Lyall Bay’s Unique Time Cinema For Sale
Movie buff John Bell has decided to sell up one of Wellington’s best kept secrets: the Time Cinema in the suburb of Lyall Bay, a fully fledged 38-seat picture theatre where he lovingly screens…
Blog Archives
Helen Clark Rallies Caribbean in UN Bid
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, the administrator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) recently lobbied Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries as she seeks to replace Ban Ki-moon as the next…
Mikey McCleary Subtly Redefining Bollywood Music
Mumbai-based New Zealand composer and producer Mikey McCleary, 47, has been steadily changing the face of Bollywood soundtracks since he moved to India in 2007. His latest movie project is Aditya Chopra’s upcoming film, Befikre…
Crowded House to Be Inducted into ARIA Hall of Fame
Cherished rock-folk group Crowded House will be inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame during the ARIA Awards in Sydney on 23 November. Crowded House’s induction has a touch of serendipity about it. This year,…
Speaking Irish in New Zealand to My Maori-Irish Son
“There’s a special connection between Irish people, Irish speakers and Maori. It’s another reason why Aotearoa feels like home,” educator Gillian Cotter writes in an Irish Times lifestyle piece about raising her Maori-Irish son,…
Simon Denny Bitcoin Shows Open in NY and Berlin
Two shows by New Zealand artist Simon Denny, in New York and Berlin, look at competing views on how the little-understood technology underpinning the digital currency bitcoin should develop – and helps translate them…
Japan’s Brave Blossoms Welcome Coach Jamie Joseph
In his first press conference since taking charge of Japan national rugby team the Brave Blossoms, New Zealander Jamie Joseph warned fans to expect pain before pleasure as he builds toward the 2019 World…
Dave Verheul Chef of the Year Finalist
New Zealand-born Dave Verheul, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants with Marcus Wareing and Gordon Ramsay in London, plus a stage at Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck, and at Sydney’s hatted The Bentley Restaurant and…
Warren Gatland Looks to Dethrone the ABs
Warren Gatland, 52, landed in New Zealand last week only two days after being given the job of overthrowing what may be the country’s most cherished institution: the All Blacks rugby team. Gatland has…
Ben Shewry is Gourmet Traveller’s Chef of the Year
New Zealander Ben Shewry, owner of Melbourne’s Attica, has been peer-voted Chef of the Year in the Australian Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards. “Eleven years after answering a newspaper ad for a head chef position the…
Scott Dixon Wins at Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen International is a special place for New Zealander Scott Dixon. He showed why again winning the IndyCar Grand Prix at the historic New York race track. Fastest in every practice and fastest in qualifying, Dixon,…
Producer Joel Little Teams up with Ruth B in LA
Lorde’s former producer, Grammy-award winning New Zealander Joel Little, 33, is now working with Canadian singer-songwriter Ruth B on her first LP, Vine. Little became intrigued with Ruth when a friend sent a demo of…
Wildlife and Wilderness Galore in the South Island
“As a chilly dusk fell on famous for wildlife and Jurassic-era fossilised trees, a white-coated figure waddled gingerly across tide-slicked rocks – me, trying to get out of sight to…
Mel Dodge Gets Her Brontë on in Canberra
New Zealand playwright and actor Mel Dodge depicts the personal passions of Jane Eyre author Charlotte Brontë in Miss Brontë, on at Canberra’s Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre. Despite living most of her life in an…
Nicholas Clark Caters to China’s Craft Beer Lovers
New Zealander Nicholas Clark is one of a number of foreigners who have invested in China’s new enthusiasm for craft beer. Clark opened Craft Head Nano Tap House in 2014 in a former convenience…
Witi Ihimaera on Writers and the Conscience
Gisborne-born author Witi Ihimaera, 72, feels the real role of a writer is to become the conscience of the nation and that Indian writers have set a “fantastic example” by using literature to address…
Simon Denny Explains Blockchain with Pokémon
New Zealand-born artist Simon Denny’s forthcoming exhibition – Blockchain Future States – opens on 8 September at Petzel Gallery in New York City. The exhibition tells the story of blockchain visionaries, bitcoin and the…
Len Lye Centre Offers a Place of Reflection
“‘Art,’ wrote the -born artist Len Lye, ‘is the most valuable and least useful of all things ever made.’ Bearing that in mind, how might you make a museum dedicated to the artist?” Financial Times’…
Collector Alan Gibbs Combining Passion and Purpose
The art world has opened up to welcome new collectors and dealers defined by their zeal, Monocle reports in a profile story, which includes New Zealand-born Alan Gibbs, entrepreneur and founder of Gibbs Farm…
NZ the Way US Used to Be Says Robert Redford
Hollywood film star Robert Redford, 80, came to New Zealand to expand his Oscar-winning résumé with children’s film Pete’s Dragon, but what he found was an idyllic paradise reminiscent of his own childhood. Redford says he felt…
Pietra Brettkelly’s A Flickering Truth Opens in NZ
When New Zealand-born director Pietra Brettkelly visited Afghanistan in 2012 she heard tell of a secret film archive, constructed during Taliban rule to protect the country’s old films from being destroyed by the regime….
