Don’t believe the hype, people – or should we? Rebecca Stevenson reports from a slightly cultish Xerocon in Melbourne, and finds accountants (and bookkeepers) just wanna have fun. It starts before we’ve left New Zealand. I’m guessing, but I reckon most of the people who boarded this plane for Melbourne with me are heading to … Read more
The only thing more volatile than the polling is the commentary around the volatile polling. Statistician Richard Arnold tackles some of the critical questions. We love them, we hate them, and they have a greater impact on our political system than many would like to acknowledge. The problem is, polls are statistics, and people as … Read more
After dropping one of the most underrated releases in the country last year, PNC has stepped his game up once again with his new single ‘Iverson 01’. As Hussein Moses writes, not only is it one of the most exciting moments in New Zealand rap’s recent history, it’s also managed to spark the beginning of … Read more
The best-selling books at the two best bookstores in New Zealand’s two most populous residential centres. WELLINGTON UNITY 1 Legacy of Spies by John Le Carre (Penguin, $37) Le Carre’s latest makes it to number one in the same week it was revealed a National Party MP used to teach English to spies in China. … Read more
From June 2019, every rental in the country will need to be insulated. Emily Writes talks to Kelson Primary School principal, landlord and mum Judy Pemberton about the changes, and why she chose to do the right thing early on. Judy Pemberton talks in a way I haven’t heard a landlord talk before. She talks … Read more
The property investors’ lobby group says a change in government would hurt tenants, but they certainly don’t speak for all of us, counters Alicia Young There are two major problems with yesterday’s New Zealand Herald story, “73.6% of landlords plan rent rises if Labour wins.” The first is the suggestion that the survey is representative … Read more
New verse by Northland writer Briar Wood. Kuramārōtini So the story goes that trickster Kupe cheated his friend into diving overboard to free the lines then paddled rapidly away. Some hoa. Best to know that legendary navigators take huge risks and do not make the safest companions. Ākuanei— she asked herself— … Read more
The Spinoff presents the video premiere of Grayson Gilmour’s ‘Otherness’ in 360° spatial audio. Why are you doing all 360° spatial stuff? What’s wrong with tour footage taken on your phone? Curiosity. There’s nothing wrong with shooting something on your phone or making a traditional music video, I’m simply bored of that process and its outcomes; I try … Read more
Finally, an election column we can all agree with! Hayden Donnell argues the election sucks now and is driving us all to the brink of madness and beyond. Most election columns are biased or sensational. They’re tainted by people’s political preferences or psychosexual need to be at the centre of electoral drama. The supply of … Read more
Lucy Zee pours a cup of tea and delves into the creepy slow-burn that is the Chanui ad universe. Can we just all agree straight away: the Chanui ads are really fucking weird. Basically it’s just a guy telling us to buy his tea and about three people seemingly held at gunpoint telling the camera … Read more
This Te Wiki o Te Reo we’re sharing the stories of New Zealanders who have challenged themselves to learn te reo Māori. Today: journalist Shilo Kino (Tainui, Ngāpuhi) writes about finding her way home through studying Mandarin. I was a visitor even though it was ‘my’ marae. I watched my mother kneel down, mumble something … Read more
Pollwatch: Labour continues to thrive and the Memorandum of Understanding lurches back into life, if the numbers in tonight’s Colmar Brunton poll are a guide, writes Toby Manhire The helter-skelter experience of watching the New Zealand election 2017 continues, with the just revealed Colmar Brunton survey for 1News, showing Labour holding its lead over National. … Read more
Every week Chartlander travels back through time, landing in a different year on the official New Zealand singles chart in the hopes of (re)discovering forgotten Top 40 gold. Today we continue our tour of classic general elections in the mid-1970s. The date is November 29, 1975 – almost as far back as the official New … Read more
Jai Breitnauer speaks to her sons’ primary school principal Riki Teteina about teaching in New Zealand and the teacher shortage Bill English says doesn’t exist. This is our final piece on The Spinoff Parents this week about education. We think it’s such an important topic for parents that it deserves this much attention. Monday, we … Read more
