Kapiti mum Alexandra Saunders knows the hell of renting. Here she talks to her daughter about the impact eight moves in eight years had on their family. Back in May, 2016, I was interviewed by TVNZ about renting substandard housing in Wellington. The resulting story said I had “moved [my] young family eight times in … Read more
Comics artist and queer trans man Sam Orchard on Stats NZ’s decision not to include questions about sexuality or gender identity in this year’s census. Read more: Being measured means that you’re there: Comedian Eli Matthewson on the LGBTI+ community and the census This section is made possible by Simplicity, the online nonprofit KiwiSaver plan that … Read more
What lies beyond the new Labour government’s ‘first 100 days’ for health policy and outcomes for Māori? In part three of our series on the future of Māori health, former Ministry of Health advisor and policy analyst Gabrielle Baker asks how we can be better Treaty partners in the quest to achieve equity. Last week … Read more
It’s easy to forget pledges of the past. Ben Smith looks at a selection of policy areas, what was promised, and the tangible outcomes that might tell us whether they’re being honoured. As the new political year dawns with a freshly elected government, it is a good time to take stock of the promises that … Read more
On Sunday, a rocket was launched into orbit off the Māhia Peninsula by Rocket Labs, an aerospace manufacturing company founded by New Zealander Peter Beck. Madeleine Chapman watched the full livestream and reports the highlights. I love a space movie. Anything that involves people emotionally trying not to die in the incomprehensible expanse that is … Read more
A charming extract from a new book on the great 19th century naturalist Henry Suter. In December 1896, Hugo Schauinsland, director of a newly opened natural history museum in Bremen, travelled to New Zealand and called on Suter at his home in Christchurch. Schauinsland provided him with his desiderata and Suter did his best to … Read more
NZ Art Parallels is the Twitter account which reveals the hidden connections between world art history and New Zealand politics and media. Now NZ Art Parallels has joined The Spinoff for a monthly column collecting the best parallels from Twitter and exclusive Spinoff-only content. There are two types of parallel: the no-brainer – the one … Read more
If you can write a snappier job ad than this, please consider the vacant situation at your friendly local website. The Spinoff is hiring a general reporter/editor for a new role across our news and media coverage. The successful applicant will be an avid consumer of New Zealand journalism, and willing to work weird hours … Read more
Tara Ward witnesses Suzanne Paul do something extraordinary — not for the first time and not for the last time. Someone alert the authorities because there’s a genius in my living room and her name is Suzanne Paul. I thought I’d seen it all when Suzanne Paul sold a clip that could jazz up your outfit … Read more
Before they called it quits in 2006, The D4 were held up as one of the Kiwi saviours of rock n’ roll. Hussein Moses gets frontman Dion Lunadon on the phone for a candid interview about what went wrong and why now is the right time to get back together. The D4 are back, but … Read more
On Friday little known developer Supremacy released a mobile game named Mongrel Mob Defence and the media, predictably, went nuts. Sam Brooks says this kind of controversy not only allows these kinds of developers to thrive – it’s what they need to survive. Thousands of games come out every year. As each year passes, more … Read more
Across the country there was celebration over the news prime minister Jacinda Ardern is pregnant with her first child. Privately, there was pain and heartache as those who wish for the chance to have a baby cope with the news. Alicia Young talks about compassion and empathy for those struggling. Remember that time we hosted … Read more
The editor of The Spinoff explains why he is no longer editor of The Spinoff, plus talks through other key staff changes. Then indulges himself about what The Spinoff means, and how it was made. Hello. This is a post announcing that I’m handing over the editor’s job at The Spinoff from today. I want to … Read more
2018 is going to be a big year for local reality franchises from Dancing With the Stars to Project Runway, but what’s still missing? Calum Henderson fills in the gaps. It’s never too late to pick up a successful international reality television franchise and give it a good honest Kiwi twist. Last year we saw … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. James Roque: Think the racist menu is OK? Fine! Just know you’re making others feel like shit “Now, before I smash my head into my keyboard out of sheer frustration and exhaustion at having to deal with stuff like this, let’s get one thing … Read more