This Is the Castle That Dot Smith Built
As a child New Zealander Dot Smith dreamed of living in a castle. Growing up on an isolated farm in the 1960s entertainment was scarce – so Dot read, and planned her escape. Five…
Karen Walker’s Jewels Shine on Magical Hands
Designer Karen Walker has once again turned to older women for her campaigns, hiring models, Phyllis Sues, 93, and Roberta Haze, 78 for her latest jewellery collection, Magic Hands. For New Zealander Walker, aged hands…
US Brands Head to NZ for All-Wool Footwear
As demand for all-wool shoes grows, a number of US footwear brands are heading directly to the source: the sheep pastures of New Zealand. San Francisco-based Allbirds, established by former New Zealand soccer player…
Julliard’s Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson to Graduate
Christchurch dancer Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson, who is understood to be the first New Zealander to be accepted by the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City, according to the Press, will graduate in May 2017. Guillemot-Rodgerson…
Niki Caro Directing Anne of Green Gables Series
Wellington-born filmmaker Niki Caro will direct the latest adaptation of the classic children’s novel Anne of Green Gables with production beginning in Canada this month. The series, Anne, may prove to be an edgier incarnation…
Girls Stars Front Unretouched Lonely Lingerie Ad
Creator and star of hit American television show Girls, Lena Dunham and Jemima Kirke are championing the unretouched precedent for Lonely Girls, a journal featuring inspiring women modelling underwear from the New Zealand-based Lonely…
Tonic for Brits Seeking to Cure Brexit Blues
It boasts spectacular scenery, a temperate climate and a labour shortage in key areas, but New Zealand’s most appealing attribute, according to the New Zealand Herald, may be that it is “18,000km from Boris…
Fear the Walking Dead’s Michelle Ang Diversifies
Christchurch-born actress Michelle Ang, 32, made her debut on the web series Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 462, earning an Emmy nomination for the role. This year, she’s trying her hand as a producer…
Conductor Gemma New Makes Music Holistic
The newest classical music rising star, New Zealander Gemma New’s reputation continues to ascend internationally. New takes up the resident conductor role at the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) on 6 September. New’s duties include…
McLaren Back at Scene of Triumphs
If Formula One belongs anywhere, it is in Spa-Francorchamps and if one team belong there then they are McLaren, who approached the past weekend with optimism, if not so much for that race as…
Scotland Inspires Who’s Afraid? Author Maria Lewis
When New Zealand-born TV host Maria Lewis was penning her debut urban fantasy novel, Who’s Afraid? from her desk in Sydney, she surprised many by setting the story 11,000 miles away in Dundee, Scotland’s Daily…
David Farrier Uncovers Surprise Turns in Tickled
Squarely of the “truth is stranger than fiction” category, New Zealand journalist David Farrier’s debut documentary Tickled has touches about it of thriller, mystery, and true-crime genres – even, at times, horror, the Guardian’s…
Grandma Uber Getting Brisbane Women Home Safe
New Zealand-born taxi driver Kathy Raydings, 57, aka Grandma Uber, has made it her life’s mission to get young women home safe after a night out on the town in Brisbane. Working in the solar…
Anna Paquin to Star in Margaret Atwood Adaptation
True Blood and Roots star New Zealander Anna Paquin has been tapped to topline an adaptation of Canadian author Margaret Atwood’s novel Alias Grace, the Hollywood Reporter reports. Published in 1996, Alias Grace follows Grace…
Actor Rhys Darby Taking NZ Comedy to the World
New Zealander Rhys Darby is an actor slash writer slash stand-up slash globetrotting monster hunter. And if he’s not the only one, he’s certainly the busiest, according to Seth Simons writing for Paste Magazine. In…
Future Soul Singer Wallace Looks Ahead
When it comes to jazz and soul in Australia, few are on the same level as future soul singer Wellington-born Wallace Gollan, aka Wallace onstage. With her smooth and dusty tone reminiscent of the…
Teeth and Tongue is So It Right Now
Teeth & Tongue, the “cheeky moniker” of New Zealand-born Jess Cornelius, is one of 10 new artists “you need to know”, according to Rolling Stone, who recommend the musician to fans of Blondie, Kate…
Stratford-Upon-Avon CEO Role for Justin Williams
