Alex Casey 
A new column: Alex Casey is a human adult woman who reads the news. Every week she’ll report back on what she sees. MONDAY It’s always a great start to the week when you get immediately smacked in the face with the harsh reality that you will not only get old and die, but that you will … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her latest MKRNZ power rankings, including a beautiful union between rugby and couscous, and the most violent kitchen utensil yet. We lost a lot of good contestants out there this week, as well as a lot of fingertips by deathly mandolin. Seriously, when did MKRNZ become The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, gathering together … Read more
Alex Casey binges the entire catalogue of WatchMe, NZME’s brand new on demand local video platform. Following in Family First’s footsteps, today NZME launched their own video on demand service, with a focus on 100% locally-made shows. Starting first with the comedy genre, the platform promises zero cost, zero pesky apps (are apps actually pesky?). … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her contestant power rankings for week six on My Kitchen Rules NZ. This week: a gory cauliflower incident occurs and gatecrashers shake things up. We are out of the instant restaurants this week. No more funny fridge magnets, no more sensual animal art, no more Skytower-inspired decals. Things are getting serious, so … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Ben Daniels, star of new gritty drama Flesh and Bone, about working with both Breaking Bad writers and broken ballerinas. Watching Ben Daniels as Paul Grayson, the toxic artistic director in ballet drama Flesh and Bone, it’s impossible to avoid comparisons to Sparky Polastri in Bring it On. He brings with him the same venomous … Read more
Inside the Lightbox is a sponsored post where we mine the extensive Lightbox catalogue for shows you might like to watch. This Friday 13, we pick some of the unluckiest characters on television. 1) Pierce Hawthorne (Community) “When I was born, I got my umbilical cord wrapped around my neck, both arms, and one of … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her contestant power rankings for week five on My Kitchen Rules NZ. This week: jelly meat is on the menu and Simon courts a panna cotta. Sorry about the delay, what a bloody week it’s been. Sister week! The ultimate showdown between Manawatu and Auckland. Kimberley and Brooke vs Katrina and Natasha, … Read more
An exposé of a perfectly legal former job exposed the hypocrisy with which we treat both reality TV stars and women, says Alex Casey Over the weekend Stuff revealed that Katrina from My Kitchen Rules NZ was once paid to pose in pornographic photos. As @johubris noted on Twitter, this really wasn’t a news story: TVNZ publicists were … Read more
Raise a glass of scotch for Days of Our Lives this weekend, as the surreal soap will be celebrating its whopper 50th anniversary on Sunday November 8. I was lucky enough to visit the studio set in LA the other week, and got talk to a few of the cast members who have survived the show through … Read more
A sponsored post listing the new shows to hit Lightbox this November, including Hasselhoff’s return, brooding ballet drama and one of Norway’s biggest shows in 2015. Hoff the Record (available now) Fans of Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Comeback will enjoy Hoff the Record, starring Baywatch legend David Hasselhoff, 30 years after Knight Rider. The series follows him as … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her power rankings for week four of My Kitchen Rules NZ, including the villainous rise of the Aucklanders and their Spongebob-inspired polenta. What an excellent week, full of interesting knives, warm biscuits and province-based barbs. But something isn’t sitting right with me. Ever since Group Two have made a huge hoopla out of … Read more
Alex Casey reports back from the US, after watching all of the terrible television that the land of the free could provide. I don’t know if I’m just lazy, but I have always maintained that one of the best ways to get a vibe for a new country is to do two very basic things: go to … Read more
Alex Casey introduces Flesh and Bone, a new drama exclusive to our sponsors Lightbox, and explains why Breaking Bad fans are about to get obsessed with the ballet. What’s the story? Ballet ain’t all pirouettes and glamorous costumes, as we find out within moments of Flesh and Bone opening. Claire is a gifted young dancer who has escaped … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her power rankings for week three of My Kitchen Rules NZ, including Paul and Laurence’s sad departure and a rare possum solution from Kimberley and Brooke. I can’t believe we’ve already lost New Zealand’s sweethearts Paul and Laurence. Despite Paul whipping out his finest horse impression, it wasn’t enough to keep our … Read more
