Saturday Morning

For the first time in its history the winner of New Zealand Bartender of the Year has been awarded to a woman. Melanie Walker is known for her tinctures and syrups.

Gardening is proven to be good for the mind, body, and environment. But can it be good for your wallet too?

New film 'The Fox' is a magic realism-style comic fable featuring one of the last on-screen appearances of Sir Sam Neill. 

Iconic Kiwi fashion designer Kiri Nathan will be bringing indigenous fashion to this years New Zealand Fashion Week.

New Zealand-born writer Meg Mason shot to acclaim in the middle of the pandemic with her novel Sorrow and Bliss. Now she's back with a book about a lonely woman who lives on the periphery of the spotlight in the world of the literary festival.

Curious about AI but not sure where to start? Time to cut through the hype of AI with some practical tips and insights with Julia Pahina and Eteroa Lafaele.

Lately, economic uncertainty feels like the only thing you can really feel certain about. University of Auckland professor Natasha Hamilton-Hart has made a career of looking at the ups and downs of global trade.   

In 2017 the number of homeless in Finland was around 2000. However, since those record lows the number has spiked. We look at what worked, what went wrong - and what we can learn from it.  

Maya Higa has taken her love of animals and online content - combining them to create a digital wildlife sanctuary.

Made outside of traditional funding structures, 'Uncle' is a true number 8 wire story. The debut feature from Ryan Alexander-Lloyd was realised with the support of friends, whanau and community. The film follows a man who unexpectedly becomes the caregiver for his best friend's young son after an accident. It aims to platform a side to Maori men that isn't often portrayed on screen. At the heart of the film is the screen debut from three-year-old RJ Lloyd (the director's son), who had no idea a film was being made, let alone that he was in one. Uncle is currently screening as part of the NZIFF. Writer and director Ryan Alexander-Lloyd and lead actor Rihari Te Are speak with Kate and Mihi.

After a 16 year hiatus, Vietnamese-Australian writer Nam Le returned to the literary scene with his award-winning poetry collection '36 Ways of Writing a Vietnamese Poem'. An unapologetic interrogation of what it means to be a part of a diaspora, Le took the much-coveted Book of the Year prize at last year's New South Wales Literary Awards Le's parents left Vietnam by boat as refugees when he was one year old, eventually settling in Melbourne - an experience he grappled with in the title story of his previous short story collection, 'The Boat'. He spoke to Kate about his upcoming trip to NZ to perform poetry as a part of WORD Christcurch early next month.

Farming is one of New Zealand's proudest industries, built on resilience, hard work and getting the job done. But it's also one of our deadliest workplaces. Now two women are determined to change that, one is helping reshape the culture of farm safety from the top down, the other is living it every day on the land, sharing the realities of farming with thousands online. Mihi spoke to Chloe Butcher-Herries and Lindy Nelson to find out how they did it.

Beavers are back on the scene in the West London suburb of Ealing. The semi-aquatic rodents were reintroduced to a local park by conservationists three years ago - the first time they'd had the privilege of dam and lodge-building in the area in 400 years. In the time since then, the wetland and dam construction have helped with flooding in an area previously assaulted by flooding on a regular basis.

The City Rail Link is about three and a half kilometres of tunnels and will be the country's largest transport infrastructure project to date. It's set to speed up public transport in the city, creating more connections and modernise So have all the road cones been worth it? Mihi checked in with Joel Rowan who's Auckland Transports, communications manager for the City Rail Link.

Dr David White is a serial entrepreneur, behind medical technology like nosebuds that enhance airflow through the power of humming - and a wearable device that tracks stress and recovery. Well this week he's been revealed as a finalist in this year's Kiwinet Awards, vying for the coveted BNZ Researcher Entrepreneur award. He popped into the Auckland studio to talk to Mihi.

Award-winning documentary filmmaker, Gwen Isaac ('Ms. Information', 'Where There is Life') has turned the lens to her own life, exploring growing up with a bipolar mother in small town New Zealand. Gwen's mother, Merrilyn Isaac, nicknamed "Mad Merry", was a gifted painter living with bipolar disorder in the 80's - a time when little was understood about the condition. Her life became that of local folklore. 'Be Merry' marks Gwen's most personal documentary to date, documenting her return to her Far North hometown to untangle fact from family legend, and motherhood from mental illness. She speaks with Kate Rodger ahead of the upcoming Christchurch and Wellington NZIFF screenings.

Vikas Swarup is a man of myriad talents - he's juggled the lives of both international diplomat and globally-acclaimed writer. His debut novel Q&A went on to form the basis for the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire, which won eight Oscars and put India on the world pop cultural stage in a way like never before. Swarup is back with another tale of an underdog up against astronomical odds to try and survive and prosper with his latest novel, The Girl with the Seven Lives. He told Kate it's Slumdog Millionaire meets Arabian Nights, following the story of a 25-year-old woman named Devi who has been kidnapped and must tell her life story to her captor while searching for a way to escape.

