Tofiga Fepulea’i is back on stage with some comedic relief in a truly dismal year. Tofiga Fepulea’i cracks up as we discuss some of the trends he’s clicked onto. First, there’s the fitness buzz. Anyone who follows the Laughing Sāmoans comedian online will have seen the videos he posts of he and wife Bessie after … Read more
Carlson has long been one of our best comedians, and now the world can see it too, writes Sam Brooks. Last year, Urzila Carlson became the first comedian from our shores to perform her own Netflix special, a half hour episode of the Comedians of the World series. Now she’s the first New Zealander to … Read more
The lanky sidekick from Jono and Ben journeys around New Zealand trying to solve small town problems. Does he succeed? Guy Williams, hardly a shy, retiring type, has been screaming out for his own vehicle for years. A loud, lanky, fearless comic, he’s spent nearly a decade in MediaWorks purgatory, sat off to the side … Read more
Laura Daniel has made a career out of committing to the bit. Sometimes it’s a joke. Sometimes it’s a zombie reality show. And sometimes it’s a ten-week celebrity dancing competition. In 2016, Laura Daniel was nominated for the Billy T Award for her show, Pressure Makes Diamonds. The show’s opening bit was also its best … Read more
Kura Forrester recently won the Billy T award for her show at the NZ International Comedy Festival. Despite the award being named after a Māori comedian, she’s the first Māori to win it since 2004. She sat down to talk with Alice Webb-Liddall about her influences, why Māori people are so funny, and her one-night-stand … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews Educators, a beautifully morbid and mean-spirited New Zealand comedy about high school teachers. The daily life of a teacher is a well-trodden one on television. It’s not hard to see why: education and school provides a well-known structure, it’s a pretty universal experience, and the hardships of being a teacher are well-documented … Read more
The new local black comedy Fresh Eggs premieres on TVNZ2 tonight. Sam Brooks talks to the creators about what makes it so different. Fresh Eggs doesn’t look or feel like anything else on New Zealand televsion right now – or ever. The show, about two city-dwellers who move to the countryside after some life upheavals, has a … Read more
Three’s Pilot Week is done – but how good were the pilots, and which ones should get commissioned? Sam Brooks reviews. It’s been a wild week, y’all. I can’t remember the last time we had two and a half hours of new New Zealand comedy content for an entire week on our screens. (Probably the first … Read more
Sam Brooks explains his decision to cut all men out of his comedy festival diet. Yeah, that’s a clickbaity headline. The fact is, this year I saw a fraction of the comedy festival shows I usually see. Last year, when I was the comedy editor here at The Spinoff, I saw 42 and reviewed almost … Read more
The NZ International Comedy Festival is here, and last night it kicked off with its traditional opener, the NZ Comedy Gala. But this year, among the local and international comedians, there was a whole lot of racism. Julie Zhu writes. As a Chinese woman, I’m used to surface racism. My brain has almost developed an … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. Today Simon talks to Scott Blanks about helping shape New Zealand comedy … Read more
The 7 Days Twitter account posted a table ranking the most successful regular panellists yesterday. But they also revealed something else… Since its launch in 2009, there’s no denying that weekly panel show 7 Days is still by far New Zealand’s most successful comedy vehicle. Friday nights on Three has long seen a revolving rota of panellists including … Read more
This year, comedian Angella Dravid took out the Billy T award in the New Zealand International Comedy Festival for her extraordinary show Down the Rabbit Hole, exploring her spell in a UK prison. She talks to Alex Casey about finding humour in the dark, and being the ‘car crash’ of Jono and Ben. When Angella … Read more
The NZ International Comedy Festival is over for another year, and so our two Comedy co-editors Sam Brooks and Natasha Hoyland take their final bows. Read on for their farewell messages. Natasha Hoyland What a crazy, incredible, exhausting time the festival always is! I always end up so completely knackered that I almost fall asleep … Read more
Spinoff Comedy co-editor Sam Brooks takes a look at the recent history of the Billy T Award, what felt different about this year’s nominees, and what that means for New Zealand’s comedy industry as a whole. There was a Moonlight/La La Land joke when it came time to announce the Billy T. It wasn’t funny. … Read more
