NZEDGE News — New Zealand through the eyes of the world's media

Hidden treasures

Time Asia recommends Marlborough’s Old St Mary’s Convent, Wanganui’s Bridge to Nowhere lodge, and The Station in Paekakariki to readers wishing to stay off the beaten track. “There’s plenty of the…

The possible closure of the famed Freidensreich Hundertwasser-designed public toilets at Kawakawa earned a detailed write-up in the Independent. Officially opened in 1999, the stunning facilities were the final project by the acclaimed Austrian…

Te Reo On Air

BBC notes the launch of NZ’s first nationwide Maori language TV station. The inaugural broadcast comes 13 years after the Supreme Court ruled that the government was legally bound (by the Treaty of Waitangi) to protect its…

Sticking it to the Competition

Both the NZ men’s and women’s hockey teams have qualified for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. It will be the fourth time the women’s team (the Black Sticks) have competed at the Games. Says goalkeeper Helen…

Brothers in arts

An opinion piece in the Age asks: “Why don’t Australian and New Zealand arts sectors cooperate more?” The lengthy article examines the difference between the two nations in regards to arts funding, profiles the…

Ringing in the Changes

Tourism is predicted to overtake dairy as NZ’s top export earner by mid-2004 – a phenomenon largely attributed to Lord of the Rings hype. The country’s newfound status as a must-see destination is confirmed by a…

Comic Genius

20 March 2004 – Martin Emond, internationally renowned comic-book artist, illustrator, and tattooist, died in LA on March 19 aged 34. Emond created the popular character Switchblade (star of NZ clothing brand Illicit) and…

“The New Zealand Native Who Helped Open the Door to the Stars”

17 March 2004 – William Pickering, one of the leading figures in US space exploration, died of pneumonia in California aged 92. A graduate of Canterbury University and the California Institute of Technology, Wellington-born…

Good Morning Iraq

NZ company, Argent Networks, has won a US$3.5 million deal to help rebuild Iraq’s telecommunications infrastructure. ArgentEclipse is to be the new customer billing system for the national fixed-line network, which is owned by the Iraqi government….

MetService Nets Big Fish

The NZ MetService has sold a locally made weather graphics system to the BBC for a sum rumoured to be in the millions. The state-of-the-art software package – Weatherscape XT – is the most up to date…

Stars in the Making

NZ athletes contributed to an international domination of America’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Indoor Championships in mid-March. Kim Smith – running for Providence – lapped all but one of her competitors in the 5,000m, breaking a…

A Voice to Remember

A Stanford University obituary paid tribute to Susan Okin, the Auckland-born author, lecturer, and activist described by a Stanford University colleague as “perhaps the best feminist political philosopher in the world.” The author of three acclaimed books – Women…

Thunderbirds Are Go!

NZ software company, Virtual Katy, will lend its world-class sound engineering services to London’s Pinewood Studios, for the live-action remake of Thunderbirds. Virtual Katy – which was also used on The Lord of the Rings – is…

What’s cooking good looking?

NZ-born Brad Farmerie – head chef at Peter Gordon’s Public – was named one of the New York culinary scene’s rising stars, in a Post piece entitled ‘Lord of the Ranges.’ As well as…

Edge Hero Brought to Life

Ernest Rutherford takes centre stage in Irish writer Brian Cathcart’s latest book, The Fly in the Cathedral: How a small group of Cambridge scientists won the race to split the atom. Rutherford is described…

Getting lippy

“With a vocal arsenal that ranges from crisp rapping to a powerful singing voice, Natalia ‘Tali’ Scott can outstrip any UK competition.” So says the Independent in a glowing review of…

History Goes Digital

4 March 2004 – New York Times reviews ‘Paradise Now,’ a diverse exhibition of contemporary NZ and Pacific art currently on show at the Asia Pacific Society Museum on Park Avenue. Lisa Reihana’s multiple-screen…

NZ has the Eco Edge

According to New Scientist, NZ is one of few countries actively promoting responsible eco-tourism. National Geographic clearly agrees, awarding NZ 78 points out of 100 in its annual eco-tourism survey. “The NZ Department of Conservation takes these…

Belated Honour for White Mouse

3 March 2004 – Nancy Wake, the most decorated female veteran of WW2, was made a Companion of the Order of Australia on March 3. Born in NZ and raised in Australia, Wake was a leading…

The Good Life

Auckland was ranked 5th and Wellington 15th out of 215 cities in the annual quality of life survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Said Mercer director, Rob Knox, “Despite NZ’s geographic location and distance…

DOC Plays Tag

NZ’s Department of Conservation plans to use state-of-the-art satellite tagging in its fight to save the Maui’s Dolphin, whose numbers have plummeted to less than 150. The tags will help researchers better understand the dolphins’ territorial range…

Kiwi Content for Oscars Loot

This year’s official Oscars goodie-bag – handed out to every presenter, performer and nominee – included a trip for two to NZ, with accommodation at Treetops Luxury Lodge & Estate in Rotorua. With recipients including Julia Roberts,…