Justin Williams, a New Zealander who has worked across the spectrum of commercial, not-for-profit and charity sectors both in Britain and his native country, has just taken up a new role as chief executive…
Making Athletic Investment with Coach Jamie Turner
American Gwen Jorgensen’s decision to seek out New Zealander Jamie Turner as a coach was rewarded with the first US Olympic triathlon gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Jorgensen spends five months of…
Astounding Act of Sportsmanship in Rio
New Zealander Nikki Hamblin, 28, and American Abbey D’Agostino, 24, set a high bar at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, not for winning gold medals but for their touching acts of compassion,…
All Blacks Crush Wallabies in All Departments
“It is always a pleasure to watch sporting greatness in action, so this was rugby ecstasy,” Sunday Telegraph rugby correspondent Steve James enthuses after the All Blacks thrashed the Wallabies 42-8 in the first…
Medal Per Capital Table Puts NZ up Top in Rio
New Zealand computer scientist Craig Nevill-Manning’s Medal Per Capita table put this year’s New Zealand Olympic team near the top, placing fourth with 18 medals and a population of 4,595,700. That’s one medal for…
Rebecca Taylor Launches La Vie for Everyday
New York-based fashion designer, New Zealander Rebecca Taylor has launched a lower-end offshoot of her eponymous range. Each piece of La Vie, as its name suggests, was designed to be seamlessly adapted into your…
Extreme Sailor Ed Smyth Stops off in Cardiff
New Zealander Ed Smyth (pictured centre) and Australian James Wierzbowski from the Extreme Sailing Series team Oman Air were in Cardiff recently on a leg of the regatta where they took time to talk…
Charlie McCormick Restores English Country Garden
Why is it that the non-English – like New Zealand-born florist Charlie McCormick (pictured right) – do classic English so much better than we do? the Telegraph’s Sarah Raven asks. On Raven’s arrival at his…
NZ Musicians To Pay Homage To Bob Marley
Reggae music has always found favour in the music market of New Zealand, and 35 years after the death of reggae star Bob Marley the country continues to pay homage to the man and…
Jon Beardmore Documents Odyssey Across Central Asia
New Zealand-born Jon Beardmore doesn’t like cricket – he loves it. So much so the London-based adventurer drove solo halfway across the planet, almost 50,000km, for a few overs in Afghanistan, an odyssey that…
At Home with Attica Owner and Chef Ben Shewry
The owner of internationally renowned Melbourne restaurant Attica, New Zealand-born chef Ben Shewry, 39, who commutes for more than three hours a day from his coastal home, says the long drive to work is…
NZ’s Anti-Nuke Win Approaches 30th Anniversary
When the Royal New Zealand Navy celebrates its 75th birthday in November, US warships will be there. It will be the first time any American military ship has entered a New Zealand port since…
Obama Picks Gin Wigmore for Summer Playlist
New Zealand musician Gin Wigmore’s “Man Like That” has made President Barack Obama’s “hand-selected” summer playlist, alongside classics from Aretha Franklin, Miles Davis and Prince, and more recent artists Common, Jay Z and Wale. The…
Thomas Monckton’s Energetic Edinburgh Double Bill
Thomas Monckton demonstrated what an outstanding physical clown he is via his previous solo show, The Pianist. Only Bones, his newest work on as part of the 2016 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, is more distilled…
Rochelle Bright Brings Daffodils to Edinburgh
New Zealand-born playwright Rochelle Bright is swiftly earning a name for herself through the success of her breakout stageshow Daffodils, which has just opened at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as part of the prestigious…
Parris Goebel Gets the Planet on the Dance Floor
World-famous choreographer Parris Goebel, 24, is making her own music now, because she can. ELLE magazine goes behind-the-scenes on the Auckland set of her new music video, “Friday.” You’ve definitely seen her in…
Adventures in Pianoland a Sister Act
Greymouth-born sisters, composer and songwriter Jan Preston (pictured), 65, and writer and director Gaylene Preston, 69, have combined talents to collaborate on their first stage show, Adventures in Pianoland, which is on at The…
Mad Mike Whiddett Drifts into Swindon
If you are a hesitant driver, if T-junctions make you shudder and merging makes you quail, New Zealander Mad Mike Whiddett’s antics are not for you, warns Scotland newspaper the Daily Record. The notorious
