News of New Zealanders via Global Media

Black Mountain Poet

Black Mountain Poet

Robert Creeley, who helped transform postwar American poetry by making it more conversational and emotionally direct, has in Odessa, Texas. He was 78. Robert Creeley’s association with New Zealand dates from 1976 when he visited at…

A Method to the Madness

A Method to the Madness

An Auckland University research team has shed light on the mystery of human reproduction with a new study involving yeast. Headed by Matthew Goddard, the study compares two strains of live yeast, one with normal asexual…

Gallipoli: All Guts, No Glory

Gallipoli: All Guts, No Glory

Chief of the New Zealand Defence Force, Air Marshal Bruce Ferguson, in his address at Anzac Cove marking the 90th anniversary of the landing there of New Zealand and Australian soldiers, said that there was no glory in…

Ten Not so Easy Steps

Ten Not so Easy Steps

Backpacker magazine ran an action-packed ten day tour of NZ in its April issue. “You’ve heard the tales of wild Kiwi adventure, seen the photos of outrageous mountains and fjords, and suspect that life in NZ is,…

12 Reasons to Love Auckland

12 Reasons to Love Auckland

Auckland was the cover-girl of leisure and travel magazine Destinasian. The feature titled “All eyes on Auckland” lists the city’s top dozen attractions, often overlooked by tourists en-route to “the volcanic cliffs of the…

No More 5 Cent Lollies

No More 5 Cent Lollies

NZ’s 5 cent coin is soon to be no longer, thanks to a major overhaul of the national currency by the central bank. 1 and 2 dollar coins will remain unchanged but 10, 20…

Konference on Kool

Konference on Kool

US management guru Tom Peters was a keynote speaker at the 2005 Better By Design conference in Auckland. “To disregard design is to disregard me as ‘human user’. If PASSION matters, DESIGN matters. And…

Tourism the Winner on the Day

Tourism the Winner on the Day

The hotly anticipated Lions rugby tour of NZ in June and July is tipped to boost the national economy by as much as $250 million. An estimated 16,000 British Lions fans are expected to make the long…

Is There a Doctor on Board?

Is There a Doctor on Board?

SurfAid International, a volunteer group of surfing doctors established by NZ physician Dave Jenkins, was the first medical team on hand in the wake of the Indonesian earthquake. Jenkins founded SurfAid in Nias 6 years…

NYC pie fix

NYC pie fix

NY Daily News profiles Kiwi Gareth Hughes, the brains behind NYC’s Down Under Bakery. “In Australia and NZ, meat pies are as central to the culture as pizza in New York,” says Hughes. Popular…

A House Less Crowded

A House Less Crowded

March 26 saw the tragic death by suicide of drummer Paul Hester,  Melbourne-born member of seminal NZ bands Split Enz and Crowded House. “We all knew him as an effervescent, vivacious fireball of talent,” said soul singer Renee…

Queen of the Green

Queen of the Green

17-year-old Kiwi, Enu Chung, is the latest and greatest addition to Berkley University’s women’s golf team. Chung has previously represented NZ in the sport and was voted the country’s female golfer of the year for 2004. Daily…

You Beauty

You Beauty

Sindhura Gadde, a former news presenter in NZ, has been crowned Miss India World in Mumbai. She will represent India at the Miss World 2005 pageant later this year.

Airini Surfs Up Rankings

Airini Surfs Up Rankings

Gisborne’s Airini Mason scored the highest ever placing by a New Zealand female surfer at an international event, finishing third at the Billabong Girls’ Easter Surf Fest in Queensland, Australia. Mason is now ranked 69th on the…

Measuring by Memory

Measuring by Memory

A group of Otago University researchers have proven that blind people are consistently more accurate in estimating the size of familiar objects – such as a loaf of bread – with their hands than their sighted…

Aotearoa Tops Wish-list

Aotearoa Tops Wish-list

NZ was voted the world’s most desirable holiday destination by readers of British travel agency magazine,  Trailfinders, ahead of Australia, Peru and the Maldives. More than 15,000 people participated in the poll.

Thumbs up for Next Big Thing

Thumbs up for Next Big Thing

Steriogram scores a healthy 4 out of 5 stars in iAfrica‘s music guide with their debut album Schmack. ” the slick production and tight arrangements, Schmack reverberates to the sound of five guys having…

Narrowing the Gulf

Narrowing the Gulf

NZ has forged closer ties with Bahrain, signing two major agreements on bilateral cooperation in March. “We have vast potential for co-operation, and we have much to gain from each other’s experience,” said Bahrainian PM Shaikh Khalifa…

Plastic fantastic

Plastic fantastic

NZ’s Calvert Plastics in conjunction with the Wellington Institute of Technology has developed a plastic packaging innovation set to revolutionise global exporting. International market regulations are increasingly demanding alternatives to traditional wood and cardboard…

