Archive >> April 2005

The real super heroes

Kiwi stuntwoman Zoe Bell (Xena, Kill Bill, Catwoman) is the joint subject of an American documentary on women in her profession, entitled Double Dare. The film charts the…

Archiball

Artist Martin Ball was the first New Zealand resident artist to be a finalist in Australia’s premier portraiture award, the Archibald Prize, with his painting of artist John Pule….

NZ Cancer Rates Third Worst in World

New international research from IRAC show NZ men and women have the third highest cancer rates in the world. Male cancer rates are highest in the United States, Hungary and New…

War at Gallipoli Re-activated

Peter Jackson and Wellington special effects edge-busters Weta Digital have used their expertise to restore the only film taken of the Anzacs at Gallipoli. The Lord of the Rings director has restored…

New Law Embraced

Planet Out feature looks at the newly instated Civil Union Bill in NZ. More than 600 couples registered for a civil union in the first week after the law came into…

Birthplace of a Nation

A record-breaking crowd of more than 20,000 attended this year’s dawn service at Anzac Cove. Also in attendance were Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Helen Clark, John Howard and Prince Charles,…

Sir Joh Bows Out

Dannevirke-born and controversial seven-times Premier of Queensland Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen has died aged 94. The maverick politician was one of the most colourful but also divisive leaders in Australian political history….

Boy oh boy

Welby Ing’s Boy won the Best Short Narrative Film award at the 2005 Cinequest Festival in San Jose, which qualifies it for consideration for next year’s Oscars. The film…

Forecast: International Sales

Raglan’s ASR Marine Consulting and Research has created a new computer-based program to predict long wave conditions, in what the company claims is a world first. The forecasting system was developed to…

Steaming in Seattle

Kiwi Carl Sara was a finalist in the World Barista Championship in Seattle. The prestigious competition was won by Denmark’s Troels Overdal Poulsen.

New Wave Jazz

Acclaimed Kiwi pianist Aron Ottignon launched his debut album, Culture Tunnels, with band Aronas in April. Inspired by Pacific log drumming, the Aronas sound is an innovative take on…

Heaven Scent

NZ’s 2004 Sauvignon Blanc vintage has impressed American critics, with praise coming from numerous top U.S publications. Wall Street Journal: “Mouth-watering sauvignon blanc that just about from the glass, with aggressive…

Woolly Windfall

The NZ Merino Wool Company has won a 7 year contract valued at approximately $NZ40 million to supply U.S apparel manufacturers SmartWool. SmartWool, whose chief business is in outdoor clothing and accessories,…

Rising Star

The Scotsman hails Kiwi Ryan Nelsen as one of the British Premiere League’s hottest signings. “Nelsen has proven an unbridled success since his arrival from Major League Soccer side DC United in…

The £55 burger

Hamburgers made with New Zealand meat are being sold by a London restaurant for £55 ($NZ146) each. The 200g ‘burgers, made from meat from cattle of the Japanese wagyu…

Finger on the Impulse

Researchers at Otago University, in conjunction with Germany’s Ruhr-University Bochum, have identified individual neurons in the pigeon forebrain that appear to control impulsive decision-making. The findings could prove invaluable to the understanding…

Dinosaurs down under

The fourth installation of Jurassic Park is rumoured to be filming in NZ later this year, with Sam Neill reprising his role as Dr Grant. Visual Effects maestro Stan…

White Knuckle Fun

NZ’s latest extreme sport – white water sledging – features in the Voice of America. “Instead of a raft, these ‘sledgers’ run the rapids with special flippers and a steerable buoyant…

Mutual Milestone

76 Tampa refugees were made NZ citizens on April 8, including the youngest on board Azizullah Mussa (now 17). “I’ve been waiting three years for this day to come. I can…

Regal Eagle Leads the Best

Eagles’s Nest, Bay of Islands, was named NZ’s ‘Number 1 Leading Resort’ at the 11th annual World Travel Awards in Barbados. The luxury homestead has already been voted one of the…

Underdog Soon to be Top Dog?

With Jamaican bobsled comparisons the order of the day, NZ’s curling team was the underdog favourite at this year’s Ford World Championship in Canada. ‘While many Canadians curl out of plush clubs,…

Future Partnership Likely

Helen Clark has fast-tracked a bilateral free trade agreement with Malaysia, which could come into effect as soon as this time next year. Malaysia’s NST: “For the trade experts, is…

Front Row Seats

7 middle-aged American couples travel from Queenstown to Christchurch by bike, running out of synonyms for awesome in the process. “If you’re in good enough shape to walk six or seven…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…