With its bright pineapples and “kiwifruit brown”, Sharesies has changed the visual game for investing. Can the startup teach banks some new tricks? Charles Anderson finds the future of personal finance is visual, interactive and customer-focused. Ben Crotty’s “key moment of truth” came in the form of a particular shade of brown. He had spent … Read more
Tara Ward watches The Good Doctor on Lightbox and tells you why you should be tuning in to the medical show smashing records in the US. What’s it all about? The Good Doctor centres on Shaun Murphy, a young doctor with autism and savant syndrome who moves from a small town to work in a … Read more
In the second story in a series celebrating the amazing things young New Zealanders do every day, meet Jack Lanting, a Kiwi teen whose heart is as big as the Thai elephants he has dedicated his life to protecting. Lily the Thai elephant had been force fed methamphetamine for years by her handler. When Jack … Read more
Tara Ward stargazes beneath the celeb-studded galaxy of Philip K Dick’s Electric Dreams. The trippy anthology series Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams boasts one of the most formidable collections of actors in a single television series. Not even Sharknado could gather together the creative talents of award-winning stars like Bryan Cranston, Anna Paquin, Vera Farmiga, … Read more
Māori are continually over-represented in Aotearoa’s drowning statistics. Simon Day spoke to University of Otago’s Dr Anne-Marie Jackson about using traditional techniques to help teach water safety and reconnect Māori with their awa. In te ao Māori water is considered the source of all life. We are descended from the water, and it provides a … Read more
Kate Robertson has, on occasion, soundtracked her life entirely with Shania Twain. Here’s how you can too. GIVEAWAY ALERT: Looks like we made it… closer to Shania’s New Zealand tour! And Spark is giving away 20 double-passes to her Auckland and Dunedin shows. Entries close 27 July 2018. Stop everything you’re doing – the OG … Read more
Music editor and former member of Die! Die! Die! Henry Oliver talks to his ex-bandmates about making music together for nearly 20 years. I met Andrew Wilson and Michael (we called him Mikey) Prain in the summer of 2003-04. I’d seen their old band Rawer open for Trans Am, if my memory serves, and they … Read more
To prepare for The Good Doctor arriving to Lightbox next week, Alex Casey breaks down five more of the best medical shows you can binge. Just as sure as Chris Warner will reveal an illegitimate child at the dawn of every day, medical shows will forever stroll the corridors of primetime television soaked in blood … Read more
In the final part of our series exploring adventures around Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, our writers take a trip through Auckland’s backyard, and further beyond. Scroll to the end of the story for a chance to win a weekend exploring in the new Hyundai Kona. I once fake proposed to my then girlfriend. It was … Read more
To celebrate The Office US arriving to Lightbox, Alex Casey lists some of her favourite moments from the show. Contains many, many spoilers. I have spent a deeply worrying part of my life watching The Office in some iteration or another. As a teen, I became obsessed with the British original, eventually penning an incredibly … Read more
Sam Brooks argues why Catholic Rebellion thriller Gunpowder is far more interesting than other dour dramas from the same period. I love a good political thriller. Stressed out people waiting for printers to print valuable documents, or wandering around with briefcases that cost more than your rent for the month – they’re my catnip. But it’s … 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
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
Sylvia Giles watches the mid-2000s soap The L Word and discovers a plethora of feminist conversations that are only starting to happen now in the mainstream. All my lesbian friends told me I should watch The L Word many, many times, and over a decade ago. First aired in 2004, the show chronicled the sapphic … Read more
In the third part of a four piece series exploring places around Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, Beck Eleven finds hidden treasures and clear water, and Simon Day falls in love with Banks Peninsula. Read part one, on the great Auckland summer road trip, here. Read part two, on the where to go on a good … Read more
