Watch every episode of On the Rag this International Women’s Day

Catch up on On the Rag. Based on the podcast of the same name, Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden set out to jelly wrestle with every issue under the sun. The hilarious, stressful, hidden world of menstruation Hold onto your tampon strings, the first episode of the On the Rag webseries is here! … Read more

Why you should be opshopping this Christmas (WATCH)

With fast fashion impacting both feminism and the climate crisis, Alex Casey goes on the hunt for a solution in our climate emergency episode of On the Rag. Watch episode one of On the Rag: ‘Periods’ here Watch episode two of On the Rag: ‘Body hair’ here Watch episode three of On the Rag: ‘Being online’ here Watch … Read more

On the Rag: the climate is effed. Or is it?* (WATCH)

*Yes it is. But in the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, Michele, Alex and Leonie go looking for all the reasons we have to be a little bit hopeful. In this end-of-year, possibly end-of-world episode, Michele does the unthinkable on behalf of all boomers, Alex discovers … Read more

Learning the art of the sale on Sir Michael Hill’s superyacht

A book interview turns into a business and life lesson for Madeleine Chapman. Sir Michael Hill (first name Michael, last name Jeweller) gently held my hand on his superyacht. His hands were insultingly softer than mine, and he was selling me an imaginary engagement ring. “You slide the ring on the finger, straighten it up. … Read more

Watch: Sir Michael Hill and Toby Morris talk ‘toons, TV ads and toilets

The Spinoff’s cartoonist Toby Morris chats and draws with New Zealand’s doodlers in the webseries Two Sketches. This episode, Toby is the guest of Sir Michael Hill… Jeweller. To close out the season, and potentially the series, Toby boards the super yacht of jeweller, entrepreneur, rich lister and, now, cartoonist, Michael Hill. In the following … Read more

Woman first, athlete second: Barbara Cox and the struggle for female footballers

When Barbara Cox joined a football team in 1973, she was one of the first women in the country to do so. She’s still fighting for women in the sport to get the respect they deserve.  Auckland women didn’t play football in 1972. Auckland women cooked and cleaned and looked after the children while their … Read more

Scratched: Barbara Cox, the matriarch of New Zealand football (WATCH)

From tennis champions to dance craze inventors, Scratched celebrates New Zealand sporting heroes who never got their due – but whose legacies deserve to be in lights. This month, Barbara Cox, the matriarch of New Zealand football. New Zealand’s first women’s football team wasn’t formed until 1975. Barbara Cox was the captain, and led the … Read more

On the Rag: We made our own safety video for women (WATCH)

In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michèle A’Court and Leonie Hayden get real about women and safety. Fasten your seatbelts and hold onto your tits, the seventh episode of On the Rag is all about safety. What did we learn about safety … Read more

Watch: Comedian Angella Dravid destroys our webseries

The Spinoff’s cartoonist Toby Morris chats and draws with New Zealand’s doodlers in the webseries Two Sketches. This episode, Toby hosts comedian Angella Dravid. In the seventh episode of The Spinoff’s webseries Two Sketches, Angella Dravid makes herself  at home in the dining room of Toby Morris’ house. Angella is an award winning comedian appearing … Read more

Watch: Artist Bob Kerr and the secret origins of Terry Teo

Two Sketches is a webseries featuring Spinoff cartoonist Toby Morris chatting and drawing with a selection of New Zealand illustrators, artists, comic artists, cartoonists, sketchers and doodlers. This episode, Toby sits down with children’s book author Bob Kerr, co-creator of Terry Teo. In the sixth episode of The Spinoff’s webseries Two Sketches, Toby Morris visits … Read more

On the Rag: Why New Zealand needs to loosen up about sex (WATCH)

In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michèle A’Court and Leonie Hayden embrace the world of sex positivity. Light some candles and slip into something more comfortable for the sixth episode of the On the Rag webseries. Today, we’ll be stripping bare all … Read more

Scratched: Chunli Li, undefeated in New Zealand at 57-years-old (WATCH)

From tennis champions to dance craze inventors, Scratched celebrates New Zealand sporting heroes who never got their due – but whose legacies deserve to be in lights. This month, quadruple Commonwealth Games medal winner, Chunli Li.  Chunli Li moved to New Zealand in 1987 to retire from table tennis, aged 25. Instead, she was asked … Read more

Watch: a tarot card reading for the All Blacks’ first Rugby World Cup game

In this episode of our new tarot reading show Wild Card, The Spinoff’s resident psychic divines the outcome of the All Blacks’ opening match against the Springboks on Saturday. In the first and potentially only episode of Wild Card, we have a focus on sport. The Spinoff’s psychic-in-residence, Jo Sees, specialises in divining breakups and … Read more

Watch: comic artist Ben Stenbeck on Hellboy, Buffy and imposter syndrome

The Spinoff’s cartoonist Toby Morris chats and draws with New Zealand’s doodlers in the webseries Two Sketches. In the fifth episode, Toby sits down with comic artist Ben Stenbeck.  Two Sketches returns with another leisurely draw and a chat hosted by award-winning illustrator Toby Morris. In this episode, Toby chats with Dunedin-based illustrator Ben Stenbeck, … Read more

