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The Musket Room Challenges Assumptions of Kiwi Food

The Musket Room Challenges Assumptions of Kiwi Food

Amelia Lester writes for The New Yorker restaurant column this week about Australasian cuisine, with a focus on the Musket Room, the highly acclaimed restaurant of New Zealander Matt…

Hairdressing a Terrific Career for Beijing-Based Bill Watson

Hairdressing a Terrific Career for Beijing-Based Bill Watson

Former Wellingtonian Bill Watson, international education and artistic director for Toni & Guy China, is loving life in Beijing. “It’s where things are happening,” he tells New Zealand Herald…

Belfast Students Aim to Emulate Burt Munro Record

Belfast Students Aim to Emulate Burt Munro Record

A team of Queen’s University undergraduate engineers will attempt to emulate the 1967 land speed record New Zealander Burt Munro set on his modified Indian Scout motorcycle at the…

Steve Williams Reflects on Stellar Caddie Career

Steve Williams Reflects on Stellar Caddie Career

Steve Williams, one of the world’s most famous caddies, talks to the New York Times about his plans to wind down his dream career after being inducted to the…

Webb’s Auction House Offers up Art Bargains

Webb’s Auction House Offers up Art Bargains

“Auckland-based auction house Webb’s leads the way in meeting the growing interest in New Zealand artists,” according to Monocle.

“Established in 1976, it now also provides auction services in Wellington…

Singer Jackie Bristow Itching to Finish Fourth Album

Singer Jackie Bristow Itching to Finish Fourth Album

New Zealand folk singer Jackie Bristow hasn’t released a new album in four years. But she has a really good excuse: Bristow has been touring non-stop, and consistently appearing…

Secluded Waikato Getaway Carved out of the Hills

Secluded Waikato Getaway Carved out of the Hills

“Long before Peter Jackson re-created Middle-earth in the fertile hills of New Zealand’s Waikato region, Graham Hannah and his young daughter Jessie had a dream,” Rob McFarland writes for…

Scientists Closing to Breeding Eco-friendly Sheep

Scientists Closing to Breeding Eco-friendly Sheep

Scientists at New Zealand’s AgResearch and the US Department of Energy’s Joint Genome Institute have moved a step closer to developing a breed of sheep that belches less methane…

Nonviolent Peaceforce Worker Maria Duncan Flies into S Sudan

Nonviolent Peaceforce Worker Maria Duncan Flies into S Sudan

Christchurch woman Maria Duncan, 27, who works for Brussels-based organization Nonviolent Peaceforce, has flown into war-torn Bentiu, South Sudan to help protect some 25,000 refugees in a UN camp.

Almost…

Good Kill Andrew Niccol’s Sobering 21st Century Riposte to Top Gun

Good Kill Andrew Niccol’s Sobering 21st Century Riposte to Top Gun

In Good Kill, which has its world premiere this month at the Venice Film Festival, New Zealand writer-director Andrew Niccol explores the implications of waging war while staying home,…

Surgeon Is Fundamentally a Storyteller

Surgeon Is Fundamentally a Storyteller

Auckland-based author and surgeon Dr Sharad Paul talks to the Bangalore Mirror about his latest novel The Kite Flyers, and about how a doctor came to be writing literary…

Trailblazer Brad Thorn Happy to Be a Leicester Tiger

Trailblazer Brad Thorn Happy to Be a Leicester Tiger

Former All Black forward Brad Thorne, 39, has pitched up at Leicester at the tail-end of a colourful career that’s taken him from Dunedin to Leinster via Japan. But,…

Graeme Hart’s Luxurious Ulysses Sets Sail

Graeme Hart’s Luxurious Ulysses Sets Sail

New Zealand billionaire Graeme Hart has been revealed as the owner of the $77 million 107m super yacht “Ulysses”, just launched from a slip in Ulsteinvik, Norway.

The former tow-truck…

Steve Williams Inducted into the Caddie Hall of Fame

Steve Williams Inducted into the Caddie Hall of Fame

After a career that has lasted nearly four decades, New Zealander Steve Williams, 50, has been inducted into the Caddie Hall of Fame by the Western Golf Association.

