Saturday Morning with Jack Tame

I visited Sir Michael Cullen at his home a couple of months ago and had the great privilege of a few hours of his time, at a moment when it was clear his time was very limited. We spoke about all sorts of different things: Rogernomics, the monarchy, the foreshore and seabed. He talked about God (or, in his opinion, the lack thereof). He spoke frankly about his illness and death. For an egalitarian, Sir Michael Cullen lived a very rich life. And upon news of his death yesterday I found myself thinking of one specific policy, one piece of his work that we discussed, that really stands out to me. Kiwisaver is amazing. It’s such a good idea. Simple. Boring. But incredibly effective. More than the Super Fund and more than interest free student loans, I think Kiwisaver will define Sir Michael Cullen’s legacy for generations to come. There is currently about $60 Billion under management in New Zealanders’ Kiwisaver accounts. Just think about that. $60 Billion. For a nation of notoriously bad savers, a nation with ludicrously high house prices and massive personal debt, Kiwisaver could be the difference between dignity in older age and a pretty miserly existence. In a way, the beauty of it is that half of us don’t even know we’re saving. We don’t think about funds or providers. We never consider the power of compact interest over time. If we’re automatically enrolled, it’s much more hassle to organise a Kiwisaver holiday than it is to just keep on contributing. I’ll be honest, as a younger person, I sometimes feel resentful about the future my generation faces. Many people my age will be locked out of home ownership. The sustainability of superannuation is seriously under threat. Climate change is baked in, and we’re the ones who’ll have to live with the effects. And truthfully, we won’t really see the true scale of Kiwisaver benefits for a few more decades, when people who’ve been enrolled in Kiwisaver for the whole of their working lives can access the money they’ve tucked away, when they finally turn 65. There it's my generation, for all the things we feel short-changed by, who will most benefit from Kiwisaver. All of us who are lucky enough to make it that far and who have been in Kiwisaver since the beginning of our working lives will have Sir Michael Cullen to thank for giving us a materially better retirement. A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in. I hope we remember him then as we do today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Billie Eilish has released her second album, "Happier than Ever". Music reviewer Estelle Clifford has been taking a listen.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Book reviewer Catherine Raynes has been reading Red Traitor by Owen Matthews and John Boyne's The Echo Chamber. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Travel writer Mike Yardley has been keeping things domestic, and this week he's got some tips for roaming Palliser Bay. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chaenomeles japonica Gardeners often have a love-hate relationship with plants, shrubs and trees - there's nothing wrong with that. For me it‘s bulbs. I love them when they flower in early spring, but hate them when I forget where they are and inadvertently dig them up. Then there are roses. Some are brilliant flower-producing specimens, but generally they’re a real bugger to prune, especially climbers, when you haven’t got a great deal of hair left on your head! This all brings me to Japanese Quince, Chaenomeles japonica, a deciduous shrub native to Japan, related to both true quinces and Chinese quinces. In the middle of winter, mid-July onwards, this shrub flowers a brilliant orange/red/coral. It’s a beacon that says: “Pollen right here! Nectar available” for those bugs and birds that dare to come and get it. It’s the promise that there will be a spring… at some stage. For six weeks or so it has gorgeous flowers with yellow stamen – the look of fecundity. No leaves yet, just flowers on branches older than a year. It’s hardy (in freezing conditions it’ll thrive) and can be grown in large pots/containers. Chaenomeles also sets fruit, usually smallish and yellow – very hard and bad eating before the frost! After frost it is softer, but still not too great, really. It’s best to use for making marmalade and jellies, and some folks create liqueurs! The fruit is seriously high in pectin and are therefore useful for preserves and jam with other fruit sources. Chinese medicine mentions arthritis and muscle cramps. Japanese Quince likes full sun but will also grow in part shade. Well-drained soils and preferably nutritiously fertile growing conditions. I think a hand-full of sulphate of potash in spring might be useful for flower set next winter. The traditional red flowering variety is my favourite – it can be espaliered against a wall/fence. But that’s where my problem starts: This thing is murderously prickly. Pruning is diabolical, you need welder’s gloves! Using hedge clippers is not recommended either (the plant doesn’t like that at all – it’ll stop flowering because you cut off all the potential flowering wood for next season!). The shrub doesn’t grow that high, but it can become quite dense with branches inside the shrub. Down the road from me, near the entrance of the Halswell Quarry is a nice specimen from which I cut flowering branches in winter. I reckon they are wonderful on someone else’s property. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Bob's Best Buy is Guigal 2017 Cotes du Rhone, $22 LISTEN TO BOB'S REVIEW ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apple shuts down surveys on pay Apple's employees aren't usually in the press - they're good at holding company secrets and keeping internal matters internal but lately we've seen a couple of things spill over. First it was around work-from-home and return-to-office policies and now around pay. Employees say they've been shutdown with efforts to gather data on employee salaries, working locations and diversity information. They say they're trying to ensure minorities aren't being discriminate against. Apple says the surveys are prohibited because they collect personally identifiable information. Samsung's unveils the Galaxy Watch 4 There have been watches to track steps, to measure your heartrate, blood oxygen levels and now.. your body fat percentage. They call it 'body composition'. The tech is a shrunken version of the same sensors used already in smart scales or palm devices, and Samsung says its trials show it's more accurate too. It works by sending a weak electric current into your body - known as bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) - which measures the amount of water you're holding. Fat holds more water than muscle. It's not a perfect measure, but beats out things like BMI. Back to the office delayed.. again. It was after July 4th, then September, some are now hoping for October. Facebook and Amazon are now pushing the return date back to January 2022. That'll be 22 months working at home. