Saturday Morning
1,387 episodes - English - Latest episode: 8 days ago - ★★★★★ - 1 ratingA magazine programme with long-form, in-depth feature interviews on current affairs, science, modern life, history, the arts and more.
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Episodes
William Sitwell: dishing up the history of dining out
April 14, 2023 20:30 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBSince controversially mocking vegans in 2018, British food critic William Sitwell has been "nicer" to people with a plant-based diet. The long-term MasterChef judge tells Kim Hill about his own food philosophy and his new book The Restaurant - A History of Eating Out.
The Wagner Group: doing Russia’s dirty work in Africa
April 14, 2023 20:10 - 22 minutes - 20.4 MBA shadowy Russian private military company has been increasingly making its presence felt in Africa. The Wagner Group, often dubbed Putin's private army, has been involved in conflicts in Libya, Sudan, and the Central African Republic. They stand accused of committing human rights abuses and supporting authoritarian regimes. This is in addition to the company having an estimated 50,000 troops fighting on the Russian side in Ukraine. Julia Stanyard, a senior analyst with the non-governmen...
Nanny Pura Whale: a life of service to the Maori Wardens
April 08, 2023 03:00 - 15 minutes - 14.3 MBAlmost every Friday and Saturday night Nanny Pura Whale puts on her Maori Warden uniform and heads out into the night to watch over the shops and youth of Taihape. It's something the 79 year old has done for nearly 35 years. And she has no intention of stopping anytime soon. She also stars in a new documentary about the wardens on Whakaata Maori (formerly known as Maori TV). The film focuses on the wardens as they face the most significant change to the organisation since its inception a...
Saturday Morning Listener Feedback
April 08, 2023 00:00 - 3 minutes - 3.57 MBListener feedback from Saturday Morning 8th April
Danyl McLauchlan: why we vote the way we do
April 07, 2023 23:35 - 19 minutes - 17.6 MBScientist and writer Danyl McLauchlan joins Kim to tackle life's big questions, ideas and thinkers. This week he delves into the drivers of voting behaviour. Political scientists suggest there are three different types of vote: some of us vote based on identity; some of us vote retrospectively - we look at the last three years and ask if things have gone well. And some of us vote transactionally, i.e. anticipating that we might get a tax cut. Danyl is the author of two novels and Tranqui...
John Ross in Taiwan
April 07, 2023 23:05 - 30 minutes - 28 MBTaiwan's pivotal location off the China coast and between Northeast and Southeast Asia has served a variety of strategic purposes for regional powers both now and historically. It's proved to be as important for New Zealand writer and publisher John Ross. John has spent more than 30 years living in and reporting on Asia. His solo travels have taken him to destinations including Papua New Guinea, Mongolia, and Myanmar, where he wrote dispatches on the Karen insurgency, embedded with the p...
Daniel M Lavery: the awkwardness of gender transition
April 07, 2023 22:06 - 34 minutes - 31.4 MBAmerican writer Daniel Lavery says the idea that he'd enjoy living as a male was the biggest motivation for a gender transition in his early 30s.
Dr Fatima Cody Stanford: Obesity vs Ozempic
April 07, 2023 21:40 - 19 minutes - 17.4 MBHarvard Medical School Associate Professor Dr Fatima Cody Stanford has spent much of her career pushing for changes in the way the medical establishment thinks about and treats obesity. Dr Stanford believes that continuing prejudice against people with obesity and a lack of recognition of it as a chronic health condition is an ongoing barrier to improved health outcomes. She has long been an advocate for the use of medication to treat obesity, and is now at the forefront of discussion ar...
Poet Michele Leggott: waiting for a miracle
April 07, 2023 21:07 - 33 minutes - 30.6 MBMichele Leggott's latest book of poetry, Face to the Sky, explores her encounter with 19th-century New Zealand botanical artist Emily Cumming Harris. But there's more to this story - Michele was battling non-Hodgkin's lymphoma while working on the book. In early 2020, Michele received her diagnosis, just as the Covid-19 lockdowns began. Chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and a stem cell transplant in 2021 failed to cure her cancer. Finally, in early 2022, Michele was able to participate in a CA...
Meg Smaker: the most controversial film of 2022
April 07, 2023 20:36 - 24 minutes - 22.5 MBMeg Smaker's 2022 documentary film about a de-radicalisation centre triggered such a backlash around the time of its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival that it was effectively blacklisted. But Jihad Rehab, later renamed The UnRedacted, has gone on to sell out screenings in America, receive support from presenters, audiences and prominent American Muslims. It played in New Zealand at the Doc Edge Film Festival last year and Smaker will attend a special one-off screening in Auckland in...
