Actor Beulah Koale Shines as Heartfelt Warrior
“Miles Teller hits the true note, and so does the rest of a superb cast , in a drama of Iraq War veterans that sidesteps all the coming-home clichés,” Variety’s Owen…
October 2017 Archives
Allbirds Launches Smallbirds for Kids
Allbirds, Silicon Valley’s favourite wool shoe brand, co-founded by New Zealander Tim Brown, just got a whole lot cuter with a new limited-edition line of toddler and kids shoes called – wait for it…
Kea Soars to Bird of the Year Victory
The kea, the world’s only alpine parrot, has been crowned New Zealand Bird of the Year, beating the kereru and the kakapo with thousands more votes cast for the species than there are surviving…
Apple buys Wireless Charging Company PowerbyProxi
Apple, which recently said it was including wireless charging in its latest iPhone X and iPhone 8 smartphones, has acquired Auckland-based firm PowerbyProxi that designs wireless power products for consumers and industry. Wireless charging allows…
New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern Gets Set to Govern
Describing herself as “relentlessly optimistic,” New Zealand’s newly sworn in prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, 37, will face a National opposition of 56 members clamouring at the gates – smarting from losing an election they believed…
Alluring Scenic Spots All Over the Place
“New Zealand’s North Island stands up to its southern sister with its own unique attractions,” Tay Suan Chiang writes for Singapore’s The Business Times. “For adventure-seekers, the South Island lures with many adrenaline-pumping opportunities to…
Emilia Wickstead Throws Jazz Age-Inspired Dinner
According to Vogue magazine, New Zealand-born fashion designer Emilia Wickstead loves New York. This was clear on a recent Tuesday night when she and Alison Loehnis of Net-a-Porter co-hosted a dinner to celebrate a…
Well-Travelled Blogger Jessie Bush Gives Insta Tips
Jet-setting between the world’s fashion capitals to attend runway shows and photograph the best street style looks is all in a day’s work for New Zealand blogger and tastemaker Jessie Bush, founder of We…
Time Travel with Aldous Harding
New Zealander Aldous Harding, who is currently promoting her album Party in Europe, has released a new single from the LP. Elation is The Guardian’s ‘Track of the Week’. Hannah Davies writes for the newspaper: “With her…
Coffin Club Throws Glitter on Idea of Dying
The members of New Zealand’s quirky Coffin Clubs, which consist of senior citizens who seek comfort, community, and coffin-making – is gaining popularity among New Zealanders, as well as internationally. Coffin…
Taika Waititi Puts His Stamp on the Thor Franchise
In many ways, Taika Waititi neatly fits the mould of a lively director plucked from indiedom and placed at the centre of a franchise. He’s stylish, funny and confident, Dan Kois writes in a…
All of Paris on Board with FIAC Says Jennifer Flay
Jennifer Flay, the New Zealand-born director of FIAC who began her job in 2003, recalled a headline in a French magazine at the time that summed up the fair’s ups and downs: “FIAC at…
Step Back in Time With Rebecca Gibney
Crossing the Tasman Sea when she was just 19-years-old, Levin-born actress Rebecca Gibney, who currently stars in television drama series Wanted, has become one of Australia’s most popular actresses. Recently, the 52-year-old four-time Logie winner…
Musician Jordan Rakei in Perpetual Transition
New Zealand-born musician Jordan Rakei’s new album Wallflower is out now, and it’s an intoxicating return that doubles as Rakei’s first true statement as a Londoner, Clash magazine reports. “I only moved here two and…
Stunning Aurora Australis Timelapse
Watch this short clip to see a compilation of timelapse footage of Aurora Australis photography taken in New Zealand from 2015-2017. The video was published by Stephen Voss.
Teen Plans to Open Elephant Sanctuary in Thailand
Jack Lanting, from Hamilton, was eight years old when he fell in love with Lily, a rescue elephant he met at the Elephant Nature Park in Northern Thailand while on a trip with his…
Kim Chambers Swims with Sharks in New Doco
New Zealand-born Kim Chambers started swimming after a life-changing accident. Just a few years later, she became the first woman to take on a notorious stretch of shark-inhabited waters – a solo swim from…
Why Bob Dylan Matters to Author Richard Thomas
“It took six months for New Zealander Richard Thomas to draft the manuscript for his newest book, Why Bob Dylan Matters, a study, among other things, of the songwriter’s deep and abiding connection to…
EDGE #287: Kiwis in Spotlights: NZ’s New Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok, LeRoy Transfield + The Ethical Minefields of Technology ++ more
News of Global New…
Phillipa and Brangka Munan’s Borneo Efforts Pay Off
New Zealander Phillipa Munan and her husband Brangka, who earned his Bachelor of Agriculture and Science from Lincoln University, operate The Milk Shop, an organic dairy goat farm in Kuching,…
How to Win the Man Booker Prize
The upstairs room of an indie bookstore. A book launch for a local author. Crisps and wine are being handed out, a buzz is in the air, congratulations are showered upon the young writer….