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author Michael Pollan has long been a hugely respected name for his ideas about eating. You’ve almost certainly heard the advice ‘Eat food, not too much, mostly plants’. That’s Pollan, who has written a series of fascinating books about what we’re eating, and where that food comes from. But now he’s turned his mind to psychedelic substances, starting with 2018’s “How to change your mind” where he looked into the scientific revolution around psychedelic drugs. His latest book “This is Your Mind on Plants” looks into the effects of opium, caffeine and mescaline. He's been speaking with Jack Tame. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our movie reviewer Francesca Rudkin has been watching "science-fiction action comedy film" Free Guy, and Kiwi thriller Coing Home in the Dark. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Controversial opinion: I don’t like Lord of the Rings. Gulp. I know! Sorry. I understand that’s a potentially treasonous admission. I don’t have a problem with anyone else frothing over Tolkien’s Worlds and I can appreciate the talent that goes into bringing the stories alive on screen. But I don’t know if it’s the Elves or the Hobbits or the mystical flying beasts but in the sage words of Billy Connolly, I personally prefer stories with human-beings in them. In some ways there are similarities between Amazon’s production of Lord of the Rings and the America’s Cup. Both received a lot of public money, whether in cold, hard cash or in extremely generous tax subsidies. And the benefits of both can be a little messy to calculate. A programme like Lord of the Rings does more than just employ a lot of New Zealanders in the film and production industry. It also (presumably) shows off the country and promotes our landscape on a scale that’s hard to calculate. Again, like the America’s Cup, the indirect benefits of New Zealand looking sexy on a few million TV screens overseas may be nixed for the time-being by the pandemic. Amazon’s Lord of the Rings will premier in September next year. Who knows what – if any - tourists we’ll be letting in by then? Will those tourists and the production jobs supported be worth the roughly $130m we’ve given out in subsidies? We’ll have to wait to find out. Certainly it wouldn’t stick so much in the taxpayer’s throat if the company we’ve subsidised wasn’t founded by a guy who just funded his own trip to space.I think there is one really important point to remember: From most of the reporting so far, it seems Amazon didn’t leave New Zealand because of money. They didn’t leave because the subsidy wasn’t big enough. They left because our ongoing border restrictions are likely to make it difficult for them to operate in the future. This time last year our closed borders were an incentive for big international productions. I interviewed the producer of Avatar as he stepped out of isolation, positively delighted in the middle of a global pandemic to be in a country where he could continue shooting when everywhere else was locked down. That situation has flipped. The full 180. In this case, our hardline Covid-19 approach isn’t so attractive.It might not be safer to make Lord of the Rings in the U.K, but Amazon’s betting it’ll be easier.We should be clear-eyed about this. A cautious re-opening makes a lot of sense, but our strategy won’t be without its own costs. Amazon probably won’t be the last company to decide it’s easier to spend money and do business elsewhere.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Music reviewer Estelle Clifford's been listening to Prince's posthumous album "Welcome to America". LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Book reviewer Catherine Raynes has been reading The Cellist by Daniel Silva and Thursdays at Orange Blossom House by Sophie Green.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're dreaming of a winter holiday, Mike Yardley has some tips on what's waiting for you in Surfers Paradise. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

De-clutter your life (and help the planet) There’s no denying that most of us are buying too much stuff. It’s fun to go shopping! But this mindless consumerism is bad for the planet, and it’s cluttering up our homes. This issue has spawned a whole new industry, storage facilities, where we can leave all this excess stuff that we’ve bought. Many a friend has retrieved the things they spent a fortune storing only to find they don’t really want this ‘treasure’. So let’s look at a few areas where we can reduce clutter, and help the planet at the same time. BOOKS This is going to earn me some criticism from my friends and family. I love books, they are a valuable resource, and we can only encourage kids to read more. But do we have to buy them all? How many books that you own have never been opened? I’m afraid that to actually achieve personal growth, you need to do more than just buy the latest book on how to change your life. If you LOVE a book, especially kids’ books that you will read often to them at bedtime, then definitely buy and treasure them. But you can use the library for books you’ll only read once or borrow them from friends. Clearing out books you don’t want * Sometimes your local op-shop will take them. * Drop them at one of the local small free libraries that are in parks and community centres for someone else to enjoy. Pick up something new to read while you’re there! KIDS CLOTHES AND TOYS This is another category that can quickly get out of hand, thanks to kids that just keep growing! If you’re wanting to clear things out, there are always the usual suspects: passing on to friends and families, op-shops, and Trade Me. Clearing out kids’ items you don’t want * There’s a great charity called Little More (www.littlemore.co.nz) that will take used items for kids 0-12 months for families that need them. * Sometimes your local maternity ward will take newborn clothes. * Your local toy library will often take any good quality toys. Extra points for this option because then you're cycling toys through many different families. FASHIONIn the thirties, women had an average of nine outfits, now it’s over thirty. In England there are an average of 22 unworn items in a woman’s closet. Here is a method to figure out what you aren’t wearing anymore. At the start of the year turn all your hangers the opposite way that you usually have them. Swap them over as you water that piece. At the end of year, you will see what you actually wear. Clearing out clothes you don’t want * Same thing as kids clothes – they can be sold or donated. * For work clothes, Dress for Success (dressforsuccess.org) will take new or near-new clothes that women can borrow to wear for job interviews, or to help them re-enter the workforce. