What happens when you put of two of the most enduring soap opera characters together in one room? After years of wondering, we finally found out in this exclusive video. Shortland Street‘s Chris Warner (played by Michael Galvin) and Home and Away‘s Alf Stewart (played by Ray Meagher) are two of New Zealand’s most beloved soap opera … Read more
Under the Unitary Plan at least 400,000 new homes will be built to meet the growth of Auckland over the next 30 years. But while we wait for the Plan to take effect, let’s take a look at how many dwellings are being built right now. News that 35 Auckland apartment development projects have collapsed … Read more
Mayor Phil Goff joins Millennial wastrel Hayden Donnell and Metro editor-at-large Simon Wilson to talk about the housing crisis, council culture, *that* headline about sleeping with the same woman for 45 years, and whether we should jail all Boomers. It’s Warcast #9 and Toby Manhire is still in Whanganui, hanging out with New Zealand’s answer to Donald … Read more
Compiling the best reading of the week from your friendly local website. Tim Murphy: A final Pokarekare Ana and a punch in the air: post-mayoricide, Len Brown goes out on a high “This is not a tabloid story, taking things out of context and boasting a headline like: ‘Sex Scandal Made Me a Better Mayor’ … Read more
Waiting for an egg to boil? Sitting through a long ad break? Be a cool reader and take our cool survey. The Spinoff exists because a small family of amazing brands like what we do and pay to sponsor us as a business. They’re also paying to keep us doing good work because they value you … Read more
The best-seller chart at Unity Books for the week just ended: October 7 Steve Braunias is on a well-deserved break this week and as a result, the best-seller lists are presented without comment. WELLINGTON STORE 1 Constitution for Aotearoa NZ (Victoria University Press, $25) by Geoffrey Palmer and Andrew Butler 2 Like Nobody’s Watching (Escalator … Read more
Your topic for this week’s quickfire quiz: how much do you know about marriage and divorce in New Zealand? Having trouble viewing the quiz? Take it here.
Here comes consumer level virtual reality peripherals for your console gaming. Alongside this uptick in personal digital stupefaction comes all Don Rowe’s hopes and dreams. Finally, he can start living. Edited by Joseph Harper Trip the light wicked with Bigpipe, the sweetest ISP in the land.
Further reading and links to the data used in this comic can be found here.
Two of the best young election candidates in Auckland join Hayden Donnell to talk cycle helmets, our terrible voting system, and election intrigue on the North Shore. Argh! Crap! Oh no! The election voting deadline is nearly upon us and pretty much no-one in Auckland has voted. Chlöe Swarbrick and Richard Hills join Hayden Donnell … Read more
Are we a nation of binge drinkers? This week’s charts from Figure.NZ shed some light. The Losi Filipo case has brought renewed attention to New Zealand’s chronic problem with binge drinking and alcohol-fuelled assault. Three Figure.NZ charts take a look at our heaviest drinkers. Want to know more about our drinking habits? Check out … Read more
Compiling the best reading of the week from your friendly local website. Deborah Mahuta-Coyle: ‘You’ll never undo the hurt.’ A Māori woman’s open letter to Don Brash “You see, Don, when you talk about Māori privilege, you say you’re referring to the Treaty, or to water rights, or to all these “special privileges” that Māori … Read more
In association with our mates Bigpipe we’re livestreaming a different video game every Wednesday at 7pm on Facebook Live. Join José Barbosa and a cast of roped in innocents for a journey into utter mayhem. This week José Barbosa is joined by Spinoff staff writer Calum Henderson. The two grown men tackle the most grown … Read more
The best-seller chart at Unity Books for the week just ended: September 30 AUCKLAND STORE 1 The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life (Viking, $38) by John le Carré By all means take note of a curious tale in the Guardian by Le Carre’s biographer, who was greatly puzzled at his subject bringing out a … Read more
This week’s quickfire quiz: how much do you know about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States? Wednesday’s car-crash of a presidential debate meant a big day for excellent Kiwi Twitter account @MovingToEnZed. I reckon @MovingToEnZed is going to get a good workout during the debates eh — Somon (@simonpnz) September 27, 2016 With polls … Read more
Readers’ responses on Māui and Moana, millennials and Mike Lee – and one powerful first-person essay. Madeleine Chapman’s defence of Disney’s full-body Maui costume for kids – since withdrawn from sale – attracted outrage and applause in equal measure. “Takes all the context & comes up with a sensible conclusion. Refreshing to read in an … Read more
Why did we endorse Not Mike Lee? We explain our controversial decision and talk housing, elections and potential mayors with a pair of all-star guests. With Auckland in the throes of voting, Mana editor Leonie Hayden joins the Warcast to recap the most recent mayoral debate at Ngā Whare Waatea Marae, where one candidate emerged as a clear crowd favourite. Hayden … Read more
Three Figure.NZ charts offer an insight into the 2011 earthquake’s ongoing impact on the Garden City. Our recent post on Christchurch’s local election apathy was inspiration for this week’s charts from Figure.NZ – a snapshot of a city in three acts. Hungry for more Christchurch data? Check out Figure.NZ.
