horse, Welton Envoy.
Aotearoa Casts Big Shadow Over Australia
Australia’s population is five times bigger, its economy six times bigger and its defence capability similarly robust. Yet in recent years New Zealand has been the far more influential of the two neighbours in world affairs….
No Roman holiday and no soccer!
Crowe show he’s no slave and rebels against producer’s request: ”I mean, they’d let me run in front of chariots, wrestle tigers, and do battle with 5,000 men in the snow and mud. The…
Six degrees of connection for Mark de Clive-Lowe
London’s music press has connected with Clive-Lowe’s album Six Degrees. Already played on the main dance-floor at the Ministry of Sound and touted as a new step in “futurejazz” for its blending of jazz…
Thrills and Spills in Testosterone City
“Fly is the epitome of the New Kiwi, chattier than the chattiest Aussie, more fashionable than the most fashionable Aspenite”. Minty Church gets a personal introduction to the daredevil sports Mecca of Testosterone City, aka Queenstown,…
Popeye Favourite from down-under
Kiwi spinach gets green thumbs up, “It is the most delicious and abundant spinach – although it is slow to germinate – and it can withstand drought”.
“There She Goes.” Moby Dick Move Over as Hunt for Giant Squid Begins
That 19th Century tale of adventure on the high seas is about to be challenged by a 21st century adventure beneath them, when Jean-Michel Cousteau dives off New Zealand’s Kaikoura coast in search of the mythical…
Expensive as Gold, Rare as Diamonds – Dying Delicacy Revived in New Zealand
“The truffle’s true future may lie in balmy New Zealand … Do New Zealand truffles taste like Lalbenque truffles? The Kiwis say yes. How can I afford to join the controversy?”.
Wind Wand Blows Over Hurricanes as Talk of the Town in New Plymouth
In the rural New Zealand town of New Plymouth rugby-loving citizens are normally attuned to talking about the local rugby team, the Hurricanes, but a 45 metre tall wand erected for the millennium has…
Big Spin-off in Positive Trade Ties, Says Kiwi PM
A successful economic tie-up between Singapore and New Zealand could kick start multi-lateral talks on trade-liberalisation, says New Zealand PM Helen Clark.
Muse behind Watership Down
Ronald Lockley, internationally renowned naturalist, died in New Zealand on April 12, aged 96. The Economist obituary dryly notes that “New Zealanders liked Ronald Lockley, admired his reputation as a protector of nature, and…
Improvisation Indian style – NZ expert introduces playback theatre basics to India
Bangalore’s Summer Project on Theatre (Spot) has this year enlisted the help of New Zealander Mary Good and Australian Bev Hopkins to throw light on the concept of playback theatre.
Phantom Menace Humbled by Diminutive Hobbit
The record number of downloads set by the trailer for Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, has been dwarfed by the the Internet preview of of Peter Jackson’s epic movie trilogy The Lord…
Quality Not Quantity for NZ Wines This Year
Fickle Summer weather and cold autumn southerly winds have made it likely that New Zealand will produce a disappointingly small crop of sauvingon blanc grapes this year … the plus side is that the small vintage…
New Zealand Scholar Suggests Sceptical Slant on Sikh Story
Kiwi scholar Hew Mcleod puts claims made in Patwant Singh’s The Sikhs to the test of historical veracity – a task that has made him persona non grata with many members of the world’s…
Flightless Kiwi
The Government’s defence refocus causes international comment: turning New Zealand into a province; cutbacks have firm basis says Jane’s Defense Weekly correspondent.
Model Health Campaign
I’ve been thinking … Supermodel Rachel Hunter is launching a health education campaign for women in the wake of her recent cancer scare.
Rewi Alley Inspired Kiwi Educator Spreads the Word in Gritty Lanzhou
New Zealander John Wilson Hall and his Hong Kong wife who for the last five years have made their home in one of China’s poorest and most polluted cities, have set up a successful…
“And Did the Countenance Divine/ Shine Forth Upon Our Clouded Hills?” ANZAC Remembered in Jerusalem
The memory of the New Zealand and Australian soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice in WWI was honoured at the annual ANZAC Day ceremony at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem.
