News of New Zealanders via Global Media

World’s Fastest Win

World’s Fastest Win

The Black Caps have won their three-match home series against Bangladesh in record-breaking style. NZ reached Bangladesh’s total of 93 all out with 44 overs and ten wickets to spare, replacing India’s 2001 thrashing of Kenya…

Hollywood Holidays in Aotearoa

Hollywood Holidays in Aotearoa

NZ was allegedly the holiday destination of choice for a slew of A-list celebrities over the summer. Bill Gates spent Christmas quad-biking at Ahipara with his son, while actors Jack Nicholson and Charlize Theron reportedly spent time…

Christchurch soprano tops UK sales

Christchurch soprano tops UK sales

Hayley Westenra‘s breakthrough album has been named the UK’s biggest-selling classical record of the 21st-century to date. Pure (2003), the Christchurch singer’s international debut, went gold in its first week of release in…

Award Winning Airmanship

Award Winning Airmanship

A Te Anau helicopter pilot has been awarded the Federation Aeronautique International (FAI) Outstanding Airman Award. Richard “Hannibal” Hayes received the honour for single-handedly putting out a bush fire in Queenstown in November…

Trans-seasonal Vistas

Trans-seasonal Vistas

A Toronto Star travel piece likens NZ’s famous TranzAlpine train journey to the Crowded House hit Four Seasons in One Day. Star: “In half a day, it travels from summer-like warmth in the farmlands…

Power in Numbers

Power in Numbers

The New York Times reports on a multi-organisation effort to save NZ’s national symbol from extinction. Founded in 1994, Operation Nest Egg is a combined effort by the Department of Conservation’s Kiwi Recovery Program, non-profit group Save…

Value for Money

Value for Money

NZ private schools are moving ahead of their British counterparts on the global league table for English-speaking education, according to new international research. NZ tops the table for maths and science in the Pisa…

The Great Escapee

The Great Escapee

The last living New Zealander involved in The Great Escape of World War II has died in Masterton aged 92. Mick Shand was an RAF fighter pilot who fought in the Battle…

Stamp of Approval

Stamp of Approval

NZ label Untouched World is about to become the first fashion company in the world to carry a United Nations sustainability logo. Untouched World has been given UNESCO approval to attach the UN Decade…

Round Two Record Attempt

Round Two Record Attempt

NZ speedboat Earthrace will begin its second attempt to break the world circumnavigation record in March 2008. Earthrace is using the record attempt to raise awareness for environmentally friendly biofuel. “The record is just a small…

Hobbit back in Jackson’s court

Hobbit back in Jackson’s court

Peter Jackson has settled his long-running legal dispute with New Line and will make The Hobbit for the studio as originally planned. Jackson and his creative partner Fran Walsh have announced that they will…

Natural Selection

Natural Selection

Telegraph writer Jonathan Ray discovers the art of high-altitude wine tasting with Air New Zealand’s team of wine buyers: Jim Harré, John Belsham and Kate Radburnd. Air NZ is the single largest purchaser of NZ wine…

It’s All About Murray

It’s All About Murray

NZ comedian Rhys Darby earned a special mention in The Guardian‘s entertainment guide awards for 2007. Darby was named Best Supporting Character for his role as beleaguered band manager Murray Hewitt in Flight of…

NZ ceremony honoured in UK

NZ ceremony honoured in UK

The dedication ceremony for the New Zealand Memorial at London’s Hyde Park has won a major British award. The event won the International Visual Communication Association (IVCA) award for projects that inform and…

Familiar sights in Utah

Familiar sights in Utah

25,000 International Rotary members were treated to a Polynesian luau at a Utah convention centre this month. The performance, which involved story, song and dance, was put on by Kaeo-born Dave Atkinson, chairman of…

Making a Splash with Splatter

Making a Splash with Splatter

A current trend for home-grown horror in NZ film is noted by Variety magazine. The article points to recent features Black Sheep, The Tattooist and The Ferryman as examples of the genre by first-time…

Good morning Beijing

Good morning Beijing

NZ journalist Edwin Maher, the first Western news anchor on Chinese state television, has received China’s highest honour for foreigners. Maher was awarded the Chinese government’s “Friendship Award” in a ceremony at the Great…

Renewing Friendships, Broadening Horizons

Renewing Friendships, Broadening Horizons

Helen Clark was the first foreign leader to meet with Kevin Rudd in his new role as Australian prime minister. The pair met for a casual lunch at Rudd’s Brisbane home, where they discussed climate change ahead…

Police Laws Go Wiki

Police Laws Go Wiki

The NZ police force has used wiki-style online collaboration to update its 1958 Police Act. In September, they posted the Act online and invited contributors from all over the world to suggest their own…

