New Generation of Maori Women Wearing Moko
For Maori women, the moko kauae, or traditional female chin tattoo, is considered a physical manifestation of their true identity. It is believed every Maori woman wears a moko on the inside, close to…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
Lyall Bay’s Unique Time Cinema For Sale
Movie buff John Bell has decided to sell up one of Wellington’s best kept secrets: the Time Cinema in the suburb of Lyall Bay, a fully fledged 38-seat picture theatre where he lovingly screens…
Helen Clark Rallies Caribbean in UN Bid
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, the administrator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) recently lobbied Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries as she seeks to replace Ban Ki-moon as the next…
Rotorua: North Island Adventure Capital
Rotorua on New Zealand’s North Island has “re-invented itself as the adventure capital of the North Island,” writes Sandra Smedhall for CNN. Its “unique combination of forests, lakes, geothermal activity and Maori culture…
Taika Waititi’s Creative Journey
”The vast majority of us lack the happy-go-lucky charm of New Zealand’s favourite writer/director,” writes Clarisse Loughrey for The Independent. She is talking about Taika Waititi, who currently is working on one of…
Sleep Under The Stars At Pure Pods
New Zealand’s Pure Pods has been included in a list of 10 luxury accommodations in which you can sleep under the stars. “There is an intriguing option for anyone looking to unwind beneath a…
Homesick Kiwis Can Now Call a Hotline
With Travel Insurance Direct homesick New Zealanders can now call a hotline (+64-9930-3377), where they are greeted with a joyful New Zealand accent and can hear the familiar sounds of their homeland, writes Jordi…
How Xero Made It By Doing Everything Backwards
“It’s rare for a startup to go public almost within one year of being founded. But then again, how many startups do you know from Wellington, New Zealand,” writes Ariel Bogle for
5 Lazy Ways to See New Zealand’s Natural Beauty
“In addition to the heart-pounding adventure sports that make New Zealand world-famous, the island nation is chock full of less strenuous activities that are just as worthwhile as their adrenaline-pumping alternatives,” writes A. Van…
NZ to Fund Child Sport Development in Pacific
New Zealand will fund a five-year initiative aimed at getting more children in Pacific island countries to play sport according to Prime Minister John Key, reports the Daily Mail. The multi-million dollar programme…
Mikey McCleary Subtly Redefining Bollywood Music
Mumbai-based New Zealand composer and producer Mikey McCleary, 47, has been steadily changing the face of Bollywood soundtracks since he moved to India in 2007. His latest movie project is Aditya Chopra’s upcoming film, Befikre…
Crowded House to Be Inducted into ARIA Hall of Fame
Cherished rock-folk group Crowded House will be inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame during the ARIA Awards in Sydney on 23 November. Crowded House’s induction has a touch of serendipity about it. This year,…
NZ & Canada Sign Co-Production Treaty
New Zealand and Canada have “signed a co-production treaty that will allow enhanced film and TV industry cooperation between the two English-speaking territories,” writes Patrick Frater for Variety. “The treaty was signed…
Speaking Irish in New Zealand to My Maori-Irish Son
“There’s a special connection between Irish people, Irish speakers and Maori. It’s another reason why Aotearoa feels like home,” educator Gillian Cotter writes in an Irish Times lifestyle piece about raising her Maori-Irish son,…
Claudia Li’s Groundbreaking Florals for Spring
“Looking around her Flatiron District studio, Claudia Li acknowledges the obvious. “It’s like an explosion of floral prints and lots of colors in here,” she says of the space,” writes Véronique Hyland for
Simon Denny Bitcoin Shows Open in NY and Berlin
Two shows by New Zealand artist Simon Denny, in New York and Berlin, look at competing views on how the little-understood technology underpinning the digital currency bitcoin should develop – and helps translate them…
Japan’s Brave Blossoms Welcome Coach Jamie Joseph
In his first press conference since taking charge of Japan national rugby team the Brave Blossoms, New Zealander Jamie Joseph warned fans to expect pain before pleasure as he builds toward the 2019 World…
Dave Verheul Chef of the Year Finalist
New Zealand-born Dave Verheul, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants with Marcus Wareing and Gordon Ramsay in London, plus a stage at Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck, and at Sydney’s hatted The Bentley Restaurant and…
Raewyn Hill Making Dance Accessible to All
Chances are if you visited the Art Gallery of Western Australia recently you would have seen New Zealand-born Raewyn Hill and the Co3 dancers rehearsing for The Cry. The contemporary performance, that sees each…
Warren Gatland Looks to Dethrone the ABs
Warren Gatland, 52, landed in New Zealand last week only two days after being given the job of overthrowing what may be the country’s most cherished institution: the All Blacks rugby team. Gatland has…