Chick to Watch

Massey University fashion graduate, Alice Goulter, profiled in a ‘Behind the Seams’ feature by Australian teen magazine, Chik. At the time of the interview, the 23-year-old was working as Design Assistant at Mossimo Woman,…

26 Reasons to Love NZ

Australian Harper’s Bazaar gives an A-Z run down of Kiwi style in response to last year’s L’Oreal New Zealand Fashion Week. Beneath the header “small enough to get seriously edgy, big enough to do…

Crowning Glory

Return of the King – the third and final film in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings series – made a clean sweep of the 2004 Academy Awards, winning 11 Oscars including Best Picture…

International Exposure for Local Brew

This year’s Oscar nominees sipped on organic coffee supplied by Hawkes Bay company Kea Foods at the pre-awards banquet held at the Beverly Hills Hilton. Kea Foods won the contract ahead of suppliers from all over the…

Another award for the kete

Niki Caro’s Whale Rider was named Best International Film at the 2004 IFP Independent Spirit Awards in Los Angeles. The IFP website calls Whale Rider a “radiant story of an exceptional little girl’s…

Riding her wave of success

Whale Rider star, Keisha Castle-Hughes, spoke to the New York Post about her week spent in Hollywood prior to the 2004 Academy Awards – for which she was the youngest ever nominee in the…

Smells Like Green Spirit

A Californian company claims to have captured the essence of Aotearoa in a bottle. The Demeter Fragrance Library produces scented candles and room sprays ranging in weirdness from Chocolate Chip Cookie to Fuzzy Navel. The recently released…

You Say Shiraz, I Say Syrah

The Age praises NZ syrah – not to be confused with Australian shiraz. “Like the name itself, Kiwi syrah – see-rahhh – has a wistful quality to it. Delicately perfumed, intensely rich in colour, it is generally…

Talent with Depth

Observer wine critic, Tim Atkin, looks beyond the ubiquitous NZ Sauvignon Blanc, recommending instead our Pinot Gris, Riesling, Syrah, and – above all – Pinot Noir. “NZ may produce only 0.79 per cent of the world’s vino,…

Just in Case You Missed That One..

The Return of the King picked up yet another prize en route to the Oscars; Best International Film at the inaugural Directors Guild of Great Britain awards.

Edge Eco-system

19 February 2004 – The unique bird-life native to NZ and its surrounding islands is the subject of major articles in The Japan Times and The New York Times. The first, by a Japan-based natural historian,…

Briwi Blitzes Brits

16 February 2004 – NZ born Daniel Bedingfield was named Best British Male Solo Artist at the 2004 Brit Awards. The self-proclaimed “Briwi” has had a string of hit singles in both the UK…

Brave New World

A joint Japanese-NZ research expedition hopes to discover new forms of life 1,850m below sea-level off the north-east coast of NZ. The team will venture by submarine to the Brothers Volcano, where warm, mineral-laden water is believed…

Roughing It?

Base Backpacker’s newly launched Sanctuary facilities – luxury, women’s-only levels in its Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch hostels – featured in the LA Times‘ Youth Watch column. “With bungee jumping, backpacker buses and some of the best…

Aotearoa in Demand

New York Times article asks ‘what’s next?’ of the post-Rings NZ film industry. Insiders predict a slew of big budget international projects, thanks to the government’s recent promise that it would reimburse 12.5% of…

Oh Happy Days

Auckland performance producers, designers, choreographers and maestros-in-general Mike Mizrahi and Marie Adams and a team of 150 created Louis Vuitton’s 150th anniversary celebrations around the world with the new LV store at 5th and 57th being the…

Two Cars, too beautiful

Two Cars, One Night by Taika Waititi was named Best Short Film at Germany’s prestigious Berlinale festival. The film, which also showed at Sundance 2003, explores the relationship which develops between two children…

Black Sox Sock it to the World’s Best

The NZ Black Sox beat Canada 9-5 to win the World Softball Championships for the third year running. Mark Sorenson came out of retirement to earn his fourth gold medal, leading his team to victory with a…

Best of the Rest

Sunday Business Post writer decides to test the theory that NZ is “the most beautiful place in the world,” and finds the statement to be no exaggeration. “There is simply no enviable natural feature that New Zealand does…

Home Turf Win

NZ cruised to the top of the International Rugby Sevens table with a resounding 33-15 win over Fiji in the Wellington series final. Matua Parkinson, who had assumed the captaincy due to the unavailability of both Karl…

Edge espressoholics

The Star attributes Wellington’s creativity and can-do attitude to its extraordinary topography and world-ranking caffeine intake. “Wellington, the ‘windy city,’ definitely enjoys one of the most challenging locations on earth. ‘Here’s your brief,’ the…

BECA at the Helm

NZ engineering company BECA International has won a lucrative contract from the Marshall Islands government to oversee US-funded construction projects worth US$14 million. Most of the funding has been assigned to new educational and healthcare facilities.