The NZ International Comedy Festival has come to an end for 2017 and emotions are running high. The fourth and final episode of our comedy festival podcast sees actor, writer and comedy expert Chelsea McEwan Millar joined by Spinoff comedy co-editors Sam Brooks and Natasha Hoyland as they emotionally wrap up the final week of the NZ … Read more
For years New Zealand comedy has – with some notable exceptions – had a reputation as something of a boys’ club. Last night its three key awards were all won by women for the first time. Natasha Hoyland, a young comedian herself, describes how that moment felt. When they announced Rose Matafeo as the winner … Read more
Just as the biggest annual event in NZ comedy was getting underway, Spinoff Comedy co-editor Natasha Hoyland ended up in hospital. But now she’s back and raring to go – in time for the festival to enter the home straight. I’m back! I’m alive! And I can tell you right now, it’s so good to … Read more
“I can’t believe I’m saying this but, that’s just how outrageous I am!” The fourth instalment of our video series Comedians Answer Our Questions is here! Featuring a number of funny people appearing in this year’s NZ International Comedy Festival, this time comedians tell us about the things they hate more than anything else in … Read more
It’s the end of the second week of the Comedy Festival, the third episode of The Laugh-Off podcast and the day we lose it. The third episode of our comedy festival podcast sees actor, writer and comedy expert Chelsea McEwan Millar, comedy editor Sam Brooks and performer Jess Brien attempt to keep things together as … Read more
Comedy co-editor Natasha Hoyland ended up in hospital as the opening nights of NZ International Comedy Festival’s second week were kicking off. So she asked the comedians to review their own shows in her absence. Hello, Natasha here! Coming to you live from my death bed. This time of the week I usually do my … Read more
Sam Brooks checks out James Nokise’s new sports-focused show, and discovers an hour that’s much more than just jokes about rugby. James Nokise: Talk A Big Game At this point in his career, James Nokise is a New Zealand institution. Whether its from his comedy (So-So Gangsta, The Bronaissance), or from his award-winning theatre (Rukahu), Nokise … Read more
It’s the end of the first week of the Comedy Festival, the second episode of The Laugh-Off podcast and our first/last live record. The second episode of our comedy festival podcast sees actor, writer and comedy expert Chelsea McEwan Millar joined by comedy editor Sam Brooks and award-winning comedian Rhys Mathewson (filling in for comedy editor … Read more
Natasha Hoyland sits down with The Fan Brigade – Amanda Kennedy and Livi Mitchell – to talk about songwriting, Mike McRoberts and toilet sex. How did you guys meet? I heard you met on Twitter, is that right? Amanda Kennedy: Yeah, that’s right! We randomly followed each other and then I was brave and DM’d … Read more
Comedy co-editor Natasha Hoyland recaps the shows she’s seen and what she’s looking forward to in this festival diary for Week 1 of the NZ International Comedy Festival, proudly sponsored by Flick Electric Co. Hello! It’s me! Natasha Hoyland, one of the editors of The Spinoff’s comedy section. This time each week, I’ll be sharing … Read more
Comedian Nick Rado’s life changed drastically when he married a yoga instructor. For one thing, he learnt more than he ever wanted or needed to know about whole foods, super nutrients, and health fads in general. Here he shares his hard-won knowledge. Hello! My name is Nick Rado and I’m the head writer for Three’s … Read more
Host Chelsea McEwan Millar is joined by Spinoff Comedy co-editors Sam Brooks and Natasha Hoyland to talk about the kick-off of the NZ International Comedy Festival. The first episode of our comedy festival podcast sees actor, writer and comedy expert Chelsea McEwan Millar joined around the oval table by Sam and Natasha to talk about … Read more
“As she’s going over, her pants just split right up the middle.” Welcome to the second instalment in our video series Comedians Answer Our Questions, featuring a number of faces in this year’s NZ International Comedy Festival. This time we asked comedians to tell us about the funniest thing they’ve ever seen, from unexpected peeing, … Read more
Spinoff Comedy co-editor Natasha Hoyland shares her highlights from the Flick Electric Co. Comedy Gala, New Zealand’s biggest night in comedy. Boy, oh, boy, last night was incredible! I think, in fact, that it was probably the best comedy gala I’ve ever been to. Although it was three hours long, the programmers balanced the acts … Read more