Think you know your Lings from your Zings and your Fleischls from your Brettschneiders? Take The Real Pod’s reality TV quiz and prove it, with special thanks to Nando’s. Here at The Real Pod, The Spinoff’s own weekly popular culture and reality TV podcast, we live and breathe reality television and real life in New … Read more
Around 2pm every day this week, The Spinoff counts down the 100 most iconic local television moments of the 2010s. Today, moments 20-1. Previously: The 100 NZ TV moments of the decade, #100 – #81 The 100 NZ TV moments of the decade, #80 – #61 The 100 NZ TV moments of the decade, #60 … Read more
At 2pm every day this week, The Spinoff will be counting down 100 local television moments of the decade. Today, moments 60-41. Previously: The 100 NZ TV moments of the decade, #100 – #81 The 100 NZ TV moments of the decade, #80 – #61 60) John Oliver is obsessed with us, 2015-2019 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmoe0tgpxaM “How to … Read more
As The Block NZ fizzles to an end, psychologist Dougal Sutherland argues that the show now seems designed to destroy relationships, rather than build houses. Over the past few months we’ve watched four couples designing, planning, painting, papering (sometimes poorly), plastering, and dressing the rooms of converted firehouses to auction them off to the highest … Read more
It’s auction night on The Block NZ, and tonight the Firehouse burned with the smell of broken hopes and dreams. Tara Ward recaps the hijinks and heartbreak of this year’s live finale. “IT ALL ENDS RIGHT HERE!” yelled a perky Mark Richardson, as he welcomed the nation to The Block NZ 2019 live auction. Mark was … Read more
It’s the grand finale of The Block NZ: Firehouse, but after a snooze of a season some fans are past caring. Long time Block NZ fan Tara Ward has a few ideas on how the show could get its mojo back. For eight long years, I’ve lived and breathed The Block NZ until my veins pulsed with … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. Dress us up in shit-covered clothing and send us to Disneyland with Richie McCaw, The Real Pod is back for another stonker week of real life in this foolish corner of the globe. In real news, influencers … Read more
The Real Pod team assemble to discuss the brilliant Celebrity Treasure Island, The Block’s descent and worrying signs for the upcoming season of Married at First Sight NZ. It’s the show we didn’t know we needed, good-natured family entertainment that doesn’t forget the absolute drama. Shane Cameron nearly tore Jodie Molloy apart just because she … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. Sound the alarm, because it’s time for another absolute chaos pod. We’re talking haunted dolls in Waipu, we’re talking giant hands taking over Wellington, we’re talking soft serve cones dipped in powdered Milo. If you can keep … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. It’s a galaxy brain episode of The Real Pod this week and we’re not just talking about the new Australian Bachelor who is trying to find another Earth. Sam Wallace has been talking about udders, Alex bought … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. A storm is a’brewing on The Real Pod this week… or is it? With Duncan periodically yelping his way through a bad back, Jane showing off a Doritos packet the size of a backpack and Alex silent … Read more
On the most dramatic season of The Block NZ yet, two boys from Te Kuiti aren’t taking the bait. It was Master Bedroom week on The Block NZ when judge Jason Bonham opened the door and collapsed into a fit of laughter at apartment three’s latest offering. Sure, it was an extremely blue room with … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. Light a candle and say a prayer, for Love Island NZ is no longer coming to our screens in 2020. At least the Celebrity Treasure Island NZ promo is out, and Matty McLean’s shins are in it … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. It’s a wacky, wacky week on The Real Pod this week. But is it wackier than the fact that Gilda Kirkpatrick saw a literal ghost in Jamaica? Wackier than the fact that Hilary Barry visited The Spinoff … Read more
Last night on The Block NZ, something incredible happened: James Reid from The Feelers showed up. Every now and again, something completely unexpected happens on reality television that shakes you awake from your slack-jawed couch coma. It’s that jolt of electricity you get from a ponytail falling off on Dancing With the Stars NZ, or … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. Breaking news: Bigfoot is back baby and the Real News bulletin is bursting with many more hot scoops. Who killed Jacinda Ardern’s cat and why is he choosing to speak out now? Why are there so many … Read more
They’re the two most important shows for TVNZ 2 and Three. And their ratings are changing radically, writes Duncan Greive. TV channels tell different stories about themselves depending on whom they’re talking to. When speaking to funding bodies, they emphasise the diversity of genres they air, and interest groups whose needs are met. When speaking … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. There’s a lot of Real News to get through this week as bakeries around the country lose their marbles completely. From the shouty pie women in the south and skimpy ham sammies in the north, our team … Read more
In a surprise twist that left contestants stunned, Stu and Amy returned to The Block NZ this week. But are they here to stay, and if not, who should replace them? Tara Ward has some ideas. The ground shifted, panelling fell off the walls, and mustard throws everywhere self-combusted in shock when 2018 champions Stu and … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. We’ve got a whole litre of taurine fizz cranking through the studio this week as The Real Pod Collective convenes to recap another hectic week in reality TV land. The Celebrity Treasure Island cast have been announced, … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. The team is back to give it a good old Kiwi try across the seas this week, perhaps one of the biggest reality TV weeks of the year. Dancing With the Stars NZ had one explosive finale, … Read more
Sound the alarm, evacuate the building and douse the entire city of Auckland in flame-proof retardant, because The Block NZ is back, and this season is: Firehouse! The Block NZ returns tonight for its eighth glorious season, which Mark Richardson promises will be “the most challenging season of The Block, EVER”. Exsqueeze me, Mark Richardson, I sat through two episodes last … Read more
The Block NZ season seven champs Amy and Stu meet The Spinoff nursing hangovers, but carrying a big cheque. They’ve had just two hours sleep since they took home a huge cheque, but Amy and Stu are glowing. The pair seemed preordained to win the season, reeling off a string of ridiculous scores, culminating in … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in New Zealand pop culture and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. This week on The Real Pod, Jane remains in the city of angels so Alex and Duncan are joined by honorary corndog and Survivor NZ superstar JT. Together, they mow through a huge week in … Read more
Duncan Greive watches The Block’s final nail and asks what this strange show tells us about New Zealand in 2018. 1) Auckland property is definitively chilling the hell out It was never intended to be a quasi-documentary about the other side of the housing crisis (the side where people made heaps of money flipping homes), … Read more
“All the teams want is a happy ending,” Mark Richardson announced, as he welcomed us to The Block NZ 2018 live auction. Speak for yourself, Mark Richardson. Tara Ward recaps. I’ve watched over 54 hours of The Block NZ to get to this point. It’s auction night: I want drama, I want tears, I want The Wolf … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in New Zealand pop culture and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. This week on The Real Pod, Duncan and Alex are left to stumble through a cold and uncertain world, like poor moonboot-wearing Jamie-Lee on The Bachelor Australia. As a result, you’ll get all the reality … Read more
Friends, we’ve finally made it. Tools are officially down, and The Block NZ is nearly over for 2018. Tara Ward recaps. For the past 12 weeks we’ve stared into an abyss of portaloos and pavers, of hypnotists and Heimlich manoeuvres, of sheep mustering and nipple coloured walls. We’ve endured pointless challenges with sponge cake and sudoku … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in New Zealand pop culture and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. This week on The Real Pod, the podcast studio is extremely hot and we’re extremely distracted by live-streaming to 10+ people on Facebook. There’s so much reality TV news that we don’t know what to … Read more