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rhubarb This is a great crop if you’re into crumbles and fruity bits for breakfast with muesli and yoghurt and soaked sultanas, and dessert’s like Nici Wickes’ Rhubarb and Vanilla Bread and Butter Pudding. Rhubarb is pretty easy to grow. It can stand quite a bit of frost. I saw it growing in Mongolia’s permafrost, and in the deserts with big weta-like critters hiding underneath! In really cold areas it will go dormant in winter, and in hot summers it might take a break. In hotter areas it might pay to allocate a cooler spot and some shade for the warmest period of the day to stop it “bolting”. That leaves excellent growth in spring, early summer, late summer and autumn. It requires a sunny location and nice fertile free-draining soil. If you’ve got heavy clay soil, break it up and add heaps of compost to make it friable. Alternatively, plant it above the soil level in a raised bed. I reckon you can even grow it in a big container with good mix, but keep it well-watered. Rhubarb loves compost and manure (yes – some rotted cow poo/sheep/pig or horse – preferably gone through a composting cycle). Keep the plant base free of weeds. Pests and diseases are usually of no great concern, slugs and snails are your main problem and they will only go on the leaves. Copper sprays may prevent leaf-spots, but they’re not a big deal, usually. To Harvest: cut the stems for consumption and use leaves in compost bins. Alternatively, the large leaves are great on the ground as “weed mat”. Look around for various cultivars – if you are lucky you might find some of the old-fashioned bright red varieties that look fantastic: Moulin Rouge; Crimson Crumble; Cherry Red; Ruby Red; Glaskin’s Perpetual...but in terms of TASTE, they all taste the same. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our resident doctor Bryan Betty has been giving Jack Tame some tips on how to avoid, and treat, migraines. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lucy Lawless is back on our screens on Monday and this time, she’s bringing an Aussie series home to Auckland. She’s starring in the second series of My Life is Murder, where she plays a charismatic crime investigator. It was originally set in Melbourne, but it’s moved to Auckland, and it’s designed for a Kiwi audience as well as online audiences around the world. Lucy Lawless has been speaking to Jack Tame. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Screentime Queen Tara Ward has some TV picks for your weekend:Hit and Run: Made by the team behind Israeli drama Fauda, this thriller follows a man determined to find out the truth about his wife’s death in a mysterious hit-and-run accident in Tel Aviv (Netflix). Mr Corman: Joseph Gordon-Levitt wrote, starred and produced this drama about the days and nights of fifth-grade teacher Josh Corman as he struggles with anxiety, loneliness, forfeited dreams of a music career, and the sinking suspicion that he sucks as a person (Apple TV+) My Life is Murder: Lucy Lawless returns as fearless private investigator Alexa Crowe for a second season of this crime-solving drama, with this new season moving from Melbourne to Auckland (TVNZ 1, Mondays). LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bread 'n' butter pudding but not as you know it! Think croissants studded with sharp rhubarb and held together by a creamy baked custard. Serves 6-8 6 croissants 300mls milk 300mls cream 4 large eggs ½ cup sugar 1 tablespoon vanilla extract Soft butter to butter croissant 2 cups chopped rhubarb Icing sugar to dust Heat oven to 160 C fan-bake (180 regular) and butter an oven proof dish. Slice each croissant into 3-4 thick slices. Butter each slice on one side and pack them into the prepared dish, rounded side up. Scatter and tuck rhubarb in and around the croissant. In a large bowl whisk together the milk, cream, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Pour over croissant and leave to sit for 30 minutes to one hour to allow the croissant to soak up the custard. Help it out by pushing the croissant down into the mixture every now and then. Bake for one hour or until the middle is set. Dust with icing sugar to serve. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Movie reviewer Francesca Rudkin's been watching superhero film The Suicide Squad, and undercover thriller The Mole. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Milne's been loving the Olympics - but he's got one problem with the success we've been having.He's been talking to Jack Tame. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The housing crisis. The Covid-19 vaccination rollout. Asset inflation further widening the gap between rich and poor. Poverty. Coal imports. Fiji’s health crisis. What actually constitutes safer policing. The painfully slow rate of change in the mental health sector. Families separated by our closed borders. Three waters. China’s increasing influence in the Pacific. Climate change mitigation. Superannuation. The immigration backlog. Treaty settlements. Financial support for the survivors of March 15 attacks. Our slipping achievement in mathematics education. Local government reforms. The nurses’ strikes. Disabled people’s appalling ove-representation in poverty statistics. Crown-Māori relationships. The future of farming in New Zealand. Hate speech. Hate crimes. Significant Natural Areas. Public transport infrastructure.There you go. Bam! Just off the top of my head: 25 issues that should be far more important to our politicians than a debate over whether we should call New