Abortion myths and a history lesson from bloody legend Dame Margaret Sparrow (WATCH)

In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michèle A’Court and Leonie Hayden tackle the issue of abortion and why the law has to change. In the fifth episode of our mana wāhine series On the Rag, Alex, Michèle and Leonie look at the … Read more

Kaupapa on the Couch: Do family and whānau mean the same thing? (WATCH)

Families come in all different shapes and sizes. But when the British came to New Zealand they decided Māori families were the wrong shape. In this episode of Kaupapa on the Couch, we have a look at what family means in different cultures and the effects of colonisation on whānau and whakapapa. Written and presented … Read more

A step by step guide to getting an abortion in New Zealand

On The Rag host Leonie Hayden got (fake) pregnant and decided to get a (fake) abortion. This is her story. Every year in New Zealand about 13,000 people have abortions. And every year in New Zealand about 200 people are denied abortions. Under our current abortion laws we have an illusion of choice. Abortion care … Read more

10 common myths about abortion, busted

In the latest episode of On the Rag, Alex Casey sits down with ALRANZ’s Terry Bellamak to bust some common myths about abortion.  Since 2015, Terry Bellamak has been the president of the Abortion Law Reform Association of New Zealand (ALRANZ), a group that advocates for abortion law reform alongside further reproductive rights, including the … Read more

Scratched: Meet the creator of Jump Jam (WATCH)

From tennis champions to dance craze inventors, Scratched celebrates New Zealand sporting heroes who never got their due – but whose legacies deserve to be in lights. This month, aerobics world champion and creator of Jump Jam, Brett Fairweather.  Every New Zealander under the age of 30 knows at least one Jump Jam song. “Witch … Read more

Watch: Metiria Turei opens up on a life in politics, art and activism in Two Sketches

At the last election, Metiria Turei stood down as Greens co-leader amid the controversy that followed a personal and polarising speech, the reverberations of which are felt to this day in the party. She has since stayed out of the public spotlight and immersed herself in art and performance. In a rare interview, she sits … Read more

Hilary Barry is ageing like a fine wine

For their latest ageing episode, Hilary Barry joins the On the Rag team to talk wrinkle creams, menopause and why people still think she is Jeremy Wells’ mum.  This month’s episode of On the Rag is all about ageing. Time ravages us all, of course, but there’s no denying that women bear the bigger burden … Read more

Watch: Two Sketches draws and chats with trans cartoonist Sam Orchard

Two Sketches is a webseries featuring Spinoff cartoonist Toby Morris chatting and drawing with a selection of New Zealand illustrators, artists, comic artists, cartoonists, sketchers and doodlers. In episode 3, Toby sits down with activist illustrator Sam Orchard. The Spinoff’s chill-out, slow-form web series Two Sketches returns with another draw and a chat hosted by … Read more

When did the internet turn into a flaming cesspit? (WATCH)

In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden wrestle with the positives and perils of being a woman online.  In episode three of our On the Rag web series, we explore the ways that the promised utopia of the … Read more

Scratched: The story of New Zealand’s most successful road runner (WATCH)

From tennis champions to dance craze inventors, Scratched celebrates New Zealand sporting heroes who never got their due – but whose legacies deserve to be in lights. This month, the world’s winningest road runner, Anne Audain.  Anne Audain has won more races than she’s lost. In fact, of the 112 road races that Audain ran … Read more

Watch: Two Sketches meets the great cartoonist Sharon Murdoche

Two Sketches is a webseries featuring Spinoff cartoonist Toby Morris chatting and drawing with a selection of New Zealand illustrators, artists, comic artists, cartoonists, sketchers and doodlers. In episode 2, Toby visits with the political cartoonist of the Sunday Star Times, Dominion Post, The Press and Waikato Times, and New Zealand’s first woman editorial political … Read more

On the Rag: a very hairy episode (WATCH)

Based on the podcast of the same name, Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden set out to jelly wrestle with every issue under the sun. This month, they’re waxing lyrical about body hair.  For the second episode of our feminist series On the Rag, Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden and Michéle A’Court sharpen their secateurs … Read more

Watch: Ruia Morrison, the Māori tennis star who made it to Wimbledon

Introducing Scratched, an original web series that finds and celebrates the lost sporting legends of Aotearoa.  There are many sportspeople whose names are uttered regularly by New Zealanders, and whose stories have been told over and over again. But what about the athletes whose lives and careers have faded from the national memory? New … Read more

Inside our new webseries Two Sketches, from The Side Eye’s Toby Morris

We’re overjoyed to today launch our new webseries about drawing and stuff, Two Sketches. Here’s what it’s all about – plus, watch the first episode below. Popular illustrator and The Spinoff’s resident cartoonist-in-chief Toby Morris loves drawing and loves chatting to other pencil pushers, so why not combine the two? In this new webseries we … Read more