Matt Heath & Tyler Adams Afternoons

Ahead of the Super Rugby Aotearoa Final Crusaders v Chiefs Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford spoke to All Black Great and Sky Sport Commentator Jeff Wilson. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tom Walsh is a shot-put star and one of New Zealand’s most successful field athletes, having won bronze at Rio in 2016, gold at the 2017 World Championship, and gold at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.  He’s the Oceania record holder with a personal best throw of 22.90 meters, and is gearing up for this year’s Tokyo Olympic Games.   Tom was Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford’s guest for this we...

A major diplomatic incident has been avoided in Europe after a Belgian farmer accidentally moved the border with France, making his home country about 1,000 square meters bigger. Luckily, local authorities saw the funny side. The border between Belgium and France stretches 620 kilometres and the stone markers that define it have been peacefully in place for more than 200 years. One of the boundary...

The father of a three-year-old boy found after 20 hours ... says the community's help was amazing. Axle disappeared yesterday in Tolaga Bay -- after wandering off with a neighbour's dog. He was found today after a huge search and rescue operation. His father, Glen, says hundreds were involved in the search, with some even jumping into the river at 10.30 last night to look for him. He says Axle and...

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A little white dog pointed searchers in the right direction to find a young boy who disappeared in Tolaga Bay. Three-year-old Axle was found safe today, 20 hours after he went missing with his neighbour's dog, Bro. Except Bro returned alone yesterday afternoon. The dog's owner, Damon Jeffery told Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford the pair are good mates. "He follows Axel everywhere and I guess Axel d...

New Zealand has come in second to last in an international survey by Consumers International that examined how well 11 products could be recycled in nine countries. Consumer NZ was part of the survey and CEO John Duffy joined Simon Barnett & Phil Gifford on the show. He says other countries are putting us to shame. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Travel agents are seeing a burst of people booking a tropical holiday in the Cook Islands. Quarantine-free travel between Rarotonga and New Zealand starts from May 17. Flight Centre group managing director David Coombes told Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford people have been patiently waiting for a bubble date. He says as we head into the winter season, people will be looking at go somewhere to get s...

New Zealand Rugby's provincial unions have voted unanimously in favour of a deal with us investment firm silver lake. The deal's worth nearly $390 million dollars; in exchange for a 12.5 % stake. But of course, the deal isn't complete. It requires sign off from the NZ Rugby Players’ Association, and negotiations between the association and NZ Rugby are on hold. Brent Impey is the NZ Rugby Chairman...

New Zealand Rugby could be a loss-making venture by 2025 and living off its capital reserves if it takes the deal with Silver Lake. The national union will, according to an independent report by world renowned accountancy firm BDO, be running at an operational loss of almost $11m in four years if Silver Lake only deliver 50 per cent of their ambitious revenue growth targets. The Herald has gained...

Some tough calls for our national medicines agency. Pharmac has released figures around what it would spend on drugs if more funding was available. It includes 400 million dollars a year on up to 73 drugs. National Party Deputy Leader and Health Spokesperson Shane Reti joined Simon Barnett & Phil Gifford to discuss the issue and had a challenge for the Government. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/l...

Pic Picot’s peanut butter business has grown from a one-man operation in his garage to employing over 50 people and being one of the most respected brands in the country.  He’s set up a string of businesses throughout his colourful career including a leather sandal maker, furniture maker, restaurateur, and a sailing school owner before hitting his winning peanut butter formula later in life.    In...

World Vision is calling on more transparency on our imports. Its research shows 3.1 billion dollars of imports are produced with forced labour. They want Government legislation to force companies to report on their product sources. Countries like Canada and Australia have laws designed to make supply chains more transparent. World Vision National Director Grant Bayldon says we should, too. He spok...

The online reviews database Rotten Tomatoes has unearthed a negative 80-year-old write-up of "Citizen Kane," stripping the cinematic classic of its perfect score among critics and demoting it below movies including "Paddington 2" and "The Terminator." Orson Welles' masterpiece is widely considered one of the most important titles in movie history, pioneering a number of filmmaking techniques that...

Research from Otago University has found ''positive parenting" can prevent alcohol abuse in adulthood. Academics looked at data from the Christchurch Health and Development Study - the world renowned longitudinal research that's followed the lives of more than a thousand people since 1977. Psychological medicine professor Joe Boden says his team examined symptoms of alcohol disorder in adulthood....

As the situation in India continues to deteriorate Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford asked if the IPL cricket should be stopped. Varun called in and shared this intensely personal story about his daily phone calls with his Mum and Dad in Delhi. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand Cricket Players Association boss Heath Mills knows those at the Indian Premier League are anxious about what they're seeing. Some foreign players have chosen to return home, due to concerns around the Covid-19 crisis in the country. But Mills says the New Zealand players he's spoken to are comforted by being well-looked-after by their teams. Heath Mills spoke to Simon Barnett & Phil Gi...

Making GP visits free is being seen as an investment, rather than a drain. A Herald analysis has found enrolled patients can pay between 10 and 70 dollars for an appointment in Auckland, or 90 dollars if they're not enrolled. Health Minister Andrew Little is reviewing health sector funding - and has suggested GP fees could be lowered for some. Dr Samantha Murton is President of the Royal College o...

In February, it seemed like India had gotten Covid-19 under control, with daily cases falling nearly 90% from the peak of the first wave last year. Now, the country is experiencing the world's worst outbreak. Daily cases have been rising continuously for the past 10 days; on Monday, India reported 352,991 new cases, breaking yet another record for the highest single-day figure globally. On the gro...

For some, flailing around in a clear box suspended 115 feet above the streets of London is the stuff of nightmares. For others, it's the ultimate status symbol. The Sky Pool is a 82-foot (25-meter) transparent swimming pool stretched between the 10th stories of two residential skyscrapers in southwest London's Nine Elms neighbourhood -- and it's only open to the apartment complex's lucky residents...

Sydney Morning Herald foreign affairs correspondent Anthony Galloway says Australian officials felt "blindsided" by comments by Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta. She's not comfortable with expanding the alliance's remit to joint foreign policy positions. Professor Robert Patman told Si & Phil not all Five Eyes countries have the same positions on human rights and democracy. He says we have serious d...

Josh Emett is a household name in New Zealand.  He worked and won Michelin stars with Gordon Ramsay for more than a decade in the UK, before coming home to open a string of successful restaurants including his new acclaimed restaurant Onslow, and finding fame as a judge on 5 seasons of Masterchef.  He was Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford’s guest for this week's Six and a Song.   LISTEN ABOVE See omn...

Derek Chauvin's guilty verdict in the murder of 46 year old black man George Floyd doesn't mean all black people will receive justice. A jury has today found the former Minneapolis police officer guilty of second and third degree murder, and second degree manslaughter. They deliberated for just over 11 hours, asking no questions along the way. But Black Lives Matter co-founder Sandy Hudson told Si...

Floating hotels have been popping up all over the world in recent years, with destinations like Dubai and Qatar leading the way with increasingly innovative and outlandish structures. But this new concept from Turkish design team Hayri Atak Architectural Design Studio (HAADS) may just blow all the others out of the water in terms of eco consciousness. Not only does the luxury hotel design, which h...

Taneatua School Principal Marama Stewart has found an innovative way to combat fighting at school and absenteeism. She joined Phil Gifford and Tyler Adams to explain how Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu has helped her students. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.