Henry Oliver talks to singer-songwriter Nadia Reid, who plays Wondergarden festival in Auckland this New Year’s, about the highs and lows of her year, the rigours of touring, and being accepted by the music industry. It’s strange now to think back to 2014 when Nadia Reid struggled to find a label for her debut album, Listen … Read more
In the second part of a four piece series exploring places around Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes reveals the capital’s hidden secrets, while Avi Duckor-Jones takes you to the very end of the North Island. Read part one, on the great Auckland summer road trip, here. Windswept hideaways and long drives, … Read more
There is a rising global movement towards responsible investing, but how can new KiwiSavers know how to invest without causing harm? Rebecca Stevenson caught up with Kiwi Wealth’s Steffan Berridge to discuss the ins and outs of ethical investing. First things first. What is responsible investing? And why should anyone care about it? Many Kiwis … Read more
Kate Robertson’s seven reasons why you should stop underestimating Halsey. Halsey hasn’t had the easiest run of things since first appearing on our radars in 2015. Sceptics have called her a manufactured popstar, Pitchfork slaughtered her debut album BADLANDS, and people of a certain age like to write about how they don’t get the hype. … Read more
Arriving December 19, Lightbox’s new historical epic The Hollow Crown is bringing some serious silver screen stars to your little streaming device. Sam Brooks shares a guide on where you know them from and who the heck they’re playing. There are two things that happen when you watch one of these period dramas with loads … Read more
In the first part of a four piece series exploring the surrounding environments of Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch by road trip, Spinoff writers Simon Day and Don Rowe head north, east and west from Auckland’s central city. Exploring New Zealand’s glorious natural beauty by car is a rite of passage for any Kiwi. The great … Read more
Every office has at least one grinch, it’s a fact of life. But can an office grinch be converted into a festive fanatic? Madeleine Chapman tries her darnedest. I’ve always held onto the stubborn belief that nobody truly hates Christmas. They might think they hate Christmas, but really they just hate effort. Yes, I’m well … Read more
Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from the finale of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. You could have knocked me over with a ginger feather when ‘Eye of the Storm’ began with Claire announcing she was dead. Dead as in not breathing, tied to a ship’s mast, plummeting to the bottom of the … Read more
The Auckland Art Gallery is under threat – from a council that ought to know better. Partner content in association with Heart of the City The formalities at the opening of the Lindauer exhibition were, as you might expect, highly ritualised and extremely moving. A gallery connected to the culture of its place. I think … Read more
Tyler Henry aka The Hollywood Medium is giving one of the most bizarre and compelling performances on television right now, and he probably doesn’t even know it. Straight up: I’ve got no idea if Tyler Henry, the titular Hollywood medium of Hollywood Medium, is legit or not. His Wikipedia page is full of people debunking … Read more
This morning the Spotify-subscribing world woke up to Spotify’s annual ‘your year in review’ package, including a personalised top 100 played songs of the year. Here are music editor Henry Oliver’s top 10 (plus a few more). 1. Aldous Harding – ‘Horizon’ No surprise here. This song cuts deep. For reasons I won’t go into … Read more
The World Bank estimates New Zealand’s hidden economy at more than $20 billion. Michelle Duff meets the IRD investigators chasing down the cash. This is the first in a series on the heroes and villains of tax. Illustration by Toby Morris. When investigators arrived at the Auckland couple’s expansive property, it was a suburban sort … Read more
Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from the twelfth episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. Nothing kills a party like a wild prophecy about a kid being 200 years old when it dies. It makes as much sense as Coco the Talking Nut and the Dunbonnet’s hair, yet when Margaret Campbell uttered … Read more
Scientists hope to help asthma sufferers and others needing oxygen at home by developing ‘molecular sponges’ with nanoscale-sized pores to purify the air. There’s possibly nothing more frightening than struggling to take a breath. Something asthmatics and others with respiratory diseases know all too well. Many of these people depend on portable oxygen concentrators, small … Read more
