In a week-long series, Alex Casey gets reality star Chrystal Chenery’s take on the world over coffee and scones. Her opinions about both her time in the spotlight and life in general were so fierce – and so candid – that it seemed appropriate to publish her responses in full. Today Chrystal talks about how men and … Read more
Alex Casey assembles her contestant power rankings for week three, including near-death experiences, cocktail kisses and a spectacular vomit from the frontrunner. It was a week that promised “thrills and spills” on The Bachelor NZ, a promise that mostly delivered on one contestant – and shortly after the entire nation – being sick in their mouths. … Read more
There’s a new Bachelor, a new mansion, and the same old dorks talking about it. The Fantasy Suite is The Spinoff’s weekly podcast about The Bachelor NZ, hosted by Jane Yee with Alex Casey and Duncan Greive. What has happened to our beloved show? Jane, Alex and Duncan open by trying to figure that out, eventually … Read more
Dan Taipua’s Save State series presents five gaming relics that every collector needs in their shrine/garage, from the essential basics to the very rare and frustratingly pointless. In this the fourth installment, Dan investigates the discordant world of music gaming. 5. Game Boy Camera Cameras are mostly famous for their ability to take photographs and … Read more
In a week-long series, Alex Casey gets reality star Chrystal Chenery’s take on the world over coffee and scones. First up: Chrystal shares some wisdom for our new Bachelorettes based on her time in the mansion last year. Chrystal became a reality star that outshone almost all other offerings in the ashes of the great MediaWorks … Read more
TVNZ’s Filthy Rich cost $400k per episode to make, a pricetag 10 times that of Māori Television’s new drama Kairākau. Duncan Greive compares the two investments. Earlier this week, I received an email from a person I’d never heard from before. “It would be good for you to do a comparitive analysis on the following low budget … Read more
Tara Ward brings you her Shortland Street Power Rankings for last week, including Bella’s DIY nightmare, and the arrival of the first transgender character to Ferndale. 1) Nicole is Emmeline Pankhurst “Give me more nurses, or I quit! And while you’re at it, put Crunchie bars back in the vending machines!” Nicole’s uprising was confronting … Read more
Madeleine Chapman and her Aunty Henga assess the skills, builds, and tattoos in Game of Bros, a reality quest for the ultimate Polynesian warrior. Game of Bros premiered last night on Māori television after much anticipation and illegal advertising. The show seeks to find the ultimate island warrior, pitting twelve men against each other in various traditional tasks. … Read more
Joanna McLeod assembles a list of meals to match each macabre masterpiece from Hannibal season one. Simply hover the mouse over each dish to see the original inspiration from the show… if you dare. This post contains imagery that may be disturbing or NSFW. You might think a stomach-churningly gory show like Hannibal would be the … Read more
Starting tonight at 8pm, Māori Television presents Game of Bros, a new reality series about the quest for the perfect man. But what kind of man can we expect to find? The Brown Bachelor or The Nesian Ninja? Dan Taipua investigates. Think of some ways you could improve The Bachelor: First of all, you’d switch the gender … Read more
Auckland City Limits, the new festival headlined by Kendrick Lamar and The National, is as ambitious a live music project as New Zealand has seen in a decade or more. During its assembly Duncan Greive twice interviewed its promoter, Campbell Smith, who gave very candid insights into the business of music festivals. I first heard … Read more
Alan Dale is a national treasure, acting legend and generally lovely man, who has for far too long flown under the radar. Katie Parker celebrates this humble kiwi great of the small screen. It was out of unconditional love that I joined my boyfriend to see the Entourage movie last year. As I should have … Read more
After week two on The Bachelor NZ, some of the greatest minds in the country* assemble to talk about the big issues including the official drink of the show, Jordan’s dessert flirt and Lindsey’s paintball massacre. Anny Ma on the holey necklace Who would’ve thought that after watching a reality show about some Kiwi lasses finding love, I’d … Read more
Last night’s episode of Shortland Street saw the debut of a trans character, played by a trans actor. But the show has tackled important social issues from day one. Last night in Ferndale a boy in a hoodie shuffled around the hospital’s glass cabinetry, looking caught between an egg salad sandwich and a mince and cheese … Read more
