The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin

Former US President Donald Trump has been found not guilty and has been acquitted in his second impeachment trial Trump was accused of inciting the 6th of January riot on Capitol Hill. Donald Trump released a statement following his acquittal at his second impeachment trial. In an email, he thanked his lawyers and the senators who voted to acquit him. He also thanked the 75 million people who vote...

Valentine's chocolate truffles 300gm dark chocolate 100ml cream 150gm unsalted butter Good quality cocoa powder for dusting   Break the chocolate up into a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of warm water to melt slowly until liquid. Heat the cream in a saucepan until warm and then pour over the melted chocolate, beating continuously till well combined. Place the softened butter into a mixing bowl and...

Cats are the most common companion animals in New Zealand. However, cats are also highly efficient predators and are known to kill all kinds of native wildlife, including birds, lizards, and insects. A new study out this week looked at 355 cats in 219 households over 12-weeks. It found that simple changes including playing with cats at home for 10 minutes a day and changing their diets to one high...

Slough House by Mick Herron Slough House by Mick Herron is the 7th in a fabulous series set in the world of MI5 – the place of the title is an office building where disgraced MI5 operatives are sent and spend their working days in a kind of purgatory, supervised by Jackson Lamb – a slothful, boorish, witty and possibly genius manager.  The Royal Correspondent by Alexandra Joel The Royal Correspond...

Minari is about a Korean American family who moves to an Arkansas farm in search of its own American dream. Amidst the challenges of this new life in the strange and rugged Ozarks, they discover the undeniable resilience of family and what really makes a home. Flicks editor Steve Newall joined Francesca Rudkin to discuss the film and Hollywood sequels.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for...

Bill Bailey is a famous UK comedian, actor, author and now also ballroom dancing champion having won BBC's popular dance competition Strictly Come Dancing. He's in New Zealand for a 12 centre tour called "En Route to Normal" which starts in Wellington March 13th and travels all over the country. Bailey joined Francesca Rudkin from his hotel room at a Managed Isolation Facility in Auckland.  LISTEN...

Motocross fans have been left fuming after being refused refunds for tickets bought to postponed Crusty Demons’ shows. The events scheduled for late February and early March have been postponed claiming recent changes in border restrictions means they could not book rooms in MIQ. It raises questions around when you are entitled to a refund when it comes to postponed events.  Consumer New Zealand H...

Extra training is being organised for health workers who'll be delivering the first doses of a Covid-19 vaccine. Border workers will start getting vaccinated from next Saturday, with the first batch of the vaccine due here sometime in the next few days. It is projected that 2-3000 full-time vaccinators will be needed across the country. Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says vaccinat...

I have come full circle with my love of the America’s Cup. There is no other competition like it right? I’m always on board when we’re racing – whether it goes our way or not. Like so many New Zealander’s, when it comes to the actual competition I’m there. Full support. I also become an expert at foiling, which to be honest I know little about. Okay so maybe yesterday’s first two races of the Prad...

Monday 22 February marks 10 years since the devastating 2011 Christchurch earthquake.  For the last decade filmmaker Gerard Smyth has been documenting the city's recovery from the quake and looking in particular at the rebuild of the central city.  Tonight Gerard's documentary called When A City Rises: The People's Story will air on TVNZ 1. It follows up from his prior film released immediately af...

I had an incredible experience last Tuesday. I went off on my own and did the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, which is one of the most popular day walks in New Zealand. I like to start at 6am. It’s cool, the track hasn’t yet filled up with people, and if you want to do a little jog like I do, you’re not annoying the crowds by trying to pass people. The first person I saw at the start of the track was a...

A Covid-influenced Waitangi Day dawn ceremony may have started a new tradition on New Zealand's national day. The ceremony, which started at 5am yesterday and was attended by hundreds of people, was done completely outside - a significant shift from previous years when a portion of the ceremony was done inside Te Whare Rūnanga marae. The change was largely made thanks to Covid-19, as organisers we...

Decades after the phenomenon that was The Howard Morrison Quartet shaped the NZ entertainment industry back in the 1950s and 60s, the act is about to hit the road again. This time with a new generation of showband artists – The Howard Morrison Quartet Take Two plans to bring the old quartet, led by the iconic Sir Howard Morrison, back to life. The tour kicks off this week, and Francesca Rudkin was...

