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Archive >> February 2018
New Zealand’s New Big Thing Is Pinot Noir
New Zealand “was once known merely for crisp, grassy sauvignon blanc wines. No longer,” Elin McCoy writes in a report for Bloomberg.
“Actor Sam Neill just finished a six-part television…
EDGE #303: NZ’s Role in Apocalypse Now, Marlon Williams Tiny Desk Session, Taika Waititi’s Breakers and Upperers + Skiing’s Remarkable Wells Brothers ++
Magnetic Marlon Plays Brilliant Tiny Desk Session
“Marlon Williams is a handsome devil with a heart-stopping voice, who writes songs about vampires and horror films. This 27-year-old, New Zealand-born, Melbourne-based singer is also a teller of…
New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc Outside the Box
“Perhaps no other wine style is as instantly recognisable as New Zealand sauvignon blanc,” Christina Pickard writes for Wine Enthusiast magazine. “It put New Zealand wine on the map…
Skiing’s Remarkable Wells Brothers
Wanaka’s Wells brothers are “skiing’s answer to the Von Trapp family”, according to CNN’s Matias Grez. The four freeskiers are: Jossi, 27, (pictured) Byron, 25, Beau-James, 21, and Jackson,…
Vicki Lee Takes Music of Vera Lynn Across Sussex
Palmerston North singer Vicki Lee, 64, is touring Sussex, England in February with her tribute to the life and music of centenarian Dame Vera Lynn, known as the ‘Forces’…
Staring Down the Barrel with Aldous Harding
Aldous Harding’s sophomore album Party has every right to stake its claim as the best album of last year, according to Melbourne-based lifestyle website Broadsheet. The power of Harding’s…
How Bisexual Goose Thomas Became an Icon
A memorial was recently held for Thomas the goose, a “New Zealander who spent most of his life as a loving partner, caring father and an icon of the LGBT community”,…
Isaac Burrough Reveals 28m Motor Yacht Concept
Amsterdam-based designer New Zealander Isaac Burrough has released his latest concept, a 28m motor yacht that draws inspiration from the world of product design.
Eschewing the more commonplace reference points…
Scientists Assess Surprise Status of Ross Ice Shelf
New Zealand scientists have peered into one of the least-explored swaths of ocean on Earth, a vast region located off the coast of West Antarctica. It is locked beneath…
Boy Fans Will Love The Breakers and Upperers
If you enjoy contemporary New Zealand comedies like Boy, What We Do in the Shadows, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, then you should put this Taika Waititi-executive produced title The Breaker…
Move Over Norway and Behold Fiordland
“If you’ve never heard of this national park, on New Zealand’s South Island, then you won’t know that it’s one of earth’s most staggeringly jaw-dropping wildernesses,” the Britain’s Daily…
Superorganism’s Harry Lets Us in on Band’s Mystique
Signing to Domino Records mid-2017, the fun pop eight-piece Superorganism has since kept a pretty exclusive profile, playing only a handful of shows throughout the entire year. With the…
New Zealand’s Role in Apocalypse Now
“If you’re interested in the end of the world, you’re interested in New Zealand. If you’re interested in how our current cultural anxieties – climate catastrophe, decline of transatlantic…
Maryanne Redpath at Helm of Berlinale’s Generation
Within 10 years, former artist, teacher and filmmaker New Zealand-born Maryanne Redpath has turned the Berlinale youth section Generation into one of the most popular strands of the film…
Fossil Poop Reveals Critical Role of Giant Birds in NZ’S Ecosystem
“When the first humans landed on what is now known as New Zealand 700 years ago, they didn’t find mammals. Instead, they discovered giant birds called moas, as well…
How to Dad – Teaching A Baby to Talk
Auckland Dad Jordan Watson, aka ‘How to Dad’ is known for his funny parenting videos. Watch his new clip on teaching a baby how to talk.
Robyn Malcolm on Cleavage and Credibility
It is something of a surprise to see New Zealander Robyn Malcolm looking positively restrained, wearing a conservative skirt and blouse, for her role as Maxine Pavich in the…
Why New Zealand Has So Many Gang Members
“For a quiet country, New Zealand has a peculiar problem with gangs. It is reckoned to have one of the highest membership rates in the world. In a population…
Pirate Involved in Peter Blake’s Death Recaptured
Brazilian police on a remote Amazon River island have arrested a man involved in the murder of round-the-world sailor New Zealander Sir Peter Blake in 2001.
