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A soul-to-soul with Married At First Sight's spiritual star, who doesn't own a TV and thinks the show is 'trash'.

A drink with Lucinda Light, the greatest MAFS participant of all time

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It’s 25 years since a dog said ‘bugger’ on TV... and changed the nation forever.

‘It was just the right word’: When ‘bugger’ took New Zealand by storm

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How Mukpuddy conjured up a bold new vision of Badjelly the Witch

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Ladies and gentlemen… this is really, really bad.

What has The Warehouse done to my favourite song? 

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Only read this if you've also had John o' Groats, Fray Bentos and the sword of Damocles stuck in your head since 2002.

A complete list of things I only know about because of The Office

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There's nothing better than having your movies curated by a total stranger. 

An ode to the weird bach DVD collection

Claire Mabey

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Did you love or hate season three of The Bear? We argue the pros and cons.

Does The Bear suck now? A hater and an enthusiast argue about season three

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'It obviously spoke to the children,' says the woman responsible for promoting fish and chips at breakfast, lunch and tea.

Meet the unsung icon behind the primary school hit ‘Fish and Chips’

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The Q+A host reflects on his career in broadcasting, and the moment he realised it was all worth it.

‘I’ve never lived it down’: The Breakfast live cross that still haunts Jack Tame

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'For blokes, it's probably the child they never knew about. And for women, it’s probably the child they’ve never spoken about.'

‘One hell of a shock’: Why not everyone wants flowers from David Lomas

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The groundbreaking show has had mixed reviews over the past two decades. 

Reviewing the very first episode of bro’Town, 20 years on

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I watched all 46 of Tom Cruise's films over the past 12 months. The question on everyone's lips: why?

‘The mission is clearly possible’: On watching every single Tom Cruise movie ever made

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A dark and stormy night of mushrooms and murder, sorbet and suspicion, and more fedoras than you've ever seen in your life. 

I survived five hours on Christchurch’s first murder mystery train ride

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Presenting our full top 100 countdown for your reading pleasure.

The complete top 100 NZ TV shows of the 21st Century

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'A few old boomers still think I actually am Lyn ... I choose to take this as a compliment.'

‘A curse and a blessing’: Ginette McDonald on how Lyn of Tawa changed her life

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'We say to our kids every dinner time, you have no idea how lucky you are that we have all our own food here. And they just go ‘yeah yeah whatever mum'.'

‘We’d never move back’: Nadia Lim and Carlos Bagrie on swapping the hustle for the harvest

Nadia Lim and Carlos Bagrie on swapping the hustle for the harvest

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As he makes a surprise return to Shortland Street, actor Craig Parker takes us through his life in television.

‘We were as famous as Tom Cruise’: Craig Parker on 90s Shortland St fandom

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'I want to check in at the pearly gates and have them say, ‘theres nothing left here, he’s worn to a nub, put it in the bin’.'

‘I prioritise the mission, not my health’: Adam McGrath’s perfect weekend playlist

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The 2024 Christmas cliffhanger screens on Monday, and you can expect the final episode to be bigger and badder than ever before. 

The one episode of Shortland Street you need to watch this year

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A couple of weeks after Spotify Wrapped comes a much more comprehensive survey of New Zealand’s listening.

The real NZ Wrapped: Analysing the 2024 NZ Music charts

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A strong contender for the best book of 2024. 

Page-turning rural gothic: Ash by Louise Wallace, reviewed

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The ideal candidate for a foreign exchange is personable, adventurous and charismatic enough to transcend the language barrier. I was none of these things.

Remembering my awkward high-school exchange to Germany

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When we insert ourselves into the lives of animals, we become complicit in their fates.

Following the Swiss wolf, who walked 2,000 kilometres for love

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With specialist mental health services in ‘chaos’, people who need help end up in destructive cycles and prison. Experts say there are solutions, but is political will and leadership lacking?

Prison or nothing: The ‘self-perpetuating downward spiral’ in New Zealand’s mental health system

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A new generation is leading the hīkoi for tino rangatiratanga and Māori self-determination.

Ka tuku te rākau: Handing over the baton of protest to a new generation

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David Hill is in his ninth decade. In a touching tribute to his late friend, he challenges some myths about 'old farts'.

On being undeniably, irretrievably old

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Narrative Muse was awarded $500,000 to boost sales of New Zealand books. It has reportedly had little, if any, impact. What went wrong?

The half-a-million-dollar decision that still haunts the book industry 

With the return of Three’s women-led sketch show 

 tonight at 9.45pm, we bless ye with an exclusive clip from tonight’s episode.

Funny Girls returns to Three tonight at 9.45pm

This content, like all television coverage we do at The Spinoff, is brought to you thanks to the excellent folk at Lightbox. Do us and yourself a favour by clicking here to start a FREE 30 day trial of this truly wonderful service.

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With Funny Girls returning to Three tonight at 9.45pm, we bless ye with an exclusive clip from tonight's episode.

The Spinoff

Pop CultureMay 11, 2018

Funny Girls Friday: The Virgin Mary gets an unwelcome gift

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Pop CultureMay 11, 2018

Funny Girls Friday: The Virgin Mary gets an unwelcome gift

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