Following Jacinda Ardern’s announcement that she will soon have a baby, the Spinoff has exclusively obtained a memo from the daughter of MP Kiri Allan to her fellow parliamentary under-ones. To: Parly Cuzzies From: Hiwa-i-te-rangi Allan-Coates Subject: Parly Kids’ Caucus Hey Parly Kids, My mum’s started making all these weird “whooping” sounds yesterday. It was … Read more
Sam Brooks defies the ancient wisdom ‘never read the comments’ and goes deep into nine weeks of the TV Guide’s Mr Telly letters. Since the beginning of time, there have always been internet comments, whether they were some dude ring-a-dinging a bell in a town square, Martin Luther hammering a bunch of complaints to the … Read more
Our regular round-up of new songs and singles, featuring Kody Nielson, The Venus Project, Kylie Minogue, Fall Out Boy and more… SONG OF THE WEEK Kody Nielson – ‘Bic’s Birthday’ Kody is Kody again, the same but different After spending the last few years making music as Silicon, and co-writing award-winning songs with Bic Runga and … Read more
To paraphrase late-90s hitmakers LFO: Summer beards come and summer beards go, some are worthwhile and some are so-so. The summer of 2017-18 has been rife with speculation and chatter over which previously fresh-faced New Zealand politicians or television personalities have grown a summer beard. These are people who, like many working professionals, are precluded … Read more
Two words from Emily Writes in response to today’s many terrible reckons: shut it. I live in the most wonderful liberal bubble. It is here in my echo chamber that I hide from terrible comments from people with shit for brains. I don’t venture into comments sections anymore; I just don’t want to be knee-deep … Read more
In our video series Kiwis of Snapchat, comedian Tom Sainsbury sources exclusive Snapchat footage of Kiwi citizens and luminaries making the news. Today, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern isn’t feeling too great. Click here for all our Kiwis of Snapchat videos This section is made possible by Simplicity, the online nonprofit Kiwisaver plan that only charges members … Read more
A woman prime minister having a baby while in office? It’s already happened once, in Pakistan. As the fervour ensues over Jacinda Ardern’s bombshell announcement, many have been asking: “How historic is this really?” We know it’s unusual – it’s not every day you have a female head of government, let alone one that’s three … Read more
In the first story in a series celebrating the amazing things young New Zealanders do every day, James Kehoe Rowden talks to Angela Cuming about his commitment to protecting the environment, and how little can make a big difference. There are some people who see rubbish littering our streets and beaches and think to themselves … Read more
The week’s best-selling books at the two Unity stores. AUCKLAND UNITY 1 Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House by Michael Wolff (Little Brown, $38) Fake news. 2 Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman (Picador, $35) The book that got made into the movie. 3 Solar Bones by Mike McCormack (Canongate, $23) … Read more
Tim Nixon, the founder and creative director of Runaway Play – creators of successful mobile games Flutter and Splash – is heading to LA to join ThatGameCompany, one of the most critically lauded game developers in the world. He talks to Baz Macdonald about his career in games, and the upcoming NZ launch of ThatGameCompany’s … Read more
New verse by the poet laureate of New Zealand, Selina Tusitala Marsh. How To Woo Your Husband I will sing a Song of Solomon upon you whose very teeth I thought I knew whose rate of calcification was by my very calculation worked out these 21 years of marriage through from my own … Read more
The Spinoff Labs has deployed advanced machine learning and AI to come up with these images which accurately answer the critical question: what will the prime ministerial child look like? Prime minister Jacinda Ardern today announced her pregnancy via cute Instagram of two big fish hooks and a small fish hook. The reaction seems to have … Read more
A message for prime minister Jacinda Ardern, who announced her pregnancy this morning. Dear Jacinda, First of all – like obviously – congratulations! Second of all – BABIES!! Little tiny feet and little hands and gummy smiles and button noses! Third of all – we’ve got your back. Seriously. That squeeing you heard across the … Read more
Jacinda Ardern has announced via social media that she is hapu, and will be become a parent wwith partner Clarke Gayford in five months. “Clarke and I are really excited that in June our team will expand from two to three,” the prime minister has announced on social media. The announcement comes three months to … Read more