News of New Zealanders via Global Media

Production Wraps on Sam Kelly’s Savage

Production Wraps on Sam Kelly’s Savage

Wellingtonian Sam Kelly’s directorial debut Savage has now wrapped up production. The drama is inspired by the true stories of New Zealand’s street gangs and their founding members. Savage stars Australian actor Jake Ryan (The Great…

Ballerina Delia Mathews Embraces Role of Lise

Ballerina Delia Mathews Embraces Role of Lise

Described as “the funniest, sunniest English ballet masterpiece”, the curtain comes up on La Fille mal gardée (The Wayward Daughter) at Belfast’s Grand Opera House this week, and it stars principal dancer Rotorua-born Delia…

Secrets Behind the World’s Most Successful Team

Secrets Behind the World’s Most Successful Team

The All Blacks jersey carries with it an aura of invincibility. Their starting 15 could be injured and the next 15 would still stand head and shoulders above the rest of the world. How…

By All Means Visit But Please Clean Up

By All Means Visit But Please Clean Up

New Zealand has a message for the visitors drawn by its deep mossy forests, bubbling mud pools and magnificent peaks: clean up after yourselves. A new campaign called the “Tiaki Promise” is telling everybody…

UK High Commission in NZ to Recruit Māori Adviser & Te Reo Teacher

UK High Commission in NZ to Recruit Māori Adviser & Te Reo Teacher

“The British high commission in New Zealand has been given the green light to recruit its first adviser on Māori affairs, as well as a te reo language teacher for high commissioner Laura Clarke.”…

Avocado Farmers Fighting to Save Crops

Avocado Farmers Fighting to Save Crops

As the popularity of the avocado soars, growers in the Bay of Plenty have been forced to resort to extreme lengths to protect their crop from thieves Eleanor Ainge Roy reports for the Guardian. The…

Vincent Ward’s Alien 3 a Fascinating Film

Vincent Ward’s Alien 3 a Fascinating Film

“For every glittering Hollywood project that hits cinemas, there’s a whole lot more that don’t make it,” the Guardian’s Tom Huddleston reports. Included in his top five is New Zealand-born photographer and filmmaker Vincent…

NZ Falls out of Love with 2 Per Cent Targets

NZ Falls out of Love with 2 Per Cent Targets

“Japan and Sweden and even the Fed could take a lesson from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand,” according to Daniel Moss in an opinion piece for Bloomberg. Former chair of the Federal Reserve,…

Poet Nina Powles Wins New UK Prize

Poet Nina Powles Wins New UK Prize

Wellington-born Nina Powles is one of the three recipients of the inaugural Women Poets’ prize, which aims to celebrate the empowerment of women and reward “creatively ambitious practitioners who are making or are capable…

Kieran Read Suggests Retirement Plans

Kieran Read Suggests Retirement Plans

All Blacks captain Kieran Read, 33, has said he is likely to quit international rugby after next year’s World Cup in Japan, his third Webb Ellis campaign, and take a contract overseas. “So for me…

NZ Tops Ease of Doing Business Rankings

NZ Tops Ease of Doing Business Rankings

New Zealand has clinched the top spot in the ease of doing business rankings by the World Bank where it scored 86.59, ahead of 190 other countries, despite not implementing any reforms in the…

Four NZ Resorts Make List of Best Resorts in Australia & South Pacific

Four NZ Resorts Make List of Best Resorts in Australia & South Pacific

Four New Zealand Resorts have made Conde Nast Traveler’s list of 20 Best Resorts in Australia and South Pacific which was recently released as part of their annual Reader’s Choice…

Café Calls Itself ‘Home Of Terrible Trip Advisor Reviews

Café Calls Itself ‘Home Of Terrible Trip Advisor Reviews

Christchurch cafe C1 Espresso “publishes its worst reviews in its menu so customers can read them at the table. The info panel of the cafe’s door proudly states it is home to: all day…

An Adventurer’s Perfect Day in Queenstown

An Adventurer’s Perfect Day in Queenstown

Kyle Mulinder, known as Bare Kiwi, provides National Geographic readers an authentic glimpse into his and his fiancée’s adventures around New Zealand. Mulinder is a self-taught photographer and filmmaker, who…