Zealand, ‘Aotearoa.’National MP Stuart Smith supports a referendum on the use of the word by people in the public sector. Judith Collins made no effort to quieten the debate. Talk radio has been wild with people who feel the name ‘Aotearoa’ is being shoved down their throats.Please, regardless of how you feel about Aotearoa, ask yourself this: in the age of a global pandemic, growing sovereign debt, climate change, and an historic housing crisis, is this *really* the issue you want our policymakers to prioritise?Because you’re being used. You’re being played. It’s cynical. They know this sort of issue stirs people up. They know that by throwing a few cans of gas on the fire, they can briefly be absolved of working on the issues that actually impact our lives and the future of our country.I must confess, I was in two minds about whether or not to raise the subject. I know that in a way I’m playing into the game. But this is not an effort to stir up the debate. This is an effort to cauterise it. Here goes.If you don’t like people on TV and radio using the word Aotearoa, you should familiarise yourself with an amazing power: agency. If you don’t like it, don’t listen to it. Grab your remote and turn it off. Watch or listen to something else. It’s really as simple as that. And if you truly feel threatened by a perceived growth in the use of the word Aotearoa, you feel it’s worthy of a national debate and even a national referendum, might I gently offer you a solution to get you through these dark times?If you don’t like the name Aotearoa, don’t use it. No one’s forcing you to. No one’s holding you at gunpoint or at the threat of legal action. You won’t be hauled off in cuffs or stripped of citizenship if you choose to say New Zealand. You won’t even be misunderstood.Don’t like it? Don’t say it! Ao-tea-no-a.But know that just ‘cos you don’t use it doesn’t mean you’re not being used.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our music reviewer Estelle Clifford has been listening to ‘Gold-diggers Sound’ from American Soul singer Leon Bridges. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Catherine Raynes has been reading the latest novel from Devil Wears Prada author Lauren Weisberger; When the Grass is Greener. She's also been reading The Perfect Family by Robyn Harding.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Remember how, for a brief period, we could hop across the ditch? Travel reporter Mike Yardley took the oppourtunity while the bubble was open, and checked out O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat in the Gold Coast Hinterland.LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Relationship expert Steven Dromgool has been looking at how to manage loss in a relationship.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Strawberries to take your mind off winter I tend to totally ignore my winter feelings when the weather is rubbish. In fact, there’s nothing more positive than planning the next summer fruit extravaganza: STRAWBERRIES! The young plants are available in shops now – many varieties. For me in Canterbury, a good producer is Cama Rosa; It actually fruited until June! Royal (also known as Camino Real) works good too. I am tempted to track down Sundae (large and vigorous plants that fruit well into late summer). And also Temptation, which is “day-neutral” (means: it will flower and fruit no matter what the day-length is). Now’s the time to put the beds together. After all the winter rain you can quickly assess where the garden is prone to inundation (not good!). Often raised beds (just a foot or so above ground level) can solve the wetness problems. Be careful not to compact the soil when it’s soaking wet – aerate it and add organic matter. Weed-free, good drainage, slightly raised. Work in good, rotted compost so it’s all nice and fluffy. Mulch is seriously important to keep ripening berries off the soil, because it’ll make them rot. Black plastic? Pros and cons – I’m not a fan. My solution is Dark compost mulch with perhaps some barley straw on top of that. Anything to keep fruit off the soil: bark, crushed shell, gravel. NETTING is also very important. Birds love strawberries and they’ll eat them before they are ripe. Either build a low cage so you can drape bird net over the top, or use hoops to make a netted space. Keep the patch weed-free as it reduces shading and competition in the root zone. If you haven’t got a lot of space, use a large wooden box to grow them in. At least 25cm deep. Fill it with good potting mix and let the strawberries “hang over the edge, if you like. The disadvantage of this method is you have to water them constantly, especially when the rain has stopped and temperatures are rising! See: these thoughts are great to combat the drab winter! Now get into your garden centre and get some new, fresh plants. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're seeing signs property investors are getting the jitters, after recent law changes.Enable Me's Hannah McQueen's been speaking to Jack Tame about whether it's time to sell your investment property. If you want more help, she's available at www.enable.me LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cauliflower, cheddar and ale soup Recently I sat a friend’s kitchen bench and watched her make this soup. As she ladled it out into big bowls my mouth was watering with anticipation. It’s like the best cauliflower cheese you’ve ever had, in a soup form! 2 tbsp olive oil + extra for drizzling 1 onion, finely chopped 1 leek, sliced thinly 4-6 cloves of garlic, peeled 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock 150ml pale ale ½ a large cauliflower, broken or chopped into florets 3 tablespoons of picked thyme leaves 150mls cream 150g cheddar, grated 1 tsp wholegrain mustard ½ tsp smoked paprika to serve Finely grated rind of 1 lemon Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat, add onion, leek and whole cloves of garlic and sauté until softened. Try not to get too much colour on them as it will brown your soup. Pour on stock and ale, add cauliflower and thyme leaves, cover and simmer until tender – about 20 minutes once it’s come up to heat. Blend with a hand-held blender until very smooth, add cream, cheddar and mustard, and stir until cheese melts. Season to taste. If it’s too thick at this stage add a little more stock to thin. Serve up in bowls, drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with lemon zest, a pinch of paprika and a decent grind of black pepper. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bleachers is an indi-pop act you might not have heard of ... yet. It's the stage name for Jack Antonoff, who is variously-known for his role in the band Fun; as well as a collaborator with our own Lorde, Taylor Swift and a laundry list of other stars as a writer and producer. But recently, he's been working on a new album as Bleachers, called ‘Take The Sadness Out Of Saturday Night', and he's been speaking to Jack Tame.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Zoom calls on your TV The days of huddling around a laptop or propping up your phone on a table to chat with your friends is over. Finally you'll be able to sit back on your couch and have a comfortable Zoom meeting! With Amazon's FireTV Cube device, you can now plug in a webcam and use your TV as a Zoom display. There were ways to utilize your TV today, but it always involved a computer. With this, you'll be able to ask Alexa to join your meeting and you'll be connected. This has been a massive gap in the market - and I'm expecting to see more in the space. Tech companies are requiring vaccination Silicon Valley's tech companies are planning to reopen their offices to staff at the end of Summer and many of them will require everyone to be fully vaccinated. Facebook, Google and Lyft are some of the big names leading the charge. Just when the offices will be fully open though is still in flux. The Delta variant has already pushed back many September reopening plans to October. What's still unclear is what happens to those who are unvaccinated. Do they stay working from home? Or do they face disciplinary action for not turning up to the office? Facebook is just printing money Despite being the home to misinformation and being in the firing line from various angles, Facebook's business continues to boom. It's second quarter saw revenues up 56% to $29 billion and its profit was up 101% to $10 billion. That means FB is growing faster than Apple or Microsoft. It's daily users are up over 10% too. Why? Facebook says it's because of the lockdowns around the world and is cautioning investors not to expect this type of growth in the second half of the year. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Pursuit of Love: a new British drama starring Lily James, Emily Mortimer and Dominic West. Set in Europe before World War II, the story follows the adventures of the charismatic and fearless Linda Radlett, and her best friend/cousin Fanny Logan. Consumed by a desire for love and marriage, they both seek out the ideal husband (Amazon Prime Video). Smother: An Irish drama set on the rugged coast of County Clare. When Val Ahern's husband is found dead at the foot of a cliff the morning after a family party, the matriarch starts to dig into the family's secrets to find out who might be responsible (TVNZ OnDemand, from Sunday). Zomboat: a quirky British comedy. A Zombie apocalypse is unleashed in Birmingham and sisters Kat and Jo, together with unlikely travel companions Sunny and Amar must flee for their lives...by canal boat (TVNZ OnDemand). LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Francesca Rudkin's been watching new Kiwi drama The Justice of Bunny King; and historical film Warrior Queen of Jhansi.LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Stokes is taking a break. The Christchurch-born English cricketer and hero of the 2019 Cricket World Cup is certainly one of the biggest stars in the game. But his mental health isn’t great. Understandably, the death of his Dad last year has had a really big impact on him. Because of Covid-19, and at the behest of his Dad, Ben Stokes couldn’t make it back it back to Christchurch for the funeral. Now, he wants to take some time. The break is indefinite.That’s three very high-profile sportspeople then, in the space of just a couple of months. Naomi Osaka, Simone Biles, and now Ben Stokes, have all come out and said they need to step back.I’ve heard some pretty lousy takes on Simone Biles’ decision, this week. It was suggested to me by a colleague that the young American gymnast lacks resilience. I would have thought that getting up in the small hours of the morning almost every day for your entire life to manipulate your body in extreme and painful ways, surviving being sexually abused by your coach, winning thirty Olympic and World Championship golds, becoming so good at gymnastics that judges don’t know how to score you and they literally have to brainstorm for the names of the things you are performing, then using your platform to go public about your harrowing sexual abuse in the hope it will help other survivors, all by your early twenties, actually displayed a level of resilience that most of us could only dream of.I wish she was competing. Simone Biles is the biggest star of the games. And unlike basketball or tennis, the Olympics represents the pinnacle of the sport in gymnastics. Her choice not to compete would not have been made lightly. I respect her decision. What do Naomi Osaka, Ben Stokes, and Simone Biles all have in common? All three have excelled in their respective sports. All three have been at the very top of their respective games. Perhaps there is something to learn from this about the pressures on athletes to maintain elite levels of performance. Excellence brings with it the expectation of continued excellence.We can’t, in one breath, bemoan the mental health crisis in this country, and then criticise these athletes in the next. They deserve our support, not our criticism. Naomi Osaka, Simone Biles, and Ben Stokes have all pulled off superhuman athletic performances. It doesn’t mean they’re not human.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kiwi actress Thomasin McKenzie has had a wild ride. She was called one of the “Fifteen rising stars poised to dominate 2021” by Vogue Magazine.And she’s living up to that, starring in handful of upcoming films.Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog, Psychological thriller Last Night in Soho and Kiwi film The Justice of Bunny King. Thomasin joined Jack Tame from MIQ, where she’s been since returning from London. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was the right decision to open the Trans-Tasman bubble and it’s the right decision to close the Trans-Tasman bubble.I don’t think any of us was particularly surprised at Cabinet electing to shut things down for a couple of months. Disappointed? Sure. It sucks for those of us with family on either side of the Tasman Sea. I was fortunate to visit Australia last month and I had been hoping to go over again in September. I don’t know when I’ll see my brother or Grandma next.But given just how infectious the Delta strain is proving to be, and given our low levels of vaccination, it’s a responsible and entirely reasonable call to close things down and reduce the threat of importing infections.Remember – this is the way the bubble was designed to function. From the word go, there was risk for anyone who decided to go to Australia. You bought a ticket. You chose to travel. You assumed that risk. I actually think the people who’ve come back from New South Wales and into MIQ should consider themselves very lucky they haven’t had to pay for the privilege when everyone else does.When the Government established the bubble, the Delta strain wasn’t causing nearly as many issues as it is right now. They made the decision with the best information they had available. You could argue they actually could have opened much earlier with a similar level of risk. They’re now acting on the best information they have available in shutting it all down.I also recall that when the bubble opened, National promised not to try and score political points if it was later forced to close. The opposition has stayed true to its word. They think it makes sense to shut down.There are valuable lessons in all of this. New South Wales has neatly demonstrated just how quickly things get out of hand with the Delta strain when you don’t lock down hard, especially when a majority of the population hasn’t yet been vaccinated.We can use this downtime to consider what changes we should make to the bubble when it does come time to reopen.Should we establish special short-term quarantine facilities for people travelling in the bubble?Should we only let vaccinated people travel without MIQ?And maybe the most obvious question: Given the bubble will be closed until at least the end of September and we’re all supposed to have had a jab by the end of this year, does it actually make sense to reopen the bubble before all adult Australians and all adult New Zealanders have had access to a vaccine?For the sake of a few months, I reckon a majority of Kiwis will be quite happy to see it closed until Christmas.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Next week Jack Tame has a very special interview, legendary musician Jack Antonoff. He’s part of Fun and is a producer who works with musical heavyweights including Taylor Swift, Lorde, Lana Del Rey and P!nk. He also has a solo project, making music under the name Bleachers and his new album is Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night. Estelle Clifford has been listening to the first few tracks. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Tsarinas Daughter, Ellen Alpsten Born into the House of Romanov to the all-powerful Peter the Great and Catherine I, beautiful Tsarevna Elizabeth is the world's loveliest Princess and the envy of the Russian empire. Insulated by luxury and as a woman free from the burden of statecraft, Elizabeth is seemingly born to pursue her passions. However, a dark prophecy predicts her fate as inexorably twined with Russia. When her mother dies, Russia is torn, masks fall, and friends become foes. Elizabeth's idyllic world is upended. By her twenties she is penniless and powerless, living under constant threat. As times change like quicksand, an all-consuming passion emboldens Elizabeth: she must decide whether to take up her role as Russia's ruler, and what she's willing to do for her country – and for love. The House of Kwa, Mimi Kwa Mimi Kwa ignored the letter for days. When she finally opened it, the news was so shocking her hair turned grey. Why would a father sue his own daughter? The collision was over the estate of Mimi's beloved Aunt Theresa, but its seed had been sown long ago. In an attempt to understand how it had come to this, Mimi unspools her rich family history in House of Kwa. One of a wealthy silk merchant's 32 children, Mimi's father, Francis, was just a little boy when the Kwa family became caught up in the brutal and devastating Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during World War II. Years later, he was sent to study in Australia by his now independent and successful older sister Theresa. There he met and married Mimi's mother, a nineteen-year-old with an undiagnosed, chronic mental illness. Soon after, 'tiger' Mimi arrived, and her struggle with the past - and the dragon - began ... Riveting, colourful and often darkly humorous, House of Kwa is an epic family drama spanning four generations, and an unforgettable story about how one woman finds the courage to stand up for her freedom and independence, squaring off against the ghosts of the past and finally putting them to rest. Throughout, her inspiration is Francis's late older sister, the jet-setting, free-spirited Aunt Theresa, whose extraordinary life is a beacon of hope in the darkness.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Resident traveller Mike Yardley gave Jack Tame the rundown on what's hot and what's not in Tarawera.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Nature there is no waste, one’s systems waste is another systems food. Humans’ diets are so varied we have all the minerals and elements needed in farming. But this combination of wonderful elements usually becomes pollution, and we have to set up expensive industrial plants to try and mitigate any damage. The answer? Composting toilets. I first came across a simple system when I visited the artist Hundertwasser in the early eighties at his home in the Bay of Islands. He just had a simple bucket that he added a handful sawdust to it at each use. There was no smell! If any organic matter is left submerged in water it makes for anaerobic decomposition. It's smelly – you’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever left even grass clippings in a wheel barrow of water by mistake. If you keep the water out and you have aerobic decomposition, there is very low smell, especially if the composting loo is well ventilated. We have been using this system since we moved into the eco village in 1986. I still remember the kids were ashamed to bring their friends home from school because of our weird toilet! We soon moved onto a more sophisticated outhouse which is basically two large compost bins with a room above them and a tall chimney