The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin

Many of us value our work to the point where we tie our identities to our jobs, but one expert suggests we shouldn't. Workplace expert, journalist and author Simone Stolzoff urges readers to live more diverse lives and find fulfilment in other ways- with only a few changes. Stolzoff has spoken with Wall Street bankers, teachers, and even Google's Chief Talent Officer to challenge workaholism in hi...

It's the end of another Super Rugby Pacific season- but the same result, with the Crusaders taking the title. The reigning champions defended their crown with a clutch 25-20 victory over the Chiefs in Hamilton. ZB rugby commentator Elliott Smith says the match was a tense drama-filled one, but both teams were limited by the stakes of the final. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

The National Party hope to fire up their base this weekend before the campaign trail kicks off. Leader Chris Luxon is giving a keynote speech today, and it's also understood he will be announcing a law and order policy. It's been accidentally revealed National is aiming for a 45 percent share of the vote. NZ Herald political editor Claire Trevett says National will be more optimistic this election...

The race to explore the depths of space is underway, and it's no longer just the domain of NASA. Technology writer Ashlee Vance wrapped up a five-year in-depth investigation into the private companies seeking to explore beyond the stars. Vance went behind the scenes at Planet Labs, Rocket Lab, Astra, and Firefly Aerospace and researched their labs and top-secret launch locations for a new book- Wh...

Motorists have been enjoying less taxes on their fuel, but costs are set to go up next weekend. The fuel tax subsidy comes to an end on June 30th, with the price per litre expected to jump by 29 cents. Gull General Manager Dave Bodger expects heavy trade this week for all fuel companies- and hopes pumps won't run dry. "Remember, this is a petrol issue, there's no excise tax on diesel. Again, if yo...

A deep sea specialist who raised safety concerns about the Titan submersible says its fate was inevitable. All five passengers, including OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, died when the sub imploded on a commercial trip to the Titanic shipwreck. Kiwi deep sea specialist Rob McCallum had several concerns about the Titan submersible, including the use of carbon fibre and off-the-shelf products to constru...

A few weeks ago, I spoke to filmmaker Matthieu Rytz about his stunning documentary Deep Rising. He was in the country speaking at the DocEdge Film Festival and providing a rare insight into the secretive world of the corporations mining the ocean floor.   Deep Rising takes us 4km down to the bottom of the South Pacific, where the Clarion-Clipperton zone lies. It’s a dark, cold, sparse world we kno...

Stealing  by Margaret Verble. It was on the list of most notable books of 2023 of several international publications. Quiet, gentle story about not quiet not gentle things.   Kit is a 9 year old Cherokee girl who lives in remote countryside with her father after the death of her mother. She makes friends with Bella who’s much older and these two loners become close, despite a difference in their a...

Having access to data and internet is still essential when travelling, and there are ways to connect when you're away from home. Having a working connection to the internet and data is always important, as you'll always need messaging, maps, browser access and Uber to get around an unfamiliar place. BloggerAtLarge's Megan Singleton explains the benefits of eSim plans to stay connected overseas. Me...

This week on The Sunday Panel, NZ Herald senior writer Simon Wilson and partner at Freebairn and Hehir lawyers, Liam Hehir joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! Political commentator Matthew Hooten said he believes National will be scared of ACT in the lead-up to the election- do we agree? Will minor parties be a bigger deal this election?   High schoolers are...

Men's Health Week 2023 has come to an end, but the conversation about men's health shouldn't conclude anytime soon. Research shows that men are up to 50 percent less likely to seek medical attention than women- putting themselves at risk. Studies show than men avoid seeking medical attention for as long as possible, citing reasons such as being too busy, believing ailments will heal by themselves,...

The sixth season of popular Netflix dystopia Black Mirror arrived on Netflix on June 15th. The anthology series famed for exploring nightmarish future scenarios based on technology has been on hiatus for four years, and fans are hoping the new season delivers. Flicks.co.nz editor Steve Newall says Black Mirror may have lost its bite after airing for over a decade, but the series is exploring new t...

