After watching a mind-bending film about a dying magician that reminded him of Tickled, David Farrier interviewed the director, only to have his interview disappear. This has never happened before. I’ve never lost audio from an interview, and it’s the most frustrating feeling I’ve felt in years. I can see it sitting right in front … Read more
Wtf did we just watch? That sound you heard was a million furries screaming in ecstasy as their fantasy and everyone else’s nightmare came to life in the form of the first trailer for the live action version of Cats. Is it live action if it’s CGI fur-covered actors singing Andrew Lloyd Webber songs? It’s … Read more
The newsreader turned talkback host Peter Williams (not Peter Williams) is furious about the mainstream refusal to acknowledge the cheesiness of the moon. I’m sorry but my head still hurts. Yesterday I blew to smithereens the so-called “consensus” on the “science” around “climate change”. I put forward my doubts about “climate” “change”, posing the question, … Read more
The blessed ScarJo has kept very quiet some of her most impressive performances. Movie star Scarlett Johansson has faced criticisms around taking the part (she ended up standing down) of a trans person in Rub and Tug and the lead in Ghost in the Shell, which was a Japanese character in its original manga form. She’s … Read more
Alex Casey, a bona fide Simba-head, went to premiere of the new Lion King movie last night. She wasn’t mad at it. For months, I was furious about this fucking remake. I hate to sound like a millennial snowflake, but The Lion King is extremely important to me and ONLY me and NOT YOU. Like … Read more
Emily Writes once more ventures into the treacherous depths of online news, so you don’t have to. In absolutely astonishing news the New Zealand woman who married a random dude the day she met him has divorced him. Who would have ever foreseen this? New Zealander Sarah Elliott married Paul Edwards on Christmas Day. Which … Read more
They’re the two most important shows for TVNZ 2 and Three. And their ratings are changing radically, writes Duncan Greive. TV channels tell different stories about themselves depending on whom they’re talking to. When speaking to funding bodies, they emphasise the diversity of genres they air, and interest groups whose needs are met. When speaking … Read more
Longtime fan Nik Dirga pays tribute to the magazine that weaponised satire before the internet. Last week, news broke that Mad magazine – warping young minds ever since 1952 – would stop publishing original content. It will reportedly switch to just reprint material later this year, and then likely end regular publication entirely soon after … Read more
After a truce as both sorted out new corporate bosses, the Sky v Spark sports war has suddenly hotted up again. Trevor McKewen had a ringside seat. Earlier this year, the live sports viewing landscape in New Zealand suddenly got very interesting. Then it took a twist. Then it went quiet. On Monday open warfare … Read more
One startup was banned by the government. Another founder was thrown in prison. Duncan Greive describes what he found on two trips to Asia earlier this year. The moment I realised where I really was is etched into my mind. Kirsten Han, the editor-in-chief of New Naratif, was explaining the constraints under which her news … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Duncan Greive: The extraordinary story of Love Brar, the fraudster who became a pop star “The clip is one of the most opulent scenes ever filmed in New Zealand. In it Brar and Akhtar perform in a vast garage, filled with vintage Rolls Royces, loaned … Read more
Emily Writes bravely ventures into the treacherous cavities of online news so you don’t have to. It’s been a week in Princess Diana news despite the fact that she died in 1997. Kevin Costner has said Lady Di once considered starring in a sequel to The Bodyguard. Unsurprisingly, that shit-stirrer Fergie was behind it. If … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Duncan Greive: Leo Molloy: the angriest man in the Viaduct “I wanted to know how he could be so enormously successful, so beloved by so many important people, while so often being such a gaping arsehole. After he sent some strange emails to The Spinoff, … Read more
We’re launching a brand new membership programme, inviting readers to support new journalistic endeavours and help shape our editorial direction. Today The Spinoff enters a new era with the launch of The Spinoff Members. It will support our growth in a way which ensures our work remains free to all, while also allowing us to … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Emily Writes: At long last, introducing meal kits for kids! Delivery meal kits seem to be everywhere at the moment. Every company insists they have the food that your kids will love. They say you’ll never have to think about what you cook and your … Read more