that means air is constantly sucked through the compost keeping it dry and evaporating the urine that ends up in it. After one year, the active waste and sawdust pile is moved into the second chamber to compost again. I have to service this once a year. It takes about 2 hours, and that includes transporting the compost from the second chamber to spread under my fruit trees as mulch. When you see this compost you wouldn’t know it wasn’t straight from a garden shop. Commercially, you can buy units that use a similar system but are much more compact. We have one of these as well now as our second toilet. The other system, we affectionately call the ‘poo fryer’, has an element that dries out the feaces and urine. These are often found at DOC huts along with a small solar power panel to run it. Unfortunately, with our current system once human waste is combined with a lot of water it becomes very hard to extract the nutrients again. The other problem is that often chemical, pharmaceutical and heavy metal contaminants end up in the mix as well. At present, composting loos are mainly found at homes of bioneers like ourselves, remote areas and outdoor festivals. We set up 4 bucket composting loos for my daughter’s wedding last year and they went without a hitch. We just used the bucket and lid combo the sell for chemical toilets for caravans and boats. Much nicer using sawdust and easier to empty too. Internationally, compost loos are coming into urban areas as well, in offices and blocks of flats. The compost is being used in gardens or to make biogas for heating or cooking. I predict in twenty years’ time you will be using one too.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few weeks ago we dealt to the clothes moths and their caterpillars;The conclusion was that their ecosystem service is to recycle keratin: hair, fur, wool, nails and skin. This is part of the decomposition job that many invertebrates do when an animal dies,Keratin is really hard to digest; Mammals and Birds can’t do that (cat’s fur-balls; owls ejected pellets, etc); these moths are therefore valued members of the RECYCLING SQUAD.This appears to be the most common carpet destroyer in Aotearoa; probably because our houses are a lot more “open” than – for instance – in Europe.Less insulation (especially in older homes), more moisture inside, not well sealed, wooden structures and draughty windowsWe also have this habit of living outside a lot: leaving windows and doors open in summer time, so that there is an unlimited indoor-outdoor flow.Carpet beetles are quite different from the clothes moths – different family of insects.Also a different life-cycle and different tactic of chewing on carpet.The adult beetles (those with the ability to reproduce) have a real beetle “look”… a little bit like miniature ladybird beetles: the membranous flight wings are hidden under some sturdy forewings:They are actually quite beautiful little beetles: patterned in browny-orange, white and black; a couple of millimetres in size that’s all they are.But these beetles are not really your problem at all! In fact they are pretty useful pollinators in your garden.In mid-summer you can find dozens of them in your marigolds, yarrow and even pohutukawa flowers; I bet you that the vast majority of New Zealanders rarely notice them there!Later in summer when the beetles have mated, they fly into your home through the open door or window and lay their eggs in your woollen carpet.Little larvae will start gnawing at the keratin (wool), especially on the underside of the carpet backing, so that the woollen strands become loose and are easily sucked up the vacuum cleaner.They look a little like “hairy maggots” and they are pretty resilient down there.And just like the clothes moths, their habitat of choice is birds nests, lined with feathers and fur, as well as carcasses of dead rodents, hedgehogs and birdsBreaking down the keratin is their gig!The trick is simple. All you need is a clever enzyme that chops the protein into bits and you will have earned your reputation as one of the few insects that are literally able to split hairs.Like is the case with clothes moths: control can be achieved with some residual insecticides – active ingredients such as permethrin and other synthetic pyrethroids will do the job well; (Safeworx aerosol cans)It works well and is residual for 6 to 8 weeks, as long as the substrate treated is not exposed to direct sunlightSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Giesen 0% Rosé, Marlborough $17.99 Why I chose it: Growth in low or zero alcohol wines and spirits80% less calories than full strength wineBest of the three 0% alc. Wines on offerFull strength Rose with alcohol removed (less than 0.5% alc) spinning cone.Nice to have a glass of wine at lunch without feeling drowsy afterwards.What does it taste like? Subtle strawberry flavours. Dry, fresh and clean. A bit simple but has good purity and a good acid/sweetness balance.Why it’s a bargain: Not so much of a bargain as a niche wine for certain occasions.Where you can buy it? Online from Giesen.co.nz/wineNewly released so not widely available yet. Food match? Smoked salmon. Fairly versatile food matchWill it keep? Drink it within a year. Having said that, I opened a Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc released a year ago recently and it was still drinking well. Check out Bob's website www.therealreview.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jeff Bezos goes to space This Blue Origin launch was so much more impressive than the Virgin Galactic launch. The take off was dramatic, the landing of the booster rocket was flawless, and the return of the capsule was uneventful - exactly what you want! The tech behind this unmanned launch is unreal. Plus Wally Funk got her dream to come true. A large chunk of the internet went down Again we're shown just how centralized the internet has become. Akamai - an internet infrastructure company - tried to update a configuration, but it didn't go to plan. Instead, it took the DNS service offline which broke services for some of the biggest brands and internet services in the world. Everything from airline check-in kiosks, banking systems, 911 call centers and more went down until it was reverted. There are a handful of companies which, over time, have come to provide critical services everyone relies on. The Olympics go 4K Every drip of sweat will be able to be seen this time around as 4K feeds of the Olympic