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Archive >> December 2013
Kiwi woman’s record breaking 500km run
A New Zealand woman has broken the world record for the farthest distance run with no sleep. The record breaking run saw Kim Allan, 47, run 500km across a…
Enjoy Punchy Asian Flavour at Soho’s New House of Ho
Already big in Vietnam, New Zealand-born chef-patron Bobby Chinn is making his London debut and looks set to spice up Soho, with The House of Ho, a modern Vietnamese…
Lorde is “The Upstart” in NYT’s 2013 Disrupters
Auckland’s Lorde is one of the New York Times’ cultural Disruptors of 2013 – people who broke the rules in a year of artistic upheavals. She features alongside pop…
Fonterra takes Anchor brand to China
Four months on from August’s botulism scare, New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra has launched their Anchor brand into the Chinese market.
The brand, which is endorsed by Chinese actress Hu…
Mutual Interest Means Increase in India-NZ Study Numbers
Indian studies is attracting more and more students in New Zealand, where seven out of the eight universities offer these courses, according to Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, director of the New…
Tree Traditions for a New Mexico Christmas
New Zealander Aly Hyder lives in Arroyo Hondo, New Mexico and has a very different Christmas experience to the “barbeque Christmas” of the southern hemisphere.
Hyder goes out to the…
Shooting a Secret Life with Ben Stiller
New Zealand cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh’s latest project is actor-director Ben Stiller’s film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, some of which was shot in mid-summer Manhattan, and the hardest…
Living Museum is all Camera-Hogging Art Deco
“It’s a near-cloudless afternoon, and I’ve spent the past hour weaving dreamily around dozens of sun-dappled, immaculately preserved 1930s buildings. Art deco was all the rage when these storefronts…
If You Love Nature New Zealand Was Made for You
Eight days spent in Queenstown and at Lake Wanaka “were some of the best of my life”, writes Emily Dickinson for the Huffington Post. Dickinson recommends that if…
Shipwreck Find Could Alter Our History
Timbers from a shipwreck found in Kaipara Harbour have been dated to some 70 years before Captain Cook, identified as having originated in Southeast Asia as early as 1700….
C-City Brothers – NZ Wonderland
Have a very Merry Christmas while listening to C-City Brothers: Andy Ellis, Willi Heinz, Israel Dagg, Telusa Veainu and Robbie Fruean singing “New Zealand…
New Zealand Army Band performing Christmas Carol
The New Zealand Army Band performing The First Noel on the Picton to Wellington ferry. The First Noel is a traditional classical English carol,…
Raise a Glass to the Coach of the Year
Wales and Lions head coach Warren Gatland has been named the BBC Coach of the Year at an awards ceremony in Leeds. The New Zealander “deserves his moment in…
Simba Impresses in Sydney Lion King Production
22 December 2013 – South Auckland-born Nick Afoa, 27, makes a “fine musical theatre debut as the adult Simba” in an Australian musical production of Disney’s The Lion King….
Instant Kiwi
Take a look at this funny ad ‘live a little’ by Instant Kiwi. Doug, a seemingly introvert man, is watching a crowd of dancers,…
One Small Step for New Plymouth Student
New Plymouth engineering student Hamish Fagg, 21, is preparing to become the first New Zealander in space having won a prize organized by Unilever-owned men’s product LYNX and endorsed…
Strictly Star Sambas off to Sunderland
Strictly Come Dancing star New Zealander Brendan Cole, who is currently starring in the hit BBC show with celebrity dance partner Sophie Ellis Bextor, is taking his own show,…
What Do You Say UK: About New Zealand’s Wildlife?
UK travellers talk about their amazing experiences encountering all sorts of wildlife in New Zealand, from blue and yellow penguins to seals, and sperm…
Like a Weird Untitled Mixtape They Beguile
The songwriting savant behind Unknown Mortal Orchestra, New Zealander Ruban Nielson, 33, spends many of his nocturnal hours locked away in the basement of his Portland, Oregon home, creating…
Treasuring Every Infinitesimal Bite
The food at New York’s Musket Room is “ambitious and meticulously detailed”, New York Times correspondent Ligaya Mishan writes in a review of the restaurant, which opened in Nolita…
All We Want for Christmas Is Bespoke Couture
Emilia Wickstead, having now secured her couture clientele (alongside Alexander McQueen, the New Zealander is one of the Duchess of Cambridge’s go-to designers for foreign visits), wanted to offer…
National Theatre Role from Morning to Midnight
Auckland-born actress Gina Bellman – who played Sophie Devereaux in American television drama series Leverage – is currently starring in Britain’s National Theatre revival of Georg Kaiser’s expressionistic 1912…
Flight of the Conchords: Foux Du FaFa
Watch as the Flight of the Conchords attempt to sing in French, naming French breads to fruit and fumbling through conversations. And what does…
Strong Brand and the Product’s the Real Deal
Lewis Road Creamery, located at Green Valley Dairy, Mangatawhiri in the Waikato, is included in the “The Monocle 100” list as one of the “innovative minds behind global food…
Modern-Day Forager Launches Unique Catering Operation
When New Zealander Campbell Rowe is not harvesting lychee, green mango, lime and black sapote, or eggs from a small brood of free-range chooks at his New South Wales…
Lowe Is ENERGY Personified at BBC 1
In the studio of the BBC’s Radio 1 station, the boisterous New Zealander Zane Lowe is a few minutes into his own show, Peter Robinson reports for the Guardian….
Talent Pool Something to Write Home about
From Lorde to Gin Wigmore, to chef Matt Lambert and model Ashleigh Good (pictured), New Zealand punches above its weight, writes fellow New Zealander Kirsten Matthew for the New…
Decorated Lifetime of Service at Sea
Rear-Admiral Ted Thorne, who has died aged 89, was a New Zealander who was on hand when female naval personnel suffered their greatest loss of the Second World War.
