Welcome to TV Mum, a weekly podcast starring Brendon Green and his Mum, Dianne. Every week Brendon will try and get Dianne to remember the details of a TV show she’s recently watched. The resulting discussion is a journey through Dianne’s shaky memory and never ends up where you’d expect. For the final episode of … Read more
To celebrate International Women’s Day, The Spinoff assembles some of the most hilarious, brave and butt-kicking moments for women on television. Contributions by Alex Casey, Madeleine Chapman and Sophie Smith. International Women’s Day is all about celebrating the achievements of women throughout history, and looking forward to a future of equality for all. Or, if you … Read more
The Bachelor NZ is back, and with it countless group dates and one-on-ones and helicopter rides. But there’s a much simpler way to find true love on TV. Expat Kiwi Julia Hollingsworth explains what our next Bachelor can learn from China’s most popular dating show. A cryogenic tank slides down a chamber onto a garishly … Read more
Alex Casey reviews the first episode of The Bachelor NZ, including bliss balls, gongs and a whole new meaning to the word “throw pillow.” “He could definitely be my future husband… I think.” And so the second season of The Bachelor NZ opened with a perfect “yeah, nah” blend of sincerity and trepidation. Almost instantly, the show … Read more
Tara Ward brings you her Shortland Street Power Rankings for last week, including Stevie’s evolution into Houdini, Nicole’s exhausting workload and Esther’s incredible phone-based breakthrough. 1) Stevie is the amazing disappearing baby Boyd lost it when he remembered he’d left Baby Stevie alone in the hospital car park. By the time he’d retraced his steps, … Read more
Stop blaming TV commissioners for the quality of our local output, says Chris Hooper, who last year left TVNZ for a role at the BBC. It’s time to hold the Government’s feet to the fire. Part of an ongoing series assessing our publicly funded television. Read part one, covering the role of commissioners, here. People look upon … Read more
Listen to the bold return episode of the 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 … Read more
Natasha Hoyland spends some surprising time at sea with one of her underrated childhood heroes from Hi-5. If I went back in time and told six year-old me that she’d one day be witnessing a sweaty Nathan Foley from Hi-5 rip his shirt open whilst singing Lionel Richie’s ‘All Night Long’, she would’ve shaken her head. … Read more
Alex Casey revisits clips from Miss Popularity on NZ On Screen, the reality competition where women were called “Boomerang Babes” and left at the mercy of the Australian Outback. 2005 was a strong year. I met Neville Longbottom at Armageddon whilst wearing a ‘Vote for Pedro’ badge, everyone at my school was either in love … Read more
Season two of Outlander is coming to Lightbox at 5pm on April 10, and fans can hardly breathe. The Spinoff’s resident Outlander fanatic Tara Ward has been hard at work assembling clues. Please note: contains spoilers. Do you hear that noise? It’s the sound of dehydrated Outlander fans, deliriously lapping up the slow trickle of … Read more
Duncan Greive watches the ’70s style politics show The Nation, and finds a lot to love. TV3’s The Nation isn’t that old. It was founded in 2010, but despite the flash modern set and the lively twitter conversation which accompanies it, the show might be the most old-fashioned to air on New Zealand television. It returned to … Read more
Welcome to TV Mum, a weekly podcast starring Brendon Green and his Mum, Dianne. Every week Brendon will try and get Dianne to remember the details of a TV show she’s recently watched. The resulting discussion is a journey through Dianne’s shaky memory and never ends up where you’d expect. This week the Greens talk … Read more
Alex Casey watches with bated breath as Art Green attempts to set a Guinness World Record for loudest apple crunch. “It’s an ethereal apple,” whispered Paul Paynter, fourth generation heir to the Yummy Fruit Company dynasty. We both stared in silence at the pristine bowl of apples, resting on a plinth behind thick studio glass. … Read more
Tara Ward brings you her Shortland Street Power Rankings for last week, including Kylie’s boob-based dilemma, Leanne’s fishy visions and a classic Chris Warner prank. 1) Leanne is a sight for sore eyes Leanne, I bloody love you. Every week you deliver the goods like a middle-aged, semi-psychic equivalent of ParcelPost. “You’re off your rocker!” Murray … Read more
When Duncan Greive reviewed Filthy Rich a couple of weeks back he was overwhelmed with messages from a depressed New Zealand TV industry. Here he summarises what they had to say. Part of an ongoing series assessing our publicly funded television. Read part two, comparing TVNZ with the BBC, here. A couple of weeks back I … Read more