Williams received…

Lonely Planet’s Top Eight Must-See NZ Port Destinations

Lonely Planet’s Top Eight Must-See NZ Port Destinations

In an extract from Lonely Planet New Zealand, Charles Rawlings-Way describes the country’s top eight must-see port destinations.

“Paris may be the city of love, but Auckland is the city…

Neil Newton setting Pittsburgh locals straight

Neil Newton setting Pittsburgh locals straight

Pittsburgh locals ask Neil Newton about two things when they learn he is from New Zealand: The Lord of the Rings and HBO’s Flight of the Conchords, two things…

Sirocco the Kakapo a Great Conservationist Spokesbird

Sirocco the Kakapo a Great Conservationist Spokesbird

Sirocco the kakapo is a great spokesbird to travel New Zealand and share the conservation message, according to James Russell from the University of Auckland, who recently met the…

Expert Hacker Debugging the World’s Software

Expert Hacker Debugging the World’s Software

One of Google’s “secret team of bug-hunting hackers” is New Zealander Ben Hawkes. Part of the group known as Project Zero, a group of top Google security researchers with…

Chandler Betting Big on Energy in Africa and Asia

Chandler Betting Big on Energy in Africa and Asia

New Zealand-born billionaire Richard Chandler, 55, is counting on gas and oil in far-flung locales from Papua New Guinea to Kenya and Ethiopia, banking on demand from Asia’s growing…

New Zealander Stephen Cartmell Performing in Minneapolis

New Zealander Stephen Cartmell Performing in Minneapolis

New Zealand actor Stephen Cartmell, once the face of Wattie’s Baked Beans, steps up onto the boards in Minneapolis at the city’s Jungle Theatre, performing in satire

Nervous Cumbrian Brewer Matt Clarke Sends Pale Ale Home

Nervous Cumbrian Brewer Matt Clarke Sends Pale Ale Home

Head brewer at Cumbria’s Hawkshead Brewery in England, Whanganui-born Matt Clarke, sent a New Zealand Pale Ale (NZPA) to Wellington for the 21st birthday celebration of renowned…

Gareth Reeves Elopes as Lysander in Canberra Production

Gareth Reeves Elopes as Lysander in Canberra Production

New Zealand-born actor Gareth Reeves, 36, stars as Lysander in the new Bell Shakespeare production of Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Dream on until 13 September in Canberra.

Reeves…

Bill Nancarrow a Mainstay on Napa Valley Vintner Scene

Bill Nancarrow a Mainstay on Napa Valley Vintner Scene

Originally from the Hawke’s Bay, Bill Nancarrow, 45, has made sauvignon blanc fit for President Obama and escorted Ryan Seacrest and U2’s The Edge on private winetasting tours. The…

Zombie Survival Game DayZ Tops 2.5 Million Players

Zombie Survival Game DayZ Tops 2.5 Million Players

Game designer Dean Hall, 33, has announced that his zombie survival game “DayZ” has reached more than 2.5 million players since its launch in December last year.

Prague-based developer Bohemia…

Newly Discovered Asteroid to Fly Over New Zealand

Newly Discovered Asteroid to Fly Over New Zealand

An asteroid is set to pass Earth closest to New Zealand, at a distance of just 25,000 miles, this weekend.

Asteroid 2014 RC was discovered by astronomers on 31 August…

St. John Regular Sam Neill Bemoans the French Wine List

St. John Regular Sam Neill Bemoans the French Wine List

Actor Sam Neill has been frequenting London’s St. John restaurant for nearly 20 years, and while he’s obsessed with the place his greatest passion is reserved for New Zealand…

Sir Harold Gillies the Man Who Mended Broken Soldiers

Sir Harold Gillies the Man Who Mended Broken Soldiers

In October, the handiwork of New Zealand-born otolaryngologist Sir Harold Gillies, widely considered the father of plastic surgery, can be seen at the Hunterian Museum in the Royal College…

Bruce Anstey Cruises to Isle of Man Formula 1 Win

Bruce Anstey Cruises to Isle of Man Formula 1 Win

New Zealander Bruce Anstey dominated the Classic TT Formula 1 race in the Isle of Man with a victory margin of over one minute, setting a record lap speed…

Nadia Lim Hits the Road to Discover NZ’s Best Local Produce

Nadia Lim Hits the Road to Discover NZ’s Best Local Produce

Nadia Lim – 2011 New Zealand MasterChef winner – has premiered her new eight-part series New Zealand with Nadia Lim on the Asian Food Channel. Lim’s quest to discover…

James McDonald’s Bright Star Shows No Sign of Dimming

James McDonald’s Bright Star Shows No Sign of Dimming

Being so good so young won’t count against James McDonald, 23, according to Craig “Clocker” Tompson, a guiding light behind the meteoric Australian rise of the talented New Zealander.