Love Me, Love My Food

Love Me, Love My Food

Canterbury University researcher Annie Potts coined the new buzzword “vegansexuality” in a paper published in May. Potts, a director of the New Zealand Centre for Human-Animal Studies, surveyed 157 vegans and vegetarians on all…

Second Chance for Henry

Second Chance for Henry

Graham Henry has been reappointed as the All Blacks’ head coach, despite widespread criticism of his 2007 Rugby World Cup campaign. Henry, who has vowed to learn from his World Cup mistakes, has signed a two-year…

The Complete Package

The Complete Package

NZ’s largest city is described as having “new wind in its sails” in a US travel feature. Once the jumping-off point for further exploration of NZ, Auckland has become a worthy destination in its…

Bright lights beckon for Wellington student

Bright lights beckon for Wellington student

Wellington student Landen Hale-Brown has a lead role in the Australian production of Billy Elliot the Musical. Hale-Brown, 12, won the role of Billy’s best friend Michael over 3000 other hopefuls. He made…

Beckham Fever Hits Wellington

Beckham Fever Hits Wellington

David Beckham‘s Australasian tour with the LA Galaxy was a resounding success for NZ soccer. A record crowd of 31,853 turned up to see the Galaxy play newly minted NZ side the Wellington Phoenix at…

First NZ doco selected for Sundance

First NZ doco selected for Sundance

A NZ documentary has won a place at the Sundance Film Festival for the first time. The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins by Auckland filmmaker Pietra Brettkelly will compete in the World…

An appreciative audience

An appreciative audience

The Telegraph describes Crowded House’s performance as “just like old times” and Neil Finn’s voice as “Lennonnish” in a review of their show at Manchester’s MEN Arena. “There’s a long tradition of audience participation…

Age No Barrier

Age No Barrier

Sir Bob Charles made history at this year’s NZ Open by becoming the oldest man to make the cut on a major non-seniors tour. The 71-year-old New Zealander finished four under par and tied…

Dilemma for Cat Fanciers

Dilemma for Cat Fanciers

NZ-based psychoanalyst Jeffrey Masson has weighed in on the cats versus birds debate in a New York Times magazine feature. The issue of cats killing native birds in the US came to national attention…

Magic realist

Magic realist

Aotearoa North Carolina (US) artist Robert Johnson has just returned from a three month stint in NZ. The magic realist painter bought an old van in Auckland and toured the country from north to…

“Food Miles” Shredded by Chef

“Food Miles” Shredded by Chef

NZ celebrity chef Peter Gordon has made discrediting the “food miles myth” and promoting quality NZ produce his mission in the UK. In recent months, the London-based chef has appeared on British TV,…

Third Time at the Top

Third Time at the Top

NZ has been voted the world’s best holiday destination by readers of Britain’s Daily Telegraph. Around 30,000 readers took part in the annual survey, which is the largest independent analysis of British travellers. Second and third…

Enlightened dining

Enlightened dining

NZ-owned restaurant Seamstress has won over critics and diners just weeks after its opening in Melbourne. The four-storey modern Cantonese eatery is co-owned by Dunedin-born Jason Chan, who runs the successful NZ-themed cafe…

High Seas Drama

High Seas Drama

A book detailing the tumultuous Earthrace mission to date has been published in time for Christmas. First Time Around by Scott Fratcher follows the state-of-the-art boat on its mission to promote biodiesel fuel…

Spoilt for Choice

Spoilt for Choice

An Australian travel guide to NZ’s top 30 lakes covers the length and breadth of Aotearoa, from world-class trout fishing at Lake Turangi, to the “perfectly still bush reflections” at Lake Ianthe, near Mt…

Rotorua Takes Root in Nanjing

Rotorua Takes Root in Nanjing

Rotorua Town is the latest in a series of namesake housing compounds to be built for China’s booming upper class. Located in Nanjing, two hours from Shanghai, Rotorua Town is an upmarket gated…

Hot shot

Hot shot

NZ photographer Stefanie Young is part of a group show called Tripping the Light Fantastic, which has just opened at the Agora Gallery in Chelsea, New York. Young, who currently lectures at the Waikato…

Grand statements

Grand statements

Auckland artist Dane Mitchell, 31, has been selected to exhibit at Miami’s prestigious Art Basel fair in June 2008. Mitchell’s work will feature in the Art Statements section for emerging artists, and will be…

Edge Treatment for Classic Americana

Edge Treatment for Classic Americana

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, the new film by director Andrew Dominik, earned four stars out of five in The Guardian. “This is a real success for New Zealand-born,…