Friday night’s alright for… laughing? Duncan Greive seeks comfort in TV3’s reliable and formidable week-ending comedy schedule. For a long time, One’s Sunday night line-up was the most reliable and on-brand night in New Zealand television. You had your news, your magazine-style current affairs and your prestige drama. Everything you needed to feel like an … Read more
Dominic Corry spoke to Toby Stephens about the new season of Michael Bay’s Black Sails. Warning: Contains major spoilers from seasons 1 and 2. Michael Bay’s epic pirate series Black Sails doesn’t get as much attention as some period action dramas, but it’s been building an increasingly devoted audience with its filmic scale and intense, often … Read more
Inspired by more recent NZ On Air funding controversies, Gareth Shute revisits the 1976 historical epic The Governor, and argues why it remains our finest example of a funding furore. Julie Christie recently made headlines for complaining in an email to NZ On Air head, Miriam Dean, that her integrity had been questioned by managers at the funding body. … Read more
Today TVNZ announced that Survivor New Zealand will be coming to TV2 this year, with potential applicants encouraged to apply here. But which NZ TV legend will host it? Alex Casey and Calum Henderson see who the cap fits. Matty McLean He’s already proven his chops as a Survivor superfan right here on the bloody … Read more
Welcome to TV Mum, a weekly podcast starring Brendon Green and his Mum, Dianne. Every week Brendon will try and get Dianne to remember the details of a TV show she’s recently watched. The resulting discussion is a journey through Dianne’s shaky memory and never ends up where you’d expect. According to Dianne there’s plenty … Read more
Lindsey Dawson has been binge-watching Mozart in the Jungle. Despite being about fuddy-duddy music, it won two Golden Globes this year. She can understand why. What’s the story? The New York Symphony Orchestra. It sounds grand but this fictional institution is fighting to maintain reputation, cash flow and audience. Enter ageing maestro Thomas, played with … Read more
Aaron Yap watches Fabrice Gobert’s The Returned, a moody French supernatural series where the dead come to life in a quiet alpine town. In Val Lewton’s 1943 film I Walked with a Zombie, there’s a terrific exchange between its protagonists, Betsy (Frances Dee), a nurse travelling to Saint Sebastian, and Paul (Tom Conway), a plantation owner whose wife she’s been … Read more
Tara Ward brings you her Shortland Street Power Rankings for last week, including Victoria’s last-ditch campaign for #redpeak, Jimmy’s new slang and Leanne not giving a blue duck about anything. 1) Leanne gets funky The age-old question “where do we go to get our funk on?” is right up there with “why am I here?” and “what is … Read more
Madeleine Chapman has been renovating houses with her parents for many years, living out the entire premise of Our First Home NZ. So how does the show stack up to the reality? “If boring is what you’re best at, well, you better get out of here right now.” It was a controversial opener from Our First Home’s … Read more
Alex Casey introduces No Activity, the brilliantly funny Australian cop show where nothing ever really happens. What’s the story? Referred to as “the Seinfeld of cop shows” by The Sydney Morning Herald, No Activity plonks itself right down on the dashboard of a cop car during a series of painfully uneventful stakeouts. Watch policemen Hendy and … Read more
Calum Henderson watched the first episodes of Family Feud and was transported back to the glory days of New Zealand reality television. 2015 will go down in history as TV3’s year of reality, when big franchises like The Bachelor and X Factor and The Block formed an imposing fleet of multi-night battleships, destined to sail … Read more
The X Files is known for both its brilliance and dreadful inconsistency, but did the latest episode drop the ball completely? David Farrier laments what has happened to his favourite show. According to my hazy memory of the Bible, at some point God got annoyed at the great teamwork humans were demonstrating as they came … Read more
2016 has lurched into a loping trot and with that comes all new Parliament TV. José Barbosa sits down, watches the first day of debate in the House and tries to find some foothold on sanity. As with all our TV coverage it comes with supplementary papers filed by our sponsors, Lightbox. Try a 30 … Read more
Alex Casey looks at DUKE, TVNZ’s new male-skewed channel, and asks who in history could be responsible for something so old-fashioned. Today TVNZ’s brand new male-skewed channel launched its dramatic branding, stepping into the regal winklepickers of the name DUKE. Good name, sounds like an XXL condom brand or an old-timey cologne. “Why we’ve done … Read more