Country music’s saviour

Country music’s saviour

Since winning Male Vocalist of the Year at the 2004 Country Music Awards, NZ-born Keith Urban has cemented his place as country’s best and brightest new star with a series of sell-out gigs. In…

A field trip worth taking

A field trip worth taking

For aspiring cooks looking to learn Down Under, the Independent recommends Te Horo’s Ruth Pretty Cooking School and Catherine Bell’s Epicurean Workshop in Auckland

Kai to die for

Kai to die for

Independent food writer Jenni Muir nominates Nelson and Marlborough as the lesser-known food capitals of NZ. In Nelson, she recommends foraging for kai-moana with guide Mike Elkington of Te Hikoi Maori. Matua Valley is…

Culinary invasion

Culinary invasion

  An Independent feature nominates the ten best places to “eat Australasian” in London. These include The Zetter (NZ chef Megan Jones), The Providores and Tapa Room (Peter Gordon’s mini empire with fellow…

“Pretty Damn Sweet”

“Pretty Damn Sweet”

A US exchange student in NZ writes an ode to Aotearoa in his home college newspaper, the New Hampster. “I think I’ve got NZ fever already. This country has been described as a laidback, fun place…

2 Films, Much Praise

2 Films, Much Praise

Taika Waititi’s acclaimed short film Two Cars, One Night was nominated for an Oscar at this year’s awards. It is now touring the US alongside fellow nominees as part of an Oscar 2005 shorts…

Underbelly Exposure

Underbelly Exposure

One of the co-authors of controversial U.N tell-all Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures: A True Story From Hell on Earth is NZ-born doctor Andrew Thompson. Described on Amazon as a “scorching, devastatingly…

A Wine Like No Other

A Wine Like No Other

Pittsburgh Live writer experiences a dash of spring fever courtesy of Marlborough’s world-renowned sauvignon blanc. “The wine’s style elicits both tremendous enthusiasm and vehement rejection, but overall, sales of NZ sauvignon blanc are soaring, with more than…

A Step in the Right Direction

A Step in the Right Direction

Hamilton inventor and former chemical engineer, Brian Goggin, is seeking patents in NZ, the US, Japan, and Europe for a reinforced metal fuel tank which vents hydrogen gas safely in the event of an accident. The innovation…

Rock solid

Rock solid

Kiwi rockers The Datsuns have a glowing review of their sophomore album Outta Sight/Outta Mind in the Indy Star. “While contemporaries such as the Strokes and the Vines stumbled with releases last year, the…

WORLD Comes to Sydney

WORLD Comes to Sydney

WORLD is set to bring a splash of their trademark colour to Sydney’s Oxford Street, with the opening of a new flagship store there in March.

Communication Lines Opened

Communication Lines Opened

Auckland University is to house a Beijing-sponsored language institute which will promote Mandarin as a second language in NZ schools. Chinese currently make up over 40% of NZ’s Asian population. NZ is currently in negotiations with China…

The Price is Right

The Price is Right

NZ’s booming tourist industry has received another string to its bow with the introduction of free city tours. Financed by local tourism operators wanting to promote their services, the tours are now available in Auckland and Christchurch.

Built to Last

Built to Last

NZ economist Anthony Byett was interviewed on ABC Radio about the country’s booming economy. “We’ve had a great 10-year period, and the last three years in particular have been very strong … We have the economy –…

Double All Black

Double All Black

The Age profiles Eric Tindill; the world’s oldest living Test cricketer, NZ’s oldest living All Black, and one of the hallowed few to represent the country in both sporting disciplines. “The elderly gent watching the TV isn’t…

Kiwis in Flight

Kiwis in Flight

The “brain drain” issue is back in the news with a vengeance, sparked by Immigration Minister Paul Swain’s newly minted campaign to lure ex-patriots home. Writing in the NZ Herald writer Simon Collins received a staggering number…

Je Le Prends = I’ll Take It

Je Le Prends = I’ll Take It

NZ fashion labels Sabatini White, Nom*d, Ng, and WORLD staged an acclaimed joint exhibit at the prestigious Tranoi trade show in Paris. Sabatini White was particularly successful, securing orders of more than $110,000 and…

Analysing the “Yucky Side of Life”

Analysing the “Yucky Side of Life”

John Crace interviews Joanna Bourke, lecturer, historian and author of numerous academic books including the controversial An Intimate History of Killing and her most recent publication, Fear: A Cultural History. “Historians tend to come…

Mark the Great

Mark the Great

Mark Greatbatch comes in at number four on the Guardian‘s list of all-time greatest Test cricket rearguards. “He was better known as the man who invented pinch-hitting at the 1992 World Cup, but Mark Greatbatch could knuckle…

