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As we drag ourselves through the final stretch of January, Don Rowe asks one sleep expert how can we get some desperately needed shut-eye. This post was first published in January 2018 Last night I dreamed I was back in high school, lacing up my boots to run out for the first XV in a … 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
Welcome to the Cheat Sheet, a clickable, shareable, bite-sized FAQ about the news of the moment – all the info you need to hold your own in a two-minute watercooler chat. Today, Don Rowe outlines the latest from NZ’s marijuana farming scene. What’s going on? The New Zealand Herald is reporting that a “bumper growing … Read more
Comics artist and queer trans man Sam Orchard on Stats NZ’s decision not to include questions about sexuality or gender identity in this year’s census. Read more: Being measured means that you’re there: Comedian Eli Matthewson on the LGBTI+ community and the census This section is made possible by Simplicity, the online nonprofit KiwiSaver plan that … Read more
NZ Art Parallels is the Twitter account which reveals the hidden connections between world art history and New Zealand politics and media. Now NZ Art Parallels has joined The Spinoff for a monthly column collecting the best parallels from Twitter and exclusive Spinoff-only content. There are two types of parallel: the no-brainer – the one … Read more
Finding a rental in Wellington isn’t only a battle for students and young professionals. Here, single mothers tell their accommodation search stories, and public policy researcher Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw explains why housing insecurity is so damaging for families. Jane It is tough when you are a sole parent. I didn’t renew the lease on my small … Read more
Stats NZ will again not include any non-binary gender options or any questions about sexual orientation in this year’s census. That’s a government-endorsed insult to the LGBTI+ community, writes comedian Eli Matthewson. Whenever the census comes around again I always think about one thing: The Christchurch Wizard. The legend I’ve heard is that every census … Read more
Following our report on the increasingly chaotic rental market in Wellington, one young government employee explains why she’s being forced to leave town. As told to Don Rowe. I have been living in Wellington since 2010 and I have been left homeless four times during my seven years here. Despite being a professional civil servant … 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
The indestructible, environmentally friendly, unlimited use menstrual cup has been celebrated as the answer to ‘period poverty’. But they’re not for everyone, writes Andrea Nielsen-Vold. Menstrual cups are little reusable vessels that collect menstrual blood and can be used over and over again. They have been deemed a solution to the problem of managing your … Read more
Today TradeMe announced that it would ban the sale of pugs, French bulldogs, and British bulldogs from its website. Veterinarian and New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) companion animal spokesperson Rochelle Ferguson looks at the state of cat and dog breeding welfare in New Zealand and what can be done to improve it. The recent TradeMe … Read more
As students flock back to Wellington in the lead-up to the academic year, landlords are cashing in with innovations which encourage bidding wars amongst applicants. The nightmare that is renting in this country continues to bring new horrors, with reports from Wellington that landlords are explicitly operating tender processes on their rentals in a bid … Read more
Today it was announced that Stage Challenge, the secondary schools interpretative dance competition, is no more for this world. Sam Brooks crowdsourced people’s memories of Stage Challenge, and scoured YouTube for the best of the rest. As someone who went to a rugby-focused Catholic all-boys school, Stage Challenge was something that I’d always heard about … Read more
A day in the life of the Cultural Cuts barbershop in Newtown, Wellington. All photos by Kent Blechynden. Syrian brothers Raed and Mohummed work at the Cultural Cuts barbershop in Wellington. They came to New Zealand from Syria as refugees three years ago with other members of their family; three of their sisters are still … Read more
News came today that Stage Challenge, the national dance competition for schools, is to close after 25 years. Kristin Hall pays tribute to the touchingly earnest extra-curricular. We are but two weeks into 2018 and already we have a definite sign that this cruel world is going to continue its speedy downward trajectory until there … Read more
As America marks one of their greatest orators on Martin Luther King Day, Christine Ammunson looks back on her trip to Georgetown University for the World Speechwriters Conference in October. As I hopped into an Uber, I reflected on an extraordinary week at the World Speechwriters Conference hearing from writers and strategists who’d served US presidents … Read more
Comedian James Roque responds to the exhortations online that we should just lighten up and learn to take a joke over that Christchurch restaurant menu. Last week I read a tweet about an Asian fusion restaurant in Christchurch named Bamboozle, which had a menu that consisted of offensive made-up food names such as “Ho Lee … Read more
Who would threaten to burn down a restaurant in New Zealand because of the politics of the Middle East? Yael Shochat, owner of the Israeli restaurant Ima in Auckland, responds to the menacing abuse that has followed Lorde’s decision not to play in Tel Aviv. I‘m sure you’ve heard of Lorde’s decision to cancel her … Read more
In our video series Kiwis of Snapchat, comedian Tom Sainsbury sources exclusive Snapchat footage of Kiwi citizens and luminaries making the news. In the third episode of our summer series, maize farmer Paul Dinkelman shows off his new crop. Click here for all our Kiwis of Snapchat videos
The inquiry into water contamination in Hawke’s Bay delivered ambitious and wide-ranging recommendations. With a stack of inquiries promised by the new government, scale is a serious issue, writes public law expert Sally McKechnie. The inquiry into Havelock North’s drinking water contamination in August 2016 has culminated in a damning report on the state of … Read more
A surprisingly strong batch of MDMA has arrived on our fair shores. We know people are going to take it, so Wendy Allison, founder of pill testing organisation KnowYourStuffNZ, says we need to make harm reduction easier. Historically, when people have taken “ecstasy” in New Zealand it has not usually been MDMA. It is by … Read more
Since their debut in late 2016, the Critic Booze Reviews – thoughtful reviews of the cheapest alcohol available to New Zealand man, woman or beast – have become a social media sensation. Now we’re delighted to bring them to The Spinoff. This episode: Lion Red. This article was originally published in Critic Te Arohi, the Otago … Read more
Because dating isn’t already horrible enough, an app named Attractive World recently launched in New Zealand aiming to make it worse. Current members decide whether prospective members are hot enough to be allowed in. Lucy Zee went undercover to see if it was as shitty as it looked. First published on August 22, 2017. Last … Read more
The groping of a topless woman at a music festival last year highlights just how retrograde our attitudes to public nudity remain. But, writes Kristin Hall, there is a better way – just look at any European beach. It was a lazy day on a white hot strip of Italian beach and I was caught … Read more
The exhumed skull of a 3,000-year-old Welshwomen. Nazi submarines. Ancient Spanish shipwrecks. The pre-Māori white civilisation theories of Noel Hilliam and his friends have a lot going for them. Except any plausible evidence, writes Scott Hamilton. This post was first published May 22, 2017. I spent part of last week at an art gallery in Manurewa, helping to … Read more
Chris McDowall explains the origins of this epic graph view into our political history. This post was first published September 14, 2017. For months I’ve followed news about New Zealand’s upcoming general election. Revelations! Resignations! Leadership changes! Bold policy promises! Shock poll results! In this heightened political moment, I found myself wondering about the past. … Read more
The usual defence of stories about Pākehā enraged by Māori ‘uppitiness’ is that the media are simply reporting people’s views. And that’s bollocks, says Aaron Smale. First published on 1 May 2017. If you drive down the new expressway on the Kapiti Coast towards Wellington, when you get near Waikanae there is a slight bend. On … Read more
In our video series Kiwis of Snapchat, comedian Tom Sainsbury sources exclusive Snapchat footage of Kiwi citizens and luminaries making the news. In the second episode of our summer series, Cynthya Richardson explores the hidden meaning of NZ’s favourite works of art.