Dave Versus Goliath

Dave Versus Goliath

The opening of a new hotel in Christchurch coincided with the launch of a film detailing the unusual story behind its development. Hotel SO is the result of property developer Dave Henderson’s 13-year clash with the…

NZ Proposes Winter Games

NZ Proposes Winter Games

An interim board is developing a proposal to launch the inaugural New Zealand Winter Games in 2009. The aim of the Winter Games is to provide elite winter athletes from Pacific Rim countries with off-season training…

Kohanga Reo Movement Continues to Inspire

Kohanga Reo Movement Continues to Inspire

NZ’s thriving kohanga reo movement was the subject of a lengthy Age feature last month. Kohanga reo, or Maori language and cultural immersion schools, have blossomed since the movement’s launch in 1980. There are…

Two Atkins for NZ Wine

Two Atkins for NZ Wine

Influential Observer wine columnist Tim Atkin has published his Best Of list for 2007. Atkin named NZ his wine producing country of the year, with the 2006 Mount Difficulty Pinot Noir (Central Otago) and 2007 The…

NZ in Three Speeds

NZ in Three Speeds

A Guardian travel article offers a three-pronged approach to seeing NZ. The first writer covers the entire span of 90 Mile Beach by Blokart, a NZ-designed sailing dinghy on wheels. “So much power without an engine…

Mighty Totara of NZ Rugby

Mighty Totara of NZ Rugby

All Black and NZ Maori legend Pat Walsh has died of cancer aged 71. Renowned for his versatility, Walsh played 13 Tests in four positions between 1955 and 1963. He served as…

Rotorua Reveals Anti-warming Weapon

Rotorua Reveals Anti-warming Weapon

A scientific breakthrough in NZ could play a major role in combating global warming. A group of microbiologists at Hells Gate in Rotorua has discovered a new bacterium that eats methane – one of the key…

From death row to Don Giovanni

From death row to Don Giovanni

Star NZ baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes has shown his versatility in an impressive series of Australian opera roles this year. In August, Tahu Rhodes played construction worker Stanley Kowalski in the Australian premiere of…

Hottest Aussie from Balclutha

Hottest Aussie from Balclutha

Balclutha-born Dean Tahana has been crowned Australia’s sexiest man. The 29-year-old won the 2007 Mister Manhunt Australia competition, Australia’s biggest competition for male models. “I entered the regionals up in Noosa, Queensland, when…

Fifth Olympics for Kendall

Fifth Olympics for Kendall

NZ sporting icon Barbara Kendall has earned her fifth Olympic Games spot. Kendall described her early selection for Beijing 2008 as “awesome” after it was announced at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. Kendall has already won…

Surgical Innovation

Surgical Innovation

University of Otago scientists have patented a gel derived from squid that can reduce bleeding and scarring during surgery. The gel, named Chitodex, is a chemically modified form of the polymer chitosan, which is found in…

Painful Memories

Painful Memories

Two NZ athletes feature in a list of sport’s 20 worst injuries, as chosen by The Times of South Africa. Cricketer Trevor Franklin is ranked 17th and former All Black captain Buck Shelford 15th in a…

Tees Please

Tees Please

An NZ couple has launched a line of tasteful tourist tees in Canada. Last year, Lauren McKee and Wynne Pirini left home, and their respective careers in accountancy and construction, to start a creative…

Guilt-free Getaway

Guilt-free Getaway

Travel writer Caroline Hendrie neutralised the carbon footprint she incurred flying to NZ by staying at the south island’s Wilderness Lodges. Run by ecologist Dr Gerry McSweeney, the Wilderness Lodges scored top marks for eco-credentials…

Nearing perfection

Nearing perfection

The Guardian‘s guide to the world’s greatest music acts beginning with C features Flying Nun luminaries The Chills. The band’s 1994 best-of, Heavenly Pop Hits, is recommended to first-time listeners. The Guardian: “Set…

Tales from a Conflict Zone

Tales from a Conflict Zone

NZ nurse Lisa French Blaker has written a book about working for the aid agency Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) in Sudan. In Heart of Darfur (Hodder & Stoughton), French Blaker, 36, recounts…

The Post-industrial Revolution

The Post-industrial Revolution

Wellington-based Ponoko is one of a wave of new companies offering personalised product manufacturing services online. Founded by David ten Have and Derek Elley, the Ponoko website lets customers upload designs for cases and enclosures…

Guitar-based Digi-bongo Acapella-rap-funk-comedy Folk gets Sexy

Guitar-based Digi-bongo Acapella-rap-funk-comedy Folk gets Sexy

Wellingtonians of the Year Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement (AKA Flight of the Conchords) have made Salon‘s ‘Sexiest Man Living’ list for 2007. Salon promotes its list as an alternative to People‘s better…