Alex Casey 
This is Auckland, where new money meets old. Alex Casey is going to try and laugh at The Real Housewives of Auckland through her weekly power rankings – because if we can’t laugh then all we have is the void. Click here for previous instalments. 1) This tiny sophisticated gent Just when you thought The Real Housewives couldn’t get … Read more
Columnist Martin Van Beynen got very angry about The Real Housewives of Auckland last week. Alex Casey tries to figure out why. Martin Van Beynen, the thought leader behind smash hit opinions like “Kiwi women swear too much” and “Dangerous times for older white males with opinions” has done it again. This time he’s steamed about … Read more
Alex Casey interviews local legend Anika Moa about getting her own talk show (feat: us!), Nigella Lawson’s butt and why you should never hold in a burp. This is the first of a brand new interview series called On the Lash, brought to you by Australian wine geniuses Vinomofo. Photography by José Barbosa. Anika Moa bowled … Read more
There were a lot of nice words thrown around today at the New Zealand Rugby press conference detailing their inquiry into The Chiefs’ scandal. But what did they really say? Alex Casey translates. Today we got New Zealand Rugby’s definitive ruling on The Chiefs scandal. Last month a stripper named Scarlette alleged that while hired to … Read more
This is Auckland, where new money meets old. Alex Casey is going to try and laugh at The Real Housewives of Auckland through her weekly power rankings – because if we can’t laugh then all we have is the void. Click here for previous instalments. Holy shit. Between this episode and The Waitangi Dildo, 2016 is shaping up to … Read more
This is Auckland, where new money meets old. Alex Casey is going to try and laugh at The Real Housewives of Auckland through her weekly power rankings – because if we can’t laugh then all we have is the void. Click here for the first and second instalments. 1) Anne Batley-Burton, Queen of Everything This week we felt Anne’s … Read more
Alex Casey interviews Tara Moss, author of Speaking Out, on why women still need to fight to have their voices heard. Tara Moss is an activist, author, journalist and very cool legend. I devoured her latest book Speaking Out from cover to cover, desperately trying to absorb all of her scorching takes on where women’s voices are at … Read more
Alex Casey talks to TV writer and author Steve Hely ahead of his appearance this weekend in the WORD Christchurch festival. Steve Hely has written for some of the most iconic television comedies of the golden TV era, so it was only fitting that I give him a call whilst wearing a Liz Lemon-style slanket … Read more
This is Auckland, where new money meets old. Alex Casey is going to try and laugh atThe Real Housewives of Auckland through her weekly power rankings – because if we can’t laugh then all we have is the void. Click here for the first instalment. 1) Marley Blanchard Just when you thought Real Housewives couldn’t get any … Read more
This is Auckland, where new money meets old. Alex Casey is going to try and laugh at The Real Housewives of Auckland through her weekly power rankings – because if we can’t laugh then all we have is the void. The first episode of The Real Housewives of Auckland left me reeling in shock, clinging to the … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Debbie Stoller, editor-in-chief of feminist magazine BUST, on the power of nail polish, reclaiming knitting and what pop culture can tell us about society. I remember the first time that I saw a copy of BUST magazine in the central Auckland library, presented to me as a teenager by dear friend … Read more
With UnREAL season two coming to an end tonight, Alex Casey shares her favourite moments of producer manipulation, contestant craziness and pant-pooping in all of dating show history. The finale of UnREAL season two arrives to Lightbox tonight, further unraveling the vipers nest of manipulation, lies and corruption on which the twinkling lights of fictional dating show Everlasting … Read more
Alex Casey snacks on this year’s Loading Docs selection, ten locally-made documentaries under 3 minutes in length. Love documentaries but hate all the sitting, watching and listening? Destined to take 100 pee breaks and snack stops during the average 90 minute runtime? Fear not my fellow cinema pests, Loading Docs is the perfect solution if your … Read more
Alex Casey reminds Andrew Flexman that a woman who takes her clothes off professionally is still a human. Yesterday, a stripper named Scarlette spoke out about her experience at a Chiefs end-of-season function, where she was subjected to inappropriate licking and touching without her consent. Flexman, the Chief Executive of the Chiefs, responded to the … Read more