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today, ACT has launched a podcast called Politics in Full Sentences as part of their party-wide rebrand. Media and politics nerd Alex Braae watched the first episode on Youtube. There’s always a question creators of new media products or content … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Amanda Thompson: A love letter to my crockpot Once when I was younger and stupider I thought I didn’t need a crockpot. I thought they were the laughable domain of Tupperware-hoarding suburban housewives. Oh how I laughed at those housewives. A friend actually persuaded me … Read more
Being a big brand, corporate, or government department means restraining yourself on social media, no matter how grievously you feel you’ve been wronged, writes Anna Connell I used to manage social media for a bank. We had good days and bad days. Days when we desperately wanted to say how we really felt or point … Read more
In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden wrestle with the positives and perils of being a woman online. In episode three of our On the Rag web series, we explore the ways that the promised utopia of the … Read more
Last week an Auckland cinema hosted a six-hour Shrek marathon. In a show of classic Kiwi stoicism, Josie Adams found that what didn’t kill her made her stronger. At the end of the first Shrek film, our hero turns to his loyal friend and noble steed, Donkey. “Donkey, can you ever forgive me?” From the … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Emily Writes: We need to talk about Noa “The stories everywhere were immediately click-worthy. I hate that straight away I was drawn in. Authorities had apparently granted a Dutch teenager her wish to be given assisted suicide. Legal under certain circumstances in the Netherlands, it … Read more
On Wednesday the AFP, the Australian equivalent of New Zealand’s SIS, raided the Sydney headquarters of the state broadcaster the ABC. The move represents a clear threat to democracy, writes an Australian lawyer who specialises in press freedom. The Australian Federal Police has this week conducted two high-profile raids on journalists who have exposed government … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Sam Brooks: The 10 most shocking moments in the blistering new book ‘Whale Oil’ Slater tried to add Blomfield’s 10-year-old daughter on Snapchat Well after the armed attack, and a fair way into the protracted legal battle between the pair, Slater, or someone pretending to … Read more
What did international coverage get right about the 2019 Budget? Not a hell of a lot, writes Alex Braae. “I read the foreign news to understand my nation.” So said Matt Berninger of band The National, in a line from the song ‘Fashion Coat’. The government’s 2019 budget – the first ever Wellbeing Budget at … Read more
There are few book launches more hotly anticipated than a new Nicky Hager work. This time Hager is not the author, but it is introduced by him, with the same publisher, and the same closely guarded leadup to publication. The book, we can now reveal, is by Margie Thomson, and its title is spare and … Read more
Good news! We’re launching a free daily newsletter featuring all of the Spinoff’s stories published that day. Read on to sign up now. Social media dominates how many consume content today. Whether it’s via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram stories, our reliance on these platforms gives them immense power over what we see and when we … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Patrick Reynolds: The story of a revolution: How public transport transformed Auckland “There’s a quiet revolution underway in Auckland, slowly but relentlessly transforming the city. It began early in the century – a big change of direction taken in small steps – and has been continued … Read more
Last night at the Voyager Media Awards in Auckland, The Spinoff was named website of the year. Managing editor Duncan Greive is still in shock. It’s 8.43am and I’ve had I’m guessing ~4 hours sleep, but who in the world needs that because The Spinoff has won website of the year at the Voyager Awards. … Read more
Tonight the nation’s journalists, photographers, videographers, reviewers and columnists gather at Auckland’s glamorous Cordis Hotel for the most glittering night in media, the Voyager Media Awards. Read a selection of The Spinoff’s rip-roaring 17 nominations here. Website of the Year Please discover more of our great content at the following link: thespinoff.co.nz Best First-Person Essay … Read more