Alex Casey assembles her contestant power rankings for week two, including a wet t-shirt contest, arty conversations and the hit list to end all hit lists. This week on The Bachelor we saw a crummy dog wash, crummy paintball and a crummy mousse attack. Or as Mike Puru chose to describe it, a series of “spectacular” dates. … Read more
There’s a new Bachelor, a new mansion, and the same old group of plonkers talking about it for far too long. It’s The Fantasy Suite, The Spinoff’s weekly podcast about The Bachelor NZ hosted by Jane Yee with Alex Casey and Duncan Greive. It’s a full spectrum Bachelor experience, containing why Naz’s hit list end … Read more
Avowed YouTube procrastinator Matthew McAuley presents a selection of his favourite Gordon Ramsay clips – a kitchen nightmare for every mood. Where once my tastes in YouTube content were basically indiscriminate, they have recently become quite unexpectedly refined. Like a bad, unsophisticated restaurant with an over-long menu and a maître d’ who’ll happily serve you … Read more
Aaron Yap celebrates the superb Cold War spy drama The Americans. The Americans is currently the best spy show on TV. Scratch that. It’s the best show on TV, period. I’m saying this as a dyed-in-the-wool fan of Homeland, a show that its most avid followers have to admit is awfully patchy, even at its … Read more
Tara Ward brings you her Shortland Street Power Rankings for last week, including Dayna’s new lease on life, Lucy’s love lament and Chris bringing back the dance move that nobody needed. 1) Chris uses his best jazz hands to magic money out of Rachel’s budget Thousands of Shortland Street CEOs have sat in the Big Chair, … Read more
Brendan O’Carroll, aka Mrs Brown, tells Calum Henderson how a five-minute radio play he created 25 years ago slowly turned into one of the most popular shows on television. It was three days out from opening night in Liverpool when Brendan O’Carroll got a phone message at his hotel in New York: “John Urine’s gone.” … Read more
Moata Tamaira argues that Vikings is really just Outrageous Fortune but with longships instead of V8s. If I’m honest, my knowledge of medieval European history, particularly that of Scandinavia is sketchy at best. It’s pretty much limited to a deep appreciation of True Blood’s Eric Northman with a smattering of “that time I had read … Read more
The Beauty Spot is Zoe Scheltema’s weekly column that dissects the world of beauty and fashion. This week she interviews Terese Tomlin, head stylist and make up artist on The Bachelor NZ. Arguably, there is no more glamorous television event than that of The Bachelor, and it has careered back to our screens trailing thirty … Read more
Tara Ward watches May the Best House Win Abroad, the TV One show for houseproud homeowners and snoopy spectators alike. There’s nowt as queer as folk, especially the houseproud homeowners on British reality show May the Best House Win. Tucked away in TV One’s mid afternoon schedule, May the Best House Win is an hour … Read more
Madeleine Chapman chats to Sara Larner, a New York artist who specialises in oil paintings inspired by extravagantly gory scenes from Hannibal. I have never watched Hannibal. My fear of anything scary is strong enough that I will read the summary section of a horror movie’s Wikipedia page so as to know what people are referencing without having … Read more
In 2016, to celebrate Country Calendar turning the big 5-0, Calum Henderson took a look at five of the show’s famous spoofs on NZ On Screen – and one which seemed like a spoof but was totally real. You don’t see a lot of spoofs these days. We’ve got parodies galore, we’re up to our … Read more
After week one on The Bachelor NZ, some of the greatest minds in the country* assemble to talk about the big issues including Jordan’s expressive forehead vein and the mystery ingredients of bliss balls. Claire Adamson on the truth about Danielle Anny Ma on the Bachelor vein Jordan is a Classic Cantab Bloke, and despite his … Read more
He’s back as the host of The Bachelor NZ, but are Mike Puru’s greatest TV performances hidden in plain sight over on shopping channel YesShop? Calum Henderson watches one of his hypnotic advertorial masterpieces. If you listened carefully you could hear it in the wind at around 7:30pm on Monday night: the sound of a … Read more
Listen to the second episode of The Fantasy Suite, The Spinoff’s weekly podcast all about The Bachelor New Zealand. There’s a new Bachelor, a new mansion, and the same old group of plonkers talking about it for far too long. It’s The Fantasy Suite, The Spinoff’s weekly podcast about The Bachelor NZ hosted by Jane … Read more
Alex Casey presents her first contestant power rankings for The Bachelor NZ 2016, including scabby tattoos, #wokeboarding and the return of Thingee. Welcome back friends, it’s been an eternity. How’s your health? How much of Art Green’s book did we get through over summer? I read one chapter and then ate a giant pile of … Read more