Alex Casey chats to filmmaker and activist Taryn Brumfitt about her movement to get women embracing their own bodies, no matter what the media says. Walking up to my interview with Taryn Brumfitt, director of Embrace documentary and leader of body positivity movement, I pondered my Queen Street surroundings with the expression of a cat looking … Read more
Alex Casey explains how UnREAL, a black comedy set on a fictional reality set, chews on an array of complex issues like no other television show right now. Please note that the following is absolutely riddled with spoilers. I don’t even reckon Galileo himself could have predicted that The Bachelor, the same reality franchise responsible for … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Elijah Wood about producing The Greasy Strangler, the film bound to get the most dry-retches in the New Zealand International Film Festival this year, and wrangles a rare beanie competition for one lucky greaseball to win. “I love it, a beanie set the country on fire, that’s genius. I love New … Read more
Red-faced Transparent fans fess up with their embarrassingly delayed reactions to the double entendre of the show’s title. Raking in yet another pile of Emmy nominations last week, it’s no secret that the Amazon original series Transparent is one of the boldest and best television shows in recent years. Yes, it tackles issues of gender and … Read more
Emily Writes is a blogger whose incredibly frank and deeply funny writing on parenting has made her a hero to many mothers. Unfortunately, it’s also made her the target of thousands of unaccountably angry men – especially after a recent review of Tarzan went viral. Alex Casey called her up to talk about it. New … Read more
Last week, TVNZ announced that they wouldn’t air the controversial UK reality show Sex Box after receiving complaints and a 10,000 strong petition. Alex Casey takes a peek inside and suggests it might not be as bad as everyone thinks. It’s not everyday one is blessed with the opportunity to turn a deep shade of purple … Read more
Are you in the market for sun, sand and a designer vagina? Alex Casey watches TV One’s new plastic surgery in paradise reality show, Beauty and the Beach. The unexpected utterance of “nice little nipples” let me know I had arrived in the plastic surgery paradise that is TV One’s Beauty and the Beach. Following … Read more
Inside the Lightbox is a sponsored feature where we choose shows from the extensive Lightbox category that you might like to watch. This time, we announce all the piping hot content arriving in July. Scream Queens (S1 July 1) “Shiny, gory and whip-smart, Scream Queens pummels the viewer into submission with sheer, rictus-grinning relentlessness” – Ed … Read more
With TVNZ’s reality cop caper Police Ten 7 celebrating 500 episodes tonight, Alex Casey put some questions to one of the show’s longest-serving camera operators. What is the training process to be a Police Ten 7 camera operator like? Did you have to go through some intense sort of boot camp? I’m a director and … Read more
Curious to see what life was like for young New Zealand women of a different era, Alex Casey turns to a 1969 special about beauty queens for a historical wake-up call. It’s hard yakka being a woman sometimes, with everyone screaming at us to hide our bra straps, contour our faces and clap for all … Read more
Today marks the last day for MediaWorks’ gossip site SCOUT. If you didn’t have time to say your goodbyes, Alex Casey has assembled a shrine to the greatest headlines the site ever published. Last week MediaWorks bought out Rachel Glucina’s share of her entertainment website SCOUT, and as of today the website has disappeared, redirecting straight to Newshub … Read more
For fans, the journey to the end of The Bachelor NZ season two was an excruciating one. But, as Alex Casey finds, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel with the latest season of UnREAL. Contains spoilers. Everyone’s afraid of the difficult second season, especially in New Zealand reality television circles where our … Read more
Alex Casey watched in horror as Mike Hosking tried to recreate the Chewbacca Mask video on Seven Sharp. As it is written in the bible, every viral internet craze can enjoy only a few moments of purity before being sullied by a pack of vultures led by an Animorphs-style Ellen Degeneres with James Corden bringing … Read more
Brilliant bachelorette Naz went on her media rounds today – a mostly horrifying exercise in objectification. But no one stooped lower than George FM’s serial offender Thane Kirby, says Alex Casey. Last night on The Women Tell All, Naz was a fucking firecracker. She stood up, pointed and yelled at an audience member for calling her … Read more
The final of The Bachelor NZ last night hardly contained the hidden gems of a Michael Hill ring, but that didn’t stop Alex Casey coming back for one last ranking. It’s all over and I don’t really want to talk about it. Hopped up on mini Milky Bars, sausage rolls and Lindauer, I was so … Read more