George Saunders’ Lincoln in the Bardo is the year’s most talked-about novel, and there’s much excitement that the author will appear at the Auckland Writers Festival in May. Wyoming Paul reviews what may be a masterpiece. A year into the Civil War, a tormented President Lincoln visits his 11-year-old son’s crypt in the cemetery. He holds … Read more
For an ex-member of New Zealand’s one and only ‘sex cult’, the parallels between Centrepoint and Gloriavale raise some serious questions about the government’s handling of sexual abuse accusations in religious communities, writes Anke Richter. Three years ago I spent many afternoons on a sofa in Barri Leslie’s living room in Brown’s Bay, recording her life … Read more
While battling a bout of bronchitis, Claire Adamson rediscovers the ’90s magic of Sabrina the Teenage Witch. In honour of its twentieth trip around the sun, I recently sat down (read: reclined on my bed with my laptop on my chest) to watch Space Jam, that much reminisced-about Michael Jordan vehicle from 1996. I had … Read more
The evidence shows that a ‘tough on crime’ approach is a posture, not a solution, writes criminologist Antje Deckert. In 2011, when Bill English was Finance Minister, he declared that New Zealand’s prisons were “a moral and fiscal failure”. Five years later, the National government has announced that it will recruit 1,100 new police officers … Read more
Angela Cuming has three children under three – all boys. Here she talks about the joys and challenges of her family life. My name is Angela, I have three boys under three and I haven’t slept in three-and-half years. There’s Charlie, he came first and when he was 20 months old we welcomed identical twins Tommy … Read more
With The Mindy Project season five coming to an end today, Alex Casey rounds up some reckons from the dramatic finale. Contains spoilers and delicious food. The Mindy Project remains one of my most reliable sitcoms these days, maintaining my affections where New Girl lost it years ago. It’s a love letter to the modern rom-com, … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. If you’re looking at companies in the last few years that have … Read more
The politicking and partisanship around how to solve society’s problems can start to look a bit like a comedy show at times. The Green Effect Comedy Show flips this on its head and lets comedians apply their unique approach to finding solutions for the world’s ills. Kirstie MacDiarmid threw a few questions at Brendon Green, creator … Read more
There’s a bevy of great new television shows that we can’t stream in New Zealand without breaking the law, and Aaron Yap has had it up to HERE. If there is one downside to this golden age of television on demand – where we’re all losing our minds over no fewer than ten amazing shows … Read more
In association with our mates Bigpipe Broadband 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 these highlights from a journey into utter mayhem. In anticipation of the remastered Crash Bandicoot series coming later this year, José invites avowed Bandicoot … Read more
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today: Natasha Hoyland can’t comprehend the L&P fusion food craze. I ask myself this time and time again: why do New Zealanders become so obsessed with such mediocre, often quite frankly shitty things? I’m looking at you, L&P chocolate. Another … Read more
Auckland’s fashion festival for the people kicks off today and runs until Saturday at venues around the city. Brian Ng has the lowdown. Fashion in the City ( Wednesday 29 March – Saturday 1 April) is sprawling around town this year: from a MAALA concert in Topshop to through a new look at fashion history … Read more
Residents of the Afghan area where NZ forces undertook Operation Burnham in 2010 say the NZ Defence Force claim it took place in Tirgiran Village is a nonsense, like describing an attack on ‘Otago City’. Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson have meanwhile conceded that they were out by 2km in locating the villages, but argue it … Read more
Overflowing buses, long delays to the airport and chaos downtown: Transport planning is a complete bloody mess and most of the big things needed to fix the problems are delayed or are being ignored altogether. And meanwhile, a battle is growing between different parts of council over what to do. Why are we putting up with … Read more
Don Rowe speaks to Dr Neil deGrasse Tyson, the leading science communicator of our age, about climate change, celebratory ignorance and the rise (or not) of artificial intelligence. Stoners worship him, nerds want to be him, the average person wishes they had just a tenth of his IQ – Neil deGrasse Tyson is the … Read more
