Calum Henderson 
Tonight marks the 200th episode of TV3’s flagship comedy show 7 Days. Calum Henderson was in the audience for the show’s marathon filming at the Auckland Town Hall on Wednesday night. I always wanted to be part of a live studio audience. Specifically, I always wanted to be part of the ‘Tool Time’ studio audience … Read more
The Block NZ is all over bar the auction room shouting. There’s time for one last round of Pita Pit, and one last Power Rankings, before Houses 1 through 4 go under the hammer on Sunday night. 1. Brooke & Mitch – House 4 What would The Block NZ have been without Brooke and Mitch? … Read more
Calum Henderson talks to the acclaimed recording artist and guest star of Master of None S01E03 about Aziz, stock photography, and who he’d face in the Fight For Life. The third episode of Aziz Ansari’s widely acclaimed Master of None largely revolves around a ‘secret show’ by an act called Father John Misty. Ansari’s character … Read more
Who is this bloke who’s sent Leicester City to the top of the table and tied Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s Premier League record for goals in consecutive games? Calum Henderson investigates this and more in the Premier League Week. In the second minute of first half added time at St James’ Park Leicester City’s number 9 … Read more
Somebody pops the question next week on The Block NZ – but is it Jeremy proposing to the love of his life Cat, Sarah’s boyfriend to Sarah, or Mitch to this bit of GIB board he’s weirdly infatuated with? No idea, sorry, but here are the Power Rankings all the same. 1. (Last Week: 3) … Read more
Calum Henderson helps the bloke from 800 Words finish writing his column, then sends it to three New Zealand editors to see if they’d give him a job. The main character of TV One’s Thursday night comedy-drama 800 Words is a middle-aged Australian bloke called George Turner, who has just moved to a small town … Read more
It seems like way more than two weeks since the Premier League broke for the international window. We’ve seen the best of times – Zlatan effortlessly curling a free kick around the Danish wall to send Sweden through to the Euros – and the worst of times – France – and now the return of … Read more
Everyone sort of loses their minds as terrifying new creative performance challenge ‘Block Stars’ consumes Backyard Week on The Block NZ: Villa Wars. 1. (Last Week: 2) Cat & Jeremy – House 3 While technically Brooke and Mitch are probably still ‘winning’ The Block NZ, it’s good buggers Cat and Jeremy who hold all the … Read more
Stoke City striker Peter Crouch holds the Premier League record for headed goals, famously enjoys free nachos, and wears his deep and enduring love of Britpop on his sleeve. At 34, he has made his first music video guest appearance. For most people Britpop died out to the celebratory strains of Toploader’s ‘Dancing in the … Read more
Has a seemingly sweet and kind gesture from primary school students cursed every contestant on The Block to hell? And more importantly, has it had any effect whatsoever on the Power Rankings? 1. (Last Week: 1) Brooke & Mitch – House 4 Despite investing heavily in The Block NZ’s first glass-encased outdoor television, Brooke and Mitch’s … Read more
Our Premier League heroes have had a busy week, toiling away in the Champions League or logging serious Call of Duty hours on the Xbox. Ahead of the weekend’s games, headlined by a big juicy North London derby, here is the week’s best and bleakest Premier League Twitter activity. Premier League Creative Insult of the … Read more
In a week marred by a despicable act by Brooke and Mitch and rescued by the thrilling plank challenge, Calum Henderson wonders if anyone can possibly topple the three-peat room reveal winners. 1. (Last Week: 1) Brooke & Mitch – House 4 With a crushing inevitability, Master Bedroom & Ensuite Bathroom Week provided a third … Read more
Hundreds of handwritten signs were hoisted high and proud around Victoria Park at lunchtime to praise, thank, and welcome home the world’s best men’s rugby team, Richie & The Boys. Most were direct and to the point. “Go the All Blacks,” “Well done boys,” “I LOVE THE ALL BLACKS.” Others seemed a little needy – … Read more
A relatively quiet week for our Premier League heroes, with only a smattering of Capital One Cup matches standing in the way of some good solid tweeting. Ahead of the weekend’s intriguing round of games – predictions: Newcastle v Stoke a 7-goal thriller; Chelsea v Liverpool a 0-0 draw – let’s try and divine some … Read more
In a week dominated by Sally Ridge-inspired arts & craft challenges, Calum Henderson assesses the hopes and dreams of the increasingly sick, tired and furious Block NZ contestants. 1. (Last Week: 1) Brooke & Mitch – House 4 The Brooke and Mitch juggernaut rolled on through Living Room Week. The pair’s Heartland conservatism and attention to … Read more