Thor: Ragnarok Marvel’s Best Film to Date
Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok has an “oddly beautiful scuffed-plastic aesthetic”; it’s “funny, charming, dazzling, gorgeously designed, and full of actors you already like,” with Waititi managing “to finally imbue Marvel’s dullest Avenger with a…
Thor: Ragnarok Interview With Taika Waititi
Watch this clip to hear Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi talk about making his first action superhero movie. He also reveals which member of the cast surprised him the most.
Ben Shewry’s Attica Best of the Best
New Zealand-born Ben Shewry has done it again, winning more accolades for his popular Melbourne restaurant. Shewry’s Attica in Ripponlea was named restaurant of the year at the inaugural national Good Food Guide awards…
Why Golriz Ghahraman Entered NZ Politics
New member of parliament Golriz Ghahraman is having her Twitter feed documented by the national archive as a testimony of New Zealand’s 2017 election. “It will be interesting for others to see what happens when…
NZ’s Wine “Quirky, Exciting And Worth Studying”
“New Zealand is sort of out there on its own, mysterious and captivating. We’re talking about two islands, inextricably linked, yet with quirky underdog identities all their own,” writes Michael Austin in an article…
The Ethical Minefields of Technology
“As we embrace technological innovation, we must also grapple with its implications,” warns New Zealand futurist Roger Dennis in a blog post in the Scientific American. “The introduction of new software…
Vintner Hugh Crichton Loves Chardonnay
Hugh Crichton gave up a successful career in the London financial markets to return home to New Zealand to pursue his first love – wine. But Crichton, 51, is not obsessed with sauvignon blanc,…
Library Solves Mystery of Missing Books
Auckland Library “has finally solved the mystery of why some books were going missing from its shelves,” writes Mark Molloy in an article for The Telegraph. When staff first discovered…
LeRoy Transfield’s Design Makes Commemorative Coin
New Zealand-born sculptor LeRoy Transfield’s winning design for a collectible silver dollar commemorating all Americans who served in the First World War has been unveiled. Available to buy from January 2018, sales of the centennial…
Great Barrier Island Best Spot for Stargazing
“It was as if a great celestial Bake Off was in action. Handfuls of sugar spilt across the sky and the faint floury stain of the Milky Way scattered overhead. With my neck craned…
Jacinda Ardern, 37, Will Be NZ’s Youngest Prime Minister
“A minor party holding the balance of power in New Zealand threw its support behind 37-year-old Jacinda Ardern’s bid to become prime minister on Thursday, ending the center-right National Party’s nine-year grip on power,”…
Union: The Universal Language of Rugby
Watch ‘Union: The Universal Language of Rugby’ here – a short film about the power of rugby to bring people together. The film follows rugby player Jared James,…
High Commissioner Mark Ramsden Says Fiji Farewell
The outgoing New Zealand High Commissioner Mark Ramsden says Fiji has gone through a lot of positive changes during the time he worked in the country. “The Fiji New Zealand Business Council has been a…
Kimbra – Everybody Knows
Watch Kimbra’s latest music video for her latest single ‘Everybody Knows’. It’s the first single the New Zealand singer has shared of her album Primal Heart, scheduled to be released in 2018.