José Irandir Cardoso had…
NZ Trail Huts Provide Shelter, Conversation and Community
“I wouldn’t have guessed that backcountry huts would become a focal point of my travels in New Zealand. Sixteen years later, I had come for the forests of Lothlorien,…
Rotorua the Southern Hemisphere’s Yellowstone
“The Rotorua region, one of the world’s most geothermally active areas, is the Southern Hemisphere’s take on Yellowstone – minus bison, bears and backed-up crowds,” journalist M.L. Lyke writes…
Jacinda Ardern Graces Vogue’s Pages
Jacinda Ardern is clear-eyed about what a prime minister of New Zealand, a country with a population of under five million, can achieve on the world stage. “We’re small,”…
New Zealand Sporting Moment of the Year
Mitchell Hunt of the Crusaders won the New Zealand Sporting Moment of the Year at this year’s Halberg Awards for his…
Former PM Bill English Quits Politics
Former New Zealand prime minister Bill English, 56, has resigned as leader of the National Party, quitting politics after a 27-year career.
“Now is the right time for me to step aside…
Adrian Ramsay: Making Your Dream Home A Reality
“The idea of the dream home is something we all have. But what most of us don’t is someone to realise it for us. Consider then the genius mind…
Artist Francis Upritchard Describes Balata
A festive crowd of art-lovers gathered at Lux Art Institute in Encinitas, California recently for the opening of a show by the first of its 2018 resident artists, London-based…
Unknown Mortal Orchestra Begin Promotion of New LP
The follow-up to New Zealand band Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s 2015 album Multi-Love, their fourth studio album, Sex & Food is out on 6 April.
Bandleader Ruban Nielson described the impetus behind the…
See If You Can Pronounce This Place Name
“Every world traveller knows the struggles of trying to fit into a foreign country’s culture. It requires remembering local customs, practicing appropriate etiquette, and (perhaps the most challenging) learning…
How to Honeymoon in New Zealand
Wanting to take their time soaking in jagged mountains, rolling pastures, steep fjords, pristine lakes, raging rivers and scenic beaches, Indonesians Gwen Winarno and Yudha Budhisurya took a road…
Anna Paquin Does Some Detective Work in Bellevue
New Zealander Anna Paquin plays Detective Anna Ryder in the Canadian television series, Bellevue. “Paquin, whose onscreen presence guarantees an otherworldly, alienating grace, is doing more work than is…
Sriwhana Spong Considers Monuments to Oppression
“A quiet but intensely powerful exhibition at San Francisco nonprofit gallery Kadist refutes the idea that we can shed the pain of the history of oppression by turning away…
Inspiring Cancer Story Written by Petra Kotrotsos
Wellingtonian Petra Kotrotsos is not your average 21-year-old, according to Melbourne-based Greek community newspaper Neos Kosmos. A video blogger and aspiring filmmaker, she’s also a cancer veteran, having been…
Opuio Releases Striking Ginger Lizard Video
New Zealand-born Melbourne-based producer Oscar Davey-Wraight, aka Opiuo, has released the official video for his brand new single Ginger Lizard, which is taken from his forthcoming EP, Syzygy 01…
Marlon Williams – What’s Chasing You?
Watch the official video of Marlon Williams’ ‘What’s Chasing You’. The song is part of his album ‘Make Way For Love,’ which was released on February…
Conductor Michael Joel Directs Fine Concert
Under the direction of New Zealand-born conductor Michael Joel, the Lakeland Sinfonia “presented a programme that was well-suited to their strengths,” according to the Westmorland Gazette’s Adrian Mullen in…
Ice Sculptor Tatiana Zimina Competes in China
New Zealander Tatiana Zimina has recently returned from northeast China where she competed in ice and snow sculpting with her partner and two friends in the annual Harbin International…
Marlon Williams Leads Fertile Lyttelton Music Scene
There is nothing like some personal trauma to fuel the muse of a songwriter. Acclaimed New Zealand troubadour Marlon Williams, 27, can attest to that, and the results are…
Virgin Media’s Tom Mockridge Connects UK Homes
Virgin Media, with New Zealander Tom Mockridge at the helm, has connected more than a million homes to its ultrafast broadband network, in the latest sign that the roll-out…
Peter Beck’s Mission to Conquer Space
Rocket Lab entrepreneur Peter Beck’s recent launch into orbit of the 65-sided, carbon-fibre satellite Humanity Star drew a barrage of flak from scientists. But the New Zealander remains undaunted.