Some…

Jemaine Clement Talks Conchords and Vampires

Jemaine Clement Talks Conchords and Vampires

Conchord and vampire Jemaine Clement is interviewed by The Guardian’s Alexander Bisley on his new film What We Do in the Shadows, share homes, and his Maori heritage.

Clement is…

California Victory Brings Scott Dixon’s Career Wins to 35

California Victory Brings Scott Dixon’s Career Wins to 35

With IndyCar champion Scott Dixon’s latest Grand Prix win in Sonoma, California, the 34-year-old New Zealander has earned his 35th career victory and is now tied with American legend…

Black Ranger Power Given to Local Actor James Davies

Black Ranger Power Given to Local Actor James Davies

New Zealand actor James Davies will co-star as Black Ranger (pictured, far left) in Power Rangers Dino Charge, with the television show confirmed to return to the country for…

Lorde Trumps the Big Guns to Take MTV Best Rock Video

Lorde Trumps the Big Guns to Take MTV Best Rock Video

Lorde has become the first female artist to win in the category Best Rock Video at the MTV Video Music Awards, beating Arctic Monkeys, Linkin Park, The Black Keys…

Double Gold for New Zealand Ends Superb Campaign

Double Gold for New Zealand Ends Superb Campaign

Victories for double scullers Fiona Bourke and Zoe Stevenson, and single sculler Emma Twigg capped off a superb world championship regatta for New Zealand’s rowers in Amsterdam.

Those wins lifted…

2015 Venice Biennale Welcomes NZ Artist Simon Denny

2015 Venice Biennale Welcomes NZ Artist Simon Denny

Sculptor and installation artist Simon Denny, 32, has been selected to represent New Zealand at the 2015 Venice Biennale, which runs from 9 May to 22 November.

“Simon…

Maggie Bolger’s Hip London Kids Club a Soho House for Parents

Maggie Bolger’s Hip London Kids Club a Soho House for Parents

Maggie Bolger and Rose van Cutsem are, on the face of it, unlikely friends and business partners. Bolger is a matter-of-fact New Zealander who lives in London, while van…

Comedian Cal Wilson’s Use of Language Masterful

Comedian Cal Wilson’s Use of Language Masterful

At 43, New Zealander Cal Wilson woke up and found herself wearing a photocopy of her mum’s face. Wilson re-enacted that confrontation and many others pondering the roads not…

Berlin’s Galerie Pavlova Offers up Our Talent to Europe

Berlin’s Galerie Pavlova Offers up Our Talent to Europe

Originally from Auckland, Michael Dooney has relocated to Berlin where he has opened Galerie Pavlova, a space dedicated to promoting photographers, like Conor Clarke (pictured) who are established in…

Rubberband Boy Has People Laughing Their Heads off in Toronto

Rubberband Boy Has People Laughing Their Heads off in Toronto

One of the newcomers at this year’s Scotiabank BuskerFest in Toronto was New Zealand performer Shay Horay, a.k.a. The Famous Rubberband Boy. Named the freakiest boy in show business,…

Playwright Arthur Meek’s Upside Down Perspective on Colonialism

Playwright Arthur Meek’s Upside Down Perspective on Colonialism

Can western theatre ever tackle the subject of colonialism without replicating its inequalities, Financial Times’ reporter Matt Trueman asks. New Zealand playwright Arthur Meek, feels that it would be…

Laurence Larson Blends Language Wooing Millions of Chinese Fans

Laurence Larson Blends Language Wooing Millions of Chinese Fans

Auckland University student Laurence Larson, 20, is generating a big following on social media where his music videos sung in the unusual blend of Mandarin and English have been…

Schmidt Wins New Zealand’s First Olympic Medal in Trampoline

Schmidt Wins New Zealand’s First Olympic Medal in Trampoline

Dylan Schmidt became the first New Zealand athlete to win an Olympic medal in trampoline when he bounced to gold at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games on Friday.