Sporty

Sporty

The Guardian profiles Rachel Hunter, host of new reality TV show Make Me a Supermodel. “In the 1980s, the age of the supermodel, she was as ubiquitous as Linda, Christy, Naomi and Cindy -…

Diamond and the Rough

Diamond and the Rough

Independent travel writer indulges mind, body and soul in NZ’s up and coming wine and tourism centre, the Wairarapa. After experiencing chocolate therapy at Greytown’s Schoc, sampling the region’s famed Pinot Noir at Tirohana Estate, trout fishing…

Kiwi Crusader

Kiwi Crusader

Having already cracked the Australian market, Kiwi hop hop superstar Scribe is now making himself heard in New York. NYT: “Scribe, 25, is at the forefront of the country’s exploding hip-hop scene -…

Cutting Edge Electronics

Cutting Edge Electronics

NZ GPS innovators, Navman, showed off their latest creations at Germany’s prestigious CeBit electronics trade fair. These included the PIN 57, a Windows-based PDA, and the X300, which uses GPS to tell joggers, skiers and cyclists how…

Right Royal Stand-off

Right Royal Stand-off

The Guardian ran an overview of NZ media coverage of Prince Charles’ recent tour of the country. Commentary ranged from the Christchurch Press dismissing the Prince as “a faintly comic participant in a toffee-nosed soap opera” to…

Modesty Blaize

Modesty Blaize

Magazine editor, Auckland native and former Craccum muse, Louise Chunn, interviewed in the Guardian. Since leaving NZ in the early 1980s, Chunn has worked on such esteemed titles as Fashion Weekly, Just 17, Elle,…

Academic Superstar

Academic Superstar

The Guardian celebrated NZ-based academic weblog Arts & Letters Daily‘s 100 millionth hit by profiling its founder, Canterbury University’s Denis Dutton. Quoted is Robert Fulford, a columnist with Canada’s National Post: “The idea of Christchurch, NZ, as the…

Christopher Luxon by Degrees

Christopher Luxon by Degrees

Canterbury MCom grad and nz-edger Christopher Luxon is now based in Chicago via Australia and Europe, where he leads Unilever’s North American Deodorants & Grooming business. Presently he is jump-starting Degree for Men antiperspirant, advertising the brand…

Simple is Best

Simple is Best

The British government is officially considering modeling its pension system on NZ’s current superannuation scheme, which is described in the Guardian as “a model of elegant simplicity compared with Britain’s multi-layered mixture of private and state provision, means…

Moko Shocker

Moko Shocker

US pro cyclist David Clinger has joined the list of international celebrities sporting “moko inspired” tattoos, which includes Mike Tyson and Robbie Williams. Clinger’s version covers the upper half of his face and most…

“Shining a Light on the Edge of the World”

“Shining a Light on the Edge of the World”

Oyster takes a behind-the-scenes look at the “Invisible Heroes” of NZ fashion. Featured are Benny Castles and Lou Davies (Assistant Designer for WORLD Man and Woman respectively), Jenny Cook (Karen Walker), Gregory Brooks (Nom*D),…

Great Expectations

Great Expectations

America’s premiere gay and lesbian travel magazine, Passport, ran an extensive travel feature on NZ in its March issue. “My boyfriend wanted to explore NZ because he’d heard that it was the most untouched, pristine land in the…

Russell Crowe – The Hard-Ass

Russell Crowe – The Hard-Ass

GQ’s feature on the ten greatest actors of our generation leads with Wellington-born Russell Crowe and his passion for connecting emotionally with an audience. Does this peg him as a dinosaur? “In those respects-credibility,…

A Toast to Martinborough

A Toast to Martinborough

Toast Martinborough features in a Guardian overview of the world’s greatest wine festivals. “Martinborough is one of the few ‘old world’ wine villages in the southern hemisphere and home to much- lauded pinot noir and sauvignon blanc….

From Wilderness to Café Culture

From Wilderness to Café Culture

NZ features in a Lonely Planet dream itinerary compiled exclusively for the Observer. “NZ’s wild side is wonderful, especially the South Island’s rugged west coast, but it’s great to return to Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch where cafe…

Perky paradise

Perky paradise

A Kiwi oasis in the midst of Melbourne is winning the hearts of critics and  customers alike. Batch Espresso, owned and operated by ex-Wellingtonian Jason Chan, earned a rave write-up in Melbourne food bible Cheap…

All Aboard

All Aboard

Independent travel writer takes a stunning tour of NZ by train. ” you want to experience your visual thrills in comfort and without the threat of sea-sickness, you can simply let the NZ’s trains take the strain…

Pinot Noir’s Paradox

Pinot Noir’s Paradox

“No other wine conjures up poetic descriptions like pinot noir; no other wine forges as direct a path to the soul. If a wine could make a person cry, it would have to be a pinot…