Tell Me Lies by J.P.Pomare From a Kiwi writer who lives and writes in Melbourne where this is set. It’s a novel about a psychologist who has the good life – successful practice, great family etc – but then someone chucks a Molotov cocktail into her house one night and some of her clients start behaving really strangely. Has lots of twists and turns and is really good. The Four Winds by Kristin Han...

Kids are heading back to school this week - and for many parents who are trying to do their bit to cut back their carbon footprint, it means finding ways to keep your kids fed while not just packing their lunch box with non-degradable rubbish. Nicola Turner, author of Living Lightly: The Busy Person’s Guide to Mindful Consumption, joined Francesca Rudkin to share her tips on how to have a sustaina...

In recent years, 'hangry' - the combination of hungry and angry - has become a common phrase used to explain some people's bad moods. However, for many people, being 'hangry' may be a sign of a low blood sugar that can affect your mental health - and people with diabetes need to pay serious attention to these mood swings.  Wellbeing and health expert Erin O'Hara joined Francesca Rudkin to discuss...

For years, award shows have grappled with a problem that likely dwarfs all others when it comes to sagging ratings: An abundance of nominees that most people haven't heard of, much less seen, sapping the incentive to tune in. If the Golden Globe nominations announced Wednesday are any indication, the 2021 awards season -- coming amid the coronavirus pandemic that has deflated movie-going -- will p...

Chicken sausage rolls makes 3 long rolls, cooking time 30 minutes Filling 500 gm chicken mince 1 large courgette, grated and squeezed 1 small onion, peeled and finely sliced 1 tsp crushed garlic crushed 1 tsp salt ½ cup fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs 1 packet store brought puff pastry In a large bowl, combine all the filling ingredients Cut puff pastry into long strips approx. 15cm wide, lay-portione...

Roseanne Liang is a Kiwi film director with her sights on the big league. She first made a name for herself with her 2005 autobiographical documentary Banana in a Nutshell, followed by romcom My Wedding and Other Secrets in 2011. But it was with her 2017 action-short Do No Harm that Liang found international acclaim - and now she has directed her first big Hollywood action thriller. It’s called Sh...

A new study has found that, even if it's just a recording, the sound of birdsong considerably boosts wellbeing. The study, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B journal this week, built on evidence that spending time in nature has positive effects on human well-being. Adding audio speakers to two outdoor nature trails, the researchers alternated playing birdsong and turning the speak...

If you went to a cafe yesterday and paid a surcharge, what does that mean for Monday? If you’re working this weekend, do you get two lots of holiday pay? Waitangi Day is being Monday-ised - just the latest public holiday to be celebrated twice this year, with Anzac Day to follow in April. The spate of Monday-ised holidays has led to a bunch of questions about how it works for customers and staff a...

The Labour Government will use urgency on Tuesday to rush in a bill to get rid of a public veto on Māori wards - a step National Party leader Judith Collins says is undemocratic and cuts out voters. Labour has confirmed it will use urgency in Parliament for the first reading of the law change, and will then have just a one-week select committee process for public input before passing the law. Most...

Kiwi nut butter company Fix & Fogg has signed a major distribution deal with America's second-largest natural grocer to be stocked in 360 supermarkets in 36 states. The Wellington-based company signed the deal with Sprouts Farmers Market in December and its product was stocked on the Arizona-headquartered chain's store shelves last week, the Herald reports. Fix & Fogg, which was founded by former...

It's been an interesting week, hasn't it? But a bit of a bad week for the government on one of its core values. Of course, it's been a good week in the end, with the outbreaks which we were all concerned about. We maybe have got on top of that. But in terms of one of the core values of the government – transparency – I think it's been a bad week. Today, there's a story in the Herald on Sunday abou...

Trev Ponting could be back in New Zealand by Thursday, after MIQ reversed a decision which would have left the dying Kiwi stranded overseas. Japan-based Ponting has terminal brain cancer, and all he wants is to get home to see his mother. But an initial application for emergency spots in managed isolation for the 46-year-old, his wife Aiko and their two young children was turned down yesterday. Ju...