NZ Police Makes the Most Entertaining Recruitment Ads

NZ Police Makes the Most Entertaining Recruitment Ads

“New Zealand Police has launched a follow up to its popular effort to make the ‘world’s most entertaining recruitment ad’, with a focus on diversity.” Charlotte McEleny reports for

On the World’s Greatest Family Road Trip

On the World’s Greatest Family Road Trip

“I fell in love with New Zealand watching it on the big screen. For years I held the epic scenery from The Lord of the Rings in my mind: the misty mountains, the blue…

Steve Hansen Suggests 16-Week Off-Seasons

Steve Hansen Suggests 16-Week Off-Seasons

“Steve Hansen has called for a mandatory 16-week off-season, days after an 11-month campaign was announced in England. The New Zealand head coach said England were still counting the cost of having 15 players…

Why Abel Tasman Is New Zealand’s Best Kept Secret

Why Abel Tasman Is New Zealand’s Best Kept Secret

“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex may Abel Tasman, but that’s not the reason I find myself approaching New Zealand’s smallest national park by boat,” Amanda Linfoot writes for Britain’s Sunday Times….

Wade Goddard’s View of the Kosovo War

Wade Goddard’s View of the Kosovo War

New Zealand-born Wade Goddard’s new book, The Kosovo War captures the raw suffering of the conflict – but the veteran Balkan war photographer also tried to find courage and hope amid the bloodshed. In Goddard’s…

Casey Brown Rewriting the Rules of Mountain Biking

Casey Brown Rewriting the Rules of Mountain Biking

New Zealand-born Casey Brown, who has lived in Canada for the past 16 years, has established herself as one of the most talented female mountain bikers in the world. And now she’s aiming to…

NZ’s First Permanent War Museum to Open in Europe

NZ’s First Permanent War Museum to Open in Europe

New Zealand’s first permanent war memorial museum in Europe is being unveiled in the medieval fortified French town of Le Quesnoy, which was liberated by New Zealand soldiers a century ago in the final…

Scrabble Fanatic Wins 4th World Scrabble Championship Title

Scrabble Fanatic Wins 4th World Scrabble Championship Title

Nigel Richards, from New Zealand, has won his fourth World Scrabble Championship title “with the word ‘groutier’, defined as sullen or sulky,” writes Sophie Law in an article for The Daily Mail. The crucial…

Artist Peter Waddell Paints D.C. Bird’s Eye Views

Artist Peter Waddell Paints D.C. Bird’s Eye Views

“I wanted a fire,” Hastings-born artist Peter Waddell said as he and Washington Post reporter John Kelly gazed upon one of a pair of his monumentally sized paintings. Waddell’s paintings are bird’s-eye views of Washington…

Crawford Falconer Tackles Brexit Conundrums

Crawford Falconer Tackles Brexit Conundrums

When the UK voted to leave the European Union in 2016, the British government had no chief trade negotiator and only a handful of people engaged in trade policy. As part of the EU,…

Empower Yourself at a Parris Goebel Workshop

Empower Yourself at a Parris Goebel Workshop

New Zealand-born dancer Parris Goebel shares with Vogue how she is inspiring the next generation of women with her own success. When you ask an artist about what they consider to be their first big…

Reframing How We Talk About Guns

Reframing How We Talk About Guns

“We do know that tough gun laws work in other developed countries.” But in the US unity of opinion on gun laws never materialized,” writes Timothy Dumas for Greenwich Magazine….

How GM Went From Bankrupt to One of the World’s Best-Run Car Companies

How GM Went From Bankrupt to One of the World’s Best-Run Car Companies

“A decade after the financial crisis, General Motors is led by the best management team it’s ever had and one of the best C-suites in all of business.  CEO Mary Barra, President Dan Ammann…

All Blacks Complete Sweep of Australia in Japan

All Blacks Complete Sweep of Australia in Japan

World champions New Zealand crushed old foes Australia 37-20 at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama, Japan, where the 2019 Rugby World Cup final will be held, to complete a 3-0 Bledisloe Cup series whitewash win,…