Ben Shewry is Gourmet Traveller’s Chef of the Year
New Zealander Ben Shewry, owner of Melbourne’s Attica, has been peer-voted Chef of the Year in the Australian Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards. “Eleven years after answering a newspaper ad for a head chef position the…
Scott Dixon Wins at Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen International is a special place for New Zealander Scott Dixon. He showed why again winning the IndyCar Grand Prix at the historic New York race track. Fastest in every practice and fastest in qualifying, Dixon,…
Queenstown – More Than Adventure
“Immortalised by Peter Jackson in Lord Of The Rings, tourists now flock to Queenstown’s frosty lakes and rolling hills every year in search of the same magic created by the films,” writes Jennifer Smith…
New Zealand’s Most Exciting Young Poet
Hera Lindsay Bird, who “has become a cult favourite for her explicit, cutting and often funny writing” was “catapulted from respected but anonymous graduate writer to semi-cult status” after publishing her first book of…
Wine and Dine Your Way Through NZ
“From freshly caught seafood to lamb, meat, everything, the delicious yet frequently underrated cuisine New Zealand offers should top your foodie-travel bucket list,” writes A. Van Houten for Paste Magazine in an…
NZ’s Must-See Photography Locations
New Zealand boasts “some of the finest natural landscapes on Earth” and is a “paradise for photographers and nature lovers alike”, writes William Patino on his photography blog. In his blog post he…
Dayna Grant on Life As A Stuntwoman
Kiwi stuntwoman Dayna Grant has “worked as a double for A-list actors including Charlize Theron and Tilda Swinton during her thrilling 20-year career, but to the easy-going Kiwi, it’s all in a day’s work,”…
Anouska Hempel Gives London Hotel a Sleek New Makeover
“As one of the first classic boutique townhouse hotels in London, The Franklin has recently experienced an extraordinarily stylish revamp—and designed by none other than the Bond-Girl-turned hotelier/interior designer Anouska Hempel,” writes Hana Hong…
Wellington Unveils National Virtual Reality Complex
Work on New Zealand’s first national virtual reality complex has begun in Wellington, writes David Swan in an article for the Australian. The centre will be “used to developed and test world-first…
Producer Joel Little Teams up with Ruth B in LA
Lorde’s former producer, Grammy-award winning New Zealander Joel Little, 33, is now working with Canadian singer-songwriter Ruth B on her first LP, Vine. Little became intrigued with Ruth when a friend sent a demo of…
Wildlife and Wilderness Galore in the South Island
“As a chilly dusk fell on famous for wildlife and Jurassic-era fossilised trees, a white-coated figure waddled gingerly across tide-slicked rocks – me, trying to get out of sight to…
Mel Dodge Gets Her Brontë on in Canberra
New Zealand playwright and actor Mel Dodge depicts the personal passions of Jane Eyre author Charlotte Brontë in Miss Brontë, on at Canberra’s Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre. Despite living most of her life in an…
Nicholas Clark Caters to China’s Craft Beer Lovers
New Zealander Nicholas Clark is one of a number of foreigners who have invested in China’s new enthusiasm for craft beer. Clark opened Craft Head Nano Tap House in 2014 in a former convenience…
How NZ’s Glaciers Shaped the Origin of the Kiwi Bird
When the kiwi arrived in New Zealand several million years ago “it found few threats and plenty of opportunities.” “In the absence of mammals, its descendants gradually lost the ability to fly, as island…
Witi Ihimaera on Writers and the Conscience
Gisborne-born author Witi Ihimaera, 72, feels the real role of a writer is to become the conscience of the nation and that Indian writers have set a “fantastic example” by using literature to address…
Simon Denny Explains Blockchain with Pokémon
New Zealand-born artist Simon Denny’s forthcoming exhibition – Blockchain Future States – opens on 8 September at Petzel Gallery in New York City. The exhibition tells the story of blockchain visionaries, bitcoin and the…
Len Lye Centre Offers a Place of Reflection
“‘Art,’ wrote the -born artist Len Lye, ‘is the most valuable and least useful of all things ever made.’ Bearing that in mind, how might you make a museum dedicated to the artist?” Financial Times’…
Collector Alan Gibbs Combining Passion and Purpose
The art world has opened up to welcome new collectors and dealers defined by their zeal, Monocle reports in a profile story, which includes New Zealand-born Alan Gibbs, entrepreneur and founder of Gibbs Farm…
NZ the Way US Used to Be Says Robert Redford
Hollywood film star Robert Redford, 80, came to New Zealand to expand his Oscar-winning résumé with children’s film Pete’s Dragon, but what he found was an idyllic paradise reminiscent of his own childhood. Redford says he felt…
Pietra Brettkelly’s A Flickering Truth Opens in NZ
When New Zealand-born director Pietra Brettkelly visited Afghanistan in 2012 she heard tell of a secret film archive, constructed during Taliban rule to protect the country’s old films from being destroyed by the regime….