Dolly Schwarzenegger – Muscle-bound Merinos the Future of Food?
Undertaking controversial research, New Zealand scientists are seeking government permission to take a naturally occurring mutant gene isolated from double-muscled Belgian blue cattle, which makes them grow exceptionally large, and insert it into sheep.
“Go You Good Thing, Go” – Kiwi Kingz Supporters Hailed as Best in NSL
How good are the Auckland Kingz fans? Up there with the best, it seems. While the Kingz may have enjoyed a topsy-turvy season, their fans have consistently been hailed as the best in the NSL -…
Malaysian crooner returns to charts with New Zealand edge
Malaysian singing star Kathy Ibrahim (who swayed hearts in the late 70’s with such classic as Oh Malaysia) returns to Malaysia to record after an eight year spell in New Zealand studying interior design…
Naturalist, Author, Rabbit Expert
Ronald Lockley, 96, naturalist and expert on islands, birds and rabbits who provided factual data for the imaginative Watership Down, died this week in New Zealand, where he has lived since 1977. Ronald Lockley: 8…
New Zealand Gets a Tonic from Deer
The booming Korean economy not only means a boost for New Zealand tourism but also the deer industry as it has boosted the demand for deer velvet, the soft precursor to antler widely used in oriental medicine.
Memorial for Gallipoli Dead
The Prime Ministers of Australia and New Zealand have unveiled a new memorial on the Gallipoli peninsula in western Turkey to commemorate thousands of their countrymen who died fighting at Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire during the…
Home Environment Can Affect Puberty
Research jointly undertaken by researchers at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and Vanderbilt University in Tennessee show that Moms may have more of an effect on their daughters’ lives than they realize – or even…
The Wired Doctors
Free medical consultations for a year are being offered by a group of Internet doctors to a small rural town in New Zealand. The New Zealand-based Doctor Global is offering to give “virtual housecalls” and adopt…
New Generation Makes Pilgrimage to Gallipoli
A new dawn rose in Gallipoli as generation of young New Zealanders and Australians, mostly backpackers, (the first generation in either country’s history not to have seen war) came to ANZAC cove.
Crowe does the hard yards to re-visit grandeur of Rome
“I broke a bone in my foot, I fractured a hip-bone, I had both bicep tendons pop out of their shoulder sockets – fortunately for me at different times so I could still use…
ANZAC Sacrifice
Times letter to editor: “The extraordinary courage and naive loyalty of those generations of Anzacs, who crossed the globe and fought for a “homeland” they had never seen, should not be forgotten or underestimated. It was not…
5000 Mourn ANZAC Deaths at Gallipoli
“We shared the calamity of war,” Helen Clark, the New Zealand Prime Minister, told the crowd. “Things that happened here tied us together for ever. We share the grief of our losses.” She was joined on the…
The Battle That Broke Two Nations’ Hearts
85 years on, thousands gather before dawn to pay tribute to the thousands of Anzac troops who died fighting on the Gallipoli peninsula.
Thousands Pay Tribute to the Fallen of Gallipoli
ANZAC Day was celebrated around the world yesterday to honour the 10,000 Australian and New Zealand servicemen who died in the Gallipoli landings 85 years ago.
NzZ PM Backs Peacekeeping Amid Shadows of Gallipoli
The soldiers left home as British colonial troops, those that returned came back as New Zealanders, she said. “Today, New Zealand is a country which is dedicated to bringing about a more peaceful world”.
Why is There an NZ in ANZAC?