John Llewellyn Calls Out Global Investment Climate

John Llewellyn Calls Out Global Investment Climate

Former chief economist of US investment bank Lehman Brothers, John Llewellyn, has issued a global warning and “has warned that the conditions for a ‘serious’ financial crisis are ‘intensifying’.” Llewellyn “told investors the combination…

Banker Ross McEwan Cuts to the Chase

Banker Ross McEwan Cuts to the Chase

When New Zealander Ross McEwan dropped in for a surprise visit to a Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) branch in London last month, he was appalled by how scruffy it looked. “It needs a…

Attica’s Acclaimed Chef Ben Shewry Chats to CEO

Attica’s Acclaimed Chef Ben Shewry Chats to CEO

Bon Appétit called him an “international culinary darling”. David Chang called him a “lunatic”; probably the highest praise one chef can give another. New Zealander Ben Shewry’s Melbourne restaurant, Attica,…

Tā moko Artist Taryn Beri Shares Capital Tips

Tā moko Artist Taryn Beri Shares Capital Tips

Taryn Beri is an independent tā moko practitioner in Wellington and a member of the Ngāti Toarangatira tribe. Beri shares the best sights, bites, and art in the capital city…

Team New Zealand Keeps Their Eye on the Weather

Team New Zealand Keeps Their Eye on the Weather

In the super high-tech world of the America’s Cup, microanalysis of climatic conditions is becoming increasingly important as hydrofoil technology becomes even more advanced, CNN reports. At the 2017 America’s Cup,…

On Hydra with Writer Redmond Wallis

On Hydra with Writer Redmond Wallis

New Zealander Redmond Wallis plays a role in the new book, Half the Perfect World, which tells the story of the post-war international artist community that formed on the Greek island of Hydra, and…

Aaron Stadlin-Robbie Talks Mental on Podcast

Aaron Stadlin-Robbie Talks Mental on Podcast

In his experimental new podcast Talking Mental, Hong Kong-raised New Zealander Aaron Stadlin-Robbie asks professionals for advice on how to manage his anxiety attacks. The realisation that opening up helps Stadlin-Robbie feel more in control…

Francis Upritchard’s Barbican Show is Joyful

Francis Upritchard’s Barbican Show is Joyful

“New Zealand-born artist Francis Upritchard is renowned for drawing from craft traditions, and her installation ‘Wetwang Slack’ is no exception. Contrasting with the building’s Brutalist architecture,

Writing Saved Author Janet Frame

Writing Saved Author Janet Frame

Spanning unusual cruelty and extraordinary kindness, authors from New Zealander Janet Frame to Briton Pat Barker explore an unsettling branch of medicine. The Guardian looks at the top ten books about psychiatry and includes Frame’s…

Air New Zealand’s Place on the Global Runway

Air New Zealand’s Place on the Global Runway

With a brand promise of ‘liberating from the ordinary’ and plans to surprise, innovate, out-manoeuvre and challenge convention, Air New Zealand stands out on the world’s tarmac with its quirky attitude and humorous ads….

How Teenager Nina Griffiths Began to Heal Kaitaia

How Teenager Nina Griffiths Began to Heal Kaitaia

At the start of 2016, Kaitaia – population 5000 – had just experienced the loss of six young people to suicide in quick succession. Nina Griffiths, a local high school student, was one of…

Mark de Clive-Lowe Unlocks His Creativity

Mark de Clive-Lowe Unlocks His Creativity

Auckland-born Mark de Clive-Lowe, 44, is “a jazz artist with both a visionary outlook and an old soul. As a concert pianist deeply steeped in the jazz tradition, he’s courageously committed himself to modern…

Hard-Rocking Band Like a Storm Tirelessly Touring

Hard-Rocking Band Like a Storm Tirelessly Touring

Known as one of the hardest working bands out there, Like A Storm fought hard to be heard. The three Auckland brothers who founded the group came to the United States knowing no one,…

Richard Kavanagh’s Smart Mirror Adopted by L’Oreal

Richard Kavanagh’s Smart Mirror Adopted by L’Oreal

The interactive invention of top New Zealand hairstylist, Sydney-based Richard Kavanagh is set to transform salon visits here and overseas. Kavanagh’s smart mirror allows customers to shop for their style on screen and provides…