Alex Casey delivers her power rankings for week two of MKRNZ, including Laurence’s new character ‘Stace’ and the worst restaurant theme television has ever seen. We’re in week two and I’m just so glad that we are all becoming friends. The contestants are letting their guards down, warming up to each other and repeatedly touching … Read more
Thinking of applying for the new season of The Bachelor NZ? Last year’s winner Matilda Rice shares her secrets for success, including sweating profusely and eating a lot. Today the casting call was opened for second season of The Bachelor NZ, calling for “females aged between 21 and 35 who are genuinely looking for love.” … Read more
Alex Casey’s first power rankings for the new season of My Kitchen Rules NZ, including Pete Evans’ tan and Paul’s extraordinary cow art. The best cooking show in the world is back and I couldn’t be happier. Last year I broke my brain recapping every single episode of My Kitchen Rules New Zealand, which you … Read more
Every lazy Sunday we select an excellent local short film from Lightbox’s Show Me Shorts catalogue. Queenie is an animated short film by Paul Neason, following a geography lecturer Danny Mulgan as he works with his students on a mysterious personal project. Through talking heads (that immediately bring all the humanity and agony of David … Read more
Alex Casey visits the set of The Brokenwood Mysteries and finds more mystery and murder than you can shake a blood bag at. I couldn’t believe I was staring at my first dead body. He was lying there stiff, a calming shade of pale blue. “That’s going to be me one day,” I thought to … Read more
An occasional series in which we feature an insight or proverb from In the Arena (Penguin Random House, $40), the new book by entrepreneur Diane Foreman and her ghost writer Jenni McManus. On seasoned entrepreneurs: In the Arena, by Diane Foreman with Jenni … Read more
The Boobs on Bikes paraded down Auckland’s Queen Street yesterday. Alex Casey and José Barbosa talked to crowd members to get their questions answered. The sun was beating down as the clock struck 12 on Auckland’s Queen Street. It was too hot and I had to keep my jacket on because I had forgotten that my … Read more
Love Grand Designs but can’t afford to build a concrete oasis? Alex Casey lists the top affordable style tips from the series premiere. Sunday night saw the premiere of New Zealand’s first ever Grand Designs, swapping out Kevin McCloud for Chris Moller and giant glass houses in England for concrete spaceships plopped in the middle of … Read more
A weekly series where we pick one local film from the Show Me Shorts catalogue on Lightbox. Sonny; My Older Brother was a part the 2012 Show Me Shorts festival, and written and directed by Tammy Davis. You’ll know him as Munter from Outrageous Fortune, and the director of Stan Walker’s new dance movie Born … Read more
A sponsored post listing the new shows to hit Lightbox this October, including a slew of local award-winning short films and the fourth freaky season of American Horror Story. The Mindy Project (throughout October) Seasons 1-3 arrived last month, but new episodes from season four of The Mindy Project will be arriving weekly to Lightbox in … Read more
Over 30 locally made short films have arrived to Lightbox today, all of which have featured in New Zealand’s premiere short film festival Show Me Shorts. To help guide your viewing, I’ve had a perusal of the extensive catalogue and have made my picks from each year. 2014 Pick: Uphill (dir. Jackie van Beek) We’re about … Read more
The fourth in an occasional series commending excellent New Zealand journalism, Alex Casey applauds Kanoa Lloyd’s piece about Chris Brown on Newsworthy yesterday. It’s hard to turn any corner on the internet right now without someone saying something about Chris Brown. He’s just been banned by Australian Immigration from touring the country, following his horrific … Read more
Last night, Sky customers suffered a lengthy television blackout across free-to-air channels TV1, TV2 and TV3. This occurred during the premiere episode of The Block NZ, the biggest MediaWorks television event since the Story premiere. Not only that, but the blackout hit right when the teams were weirdly double bluffing their way to choosing their decrepit … Read more
Here is all you need to know about The Mindy Project before you dive into the romantic comedy-inspired sitcom with a passion for Sandra Bullock. What’s the story? The Mindy Project is the colourful comedy vision of the creator, writer and star Mindy Kaling. Within the sitcom, Mindy Lahiri works as a gynecologist whose life is in constant state of … Read more
Alex Casey recaps Rachel Hunter’s trip to Dubai, during which she falls in love with a camel and then eats it. This week Rachel went to Dubai, the beautiful city “that grew out of the desert”, which is an extraordinary euphemism for “was built by slaves.” Travelling to the United Arab Emirates, it honestly looks like … Read more