Beck…
Georgia Fowler Shoot Lauds Harper’s Anniversary
Georgia Fowler, 25, the youngest daughter of Australian golfer Peter Fowler, is quickly becoming one of the most recognisable faces in the world, twice taking to the coveted Victoria’s…
Darkest Hour Trailer
Watch the trailer to acclaimed Winston Churchill biopic Darkest Hour, which was written by New Zealand-born filmmaker Anthony McCarten. McCarten…
Athletics Role for Rowing Ireland’s Hamish Adams
Athletics Ireland has announced the appointment of New Zealander Hamish Adams as its new chief executive officer.
Adams, who for the past five years has been Rowing Ireland CEO, will…
EDGE #301: NZ Perfect Place to Shape Ed Hillary, Kimbra’s Primal Heart, Tape Face in Vegas, Braindead Revisited, Bevan Congdon RIP + MORE
Perpetual Guardian Announces Shorter Work Week
New Zealand trustee company Perpetual Guardian is on the cusp of granting its employees the ultimate in work-life balance: four days work for five days pay, Eleanor Ainge Roy…
Frisky Spokesbird Sirocco Comes out of Hiding
Sirocco, New Zealand’s superstar kakapo, is alive and well in Fiordland, according to the Department of Conservation. The conservation ‘spokesbird’ shot to fame after he…
New Zealand Captured in Dreamy Infrared
Interested in producing images on “the fringe of the otherworldly,” California-based landscape photographer Paul Hoi creatively combines science fiction with psychedelia. Using a camera modified for full spectrum infrared,…
New Zealand Publicly Funds HIV Protection Drug
New Zealand is about to take a pioneering approach to fighting HIV/AIDS – by publicly funding pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication Truvada, manufactured by US biotech giant Gilead.
Taking this drug…
Chris Waller Humbled by Hall of Fame Recognition
All Sydney-based trainer Chris Waller wanted to be was a reasonable trainer when he started in the tough game of preparing racehorses in his homeland of New Zealand. Reasonable…
Cricket Legend Bevan Congdon Leaves True Legacy
Motueka-born Bevan Congdon, who captained New Zealand to its first Test win over Australia in 1974, has died a day short of his 80th birthday in Auckland.
In total, Congdon…
Sirocco Is Back
For the past two years New Zealand’s national “spokesbird” Sirocco had disappeared off the radar due to a failed transmitter. Watch this clip to see DOC…
Shotover Tech Wizards Score Early Oscar for Aerials
Queenstown design engineers John Coyle, Brad Hurndell, Vikas Sathaye and Shane Buckham have scored a jump on Margot Robbie, Daniel Day-Lewis and Meryl Streep a month before the Oscars….
Politicians Must Earn Back Trust Says Ardern
Jacinda Ardern is not your average prime minister, Times political journalist Alice Thomson quickly learns. The second prime minister after Benazir Bhutto, in 1990, to be pregnant while running…
New Zealand the Perfect Place to Shape Ed Hillary
“I ended up in boat-drunk summery Auckland because I wanted to figure out, 10 years after Sir Edmund Hillary’s death, how the first person to climb Mount Everest ever…
Aaron Jeffery Gets into the Head of Chopper Read
A quirk of fate could have changed the path of Australian film history and seen New Zealander Aaron Jeffery play Chopper Read nearly 20 years ago.
“I auditioned for the…
Tape Face Gets Stuck Into Vegas
New Zealand silent comedian Sam Wills, aka Tape Face, is to embark on a three-year residency in Las Vegas.
The Harrah’s casino has custom-built a cabaret venue for his mime…