David Mitchell: Brexit's impact on the Good Friday agreement
April 07, 2023 20:12 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBIt's a quarter of a century since the Good Friday Agreement was signed, ending decades of violence in Northern Ireland. But there are new concerns the document's promise of peace could be threatened, as Brexit negotiations shine a light on Northern Ireland's constitutional place within the United Kingdom. Last month a deal, known as the Windsor Framework, was reached between the UK and EU leaders over the Irish border issue, but not everyone is happy with the outcome, including the Union...
Saturday morning Listener Feed back
December 16, 2022 22:55 - 4 minutes - 4.26 MBSaturday morning listener feedback
The best books of 2022 with Kate De Goldi and Laura Kroetsch
December 16, 2022 22:05 - 51 minutes - 47.3 MBWriters Kate De Goldi and Laura Kroetsch join Kim Hill to share their favourite books of the year. From a tour of sea creatures to a novel with four versions of the same story, and a history of bodily freedoms, their picks offer eclectic and electric reading options for the summer.
Bee Dawson: the heroes of Otari-Wilton's bush
December 16, 2022 21:35 - 15 minutes - 14.5 MBWellington's Otari-Wilton's Bush is the only botanic garden dedicated solely to the collection and conservation of plants unique to Aotearoa. For writer and historian Bee Dawson it's a place of stories - of both national botanical heroes and local community.
Brigid Delaney: how to be Stoic in Chaotic Times
December 16, 2022 21:07 - 33 minutes - 30.2 MBIf you're feeling frazzled with the festive season, then you might want to take a leaf out of Brigid Delaney's new book. The author and senior writer for Guardian Australia says she spent years living a chaotic lifestyle but in 2018 turned her attention to Stoicism, an ancient philosophy which promotes the idea that we shouldn't unnecessarily worry about things outside our control. Drawing on age-old schools of thought, Delaney's book Reasons Not to Worry, How to be Stoic in Chaotic Time...
Lawrence Millman: was Santa tripping on magic mushrooms?
December 16, 2022 20:37 - 17 minutes - 16.3 MBWhen we think about the origins of Santa Claus most of us envision Saint Nicholas, Sinterklaas and maybe Coca-Cola. Adventurer, writer and mycologist Lawrence Millman sees a large red and white psychedelic 'amanita muscaria' mushroom.
Principal experimentalist explains nuclear fusion breakthrough
December 16, 2022 20:07 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBRecreating nuclear fusion - the reaction that powers stars including our sun - is seen as the holy grail of energy technology, holding potential to create a near-unlimited source of safe clean energy. This week, scientists at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory made a huge breakthrough.
Danyl McLauchlan: neurodiversity and me
December 16, 2022 19:40 - 15 minutes - 14.1 MBDanyl McLauchlan joins Kim to tackle life's big questions, ideas and thinkers. This week, how neurodiverse really are we?
Sam McAlister: the woman behind that Prince Andrew interview
December 16, 2022 19:10 - 32 minutes - 29.3 MBIn November 2019 a BBC interview with Prince Andrew sent shockwaves around the world. This was one of many exclusive interviews secured by "booker extraordinaire" Sam McAlister, a former producer on the BBC's Newsnight programme, who also convinced Elon Musk, Sheryl Sandberg and Stormy Daniels to sit in the hot seat. She has now released a book: Scoops: Behind the Scenes of the BBC's Most Shocking Interviews.
Listener feedback for 10 December 2022
December 09, 2022 22:55 - 1 minute - 1.61 MBListener feedback for 10 December 2022.
Kate Louise Elliot: the power of theatre in a community
December 09, 2022 22:43 - 18 minutes - 16.8 MBIn the play-within-a-play which is Thomas Sainsbury and Chris Parker's The Opening Night Before Christmas, the Levin Community Players are presenting the town's annual Christmas pageant. It's currently being produced up the road at Palmerston North's Centrepoint Theatre, with real-life Centrepoint general manager and artistic director Kate Louise Elliot playing the writer and director of Levin's show. Elliot knows all about the comedy and tragedy of theatre.
Mike Parker Pearson: Stonehenge’s purpose and origins
December 09, 2022 22:06 - 36 minutes - 33.6 MBStonehenge discoveries have been numerous in recent years, with new techniques allowing us to learn more about a monument so ancient there are no records to explain why or how it was created. A leader in this research is archaeology professor Mike Parker Pearson.