“It’s…

Richard Burton Couldn’t Beat George Silk on a Photo Call

Richard Burton Couldn’t Beat George Silk on a Photo Call

In 1993, New Zealand-born LIFE photojournalist George Silk was asked by American photographer John Loengard if in his long career, Silk had been “willing to pose pictures.”

Silk’s reply is…

Australia’s Top Restaurant Run by New Zealander Ben Shewry

Australia’s Top Restaurant Run by New Zealander Ben Shewry

Melbourne’s Attica, run by New Zealander Ben Shewry, has been named Australia’s top restaurant at this year’s annual Gourmet Traveller awards.

Attica is one of Melbourne’s premium fine dining restaurants,…

Stunning All Blacks Smash Wallabies to Retain Bledisloe Cup

Stunning All Blacks Smash Wallabies to Retain Bledisloe Cup

New Zealand retain the Bledisloe Cup with an astonishingly good performance, smashing Australia 51-20 in Auckland, scoring six tries and stating categorically that the last game’s mediocre showing in…

Young Kiwi Entrepreneurs Win FedEx Competition

Young Kiwi Entrepreneurs Win FedEx Competition

Two teams from New Zealand won both first and second place at the FedEx Express/Junior Achievement International Trade Challenge Asia Pacific, in which students in the region competed with…

Hobbit Trilogy Beating the Odds to Hit Screens

Hobbit Trilogy Beating the Odds to Hit Screens

“In one of the most epic feats in recent cinema history, New Zealander director Peter Jackson brought to life Tolkien’s fantastical universe with The Lord of the Rings trilogy….

Guardian Declares Kimbra’s Latest a Masterclass in Sheer Pop Joy

Guardian Declares Kimbra’s Latest a Masterclass in Sheer Pop Joy

“The Golden Echo is less of a sophomoric follow-up and more of a bona fide pop classic from singer Kimbra …”, in fact declares the Guardian, it’s…

War-Gamer Robert Dunlop Recreates WWI Battle in Miniature

War-Gamer Robert Dunlop Recreates WWI Battle in Miniature

Inspired by the war stories of his grandfather, war-gaming enthusiast Robert Dunlop, a New Zealander living in Britain, has collected thousands of miniature soldiers to recreate the Battle of…

Lingerie Designer Manuka Clarke Reinvigorating US Company

Lingerie Designer Manuka Clarke Reinvigorating US Company

When New Zealand-born designer Manuka Clarke purchased Californian lingerie company Farr West in January, she wanted to reinvigorate the company’s classic designs while keeping all production in the United…

New Zealand: the Other Half of the Anzac Legend

New Zealand: the Other Half of the Anzac Legend

As the centenary of the Gallipoli landings approaches Australians need to consider the other half of the ANZAC acronym, University of Sydney history professor Mark McKenna writes for the…

Lee Tamahori Teams up with Adrien Brody on Emperor

Lee Tamahori Teams up with Adrien Brody on Emperor

Director Lee Tamahori is in the Czech Republic filming Emperor, a movie based on 16th century Roman ruler Charles V and starring A-lister Adrien Brody.

The 64-year-old director of cult…

Penny Ashton’s Promise and Promiscuity Winking Assortment of Fun

Penny Ashton’s Promise and Promiscuity Winking Assortment of Fun

“The fun of Promise and Promiscuity, a pleasant and playful solo musical by New Zealander Penny Ashton, is that the marriage of the two happens so charmingly, without undue…

Heidi Klum Wears Kiwi Design to Emmys

Heidi Klum Wears Kiwi Design to Emmys

Kiwi fashion designer Sean Kelly, who is currently participating in the latest season of Project Runway, had his dress worn by Heidi Klum at this week’s Emmys.

The New Zealand…

Vista – New Zealand’s International Software Firm – Rising

Vista – New Zealand’s International Software Firm – Rising

New Zealand’s next big software company Vista Group climbed as much as 3 per cent on its first day of trading, after raising $92.6 million in its…