Bunker Buyers and Billionaires Still Seek Shelter

Bunker Buyers and Billionaires Still Seek Shelter

“If the New Zealand government was sending a message when it banned foreigners from buying houses in the country earlier this year, it does not seem to have been heard by the global billionaire…

MP Poto Williams Awarded University Prize

MP Poto Williams Awarded University Prize

MP Poto Williams has been named the 2018 Outstanding Alumnus of the Year at Southern Cross University’s annual awards recognising exceptional achievement and outstanding service. The New South Wales university welcomed home more than 50…

Swimmer Makes Olympian Grandmother Proud

Swimmer Makes Olympian Grandmother Proud

Seventy years after her grandmother swam in the London 1948 Olympic Games, Auckland swimmer Gina Galloway, 17, took up the torch to represent her country at the Buenos Aires 2018

Mongrelism by Jono Rotman Now in Print

Mongrelism by Jono Rotman Now in Print

“Arresting. Exquisite. Gripping. Chilling. Disgraceful. Unacceptable. These are all words people have used to describe portraits made by Jono Rotman. Created over the last decade, his project Mongrelism presents an…

Mark Wilson Steps Down as Aviva Chief

Mark Wilson Steps Down as Aviva Chief

New Zealander Mark Wilson, the “straight-talking” chief of the FTSE 100 British insurer Aviva, leaves with immediate effect after six years at the helm. Wilson, 52, will remain at Aviva until…

Rhys Darby – From the Army to Flight of the Conchords

Rhys Darby – From the Army to Flight of the Conchords

“It was a long march for Rhys Darby to go from the New Zealand army to starring in Flight Of The Conchords, writes Richard Fitzpatrick” in an article in The Irish Examiner. After finishing…

‘Anything You Can Imagine’ Recounts Quest to Film Tolkien

‘Anything You Can Imagine’ Recounts Quest to Film Tolkien

“Reaching the final sentence in film writer Ian Nathan’s 576-page exploration of movie director Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy requires the stoicism of Frodo and the vigor of Gandalf. So much…

How Spark Helped NZ Learn Māori

How Spark Helped NZ Learn Māori

“Whilst te reo Māori has steadily seen an increase in a number of revitalisation efforts across New Zealand—especially in recent years—actual te reo learning opportunities remain limited and sometimes inaccessible,” writes Faaez Samadi in…

Indian Restaurant Celebrates New Zealand Cuisine

Indian Restaurant Celebrates New Zealand Cuisine

Curated by Chef Roberto Zorzoli, specialty Italian restaurant Romano’s at the JW Marriott Mumbai Sahar is celebrating the cuisine of New Zealand in October. Akhil Gangan reports for Mumbai Live. “The menu titled ‘Nuances…

Dallas Symphony Names Gemma New As First Female Principal Guest Conductor

Dallas Symphony Names Gemma New As First Female Principal Guest Conductor

“Inaugurating a program to appoint a succession of female principal guest conductors, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra has named New Zealander Gemma New the first woman to hold the revived title,” writes Scott Cantrell in…

New Christchurch Library Featured in Designboom

New Christchurch Library Featured in Designboom

New earthquake-resistant library in Christchurch, named Tūranga, was featured in an article in Designboom. The new building by Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects “provides a 9,500 sqm public space that…

GirlBoss Founder Wins Facebook Leadership Award

GirlBoss Founder Wins Facebook Leadership Award

“GirlBoss New Zealand founder Alexia Hilbertidou is the first and only Kiwi to be selected for the social media network’s Community Leaders Program,” writes Brittany Keogh in an article for

NZ Boasts a Burgeoning Craft Whisky Movement

NZ Boasts a Burgeoning Craft Whisky Movement

New Zealand’s whisky scene is on the rise. Not for the first time either, but this time it’s being built to last, with upstart distilleries making quality, distinctively Kiwi spirits, and an infrastructure of…

Allbirds Open First UK Store

Allbirds Open First UK Store

“Allbirds, the San Francisco-based shoe brand that makes its trainers out of eucalyptus, wool and sugar cane, is opening its first UK store in London’s Covent Garden on Wednesday and, if the reaction is…