Seeded GF Crackers   Cook time: 20 minutes   Prep time: 10 minutes   Serves: 4   50 gm linseeds   30 gm ground linseeds   20 gm rice flour   20 gm buckwheat flour   1 tsp ground cumin   1 tsp chopped rosemary   1 tbsp sunflower/pumpkin seeds   1/2 tsp fine salt   1/2 tsp flaky salt   Preheat your oven to 170*c.   Place your whole linseeds into a bowl and add 100ml of boiling water. Pop to one side...

This week, we are talking supermarkets!   With groceries increasing in price, many of us want to spend less money in the supermarket. This week research published in the Journal of Marketing Research  suggests that all you need to save money is a pair of ear plugs.   The study looked at 150,000 supermarket shopping trips from 7am to 11pm. They partnered with a professional sound design agency to c...

Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon has resigned after it came to light he'd failed to declare conflicts of interests. It came to light that Foon didn't declare that a company he directed received more than $2 million for the provision of emergency housing. In April it was revealed he and his family made donations to Labour MP Kiri Allan and a National candidate. NZ Herald political reporter Ada...

Fans everywhere are often faced with the dilemma of enjoying the content made by problematic entertainers. Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, Kanye West, Picasso and many others have delivered well-loved works, but their less than perfect actions and views dilute their output. Author Claire Dederer has explored this conundrum in her new book Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma. "Because the subject matter was sor...

Australian Grammy-nominated duo The Teskey Brothers are back with their third album- and there's a key difference. This recent album is the first musical project created solely by the two brothers, Josh and Sam Teskey. The duo are currently on tour and will arrive in New Zealand in December, but they're enjoying working their way through Europe. "We're really living here, we're really making it ou...

The Antarctic Heritage Trust has named their largest contingent for the ninth Inspiring Explorers Expedition. 22 explorers aged 18- 30 will travel to South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic Ocean in September. Among the young explorers is former Tampa refugee Abbas Nazari- author of acclaimed After the Tampa. He says he threw his hat in the ring for this incredible opportunity because the age c...

Rugby fans are waiting for Ian Foster to unveil his first All Blacks squad of the year. The All Blacks head coach is set to name his 36-man squad for the looming Rugby Championship tonight, at the Te Awamutu Rugby Sports & Recreation Club. ZB rugby commentator Elliott Smith says it's hard to foresee any major surprises, and predicts Shaun Stevenson and Tamaiti Williams will be selected. LISTEN...

ACT believes the Race Relations Commissioner should go - calling it a political role masquerading as an apolitical, taxpayer-funded public service role. Commissioner Meng Foon has resigned after he didn't declare that a company he directed received more than $2 million for the provision of emergency housing. In April it was revealed he and his family made donations to Labour MP Kiri Allan and a Na...

I don’t know about you, but I find this time of year a bit tiring. We get up in the dark, many of us come home in the dark, and it’s a bit chilly and wet. It’s easy to find ourselves looking inwards, and having a whine.    Which is why National leader Chris Luxon’s comment that NZ was a “wet, whiny, inward-looking country” during the week was so notable. Obviously, no matter the context it’s not t...

Yellowface by Rebecca Kuang. Young, smart and extraordinarily prolific writer with some fantasy to her name and then the book Babel which has been very strong since published in September last year. This new one is very different - set in the world of publishing, there’s a huge buzz around it internationally. It’s about two writers, one of whom has made it and the other hasn’t - so when the succes...

BloggerAtLarge's Megan Singleton got a new experience on her fourth trip to Palm Springs in Séc-he. The Spa at Séc-he is built on the ancient site of Agua Caliente Hot Mineral Spring, using the natural hot springs to fill the pools. Megan Singleton says one appointment will allow visitors to use all the facilities- gym, natural spring pools, sauna, and salt cave. Read more about Megan's trip to Pa...

The early results are in- Netflix's strategy to increase subscribers by cracking down on password sharing works. The streaming service has reported the biggest jump in subscribers since the early days of Covid-19, thanks to their new limitations on account sharing. US subscribers can only use accounts within one household- users will have to pay an extra fee to add outside members on. Flicks.co.nz...

New York journalist and author David Grann subverted colonial stereotypes in his retelling of a seafaring story. On January 28, 1742, thirty survivors of His Majesty’s Ship the Wager washed up months after being wrecked off off the coast of Patagonia, and the crew were greeted as heroes. Six months later, three more castaways turned up off the coast of Chile with a different story about how everyo...