Even 250 years on from the sea voyages that made his name and set our colonial history in motion, Captain Cook remains a much-discussed figure here in Aotearoa. He's one of the most controversial figures in our country's history, conscripted into the 'culture wars' - a symbol of colonial sins to some, a hero and pioneer to others. Historian Tony Ballantyne has taken on the mammoth task of unweaving the tangled web of Cook's legacy in his new book, 'Captain Cook and Unsettled Afterlives', he told Mihi about how he's sorted the legacy of Cook into three eras that have all come to define his reception in modern New Zealand.

Defending the Caveman is the longest running comedy on Broadway ever, seen around the world by more than eight million people - and it's coming to Auckland.

Harry Sinclair has made New Zealand's first stop-motion Claymation feature film Kiri and Lou go Raaa!

New research has revealed a surprising chapter in the history of one of our most iconic plants, the harakeke, or flax.

Few bands have changed the sound of pop music quite like The Human League. They created some of the biggest hits of the '80s.

Scientists have evidence chewing is good for the brain and can even ward-off Alzheimer's.

The latest on the economic horizon.

A survivor's story - the unexploded bombs that kill and injure up to 20 people a year in the Solomon Islands.  

With November's mid-terms the next big date in the Trump election cycle, people are wondering what could come next.

A new cancer treatment being developed at Cambridge University's Precision Breast Cancer Institute is returning results the global medical community is watching closely.

New Zealand and Scotland have a similar population size, but while our youth prison population hovers around 130 to 160, Scotland's is currently zero. It's an incredible feat given Glasgow was dubbed the murder capital of Europe by the WHO. It's all thanks to the country's Violence Reduction Unit, which flipped the script and targeted youth crime by treating it as a public health issue. As a result homicides, attempted murders and serious assaults plummeted and stayed low. Mihi Forbes asked the head of the unit, Jimmy Paul how they did it.

Dealing with grief? Have you tried training a hawk? Reckoning with her dads death, historian Helen Macdonald, did just that. It became the subject of her best-selling memoir H is For Hawk, and now it's a Bafta-nominated movie starring Claire Foy, who many will know from The Crown where she portrayed the Queen. It's coming to cinemas on July 30th.

The bird flu's now in New Zealand - what could it mean for our native bird populations? The Pukorokoro Shorebird Centre's Keith Woodley explains the risks.  

The Football World Cup is in its final throes this weekend with the play-off for 3rd and 4th between France and England tomorrow at 9am.

Kalina Silverman is the founder of a global movement Big Talk; she wants everyone to skip the small talk to make room for big conversations

Auckland's TALA has received the first-ever Michelin Star awarded for Samoan food.

Kate de Goldi, our resident reader, is back with her latest picks.

Craig Turner-Bullock has spent almost a decade travelling the world, taking photos of dogs. He talks to Susie about capturing canines - and finding their best side!

Matariki became a public holiday in 2022 largely thanks to the mahi of Professor Rangi Matamua who last year decided he would do Matariki in Antarctica.

Four-time Pulitzer Prize winning photo-journalist, Carol Guzy, on documenting ICE.

Black holes, glittery images and alien water on an interstellar comet - the infinite possibilities of space!

There's no doubt divorce can be messy, but according to divorce expert Kate Daly, it doesn't have to be! 

This July fourth in the USA marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. As it reaches this milestone, we take a look at the current temperature of the United States and what the future holds for it.

The PM's Science Prize has been awarded to an Auckland team who's work has prevented severe disability for thousands of babies around the world.

It's day two of auditions at the New Zealand Gold Guitar Awards in Gore. Jenny Mitchell won the senior competition in 2017. She's back this year as both a showcase performer and volunteer helping out on stage - because that's just what you do! A highlight of the Tussock Country festival, Gold Guitars launched her country music career - one that has taken her to Tamworth and Nashville. Now based in Melbourne, Jenny was mentored by Dame Jools Topp who sadly passed away earlier this week. Jenny talks to Susie about her audition picks so far and how Jools shaped her as both a musician and a person.

Poet, performer and award-winning author, Tusiata Avia has forged her own path as a Pasifika voice on themes like racism and identity delivered with humour, honesty and courage. The 2026 International Institute of Modern Letters Writer in Residence for the Academy of New Zealand Literature, her latest work is called Giving Birth to My Father. A collection of poems, it is an exploration and expression of grief and acceptance. She speaks to Susie about loss, life - and getting into trouble.

Our regular gardening expert Hannah Zwartz is back with more advice for the green and not so green fingered amongst us! Today she talks to Susie about why we prune in June and she has her top tips for planting - size, spacing and why sprinkling seed is a good alternative to mulch.

Being ordinary or doing ordinary things isn't usually something people aspire to - but Dr Nadine Levy says we should. 

Sam Cox turned his obsession with doodling into a global art sensation. But at one point he believed he really was his alter ego, Mr Doodle.

Most of us have a song at some time or another we just can't get out of our head. It's called an earworm - and you can get rid of them!   

After decades of conflict, it's hard to imagine a peaceful Middle East. But Maoz Inon, an Israeli and Aziz Abu Sarah, a Palestinian believe it is possible. 

Concerned that their dairy farm was both financially and environmentally unsustainable, the Hogg family decided to return to their organic roots. Sam Hogg led the farm's conversion to permaculture - and increased their profits by a staggering 500%. He talks to Susie Ferguson about how he did it!

Would you date an artificial intelligence companion? James Muldoon did.