Mervyn Thompson

The Mervyn Thompson Affair: It stunk of the same kind of witch hunt they’d been subject to their whole lives

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All week we’ve revisited the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful 1984 incident when six women abducted an Auckland university lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, and labelled him a rapist. We conclude the series with a personal essay by Talia Marshall. A while ago Steve Braunias at The Spinoff emailed … Read more

The Mervyn Thompson Affair: What a 32 year old controversy might tell us about the Chiefs scandal

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All week we revisit the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful 1984 incident when six women abducted an Auckland university lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, and labelled him a rapist. Today: a modern take on the incident, and its wider implications, by former MP Holly Walker. I think the six … Read more

The Mervyn Thompson Affair: ‘I was both angry and hurt at the way I’d been dumped in it by the women who were responsible for the attack’

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All week this week we revisit the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful 1984 incident when six women abducted an Auckland university lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, threatened to castrate him, and labelled him a rapist. Today: a memoir by playwright Renée, whose play Setting The Table inspired the attack – … Read more

The Mervyn Thompson Affair: Revisiting the strange case of a playwright chained by vigilantes to a tree in Western Springs

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This week we revisit the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful and polarising 1984 incident in which six unknown women abducted an Auckland University lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, burnt his flesh with cigarettes, threatened to castrate him, and labelled him a rapist. Today, Steve Braunias introduces an extract from Thompson’s memoirs. Trigger … Read more