Compiling the best reading of the week from your friendly local website. The Spinoff: The Spinoff announces its mayoral endorsement “The Spinoff’s War for Auckland psy-ops division has emerged from their underground bunker with their picks for Auckland mayor. – Click here – to discover on whom The Spinoff has bestowed its coveted mayoral seal of … Read more
The best-seller chart at Unity Books for the week just ended: September 23 WELLINGTON STORE 1 Through the Eyes of a Miner: The Photography of Joseph Divis (Friends of Waiuta, $40) by Simon Nathan Fantastic black and white photographs of the West Coast coalmining town that died. A feature will appear at the Spinoff Review … Read more
To mark the occasion of our endorsements for Auckland council and mayor, this week’s quiz looks at the differences between the Big Smoke and the country beyond the Bombay Hills.
Who’s getting the blue tick – Goff? Swarbrick? Crone? Bright? Let us show you the way. The Spinoff’s War for Auckland psy-ops division has emerged from their underground bunker with their picks for Auckland mayor. – Click here – to discover on whom The Spinoff has bestowed its coveted mayoral seal of approval.
The Spinoff War for Auckland PsyOps Division is giddily excited to launch our turbo-charged endorsement tool – click here! We say: give these people your vote for mayor and council. The tool – click here! – is a core part of our outlandish and belligerent campaign for a better Auckland. Drawing on field research conducted by … Read more
Working hard or hardly working? A look at who isn’t participating in the labour force, and why. Inspired by the Real Housewives of Auckland, this week’s charts from Figure.NZ provide an insight into the real lives of New Zealand’s ‘housewives’ and others not in paid work. Want to know more? Check out Figure.NZ.
Compiling the best reading of the week from your friendly local website. Don Rowe: The most divisive man in New Zealand sport explains himself “He writes with such anger, blaspheming the patron saints of the punters, week after week. Before the 2015 World Cup, Rattue penned his own Satanic Verses, calling for the sacking of … Read more
In fits of democratic exhilaration, Gen Zero and the Auckland war bunker celebrate the start of the Auckland local elections, and explain their imperious plans to tell you how to vote. On the day voting papers begin to dribble into the letterboxes of the Super City, Spinoffistas Toby Manhire and Hayden Donnell are joined by … Read more
In association with our mates Bigpipe we’re livestreaming a different video game every Wednesday at 7pm on our Twitch channel. Join José Barbosa and a cast of roped in innocents for a journey into utter mayhem. This week José Barbosa is joined by old mate Ashley Hinton for a heaping wad of low-fi hacker puzzle … Read more
The best-seller chart at Unity Books for the week just ended: September 16 WELLINGTON STORE 1 Hera Lindsay Bird (Victoria University Press, $25) by Hera Lindsay Bird Verse. 2 Nutshell (Jonathan Cape, $38) by Ian McEwan “Nutshell assumes its readers will be literate, thoughtful and cultured. You have to like that.” David Hill, New Zealand … Read more
It’s Conservation Week, and we’re celebrating with a green-themed quiz. Dive in and discover how much you know about our wild places and natural resources.