To once again prove she was not in Grey Lynn the other night, while marking seasonal confectionery treats, Lorde sings a Creme Egg inspired version of ‘Green Light’ on BBC Radio 1. She’s right, they are rich! And he’s right, they have gotten smaller! The Spinoff’s music content is brought to you by our friends at Spark. Listen … Read more
You could be forgiven for thinking support for a Universal Basic Income comes only from Gareth Morgan and the more radical parts of the left. But as financial adviser Michael Warrington points out, the UBI has a lot to recommend it whatever your political outlook. Gareth Morgan’s proposals around tax and the Universal Basic Income (UBI) … Read more
What happens when your baby is born and you don’t feel anything? Nadine Millar shares her story of waiting for the feelings to come. I was 24 when I had my first baby. I’d just started Uni and it seemed like a good use of time. I wrote assignments while he slept, substituted text books for … Read more
An Ombudsman’s report revealed some serious issues with the use of tie-down beds in New Zealand’s prisons. What it didn’t show was that their use amounts to torture, says Corrections Chief Custodial Officer Neil Beales. Roger Brooking’s opinion piece published on The Spinoff yesterday says that prisoners are tortured in New Zealand. He is wrong: … Read more
Drake’s chart-dominating, streaming record-breaking ‘playlist’ More Life is a grab-bag of global influences. But if you don’t know your Moodymann from you ‘wasteman’, never fear – David Bell is here to guide you through it. I’ve always found Drake to be a kind of harmless doongie who can rap OK but write an amazing pop hook. … Read more
Jane Yee, Duncan Greive and Alex Casey gather around the oval table and talk about the latest happenings in New Zealand television and real life in New Zealand. This week on The Real Pod, Alex, Jane and Duncan open with a disastrous Tim Tam slam before diving right into the latest in reality television and real life … Read more
Auckland and Brooklyn-based dreamy/electro/synth/pop band Yumi Zoumi bid farewell to summer with an exclusive mix for The Spinoff. Seasons don’t change much in New Zealand comparative to other places. You could be forgiven for missing the subtle changes in the weather, but you would really have to be trying to miss things if you couldn’t feel … Read more
Alex Casey tackles the second week of The Bachelor NZ, including Shakespeare, funny tummies and bathroom tears. Time is limited. You could go at any point. Nobody is safe. That is both a beautiful haiku about the fragility of human mortality, and a direct quote from The Bachelor NZ last night. It’s the second week … Read more
Sam Brooks sat down with NZ-based American-Cambodian comedian Molly Sokhom to talk about travelling to Cambodia, her experiences with local audiences, and her new show Sokhom Syndrome. Sam Brooks: So, straight up: Other than the A+ play on words, why the name Sokhom Syndrome for your show? Molly Sokhom: Sokhom Syndrome was always funny to me because I’ve … Read more
We asked the distinguished Katherine Mansfield scholar Vincent O’Sullivan to comment on the recent attempt by Wellington’s mayor to repatriate the bones of Katherine Mansfield. I once heard of an artist whose partner believed her legal status, even in life, meant “owner under all circumstances.” As a widow, there was even more to own. Not … Read more
With stores closing and the sales never ending, it has to be asked – what’s going on with New Zealand’s fastest growing fashion brand? Things aren’t looking good for I Love Ugly. The Auckland-based men’s streetwear brand, which in fewer than ten years has grown from a one-person operation run out of a closet to … Read more
We should be on guard against allowing conservative religious views familiar in the US to creep into our discussion of issues in Aotearoa NZ, writes Rev Dr Helen Jacobi of St Matthew-in-the-City I think I first really started to understand the nature of the transgender life when I read Charity Norman’s novel The Secret Life … Read more
The Chief of NZ Defence has dismissed Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson’s book, pointing to ‘major inaccuracies’, saying Operation Burnham took place not in the villages they identify but instead in Tirgiran Village, 2km south. And it turns out Stephenson himself said, in a 2014 report, that the raid occurred in Tirgiran Village. We asked … Read more
Following the announcement that The Big Bang Theory is getting its own spinoff series, Angela Cuming goes off like a bloody rocket to Mars. There are three things I never bring up in a social setting: politics, religion, or The Big Bang Theory. The first two are tricky, but I can handle them OK – … Read more