Summer reissue: Toby Manhire spends a day chasing kingys – and PM-adjacent yarns – with Fish of the Day host Clarke Gayford. This story was first published on 19 April, 2019 and originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine Mid-week, mid-morning under a muddy grey January sky. We’re skimming into the Hauraki Gulf on a stupidly expensive boat, stacks … Read more
In June Simon Day learned he was going to become a father – to twins. To find out what he was in for he spoke to Jay Reeve about his first five years raising twin boys. This story originally ran on Barkers 1972 blog I’ll never forget sitting in the dim of the radiology theatre at … Read more
Ever wondered what those huddles of blokes with their tiny yachts are up to? Alex Casey hit the Onepoto pond to find out. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. It was a 250,000-year journey to get to one perfect moment in Onepoto Domain on Auckland’s North Shore. All that needed to happen was a volcano erupting, … Read more
Guy and Paul Williams are brothers, comedians, and lifelong ballers; they love basketball so much they’ve dedicated a weekly podcast to it. They spoke to each other about their obsession with basketball. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. Paul: Growing up, Guy and I used to play in the backyard a lot. And because … Read more
David Wallace-Wells has written a blinder, a book that could actually prompt people to push through complacency. But it’s not enough to pump us up full of fear and then just leave us there, bumping around like so many useless balloons, writes Catherine Woulfe This article originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. “It is, I … Read more
Don Rowe on the unsettling boom in his hometown. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. Raglan is changing. You can see it in the streets, where luxury cars slot side by side like so many dominoes. It’s audible in the endless buzz of bikes, jet skis and drones. And it’s palpable, if you’re … Read more
Madeleine Chapman on dropping the perfect (dive) bomb – and why it’s worth protecting. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. The key to popping a perfect manu lies in the bum. Before the body has even left the platform, or rock, or bridge, the bum is out. Arms up, back straight, knees bent, … Read more
Toby Manhire spends a day chasing kingis – and PM-adjacent yarns – with Fish of the Day host Clarke Gayford. Mid-week, mid-morning under a muddy grey January sky. We’re skimming into the Hauraki Gulf on a stupidly expensive boat, stacks of fishing rods wobbling away, and Clarke Gayford is getting technical. “So on the handle, as it comes … Read more
Barkers CEO Jamie Whiting writes about turning around an iconic NZ business – and a new mission to make it sustainable. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine under the title The New Barkers In 2008 it’s fair to say I was burnt out. I had started working at Hallensteins straight out of high … Read more
Catherine Woulfe goes searching for the legacy of one of New Zealand’s first taxidermists. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine under the title Legacies: He Never Quit the Hustle. Birds! In the 1800s they were everywhere. Huia, kōkako, takahē, kākāriki – all clamouring to be shot and stuffed and stuck on a mantle. Into this cornucopia … Read more
Henry Oliver spends the night at an island bird sanctuary to experience the dawn chorus. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. It starts early. I’d set my alarm for 4.45am, but by four everyone in the DOC bunkhouse is awake whether or not they want to be. The birds are singing. On Tiritiri Matangi, … Read more
Catherine Woulfe spends a day at the Auckland Blade Show, a celebration of knives of all kinds. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. To make pasta you force a lump of egg and flour flat, fold it back on itself, force it flat, fold. Maybe half a dozen times. Making Damascus steel is the … Read more
Why do we act like the idea of reducing our meat consumption is an assault on the very backbone of the nation? This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine under the title A Life Less Meaty Vegans are one of the few groups it’s still widely acceptable to hate on. So worthy, we complain. Talk about … Read more
Calum Henderson’s seven step guide to adding the Beautiful Game to your summer. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. The best part of any match at Kiwitea Street in Sandringham, Auckland, is the five minutes after the referee blows the final whistle, before the volunteers come down from the clubrooms and start taking down … Read more
How is Austin Powers still relevant in 2019? And why hire the Queen for your birthday party? Alex Casey talks to the movers and shakers of New Zealand’s celebrity impersonator scene. It ain’t easy being shagadelic. Orewa local Gary Brown, the only legally authorised Austin Powers impersonator in the world, knows that cold hard truth … Read more
Simon Day spoke to Sir John Kirwan about what he’s learned about living well – and why he’s determined to help young Kiwis learn, too. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine under the title How to Enjoy Grappa Sir John Kirwan is relaxed. Standing in his kitchen chopping parsley and garlic, the view of Rangitoto … Read more
Dragon tears, meteorites, or just plain shit – ambergris is an olfactory miracle of the deep. Sought after for thousands of years, and worth upwards of $10,000/kg today, ambergris washes up on beaches across New Zealand all year long. Don Rowe goes looking for it. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine under the title … Read more
Today, even large corporations are trying to be agile, experimental and collaborative — an approach that could be termed ‘hacking’. Simon Day talks to the author of a new book about what business can learn from hackers. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. When I think of hacking, I think of the The Net, … Read more
With Jacinda Ardern’s due date just days away, Winston Peters is preparing for the most powerful period of his long, long political life. Toby Manhire surveys an extraordinary, enigmatic career This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. For someone who styles himself as a straight-shooter, Winston Peters is one hell of a puzzle. To mangle the words of … Read more
After talking to author and scholar Damon Salesa, Madeleine Chapman wonders why we don’t see more Pacific players in New Zealand cricket. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. It doesn’t make sense. Rugby, league, netball, basketball. All have a large number of Pacific athletes representing New Zealand at the highest level and all have … Read more
Each week, Jesse Mulligan talks to hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders, through TV, radio and in print, and his voice is beloved throughout the country. He tells Alex Casey about the humiliating failures, awkward experiments and games of Strip Honk he endured along the way. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. Jesse Mulligan … Read more