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The British Post Office scandal been described as one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in the country's history. Between 1999 and 2015, over 900 UK subpostmasters were falsely accused of theft and fraud as the result of faulty accounting software. Some were convicted and jailed, and more lost marriages, families and their mental health. A faulty accounting system doesn't perhaps sound like the makings of gripping drama, but it's been made into a series: Mr Bates vs The Post Office, The first episode airs on Sunday 31 March on TVNZ and on TVNZ on Demand. It was written by Gwyneth Hughes, a journalist turned screenwriter.
Filmmakers Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss's creative partnership spans two decades, winning them Emmy awards and several prizes at Sundance. Their latest documentary Girls State follows teenage girls from Missouri navigating a week-long immersive democratic experiment, learning how to build a government from the ground up. Girls State airs on Apple TV from April 5. It serves as a companion to their 2020 film Boys State which followed a similar experiment. They also directed The Mission, about American Christian missionary John Chau who was murdered when he tried to contact and convert one of the most remote tribes in the world on North Sentinel Island.
Irish novelist and short story writer Claire Keegan was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2022 for her book Small Things Like These. It's the story of a coal merchant whose eyes are opened to the horror of the laundry run by nuns one Christmas. The Booker Prize judges described it as "both a celebration of compassion and a stern rebuke of the sins committed in the name of religion". Keegan is appearing at Wanaka's Festival of Colour next Sunday, along with Audrey McGee, talking about why Irish writers are making a big impact.
For many, Easter means chocolate. And for chocolate makers Easter is one of the busiest times of year. Susie pops in to Baron Hasselhoff's chocolate boutique in Wellington to catch up with "chief chocolate disciple" Clayton McErlane.
As a child watching the film Apocalypse Now, writer Viet Thanh Nguyen felt split in two - was he one of the Americans doing the killing or one of the Vietnamese being killed? "That moment really brought home to me this idea that stories don't only have the power to save us but that stories have the power to destroy us, as well," he tells Susie Ferguson.
World renowned brain health expert, clinical neuroscientist and pioneer in dementia research Professor Vladimir Hachinski is the recipient of the 2024 Ryman Prize, a $250,000 grant for the world's best discovery, development, advance or achievement that enhances quality of life for older people. It's celebrating the major contribution Professor Hachinski has made to the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and the links between 'the terrible three' - stroke, dementia and coronary heart disease. Professor Hachinski advocates for prevention by promoting the idea of "holistic brain health", linking cerebral health with our ability to interact and form meaningful relationships with others. Professor Hachinski joins Susie alongside New Zealand-based dementia educator Caroline Bartle.
Aboriginal artist Richard Bell's documentary You Can Go Now is screening at the Maoriland Film Festival, underway in Otaki . In it, he poses provocative and humourous challenges to the status quo and to our preconceived ideas of Aboriginal art.
Clinical psychologist Dr Olive Webb is nominated in the Local Hero category of the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year awards. A strong defender of some of the most marginalised members of our community, she tirelessly advocated and revolutionised care for people with learning disabilities. Most recently she also gave evidence to the Royal Commission into the Abuse in State Care and supported others to tell their stories. Dr Webb released From Behind Closed Doors last year, a poignant reflection on her 50-year journey alongside individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Glacial geologist Jamey Stutz dates Antarctic rocks 'dropped like breadcrumbs from melting glaciers' to help determine the scale of glacial retreat. Jamey has recently joined the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center in Ohio as a research scientist in the Polar Rock Repository, having completed his Ph.D at the Antarctic Research Center at Victoria University in Wellington. Jamey says he's excited to be part of the more than 60 year exchange of Antarctic knowledge between New Zealand and America.
Dubbed "deliciously rude and darkly funny", "chick lit" author Kathy Lette has a new book out which wreaks revenge. The Revenge Club features four best friends approaching their sixties, feeling invisible and bent on vengeance. It continues the Australian-British writer's observations of the best and worst parts of being a woman, with female friendships one of the perks. Kathy Lette has written fifteen bestselling novels, and has been recognised for her advocacy of equality, human rights, physical and mental health.
Around 600 people (including around 350 children) currently live at Gloriavale – a strict Christian community on the West Coast. In TVNZ's upcoming three-part doco Escaping Utopia, former church member Rosie Overseer talks about her experiences there, including years of childhood sexual abuse. Rosie joins Susie Ferguson with Liz Gregory, one of the people who helped her family make a new life and founder of the Gloriavale Leavers' Support Trust.
Social media content makers celebrating their role as "traditional wives" are enjoying a startling rise in popularity. Influencers such as Nara Smith, Emily Mariko and Ballerina Farm are baking, procreating and home-making their way to millions of followers. So why is their #Tradwife vision of submissive domesticity so appealing in 2024? We ask Caro Claire Burke, a cultural critic and journalist at Katie Couric Media.
Catherine, Princess of Wales has announced she has cancer. Kate Middleton is in the early stages of treatment after cancer was found in tests, and is undergoing chemotherapy. Details of the cancer have not been made public, but Kensington Palace says it is confident the princess will make a full recovery.
Women still take most of the responsibility for contraception, but a long anticipated "male pill" could soon become a reality. Several non-hormonal male contraceptive pills that work by slowing sperm are under development, with one entering human trials. Head of the Reproductive Medicine Group at the University of Dundee Professor Chris Barratt has dedicated his career to understanding male infertility, human spermatozoa and sperm-egg interaction. He joins us to explain how these new pills work and why it's taken so long to get to this point.