Jaye Pukepuke: the bro helping at-risk youth
December 09, 2022 21:40 - 19 minutes - 17.6 MB"It's easier to build strong children than to repair broken men" is one of Jaye Pukepuke's favourite quotes. After a promising rugby league career and a prison sentence, Jaye now runs the Christchurch-based youth education programme Bros for Change.
Brad DeLong: the modern dream slouches towards utopia
December 09, 2022 21:06 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBIf you had told people 150 years ago how well off the world would become, they would have anticipated paradise. So why do things feel so broken? A former advisor to President Clinton and a professor of economic history at Berkeley, Brad DeLong's magnum opus Slouching Towards Utopia is a big 150 year history of the creation of the modern world. It begins in 1870, with the birth of free market capitalism and the industrial research lab, and takes in the rise of globalisation and the multin...
Jonathan McDowell: a year of space exploration in review
December 09, 2022 20:40 - 20 minutes - 18.8 MBIt's been a busy year for space exploration. Phase one of NASA's Artemis mission is scheduled to conclude on Monday, bringing us spellbinding new images of our moon.
Hugh Rennie: overcoming 150 years of NZ misrule in the Chathams
December 09, 2022 20:05 - 32 minutes - 29.5 MBIn 1990, writes Sir Hugh Rennie in Chathams Resurgent: How the Islanders overcame 150 years of misrule, the islanders had lived with "years of muddlement, some good intentions, financial waste, exploitation and theft and failure to deliver democratic rights and basic infrastructure."
Prof Catherine Fowler: the greatest film you’ve never seen
December 09, 2022 19:40 - 15 minutes - 14.4 MBIt's a film some people say is like watching paint dry, whilst others say it will change your life. And it's the film that this month 1600 film critics and academics voted the greatest film of all time, knocking Vertigo from the top slot. 1975's Jeanne Dielman, 23 Commerce Quay, 1080 Brussels, by Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman is a three hour and 21 minute long film following the daily routine of a widow, whose chores include making the beds, cooking dinner, and turning the occasional...
Hon. Ralph Regenvanu: Vanuatu demands climate change justice
December 09, 2022 19:12 - 31 minutes - 28.6 MBOne of the countries most under threat from climate change, Pacific neighbour Vanuatu is taking a lead in the fight against climate change.
Brett Gartrell: Avian influenza could devastate native birds
December 03, 2022 04:35 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MBOne of the country's leading wildlife veterinary experts warns a heavy-handed response may be needed to limit damage if a particularly infectious strain of bird flu reaches our shores.
Saturday Morning Feedback
December 02, 2022 23:00 - 2 minutes - 2.73 MBSusie reads listener feedback from the show.
Mike Hewson: the fine art of taking risks
December 02, 2022 21:40 - 18 minutes - 17 MBNZ born civil engineer turned installation artist Mike Hewson thinks that safe playgrounds are dangerous for children.
Prof Mike Berridge: recognising vital work in cellular science
December 02, 2022 21:05 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MBRenowned scientist Professor Mike Berridge is having his work in cell biology recognised with a doctorate this month. Career highlights have included research he led showing how tumours use mitochondria to grow, and work with blood-forming stem cells.
Jonathan Drori: photosynthesis and an underground pitcher plant
December 02, 2022 20:40 - 16 minutes - 15.5 MBAuthor, plant lover and former BBC documentary maker Jonathan Drori joins the show for a chat about some of the latest botanical news.
Edda Mussolini and the rise and fall of fascism
December 02, 2022 20:05 - 30 minutes - 28.3 MBEdda Mussolini was Benito's favourite daughter and his confidante during 20 years of fascist rule. She acted as envoy to both Germany and Britain, helping steer Italy to join forces with Hitler. UK historian and biographer Caroline Moorehouse's Edda Mussolini: The Most Dangerous Woman in Europe is an account of "the unravelling of the Fascist dream".
Vivian Wang: on the ground at China's zero-covid protests
December 02, 2022 19:10 - 24 minutes - 22.5 MBIn response to the largest public protests since Tiananmen Square, Chinese government officials have signaled a shift away from 'Zero Covid' and eased some restrictions.
Kelly Francis: the Whenua Warrior cultivating food security
November 26, 2022 03:30 - 17 minutes - 16.4 MBKelly Francis's dream is that every New Zealander has access to a garden of fresh, healthy food to eat and share. From her base in Mangere she's making a vision of community-led food sovereignty a reality, one mari kai at a time.
Listener feedback for 26 November 2022
November 25, 2022 22:59 - 3 minutes - 2.94 MBListener feedback for 26 November 2022.