action is being made available. It's a huge technical feat because it requires every part of the system to be upgraded - from cameras, to production equipment, to broadcast systems - not to mention people's TVs at home. Surround Sound will also be broadcast to make you feel like you're there in the stadium. Unfortunately it won't be available in New Zealand's broadcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Death: Starring Joshua Jackson, Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater, this drama is based on the terrifying true story of Dr Christopher Duntsch, a charismatic neurosurgeon whose patients ended up permanently maimed or dead after routine surgeries. As victims piled up, two doctors and a prosecutor set out to stop him (TVNZ OnDemand) Girls5Eva: When a one-hit-wonder girl group from the 90’s gets sampled by a young rapper, its members reunite to give their pop star dreams one more shot. They may be grown women balancing spouses, kids, jobs, debt, aging parents, and shoulder pain, but surely they can also be Girls5eva? (TVNZ OnDemand) Sexy Beasts: The latest “I can’t believe this is actually a thing” reality show. Hoping to say goodbye to superficial dating, real-life singles sport elaborate makeup and prosthetics to put true blind-date chemistry to the test (Netflix).LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sweet and spicy, this is the perfect accompaniment to roast pork or to have with cheese and crackers. Makes 2 small jars 10 medium tamarillos, skinned and roughly chopped 1 red pepper, sliced thinly 2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped or ¼ tsp chilli flakes 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed 2 cups sugar ½ cup apple cider vinegar 2 tbsps balsamic vinegar Squeeze lemon juice ½ tsp salt Bring all ingredients to a boil and stir until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer for 40-60 minutes or until mixture thickens and becomes syrupy. Test a cooled teaspoonful for heat and add more chilli if you want it hotter. Spoon into warmed, sterilized jars and place lids on. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Girls Cant Surf It's the 1980s and the world of professional surfing is a circus of fluro colours, peroxide hair and radical male egos. GIRLS CAN'T SURF follows the journey of a band of renegade surfers who took on the male-dominated professional surfing world to achieve equality and change the sport forever. Featuring surfing greats Jodie Cooper, Frieda Zamba, Pauline Menczer, Lisa Andersen, Pam Burridge, Wendy Botha, Layne Beachley and more, GIRLS CAN'T SURF is a wild ride of clashing personalities, sexism, adventure and heartbreak, with each woman fighting against the odds to make their dreams of competing a reality. Waiting for Anya During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Saville joined Jack Tame to discuss the comings and goings at Tokyo Olympics 2020 and the pause of quarantine free travel with Australia, and what that means for the scheduled Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The last member of Kevin's family turned 20 this week. What is there to celebrate about a daughter's teenage years? Isn't it all bad? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For all our species’ achievements and all our billionaires blasting off to space, a few events this week have reminded me of one our fundamental shortcomings. Human beings are not very good at listening to Mother Nature. Take the Olympics. It’s very obvious to anyone with a scintila of intelligence the Olympic Games should not be going ahead. I love sport. I love the idea of the Olympics in theory. But for goodness’ sake, could there be a less-appropriate time than in the middle of a global pandemic to have people from all corners of the Earth travelling to gather together in one place? (Anyone would think there are billions of dollars on the line, and that concerns over that money might have outweighed every other concern). Infection numbers are surging once again in Japan. Mother Nature is telling us something but the organisers of the games blunder on with their eyes squeezed shut and fingers in their ears. My second point is this: I feel sad for Toa, Wellington’s orca calf, and I really sad for those who’d grown close to Toa throughout the rescue effort. I know this is delicate and I’m not trying to upset anyone, but unfortunately there was a sense of inevitability about the situation. It’s heartbreaking to see a little calf like Toa separated from its pod and it’s only natural for us to anthropomorphise, but I was personally a bit uncomfortable about it all. I just worried that a lot of people (And a lot of children) were getting caught up in the romance of the story and a bit caught up in false hope. Mother Nature can be cruel and sometimes all the will in the world cannot defy her. My third point on Mother Nature regards the weather events of the last week. This time last Saturday, I started the show by speaking to you about the Groundswell farmer’s protest. As I was on air, the rain was falling heavily in Buller and parts of the Upper South Island. Things were starting to look really bad. But by the end of the weekend, the scale of the destruction was clear. Westport was inundated in what was apparently a once-in-a-century weather event. The image that stuck with me was of cow carcasses being scraped up off the beach. Cows that’d been swept off their land and to their deaths. To be honest, I’m a little surprised more people haven’t noted the irony of the situation. The Groundswell protest was followed almost immediately by an historic flood that absolutely hammered farmers. I understand Groundswell was about a lot of different things. But some of the central issues people protested were government climate change policies. I’m not saying last week’s flood was totally attributable to climate change. But the main reason we have emissions reductions targets and a rebate scheme that taxes big, fossil-fuel burning vehicles is to ultimately try and prevent traumatic weather events like last weekend. Perhaps Mother Nature is telling us something. Perhaps it would pay to listen.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Mayer’s got a new album out, and he seems to be making fun of it before the rest of us get the chance It’s got an 80’s soft rock vibe so what’s he called the album? Sob Rock. Estelle Clifford’s been taking a listen. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.