One of the many musicians hitting the stage at Tauranga's National Jazz Festival later this month is Australian jazz legend James Morrison. He's a multi-instrumentalist, playing the trombone, piano, saxophone and double bass, but is perhaps best known for the trumpet. He started playing instruments aged six and formed his own band by the time he was nine.
Ann Patchett is one of the world's most acclaimed, prize-winning novelists and non-fiction writers. She was named one of Time magazine's '100 Most Influential People in the World' and is a regular contributor to The New Yorker and Harper's Magazine. She also famously co-owns indie bookstore Parnassus Books in Nashville with her husband. Her collection of essays These Precious Days was chosen by Barack Obama as one of his books of the year in 2021. Ann is appearing at the Auckland Writer's Festival in May, where she'll be talking about her latest novel, Tom Lake.
If you want your garden to feed you through winter, now's the time to get prepping. Brassicas like Broccoli need three months to grow, so need to be planted, and it's a perfect time to make compost with all your late summer garden waste Organic gardener Kath Irvine from Edible Backyard joins Susie with tips and tricks for both small and large gardens. Plus she'll answer your questions.
Should you fix or float a mortgage? Is now a good time to buy - or sell? Why does cheese cost so much? And what even is money? These questions and many more are tackled by New Zealand Herald business editor at large Liam Dann in his new book, BBQ Economics He draws on his 25 years of reporting, sharing anecdotes to make economic concepts more accessible.
Filmmaker Lulu Wang came to international attention in 2019 with The Farewell which also caught the eye of Nicole Kidman. Kidman then approached Lulu to bring a best-selling novel to the small screen. The result is Expats, showing on Amazon Prime, about the lives of women in Hong Kong - both the super rich and their many "helpers". Lulu Wang is coming to Auckland for the Big Screen Symposium next month.
Traditional systems of wealth measurement don't include nature's contributions. Faculty Director of Stanford University's Natural Capital Project Professor Gretchen Daily thinks putting a dollar value on a mangrove, or a creek, or a honeybee is a vital paradigm shift. Gretchen and her team help governments, international banks, and NGOs determine their gross ecosystem product, or GEP - a parallel concept to GDP.
With proposed job cuts at TV3's News Hub and TVNZ's Midday and Late News, and the loss of Sunday and Fair Go, is it possible for employers to 'do' redundancy well? The news of the proposed redundancies was delivered in very different ways to each newsroom, each coming as a huge shock to employees. Top employment lawyer Susan Hornsby-Geluk joins Susie with her take on how they each played out.
Concerns about the rising practice of "freebirth" escalated last month, following the death of premature twins in Byron Bay. Freebirthing, also known as unassisted birthing, is when women choose to give birth without medical assistance, rejecting both hospital care and midwife supported homebirth. It's increasingly a movement that NZ midwives are running into too. So what is motivating women to choose this path? And how risky is it? Joining Susie, Australian Professor of Midwifery Hannah Dahlen and NZ College of Midwives CE Alison Eddy.
This Sunday, after nine years as Green Party co-leader, including a five year stint as Climate Change Minister, James Shaw is stepping down. He's joining Susie to talk about everything other than politics and share some favourite music.
The plumes of ash that can accompany volcanic eruptions are spectacular, but often damaging, in multiple and surprising ways. Most people think what comes out is like fire ash, but volcanic ash is something quite different. GNS principal scientist Graham Leonard join us to talk about exactly what ash is, how it can affect the health of both humans and animals, and all the ways it can disrupt everyday life.
Multi Grammy award winning Beninese musician Angélique Kidjo has been named one of the most influential people in the world by Time Magazine. Her career spans four decades and her music is a fusion of West African with American R&B, funk and jazz, dancehall and European and Latin American influences. Angélique serves as a UNICEF and OXFAM ambassador. She founded Batonga to support the education of young African girls. She also won last years Polar Music Prize, seen on a par with Nobel awards. Angélique Kidjo is playing in Auckland on Saturday night.
Why do we have a two-day weekend? And when will it stretch to three? How can billionaires be parted from some of their billions for the greater good? How long does it take for a new idea to take hold? Sir Geoff Mulgan led British PM Tony Blair's strategy unit, and writes about adopting and adapting good ideas. He recently published a paper on the skills required for running government. James Plunkett's book End State was The Guardian's political book of the year. Both Australian New Zealand School of Government visiting fellows join Susie to discuss the challenges and opportunities for governments in the next decades.
Film director Lee Tamahori and producer Robin Scholes have a long history of collaboration, beginning with 1994's Once Were Warriors, which launched both their careers. Their latest offering, The Convert, starring Guy Pearce, opens in cinemas next week. A loose adaptation of Wulf by New Zealand author Hamish Clayton, The Convert features a largely Maori cast and follows the story of Munro, a war veteran-cum-preacher who comes to Aotearoa in 1830.
For the past 200 years blankets have formed part of Aotearoa's history, part of our early trade, providing warmth and comfort during the New Zealand Wars and for our soldiers fighting overseas during two world wars. For Whakaawa and Josh Te Kani, the history of wool in this country is integral to the stories they weave into their blankets and their work will feature in a new exhibition, Paraikete Threads, which opened yesterday at the Pataka Art Museum in Porirua.