In an attempt to bring good luck to our rugby team, Calum Henderson spent an entire day in full brand immersion: surviving on and consuming only officially licensed All Blacks’ products. This post was first published in October 2015 There once was a time when I cared deeply about the All Blacks. I was 10, … Read more
A happy week on Premier League Twitter, thanks to everyone doing reasonably well in Europe for once, with Arsenal’s 2-0 triumph over Bayern Munich a definite highlight. Looking ahead to the weekend’s round of games, which features a tantalising Manchester derby and struggling Chelsea vs high-riding West Ham, let’s first check what’s been happening on the … Read more
The villas are being fitted with expensive and unnecessary fireplaces and Dinner Wars hangs precariously in the balance – Calum Henderson ranks the Block NZ teams going into the break in living room week. 1. (Last Week: 2) – Brooke & Mitch – House 4 A low cloud of inevitability rolled over the Sandringham / … Read more
Calum Henderson watches Newsworthy every day for a week, to see how TV3’s late night current affairs show manages to balance both the credible, the incredible, and Gene Simmons. MONDAY Walking home from the bus stop, a long-haired orange cat followed me all the way to the front door. He wandered around the flat for a … Read more
As we await the results of the vitally important Bathroom Week on The Block NZ: Villa Wars, Calum Henderson looks at how the teams are tracking. 1. Cat & Jeremy – House 3 The happy-go-lucky couple on the corner are leading a charmed life on The Block NZ, scooping Kid’s Bedroom Week from under Jamie and … Read more
As we barrel through the international window, Premier League twitter once again becomes a case of the haves and the have-nots. Those who have international duty have not got the time to watch the final of Great British Bake Off and Grand Designs back-to-back like Norwich City’s Matt Jarvis, and for that they deserve nothing … Read more
Who’s got the best kit in the Premier League this season? Calum Henderson looks at all 51 shirts on offer and ranks the clubs on the strength of their designs. Probably the most exciting thing about the Premier League pre-season isn’t the tours of Malaysia and the USA, the Emirates Cup or even the multi-million … Read more
To celebrate the arbitrary three-day respite TV3 have offered us from The Block NZ: Villa Wars, Calum Henderson looks back at the last week-and-a-bit of daybed dramas, dangerous drilling, dick moves and a hundred pre-line inspections. 1) Cat & Jeremy – House 3 The New Plymouth jokers took out first week honours with their guest bedroom … Read more
We’ve got a tantalising weekend coming up in the Premier League with a big Merseyside derby in Liverpool v Everton and one of the classic football rivalries in Arsenal v Manchester United. Just about everyone in the Premier League got a new pair of hideous orange boots this week so there’s that too. https://twitter.com/youngy18/status/648413608951574528 My … Read more
As a prelude to the Block NZ: Villa Wars Power Rankings starting next week, Calum Henderson investigates the first episode’s series of ominous signs which indicate that this will surely be New Zealand’s scariest ever renovation show. Two adjacent sections snaffled up in “Auckland’s sought-after central west”. Four decrepit old three-bedroom villas carefully tetrissed onto … Read more
A very quiet week on Premier League Twitter, with most players selling their accounts to EA Sports in exchange for an advance copy of the hottest ticket in town, FIFA 16. The game’s release was celebrated in the UK with a tournament which saw eight Premiership legends battle it out on the Xbox for the … Read more
Calum Henderson studies a near-infinite list of scenarios and permutations to figure out a pathway to FedEx Cup glory for Kiwi hero Danny Lee. Going into the final weekend of the PGA Tour season, any one of the 30 golfers qualified for the Tour Championship can still technically win. A slightly goalpost-shifting points realignment after the … Read more
Calum Henderson watches two Premier League stars battle it out on an Xbox for English football’s least celebrated prize, the FIFA 16 Celebrity Cup. For a certain type of football person this is the biggest week of the year – the week FIFA 16, the latest instalment of the popular EA Sports gaming title, is … Read more
With John Key currently settling important panda trade deals, Calum Henderson watched Lightbox’s nature documentary Panda Nursery to see what our country might have in store. What’s it about? Like a grown-up version of Countdown’s animal cards, John Key this week proposed a swap with China – a couple of our kiwi double-ups for a couple of … Read more