We designed a quiz to test whether you can tell the difference between the Prime Minister of nine years ago and the Labour leader of today. It’s improbably difficult. It’s the End Times in the Auckland housing market. An average house is worth 10 times the average household income. Only four percent of sales are “affordable”. A … Read more
The Press Council has upheld a complaint about the comment relating to Miles Davis and homophobia contained in this article. The full decision is available here or at www.presscouncil.org.nz Somewhere in a darkened studio a few weeks ago, two men unleashed the world’s most powerful tsunami of terrible radio. Hayden Donnell dug up the recording. … Read more
In sport, there are winners and losers. Joy and disappointment. But in the coaching boxes for the Welsh and All Blacks sides, there is only darkness, misery, and despair. Hayden Donnell reports. The All Blacks cruelly trashed Wales’ dreams for the second time running on Saturday, allowing their opponents a sliver of hope before crushing … Read more
After a four year hiatus, The Ridges returned to our screens this year in the form of Friday night re-runs. Its return resurrected one of the most vexing unsolved mysteries in New Zealand television history: Was the infamous mouse scene faked? Hayden Donnell investigates. It was one of the defining television moments of our generation. Sally and … Read more
The fastest man in world rugby was on the field as Wales played the All Blacks on Saturday. He just wasn’t where you’d expect. It all happened in 15 seconds. Ryan Crotty, a bank teller moonlighting as an All Black, was tackled. The ball burst free. A Welshman kicked it upfield, sending a stampede of professional … Read more
Nick Smith was totally right to crack down on a politician who pandered to his rich, elderly voting base at the expense of sensible housing policy. Now, about National pandering to its rich, elderly voting base at the expense of sensible housing policy. Nick Smith, a sentient turnip acting undercover as New Zealand’s Housing Minister, launched … Read more
Mark Weldon misrepresented Hilary Barry in a company-wide email before his resignation, writes Hayden Donnell. On Monday night Mark Weldon sent an email to all MediaWorks staff. It was mostly a defence of his tumultuous tenure as the company’s CEO: assertions its finances were in good order, potshots at “spurious” speculation over its ability to survive. There was … Read more
The Spinoff Editorial Board rules on whether Nick Smith was right when he said housing is more affordable in Auckland now than when National came to power. This morning, Housing Minister Nick Smith made the following statement on Morning Report: “If you look at the Massey University Housing Affordability Index, independently produced by that university, … Read more
A Herald report says young people could buy houses in Auckland if they stopped spending on BMWs and trips to Bali. The Spinoff is stepping in to help these mythical big-spending Millennials. Over the last few years, several people have argued that Auckland has a problem with “‘housing unaffordability”. But today, the Herald printed a report … Read more
Hayden Donnell looks back on one of New Zealand’s most iconic interviews. In December 1997, two teenage girls gave Paul Holmes the sternest test of his storied interviewing career. The Ingham twins, both 18, had gone to extraordinary lengths for love. Sarah had fallen for a sailor. Her sister Joanna decided to help her pursue … Read more
We requested police records on the destruction of the Waitangi Dildo under the Official Information Act. What we got back left us with more questions than answers. At first glance, it’s just another Government form. The police property sheet noting the final destination of the Waitangi Dildo is nothing flashy. Nothing new. A jumble of … Read more
It is perhaps the world’s most famous dildo – but what became of it? Hayden Donnell reveals the answer in this Spinoff special investigation into the fate of the Waitangi dildo. We all remember the moment of impact. “Thwack.” Pink flesh striking pink flesh. The dildo sprung off Steven Joyce’s jowls like a prisoner released, careening … Read more
The Spinoff was attacked by a crosstown media rival. In response, The Spinoff Editorial Board convened for an extraordinary crisis meeting to produce a ruling on the aggressor, Mark Reason. On Monday, The Spinoff published a story headlined ‘Men in business class, women in economy: A tale of two T20 World Cups’. Mark Reason, a man employed by Fairfax Media … Read more
Victoria University Chancellor Sir Neville Jordan is in a fight with Salient magazine over a “disgusting” 96-word satirical article about him, but is his anger evidence of a deeper issue? Sir Neville Jordan’s life story is inspiring. He started his working life at age 13 as a child labourer at a freezing works, and went on … Read more
Last week people submitting on the proposed Unitary Plan to Auckland Councillors were routinely jeered and shouted at by “the miserables of Kohimarama“. A marathon 7 hour meeting ended with the council backing down and the eventual crippling of Mayor Len Brown’s sanity. Hayden Donnell gingerly offers his two cents. Further reading: Read Alex Johnston’s account … Read more
Mark Jennings is stepping down as the news boss at MediaWorks after spending 27 years in the TV3 newsroom. He will be replaced by a man who has never worked in TV. Former NineMSN boss Hal Crawford’s appointment is more evidence of NewsHub’s increasingly lusty embrace of the digital age. It wants to move away … Read more
The jubilation which has accompanied Sean Marks elevation to NBA GM is deeply misplaced, says Hayden Donnell. Sean Marks just got named the general manager of the Brooklyn Nets. That’s weird because yesterday, the team’s owner said he’d never heard of ‘Sean Marks’. When asked specifically about Sean Marks, Prokhorov said: “I have never heard … Read more
Is it a tale of a trusted institution gone rogue? There’s fan revolt. Official denial. Who do you believe? It was meant to be a happy night at Eden Park. The Black Caps were harvesting Australia’s souls. Their heatstruck fans were braying for Australian blood. And in most parts of the ground, beer was flowing freely … Read more
Don’t let the shiny new desk distract you – there is something very bleak going on in the background of NewsHub Live at 6. Hayden Donnell investigates. As the Herald reported last month, 3News is dead. A completely new programme called NewsHub Live at 6 replaced it on air last night, shamelessly dancing on the … Read more
In light of National’s decision to fast-track the City Rail Link, Hayden Donnell looks back at some of the times the party’s top MPs scorned the project as a terrible idea beloved only by wastrel lefties. National’s stance on public transport in Auckland lurched toward sanity yesterday, with an announcement it will fast-track funding for … Read more
Hayden Donnell looks into the oozing ruptured abdomen of Game of Thrones and tries to discover how to make it through this doomscape alive. Contains endless spoilers, obviously. Game of Thrones is trying to inflict as much emotional and physical harm on you as possible. It wants to teach you that good guys don’t always win, that honour … Read more
Hayden Donnell tracks down various other disgusting artists who have copied X Factor NZ judge Willy Moon’s idiosyncratic style. // Natalia Kills was just saying what we were all thinking. The Thor to Mel Blatt’s weary Odin is getting cyber-bullied this morning for telling Joe Irvine a well-known fact: her husband Willy Moon invented ‘wearing … Read more