Now that you’ve settled back into work and failed to keep up any of your resolutions, it’s time to turn back to trusty old television. Alex Casey and Sam Brooks introduce some new shows on Lightbox that might take your fancy. Available now: Brooklyn Nine-Nine S4 There’s a conversation to be had about whether a … Read more
Peanut butter maker Fix and Fogg has expanded from farmers’ markets to the biggest online marketplace in the world, Amazon. Rebecca Stevenson caught up with founder Roman Jewell, and discovered Kiwi ingenuity at the heart of this small business success story. Google “craft brewery”, Fix and Fogg’s Roman Jewell says, and you’ll find a plethora … Read more
Sam Brooks uncovers Watching Ellie, a Julia Louis-Dreyfus sitcom that got buried somewhere in her illustrious career between Seinfeld and Veep. Julia Louis-Dreyfus is an international treasure. She has three billion Emmys (fact-checked, and yes that is the correct number), she’s starred on several long-running shows and she’s managed to establish three iconic comic characters … Read more
Alex Casey watches Loudermilk, a bitterly funny dramedy about staying off the sauce. What’s the story? “Life is about fucking things up and then unfucking the things that you fucked up. That’s what makes you less of a fuck-up” Created by Peter Farrelly (There’s Something About Mary, Dumb and Dumber) and Bobby Mort (The Colbert … Read more
The Good Wife is one of those shows that has always seemed to be around but you’ve probably never seen. Sam Brooks tells you why you haven’t watched it yet, and why you should fix that immediately. This story was first published on August 1, 2017. At some point in 2016 I decided I was … Read more
Alex Casey delves into the endless relevance of The Handmaid’s Tale, available exclusively on Lightbox. This story was originally published on June 8, 2017 I first encountered The Handmaid’s Tale during high school English. They were simpler times, when you could buy three full size (!) Moro bars for $2 at the tuck shop, and the world didn’t … Read more
Simon Day uncovers the fascinating history of New Zealand’s longest running music festival. Twenty years ago on the rugged cliffs above Karioitahi Beach, an hour south of Auckland, somewhere between 500 and 700 people gathered to spend two days celebrating the end of 1998 and the beginning of 1999. It was a wild bush trance … Read more
From the genius that gave us Blade Runner, anthology series Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams has arrived exclusively to Lightbox. Alex Casey and José Barbosa try to piece together the meaning behind the unique, mind-bending tales. Contains spoilers and trippiness. This story was first published on October 19, 2017 Alex Casey: Hey José, how are you doing today? … Read more
In 2014, New Zealand was one of the first countries to legalise peer-to-peer lending. Jihee Junn takes a look at what effect it’s had on the country’s borrowers, lenders and financial institutions three years on. You might not remember much of it, but a lot of stuff happened back in 2014: John Key romped home … Read more
The Spinoff’s Blighty correspondent Hayden Donnell meets some UK game developers to find out why the US gaming industry might be better off shifting operations to the Motherland. Silicon Valley has given us a few good things. Windows 95. The time Bill Gates drank poo water. Atari. The TV show Silicon Valley. It’s not all … Read more
Can you ever really be wholly virtuous with your shopping choices? New research from AUT looks at how we balance our good and evil sides when we consume. Are you green to be seen, or do you really care about the environment? Emily Writes talks to AUT’s Sommer Kapitan about consumers’ conflicting motivations. She was … Read more
With help from our TV sponsors at Lightbox, Tara Ward rounds up some of the most delicious Christmas TV specials for you to feast upon. There’s 100 reasons why Christmas is so bloody awesome, and 99 of them relate to watching TV specials about Christmas. Indeed, there is no better time than Christmas to watch … Read more
How can Auckland create a bigger, stronger and more rewarding night-time economy? Simon Wilson sets out a plan. Partner content in association with Heart of the City, who are interested in growing the vibrant night-time experience in the city centre. In the new year we’re getting lights on the harbour bridge. It’s a great initiative. And … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Halli Cauthery, the composer who created the synth soundtrack to Seth Rogen’s Future Man. If you look at pop culture (and the real world) at the moment, there are a lot of people trying to flee their grim reality for something a little more adventurous. Take the new trailer for Steven Spielberg’s … Read more