Is there a colony of copperhead snakes living in the remote West Coast bush? Yes, say some locals. Possibly – but probably not, says one government report. Charlie O’Mannin set off on a cross-country journey to uncover the truth. It’s 1990 and a gold prospector is working in a secluded West Coast valley. On one … Read more
This week’s issue of Otago University student magazine Critic features a story on a landlord who gave tenants illegal fixed-term contracts for what was legally a boarding house. It’s just the latest in a string of shocking stories of exploitative Dunedin landlords and property managers, writes editor Charlie O’Mannin. Over the past few years Critic … Read more
The chance discovery of an 18-year-old book of spells (for men) leads Critic‘s Charlie O’Mannin on a journey to the dark side. In the depths of time before the world came into being (2001), in a dark and distant land (the American Midwest), a book was made. This book was called Wicca Spellcraft for Men … Read more
The editor of Critic Te Arohi backgrounds the magazine’s major investigation into sexual harassment and troubling culture at Knox, one of the University of Otago’s oldest residential colleges. Over the past month Critic Te Arohi, the University of Otago student magazine, has been investigating how Knox college deals with sexual assault and harassment, and how … Read more
Students at the University of Otago will be able to separate the tinnys from the sinnyz this Orientation Week in a first-ever trial between OUSA and KnowYourStuff NZ. This article first appeared in Critic Te Arohi, the University of Otago student magazine. The Otago University Students’ Association (OUSA) will introduce drug testing for O-Week, the … Read more
Remember Animorphs? The book where children turn into animals and save the world? Charlie O’Mannin does – because he just read all 54 of them in five days. This is his story. Animorphs is a children’s book series by K. A. Applegate about a group of teenagers who learn about a parasitic alien race, the Yeerks, … Read more
“Both the board and college leaders have been crystal clear this behaviour cannot continue.” Otago University halls of residence Selwyn College has shut down its controversial tradition of second years secretly voting on and publicly awarding nicknames to freshers at their AGM after previous recipients accused the awards of being “sexist and bullying”. Among the … Read more
It’s not just a challenge on Fear Factor anymore. Charlie O’Mannin talks to locust farmer Malcolm Diack about farming locusts for human consumption, doing it within city limits and doing it ethically. Malcolm Diack loves animals. As we enter his suburban house in Caversham we’re greeted by a beautiful deaf Samoyed, two cats, and a tank of … Read more