August 2006 Archives

Good Things Come in Threes

Good Things Come in Threes

The Royal NZ Ballet’s recent tour earned high praise in the Australian national media. The RNZB performed a trio of works by Christopher Hampson, Javier de Frutos and Michael Parmenter, collectively entitled Trinity. The…

Another Classic Set for Edge Treatment

Another Classic Set for Edge Treatment

Peter Jackson is heading a big budget remake of classic British war film, The Dam Busters. Jackson will produce the movie, with fellow Kiwi and long time collaborator, Christian Rivers, making his directing…

Free at Last

Free at Last

Kiwi Fox News cameraman, Olaf Wiig, has walked free after being held hostage for two weeks in Gaza. Wiig and Fox correspondent Steve Centanni were captured by a previously unknown militant group, the Holy…

Fourth Emmy for Keoghan, Amazing Race

Fourth Emmy for Keoghan, Amazing Race

Christchurch-born Producer/Host Phil Keoghan lined up for his fourth successive Emmy Award in Los Angeles for Outstanding Reality/Competition Program. The Amazing Race is now in its 10th season. Teams race for more than…

Trailer: The Navigator

Trailer: The Navigator

Holland Ahoy

Holland Ahoy

New Zealander Ron Holland is one of the world’s top naval architects. Based in the small Irish sailing port of Kinsale, his latest project is designing and building a 190-foot, $50 million superyacht Ethereal for Sun…

Findings Nothing to Sneeze At

Findings Nothing to Sneeze At

A NZ-led medical study has found that children around the world became more susceptible to common allergies during the 1990s. The research, which questioned parents and children in 56 different countries, found that rates of asthma, hayfever…

No rocky road for Natasha

No rocky road for Natasha

Natasha Bedingfield, has a cameo role in the sixth Rocky sequel, starring Sylvester Stallone. Originally asked to write and perform the film’s theme tune, she was convinced to make her on-screen debut by…

Biggest Industry Continues to Boom

Biggest Industry Continues to Boom

International visitors to NZ are expected to grow by 4% per annum to reach 3.1 million in 2012, according to a report by the Tourism Ministry. The main contributors to the growth are likely…

Bumper Crop

Bumper Crop

Kiwi wine exports hit a record high of half a billion dollars this year, according the New Zealand Winegrowers annual report. Pinot noir sales increased 55% to overtake chardonnay as NZ’s second most exported varietal, after perennial…

All Blacks 7, Opposition 0

All Blacks 7, Opposition 0

The All Blacks remain undefeated in 2006 having secured both Bledisloe and Tri-Nations trophies after a ferocious Eden Park test against Australia on 19 August. The victory puts Graham Henry’s team on the verge of breaking…

Queen Mourned, King Crowned

Queen Mourned, King Crowned

The Maori Queen, Dame Te Atairangikaahu died on Tuesday 15 August aged 75 after a 40-year reign. Dame Te Atairangikaahu was the sixth monarch of the North Island tribes who formed the King movement…

Double Dose of Glacial Magic

Double Dose of Glacial Magic

A Sydney Morning Herald travel writer takes in equal parts local history and jaw-dropping natural scenery at the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers. “Tramping, walking and hiking have long been popular pastimes in this wildly picturesque region…

Earthrace Is On

Earthrace Is On

Kiwi Peter Bethune is now part way through a 30-city world tour aboard Earthrace, his unique biodiesel-fuelled powerboat. Since leaving NZ, Earthrace has visited Samoa, Vancouver, Portland, Seattle, Hawaii and San Francisco on its mission to promote…

Rev Cardy on breaking the language barrier

Rev Cardy on breaking the language barrier

The Rev Glynn Cardy of Auckland’s progressive Anglican church, St Matthew-in-the-City, recommends an overhaul of traditional liturgy in an opinion piece for the Guardian. Cardy believes that the gendered language and sometimes archaic metaphors…

The Christchurch Wizard

The Christchurch Wizard

Christchurch’s famous Christchurch Wizard performs in Cathedral Square.

World Descends on Rotorua

World Descends on Rotorua

Rotorua’s Mt Ngongotaha played host to the UCI World Mountain Bike Championships from August 23-27, the first time the event has been held in the southern hemisphere in ten years. The Rotorua cycling community had campaigned for…

Philharmonia in Fashion

Philharmonia in Fashion

The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra has launched a new initiative to dress visiting international soloists in NZ designs. For the APO’s recent ‘Russian Spectacular,’ pianist Marina Kolomiytseva wore a Liz Mitchell gown and presenter Elena…

Moko Takes to US Streets

Moko Takes to US Streets

The sale of Maori themed Halloween costumes by an American store has angered Maori leaders. Halloween Town in Los Angeles is advertising the Maori Facial Tattoo Kit for $US10. Rotorua academic Ngahihi o te ra…

Wairewa Station on the Ball

Wairewa Station on the Ball

South Canterbury sheep farmers Philip and Anne Munro won a lucrative US contract to supply wool for the tennis balls used at the US Open. The couple hosted American tennis ball producers Tex Tech and Wilson’s…

Three Strikes, You’re Out

Three Strikes, You’re Out

Rainbow Warrior bombers Dominique Prieur and Alain Mafart have lost a third court appeal to prevent TVNZ from screening footage from their 1985 trial. Three NZ appeal court judges unanimously granted the channel permission to air…

#81: Reaching Round The World

#81: Reaching Round The World

Edge Message #81 from Brian Sweeney, producer NZEDGE.COM Kia Ora Aotearoa whanau whanui ki te Aonui Global Community of New Zealanders Welcome to new friends from Bergen, Berlin, Boston, Canton, Dallas, Darwin, Dubai, Exeter, Gold Coast,…

Kiri Te Kanawa: Dove Sono

Kiri Te Kanawa: Dove Sono

Kiri Te Kanawa: Dove Sono

World class visionaries

World class visionaries

Weta Digital is to provide special effects for upcoming Hollywood blockbuster Avatar. Directed by James Cameron, the US$200 million sci-fi epic will be almost entirely made up of computer generated action. Cameron used…

Game Over

Game Over

A group of NZ bars has developed a novel method of curbing excess drinking. Unruly patrons can be yellow or red carded depending on their degree of intoxication – yellow cards preventing drinkers from…

Half-way Happy

Half-way Happy

NZ ranks 94th out of 178 countries in the inaugural Happy Planet Index, produced by independent British “think-and-do tank” the New Economics Foundation. The Happy Planet Index (HPI) measures human well-being in relation to…

Manaakitanga and other matters

Manaakitanga and other matters

Years ago, it would have been the late 70’s, and I was working on an arts employment project with Para Matchitt and Jacob Scott at Otatara, the arts campus of the then Hawke’s Bay…