“In Australia the word Anzac has slowly changed its meaning. The letters NZ – and the New Zealanders – have virtually been excised … It is worth recalling, occasionally, that at Gallipoli the smaller nation paid…
Peacekeepers Mourn Tragedy of War
Indonesia: More than 1,000 United Nations peacekeepers from the Australian and New Zealand contingents attended the ANZAC service, with additional participants from Fiji, Singapore, Pakistan and the United States. Of added significance was a small uniformed delegation…
New Zealand and Sweden Take Stance on Zimbabwe Crisis
Harare – Sweden and New Zealand have openly called for President Mugabe’s resignation as international anxiety continues to rise following the collapse in law and order, indiscriminate farm killings and strained race relations.
Celebrities Endorse NZ-led Anti-nuke Campaign
“Call To Action” is the dramatic headline in an advertisement put forth in the mainstream broadsheets by an eclectic group of spiritual leaders, Nobel laureates, Hollywood superstars, sports legends, authors and scholars coincide with the opening of…
Annual Call of the Bugle Unites All
“This morning at dawn, perhaps 10,000 Australians and New Zealanders, probably thousands more, will stand above that beach, in the shadow of those cliffs, moved across the world by their nations’ deepest and most enduring shared myth, hypnotised…
Renegade Artist Richard Killeen Bucks Convention at Sydney Landscape Exhibition.
“They could be a landscape of the mind, a self-portrait of Killeen the scavenger, the visual encyclopaedia, and sophisticated game player. It’s a strident welcome to what is on offer”.
New Zealand Leads the Have-nots Against the Haves at UN Battle
Impatient at the slow progress in arms control, governments from Brazil to New Zealand plan to tell the United States and other nuclear powers on Monday they have to do more to make the world safer.
The Hermit Next Door
As we enjoy the Easter weekend, James Owen meets the remarkable New Zealand born Brother Aidan – a devout Orthodox Christian and icon painter living in Shropshire – who proves the contemplative life is…
Mum’s the Word: Experience Counts
Ecologist Elissa Cameron at Massey University has found that older mothers make better mothers simply because they use their time more efficiently – or at least mares do. The discovery was made in a study of…
McKinnon Asserts Himself in New Role
The new Commonwealth Secretary General Don McKinnon, has asked Pakistan’s military government to release deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from prison and set a definite timeframe for national elections.
Commonwealth to Help Develop Vulnerable States
So stated Don McKinnon on his first visit to Bangladesh since being elected Secretary-General of the 54-country assembly last November.
Get it right mate – Theroux undone by Stead detective work
“This week the London Review of Books prints a long investigation by the poet CK Stead into a lunch party at Naipaul’s house attended by Theroux and a New Zealand couple Stead happens to…
“When all at once I saw a crowd”
Fleur Adcock gives poetic tribute to bard of the Lakes On the 150th Anniversary of William Wordsworth’s death, New Zealand-born poet Fleur Adcock has been chosen to unveil a plaque amongst the Easter daffodils…
Stay on Your Toes: Improv
Bandits plan for laughs, but who knows what will happen. New Zealand comedy troupe Improv Bandits have been selected among 24 ensembles for the 3rd annual Chicago Improv Festival.
Black Holes, Time Travel and Ramjets
Vanessa Collingridge explores the cosmic questions with a little help from Te Papa: “The nearest I’ve ever been to wormholes as entertainment was in a New Zealand museum …”
Kiwi Editor of Chicago-Sun Times Leaves to Pursue ‘Private Goals’
New Zealand born Nigel Wade, 54, former foreign correspondent with the Daily Telegraph in London, said that he was taking a “new direction” in his life after 37 years in journalism. He has been…
Long Hot Summer puts the heat on readers
Kiwi Barbara Anderson’s latest novel gets praise in Times review, “a fine and sharp intelligence infuses Anderson’s characters and dialogue … Long Hot Summer demands attention from the reader, but it is worth it”.
The truth about bed: Fleur Adcock: Poems 1960-2000
“This very welcome collection of her verse confirms her status as arguably the most distinctive writer to have come out of New Zealand since Katherine Mansfield.”