Cruise Industry Growing in New Zealand
New Zealand’s cruise industry is experiencing an increase in cruise passengers. More than 254,000 passengers and 92,000 crew members visited the country during the August 2015 to June 2016 cruise season, as reported in…
How Oamaru Became Steampunk Capital of the World
Oamaru “used to be known for its population of blue penguins and having the best-preserved collection of Victorian architecture in the country”, writes Eleanor Ainge Roy for The Guardian. In 2010 the…
This Is the Castle That Dot Smith Built
As a child New Zealander Dot Smith dreamed of living in a castle. Growing up on an isolated farm in the 1960s entertainment was scarce – so Dot read, and planned her escape. Five…
Karen Walker’s Jewels Shine on Magical Hands
Designer Karen Walker has once again turned to older women for her campaigns, hiring models, Phyllis Sues, 93, and Roberta Haze, 78 for her latest jewellery collection, Magic Hands. For New Zealander Walker, aged hands…
US Brands Head to NZ for All-Wool Footwear
As demand for all-wool shoes grows, a number of US footwear brands are heading directly to the source: the sheep pastures of New Zealand. San Francisco-based Allbirds, established by former New Zealand soccer player…
New Zealand Scores High in Expat Report
New Zealand has been ranked the fifth best country for expats in a ranking by “InterNations, which recently produced the Expat Insider 2016 report — one of the largest expat surveys in…
Julliard’s Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson to Graduate
Christchurch dancer Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson, who is understood to be the first New Zealander to be accepted by the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City, according to the Press, will graduate in May 2017. Guillemot-Rodgerson…
NZ Tops IMF’s Housing Unaffordability List
New Zealand has topped the International Monetary Fund’s list for housing unaffordability and has outpaced 31 other countries in the house prices to income ratio category. It hit nearly 130 points on…
Niki Caro Directing Anne of Green Gables Series
Wellington-born filmmaker Niki Caro will direct the latest adaptation of the classic children’s novel Anne of Green Gables with production beginning in Canada this month. The series, Anne, may prove to be an edgier incarnation…
Girls Stars Front Unretouched Lonely Lingerie Ad
Creator and star of hit American television show Girls, Lena Dunham and Jemima Kirke are championing the unretouched precedent for Lonely Girls, a journal featuring inspiring women modelling underwear from the New Zealand-based Lonely…
Tonic for Brits Seeking to Cure Brexit Blues
It boasts spectacular scenery, a temperate climate and a labour shortage in key areas, but New Zealand’s most appealing attribute, according to the New Zealand Herald, may be that it is “18,000km from Boris…
Fear the Walking Dead’s Michelle Ang Diversifies
Christchurch-born actress Michelle Ang, 32, made her debut on the web series Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 462, earning an Emmy nomination for the role. This year, she’s trying her hand as a producer…
Conductor Gemma New Makes Music Holistic
The newest classical music rising star, New Zealander Gemma New’s reputation continues to ascend internationally. New takes up the resident conductor role at the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) on 6 September. New’s duties include…
McLaren Back at Scene of Triumphs
If Formula One belongs anywhere, it is in Spa-Francorchamps and if one team belong there then they are McLaren, who approached the past weekend with optimism, if not so much for that race as…
Scotland Inspires Who’s Afraid? Author Maria Lewis
When New Zealand-born TV host Maria Lewis was penning her debut urban fantasy novel, Who’s Afraid? from her desk in Sydney, she surprised many by setting the story 11,000 miles away in Dundee, Scotland’s Daily…
David Farrier Uncovers Surprise Turns in Tickled
Squarely of the “truth is stranger than fiction” category, New Zealand journalist David Farrier’s debut documentary Tickled has touches about it of thriller, mystery, and true-crime genres – even, at times, horror, the Guardian’s…
