The House: Members of Parliament debate ability to take mickey

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Source: Radio New Zealand Green MP Kahurangi Carter speaking in the urgent debate. VNP / Phil Smith This week, Members of Parliament debated a bill to protect parody and satire – the right to take the mickey under New Zealand’s copyright law, something they themselves may well be the target of. Every second sitting, Wednesday … Read more

Health New Zealand releases guidelines to help families with perinatal loss

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Source: Radio New Zealand 123RF Health New Zealand has released long-awaited guidelines to help grieving families cope with the loss of a baby during pregnancy or in the first year after birth. The National Bereavement Care Pathway for Perinatal Loss was released on Thursday. It outlined the nine standards that will guide the future approach … Read more

The Swedish concept of döstädning is about more than just getting rid of things

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Source: Radio New Zealand The Swedish painter Margareta Magnusson died on March 12 aged 92. She became famous in 2017 for coining the smart and humorous concept of döstädning in a book known in English as The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning. The book was rapidly translated into an impressive number of languages, exporting … Read more

I love crime heroines – but Kay Scarpetta leaves me cold

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Source: Radio New Zealand Dr Kay Scarpetta, chief medical examiner of the Commonwealth of Virginia, made her fictional debut in Patricia Cornwell’s first crime novel, Postmortem, published in 1990. Cornwell had been both a police reporter and a morgue assistant. And her character was inspired by a real medical examiner she worked with. Postmortem won … Read more

Person dies after vehicle plunges into tree in Northland

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Source: Radio New Zealand The driver died at the scene. RNZ / Marika Khabazi One person has died after their vehicle plunged into a tree in Kaitaia, Northland. Emergency services were called to the crash near the intersection of North Road and Farrimond Place at 10:30pm on Saturday. Emergency services were called to the crash … Read more

NRL: Roger Tuivasa-Sheck’s departure affects NZ Warriors in different ways

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Source: Radio New Zealand Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and family celebrate his 150th Warriors outing against Canberra Raiders. Andrew Cornaga/Photosport Erin Clark heard NZ Warriors teammate Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was leaving from his distraught wife. The news surely didn’t come as a shock to Clark, who had watched from across the locker room, as the veteran wing fended … Read more

Daylight saving: Does an hour really make a difference?

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Source: Radio New Zealand It’s just an hour, will it really affect us? “It does. There’s really clear research out there that shows that missing out on sleep by an hour or more can lead to poorer functioning the next day,” says Dr Karyn O’Keefe, from the Sleep/Wake Research Centre. That one-hour shift can make … Read more

Highway reopens after Dunedin house fire

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Source: Radio New Zealand Four fire trucks had been working to put the fire out. RNZ / Rob Dixon A stretch of State Highway One in Dunedin has reopened to one lane, after it was closed due to a house fire. Fire and Emergency were called to the blaze on Great King Street North just … Read more

The Pogues co-founder: ‘We’re the last proper London punk band’

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Source: Radio New Zealand It’s both brilliant and validating that UK band The Pogues are beloved by so many international fans, says Spider Stacy, who now replaces Shane McGowan – a hard-drinking poet, who died in 2023 – as the band’s frontman. Every time he’s anywhere near an Australian or a New Zealander though, Stacy … Read more

Dunedin house fire closes State Highway 1

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Source: Radio New Zealand Four fire trucks had been working to put the fire out. RNZ / Rob Dixon Crews were at the scene of a house fire in Dunedin that closed State Highway One, through the city. Fire and Emergency were called to the blaze on Great King Street North just after 6pm on … Read more

Cricket: White Ferns v South Africa Women – third and final ODI

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Source: Radio New Zealand Maddy Green has scored an unbeaten 141 runs to guide the White Ferns home by 66 runs in the deciding one-day international against South Africa at the Basin Reserve. Green hit a career-best 141 off 128 balls, despite cramping late in her innings, marking her third ODI century. Brooke Halliday also … Read more

Anti-bottom trawling long distance swimmer breaks world record, arrives in Wellington

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Source: Radio New Zealand Jono Ridler swims the final metres to arrive in Wellington on Saturday afternoon, after an almost 1400km swim from North Cape. RNZ/ Anya Fielding Ultra-marathon open-water swimmer Jono Ridler has completed his record-breaking odyssey down the east coast of the North Island, calling New Zealanders to unite against bottom trawling, and … Read more

Whanganui Collegiate owner still working on fixing illegal hockey turf lease

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Source: Radio New Zealand Whanganui Collegiate. Google Maps Whanganui Collegiate’s owner is considering the best option for replacing a lease that breaches education legislation. The school has been paying the Whanganui Collegiate School Foundation for use of a hockey turf, even though integrated schools are not allowed to enter lease arrangements – only their owners … Read more

Prof Carole Cusack: Who put the bunny into Easter?