Globe-trotting superfan Sacha Judd reviews her third Harry Styles show in less than three months. And she might already have tickets to two more. A friend texts me: “Wait. This is your third Harry Styles concert?” I try to explain that, actually, I had only ever intended to see him in Auckland. And then New … Read more
Preeminent One Direction scholar Millie Lovelock reviews the Harry Styles concert at Spark Arena. I’ll start at the beginning because concerts like this don’t just start when the band take the stage. For at least a thousand Harry Styles fans, the show started long before I was even conscious on Saturday morning. Fans were camping overnight, … Read more
J. Cole plays Spark Arena and seems to have no idea how much his fans love him. There’s something about rap crowds. It’s a pride in knowing every single lyric of every single song an artist has released, even the old, obscure ones. Especially the old, obscure ones. The real fans were out in full … Read more
In August a group of New Zealand researchers presented a report to the UN detailing the effects of racism on Māori. Simon Day spoke to AUT’s Dr Heather Came about the causes and cures for New Zealand’s racism. When Dr Heather Came listened to the New Zealand government delegation present to the United Nations Committee … Read more
Tara Ward falls in crazy, stupid love with Young Hercules, the bizarre 90s classic made in New Zealand and starring a young Ryan Gosling. Once upon a time, in a land far away called 1990s New Zealand, someone made the greatest television show in the history of the universe. Alas, I’m not talking about Face the … Read more
The Financial Markets Authority has launched an interactive tool that let’s you access, and compare, basic fund information. Rebecca Stevenson extracts herself from KiwiSaver ennui to take a look at the numbers. I have a confession. I have a KiwiSaver, and yet for the first two years or so I didn’t realise I had it. … Read more
After moving to New Zealand to study, Julia Soares returned to her New Caledonia home eight years later with her Wellington band in tow, ready to show them ‘an island that vibrates with music’. You can hear the joy in Julia Soares voice as she recounts her homecoming set at New Caledonia’s once-in-a-lifetime music festival … Read more
Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from the eleventh episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. This morning I woke to the crushing news that I am no longer engaged to Prince Harry. Thankfully, one can always rely on Outlander to soften life’s cruel blows with a soft, billowy cushion of ginger joy. … Read more
New Zealand led the world with the recognition of the legal personhood of the Whanganui River and Te Urewera ranges. Otago University professor of law, Jacinta Ruru, says this needs to be the start of a Māori worldview contribution to our legal system and the way we look after our environment. Professor Jacinta Ruru doesn’t … Read more
Don Rowe’s car has no warrant and no rego. But with the power of the sharing economy he went for a roadtrip to Raglan in a performance car, and northern exploration in a drop top classic. Fast cars seem like a ridiculous and ostentatious display of wealth – until you drive them. Then it starts … Read more
One in five New Zealanders live in energy poverty, forced to choose between adequately heating their homes and other life essentials. Emily Writes looks back at her own experience raising a family in a drafty, cold, damp Kiwi home. One in five Kiwis live in energy poverty. That’s not good enough, so our friends at … Read more
Search Party is back on Lightbox for its second season – with new episodes arriving every Monday. Sam Brooks is here to tell you why you need to catch up on this show right now. Mild spoilers ahead! If you don’t want to take my word for it, and why would you, you should read … Read more
Investors are increasingly taking more power over how and what their KiwiSaver funds are doing. Today, the Financial Markets Authority’s Paul Gregory introduces their KiwiSaver Tracker, which gives investors a clearer picture of what providers are really offering. At 25 years old, 65 can seem like a lifetime away – why save when you can spend … Read more
Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from ‘Heaven and Earth’, the tenth episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. Let us bow down at the Outlander altar, because ‘Heaven and Earth’ featured two loves of my life: potpourri and cheese. I never thought the day would come when the King of Men yarns … Read more
Stevie Nicks played at Auckland’s Spark Arena last night, with The Pretenders as special guests. Sam Brooks was there. I saw Blondie and Cyndi Lauper early this year, and there’s something special about seeing these vanguards of music do a victory lap. All the things that made them unique, made them famous, made them successes … Read more