Bittersweet Return to Georgia for Amos Chapple
One man who knows the country of Georgia better than most is Amos Chapple. The New Zealand photographer, known for his pioneering use of drones, has been a regular visitor for the last seven…
Will Paton in the Front Seat of New UK Trains
It’s hard to imagine being responsible for the safety of 1700 lives, but that’s what New Zealander Will Paton faces every day, when he steps into the high-tech cab of his train. Paton spends up…
Air New Zealand’s Digital Human
Air New Zealand has been working on developing a ‘digital human’ to assist with answering questions about the airline and NZ tourism. Get a glimpse of their new digital brand ambassador Sophie…
EDGE #286: Kiwis in Spotlights: Lessons from NZ on Fiscal Discipline, Emirates Team NZ, Neil Finn + Peter Jackson’s Mortal Engines ++ more
News of Global New…
Sara Wiseman and Craig Hall Acting Up Together
New Zealand actors and couple Sara Wiseman, 45, and Craig Hall, 43, work together on Australian series A Place to Call Home. Wiseman, who grew up in Auckland, gives the Herald Sun her tips…
New Zealand Wasp Named After Harry Potter Villain
Auckland University entomologist and Harry Potter fan Tom Saunders has named a parasitoid wasp after “redeemed” character Lucius Malfoy in the hope of showing not all wasps are bad. Saunders named and described the wasp…
Lessons from New Zealand on Fiscal Discipline
“New Zealand and the UK are both regarded as pioneers in the use of a more modern system of accounting – accrual accounting, a method that records revenues and expenses when they are incurred…
Racing’s Brendon Hartley to Make F1 Debut
New Zealander Brendon Hartley, 27, is Toro Rosso’s new driver and will make his Formula One debut in Austin at the 2017 United States Grand Prix on 22 October. He will become New Zealand’s first F1…
John Clarke Remembered by Popular Radio Host
New Zealander John Clarke was “adored and admired” by the host of 3AW breakfast radio, Ross Stevenson, who dominates Australia’s most competitive radio market, Melbourne. Clarke and Stevenson co-wrote the ABC TV comedy The Games…
Phil Wood in Charge of Dream Restaurant Project
New Zealander Phil Wood, 35, has been singled out by Australian property magnate John Gandel to be the “culinary director” of the most ambitious restaurant development in Australia. Wood’s new winery restaurant will open…
Emirates Team NZ Stole the Show in Bermuda
“With greater ingenuity, a faster platform, and the determination to bring the America’s Cup back to Auckland, Emirates Team New Zealand stole the show in Bermuda,” writes Dave Reed in an article for
New Zealand Film Team Transforms London
The bestselling book by Peter Reeve, Mortal Engines, is now being adapted for film by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, with visual effects specialist New Zealander Christian Rivers directing the project and…
Florida’s Etaru Opens With Hamish Brown as Chef
In the kitchen at the all new Etaru on Hallandale Beach, Florida, New Zealand-born chef Hamish Brown was until recently at the helm of it’s well-established sister restaurant in London, Roka. Originally from Christchurch, Brown,…
Maggie Hewitt’s Stratospheric Fashion Ascent
New Zealander Maggie Marilyn Hewitt’s story reads like a corny cartoon bildungsroman, Ellie Pithers reports for British Vogue. It goes like this: Fashion-obsessed teenager from pipsqueak, middle-of-nowhere town thousands of miles away from a…
Neil Finn’s Latest is a Quiet Masterpiece
Neil Finn’s latest solo album, Out of Silence, offers us the gift of catharsis in a season of unpredictable politics and societal division. This month, the Crowded House singer has returned with ten songs…
Grant King’s The Antipodean Most Promising
“Grant King hails from New Zealand, and has decided that cooking with ingredients sourced from Australasia is the way forward. The menu at The Antipodean is blissfully unadorned by anything…
Hard Work Pays Off Says Dancer Lance Savali
Lance Savali is currently working with music artist Chris Brown on the hip hop star’s Party Tour while travelling the world teaching workshops and brushing shoulders with superstars which have included Jennifer Lopez, Brandy…
Margot Henderson Opens Second London Canteen
One of London’s most discreet restaurants, co-owned by New Zealander Margot Henderson and Briton Melanie Arnold, will step out from behind its red-and-brown brick walls next month when Rochelle Canteen emerges from Shoreditch in…
Taika Waititi Best Dressed Director in Hollywood
Taika Waititi is a fashion superhero, according to Degen Pener writing for The Hollywood Reporter. The proof: When the New Zealand native and director of November’s Thor: Ragnarok showed up at Comic-Con in July,…
Author Lynley Dodd on the Secret Lives of Pets
On the release of her new picture book, Scarface Claw, Hold Tight! acclaimed New Zealand writer and illustrator Lynley Dodd talks animal antics and her favourite children’s books. Many cat owners would be familiar with…
Bottlenose Dolphin Encounter
Ocean and marine lover Nathan Pettigrew recently encountered a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins when kayaking in Tauranga. Pettigrew runs the Youtube Channel The Kayaking World of Nathan Pettigrew. Watch the clip here.