Gerard Hindmarsh: preserving stories of Nelson’s backcountry
November 25, 2022 22:30 - 15 minutes - 14.6 MBGolden Bay freelance journalist and author Gerard Hindmarsh is back with his latest collection of stories, with a focus on Golden Bay's West Coast and Kahurangi National Park.
Dr Matthew Phillips: could fasting and keto heal brains?
November 25, 2022 22:10 - 38 minutes - 35.3 MBHamilton based clinical and research neurologist Dr Matthew Phillips is frustrated by how little he and his colleagues can help patients with degenerative brain disorders, such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, as well as cancer. Drug treatments can lessen symptoms but there's no effective preventive or curative regime for conditions currently affecting over 80,000 New Zealanders.
Colm Tóibín: writing on changes in life, church and state
November 25, 2022 20:05 - 50 minutes - 46.6 MBThe author of 10 novels, Colm Tóibín's collection of essays A Guest at the Feast begins by taking us back to his childhood. Starting with growing up in Enniscorthy, County Wexford he also tracks the changes in Ireland, its church and state and, intertwined, his own personal life.
Fatboy Slim: right about now, the funk soul brother
November 25, 2022 19:25 - 34 minutes - 31.7 MBEnglish DJ Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim) tells Kim Hill why he still loves "spreading tales of abandon and community and hedonism and connection" to dance floors around the world.
Lina Abu Akleh: justice for the death of her journalist aunt
November 25, 2022 19:10 - 14 minutes - 13.6 MBIt's six months since renowned Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed while reporting in the occupied West Bank. Initially, the Israeli military denied involvement but have since admitted there is a "high likelihood" it was an accidental shooting by an Israeli soldier Shireen's niece Lina Abu Akleh believes the attack was intentional, and has become the face of an international campaign to demand accountability.
Saturday Morning Feedback for 27 August 2022
August 26, 2022 23:50 - 5 minutes - 4.79 MBFeedback for Saturday Mornings with Kim Hill August 27th
Dr Deidre Brown: early Christian missions and taonga Maori
August 26, 2022 22:35 - 18 minutes - 17.1 MBDr Deidre Brown has a life-long interest in the relationship between Maori and early Christian missionaries.
Zarifa Gharafi: the mayor who faced the Taliban
August 26, 2022 22:04 - 32 minutes - 30.1 MBIn November 2019, Zarifa Ghafari became the mayor of Maidan Shahr, the capital city of Wardak Province, Afghanistan. She is one of the only female mayors in Afghan history and the youngest - appointed at age 26.
Josephine Cachemaille: bringing back the 90s rave
August 26, 2022 21:40 - 12 minutes - 11.5 MBWhat has 90s rave culture got to offer the anxious 2020s? Back in the mid-90s Nelson-based artist Josephine Cachemaille was cofounder and general manager of The Gathering, described as "New Zealand's most transformative, influential and downright legendary music festival". Cachemaille has reunited with two artist friends, Eve Armstrong and Gabby O'Connor to bring back the dance party as an art project at Wellington's Enjoy Gallery.
Trevor Mallard: our Speaker of the House off to Ireland
August 26, 2022 21:04 - 33 minutes - 31.1 MBThe Right Honourable Trevor Mallard resigned as Speaker of the House this week after 35 years as a Member of Parliament. He will soon take up a three-year posting in Dublin as our second resident Ambassador to Ireland.
Maggie O'Farrell: beauty & brutality in Renaissance Italy
August 26, 2022 20:10 - 45 minutes - 41.6 MBSet in Renaissance Italy, Maggie O'Farrell's ninth novel The Marriage Portrait imagines the lost story of Lucrezia de' Medici, who was betrothed to the Duke of Ferrara at age 13.
James Goggin: creating a more human design with Fuzzy Logic
August 19, 2022 22:45 - 15 minutes - 14 MBThere's a contemporary drive for artificial intelligence to be more precise and, in being so, more human. Yet some argue that our lack of precision is at the core of what actually makes us human. Graphic designer James Goggin has been revisiting Fuzzy Logic, an intentionally imprecise computational theory first conceived back in 1965.
Ben Novak: should we bring extinct animals back from the dead?
August 19, 2022 22:10 - 32 minutes - 29.4 MBBen Novak was 14 years old when he decided to dedicate his life to resurrecting extinct animals. Now, aged 35, Novak is a de-extinction biologist with Revive & Restore, an American organisation aiming to enhance biodiversity through the genetic rescue of extinct and endangered species.