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Source: Radio New Zealand A row of Chocolate Easter bunnies, at a chocolate factory in Germany that specialises in Easter products, on 26 February. AFP/ Matthias Bein As Easter is celebrated this long weekend, have you ever wondered how the resurrection of Jesus Christ came to be celebrated alongside the Easter bunny? University of Sydney … Read more

Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke skips IMF event in Washington DC, cites price of fuel

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Source: Radio New Zealand Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke. Lillian Hanly Te Pāti Māori MP and the youngest New Zealand politician, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, has decided against attending an International Monetary Fund event in Washington DC due to global events and the struggle for people at home to pay for fuel. She said she was honoured to be part … Read more

Iran searches for downed US jet crew, claims second plane hit

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Source: Radio New Zealand By AFP teams in Tehran, Jerusalem, Washington, Beirut, Dubai and Sanaa This video grab taken on April 3, 2026, from undated UGC images shared on social media on April 1, 2026, shows thick plumes of smoke rising following airstrikes in Baharestan, in Iran’s central Isfahan province. AFP Iranian and American forces … Read more

Easter Sunday surcharges cannot have public holiday excuse, Consumer NZ says

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Source: Radio New Zealand Many hospitality businesses add surcharges on public holidays to cover the higher wage costs. 123rf A consumer watchdog says diners encountering surcharges over Easter should make sure businesses are not blaming a non-existent public holiday. Many hospitality businesses add surcharges on public holidays to cover the higher wage costs. But Consumer … Read more

NRL: NZ Warriors v Cronulla Sharks – what you need to know

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Source: Radio New Zealand Taine Tuaupiki and Will Kennedy will square off, when NZ Warriors face Cronulla Sharks. Photosport/RNZ NRL: NZ Warriors v Cronulla Sharks Kickoff 4pm, Sunday, 5 April Ocean Protect Stadium, Sydney Live blog updates on RNZ website Analysis: After the euphoria of a three-game winning streak to start the 2026 NRL season, … Read more

Parkrun: the growing phenomenon getting people walking and running

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Source: Radio New Zealand Parkrun’s philosophy is to create a healthier community with free volunteer-led, 5km runs or walks in open spaces every weekend around the world. Simon Watts / PHOTOSPORT It may have started out as a small group enjoying a jog, but Parkrun has now got people around the world buzzing. Every Saturday … Read more

GPs worry about patients missing appointments, low medicine stocks as fuel prices soar

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Source: Radio New Zealand Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners medical director Dr Luke Bradford. Supplied GPs are concerned about patients missing appointments and medicine stocks running low, as fuel prices continue to soar. The war in Iran is affecting supply chains worldwide, and recent reports claim the UK is “weeks away” from medication … Read more

Avalon in Lower Hutt was once part of the famous five-hectare Mason’s Garden

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Source: Radio New Zealand [brightcove]https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6386626163112 If you’re walking around Avalon in Lower Hutt, you might not realise you are walking past trees planted in the 1800s. Today’s suburban streets such as Avalon Crescent and Tennyson Avenue once upon a time ago were part of the famous five-hectare Mason’s Garden. What remains of Mason’s Garden today? … Read more

Easter Sunday trading rules ‘confusing’, need overhaul, EMA says

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Source: Radio New Zealand Small grocery shops are one of the few stores that can be exempt to shop shutdowns over Easter (file image). MARK PAPALII / RNZ A business association says Easter Sunday trading rules are confusing and need an overhaul. Restrictions on alcohol sales have just been eased, so that venues that could … Read more

Eddie Izzard on her long-awaited return to New Zealand

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Source: Radio New Zealand manda Searle Comedy legend Eddie Izzard is known for revolutionising the art of the stand-up monologue. Hers is a career that spans over four decades – comedy, yes – but it also includes acting, political campaigning and running marathons. She is drawing on it all for her standup tour ‘The Remix: … Read more

Country Life: Four farmers, one forgotten grain and the pasta-maker bringing it to the plate

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Source: Radio New Zealand A new packing machine is spitting out pasta as fast as it can be made at Monty and Sons, artisan pasta-makers based on the outskirts of Masterton. The “Sons” part of the brand is developing – the two young boys are at daycare while parents, Monty and Jess Petrie, turn a … Read more