The best interview of the election happened today on Morning Report, when Guyon Espiner made Winston Peters look like his race was already run. Duncan Greive recounts the 10 greatest hits. Winston Peters is the most reliably unflappable interview in New Zealand politics. He should get royalties every time someone brazenly answers a completely different … Read more
While mental health is an easy issue to campaign on, it’s hard to get right, writes Jess McAllen. This story first appeared on The Wireless. Read the rest of the series here. Ten years ago, when Labour was in charge, I was 14 and losing grip with reality fast. My parents took me to a counsellor and … Read more
In a very special edition of On the Rag, Alex, Leonie and Michele are joined by author and columnist Clementine Ford. This month’s episode of On the Rag is blessed with the presence of Clementine Ford, Fight Like a Girl author, proud feminist and dedicated “life-ruiner”. Over orange juice and avocado on toast, the team … Read more
What’s in a name? Only everything, writes Miriama Kamo. I didn’t always love my name. When I was in primary I used to wish I was called Lisa or Michelle, something easy that didn’t raise eyebrows. As I recall this, another memory comes to mind. I remember plucking a flower from a tree on the … Read more
In Australia, there is currently a fight for marriage equality. A nationwide survey is asking for Australians to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on the rights of rainbow families. This has had a huge impact on children of gay parents as well as LGBTQIA+ children. Katherine and Roanne have been together for 17 years. They live … Read more
Tara Ward gazes back through time to remember TV One’s campaign dog Toby, the goodest boy to ever grace the small screen. Nothing says “watch this channel” more than a directionally-challenged dog trapped in a labyrinth of notable TV personalities. So it makes perfect sense that when 1991 TV One launched a promo campaign featuring … Read more
Critic Te Arohi, the official magazine of the Otago University Student Association, has found itself a hit with Critic Booze Reviews, featuring reviews of the cheapest alcohol available. Sam Brooks interviews the prolific and heroic reviewer ‘Swilliams Shakesbeer’. “Shitty alcohol, shitty reviews.” The first is undoubtedly true. The second, less so. The reviews, written under the … Read more
Louisa Kasza celebrates the arrival of a “terrifying talent” – Annaleese Jochems, the young author of a novel about an Auckland princess who falls in lust with a gorgeous woman fitness instructor. Baby, the debut novel from the rudely 23-year-old Annaleese Jochems, signals the arrival of a terrifying talent. It exists in the world of … 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: farmer Duncan makes a plea for the upcoming election. Click here for all our Kiwis of Snapchat videos
As the campaign enters its final weekend, Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson have attempted to lance the boil, pledging Labour won’t introduce new tax changes before 2021. Now the attacks will switch from tax to leadership, writes Toby Manhire It was a “captain’s call” to push open the door to significant changes in the tax … Read more
This week ‘The Beerhive’ launched, a podcast which sits comfortably between the not-unrelated worlds of between beer and politics. Host Shane Cowlishaw explains the pod to Duncan Greive. Wellington has become essentially the unquestioned home of craft beer in New Zealand, helped by its weather, its geography and sensibility. The nature of their jobs means … Read more
Possum Plows, singer of Auckland pop-punk band Openside, opens up about their journey to coming out as nonbinary and the impact it has had on their band and fans. Becoming more public about being nonbinary is something I’ve thought about a lot in terms of how it relates to my music career and whether or … Read more
Your indispensable guide to counting the numbers on election night. Simon Wilson explains the official way they do it and offers a cheat’s alternative. You vote for a party that doesn’t make it into parliament and your party vote is just discarded? Sorry, it’s true. Your vote is set to one side and not considered … Read more
Chris McDowall explains the origins of this epic graph view into our political history. For months I’ve followed news about New Zealand’s upcoming general election. Revelations! Resignations! Leadership changes! Bold policy promises! Shock poll results! In this heightened political moment, I found myself wondering about the past. How does this election fit into New Zealand’s … Read more
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today, Madeleine Chapman finds an old friend on the road. We all like to pretend we love long walks, but have you ever walked the length of the country to prove it? Finn Egan is three weeks into his estimated … Read more