Wellington-born…
New Zealand National Anthem Christmas-Style
Celebrate Christmas in New Zealand while listening to this cute rendition of the National Anthem Christmas-style, or sing along and enjoy the scenery.
Middle Earth’s Man Contemplates Doctor Who Offer
Peter Jackson has confirmed reports that he has offered to direct an episode of Doctor Who. “I’m a Doctor Who fan, certainly. I’m of the generation that hid behind…
Dancing Her Dreams at Paris Opera Ballet
16 December 2013 – Twenty-year-old Auckland dancer Hannah O’Neill, who has a lifetime contract with the world’s pre-eminent academy, the Ballet de l’Opéra National de Paris, told the…
On Set with Once Upon A Time’s Tinkerbell
Flying around in a harness playing Tinkerbell on the set of American fairy tale drama series Once Upon A Time has been “so much fun” for Auckland-born actress Rose…
Casting Agent and Playwright a Tour de Force
“To label Ann Brebner an instrumental force in Marin’s film and theatre scene is to undermine the breadth of her work,” writes Stephanie Powell for the Pacific Sun, a…
Oamaru-Made Gingerbread Cathedral Pleases Exeter Locals
Owners of Oamaru’s Pen-y-bryn Lodge, James Glucksman and James Boussy have built a gingerbread Exeter Cathedral to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the lodge next year.
Glucksman explains: “In a…
Maori Added to Google Translate
Google has added Maori to the list of languages supported by its online translation service.
From today, converting a Maori phrase into English – or vice versa – is as…
New Zealand Army Band
The New Zealand Army Band steals the show at the 2013 Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Throw in some marching, music, a bit of haka…
Take a Dream Drive off the Beaten Track
If you are looking for an alternative, and beautiful, route to travel New Zealand, News.com.au recommends 10 “different dream trips … to get you from landmark to landmark.”
“More of…
Table of Ugly Words Star of Feminist Militia Exhibit
“I am sitting at a long antique wooden school table, burning capital letters onto the surface: ‘B****,’” the Independent’s Zoe Pilger describes from exhibition rooms HQ, London. “Other words…
State of the Art Voyage to the Deep
New Zealand and Japanese scientists joined forces on a recent expedition to explore underwater mountains and volcanoes 1000km northeast of the country around the Louisville Seamount Chain and the…
Neill Content to Be in Two Worlds
In the latest of a series of opinion pieces for British political and cultural magazine the Spectator, actor and vigneron Sam Neill argues that “actors are allowed to do…
American eyes Downunder
A foreigner’s perspective on home is valuable insight into aspects of our culture we often take for granted. The outsider’s view can also be funny. Read two recent adulatory…
Michelin Star for Stuttgart-based Chef
Against all odds, Waikato-born head chef Russell Pirrit has earned a Michelin star for restaurant “5” in Stuttgart, Germany. Pirrit, who grew up in Te Kauwhata, suffers…
Tourism Dunedin
Explore Dunedin’s amazing locations from the wider Dunedin region, including Otago Peninsula, Middlemarch, Waikouaiti, Karitane, Taeri Plains to the inner city’s amazing Victorian and…
Mentoring Young Snowboarders on the Aspen Slopes
Snowboard coach with Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club (AVSC), New Zealander Tim Ward, 33, talks about his role with the club and about his focus on developing the…
Awe-Inspiring Film Documents Life on the Ice
One of those working year-round on Antarctica in a non-research role is New Zealander Anthony Powell who as well as maintaining communications networks for a living, is a “self-taught…
Catton A Young World Changer
New Zealand author, Eleanor Catton, has been named as one of TIME magazines 30 under 30 who are changing the world.
Catton won the illustrious Man Booker Prize this year…
Urban Plays Human Cop Patrolling Streets in 2048
New Zealand actor Karl Urban hits the beat in 2048 as “grizzled human” cop John Kennex, alongside Michael Ealy, who plays Urban’s “synthetic” partner Dorian in television sci-fi drama,…
Movie-Making to Rival Lucas and Spielberg
“Peter Jackson has picked up the pace … The Desolation of Smaug is a cheerfully entertaining and exhilarating adventure tale, a supercharged Saturday morning picture: it’s mysterious and strange…
Lorde: Team
Take a look at the music video for Lordes latest track “Team,” in which the famous young artist finds herself on what appears to…
Ammann named GM President
New Zealander Dan Ammann, 41, General Motors’ Chief Financial Officer, has been promoted to President of GM. He will manage the company’s regional operations around the world,…
Lydia Ko Rises to Fourth in the World Ranking
After her first win as a professional, kiwi teenager Lydia Ko has moved up two places to number four in the world rankings.
Over the weekend she won the Swinging…
Grammy Nominee Crowned WILD Cover Girl
Lorde, who has been nominated for two Grammys for her hit “Royals”, up for both record of the year (for the recording) and best song (for songwriting), “stuns” on…
Amounting to a Kind of Debonair Psychedelia
“Dean Wareham ranks high among the most faithful disciples of Lou Reed,” the Wall Street Journal’s Andy Battaglia writes in a review of Wareham’s recent New York show at…
Global Recognition for Biofuels Pioneer
Loss-making biofuels innovator LanzaTech’s quest to raise more capital next year has been given a boost after it was named second “hottest” biotech company in the world. Industry bible…
Flash Mob Haka Surfers Paradise
Check out this flash mob haka in Surfers Paradise during the 2011 Rugby Union World Cup. As an added twist, a police officer walks,…
New Zealand Trumps at Annual IRB Awards
New Zealand have made a clean sweep at the International Rugby Board (IRB) awards once more, taking away all three major end-of-season prizes, with number eight Kieran Read named…
