SocietyJune 14, 2022

The Side Eye: We destroyed mountains

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We wouldn’t just dig up a mountain… would we? A new Side Eye comic about Tāmaki Makaurau’s volcanoes and reckoning with the past.

The Side Eye is a monthly non-fiction comic by Toby Morris, supported by NZ On Air. Read the rest of the series here.

A new local novel about getting the band back together; and Lena Dunham’s memoir hit the charts this week.

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending May 8

Soper seduces Auckland, while Wellington is all about the music.

By The Spinoff Review of Books | 8th May, 2026

Melissa O’Neil stars as Lucy Chen in The Rookie (Photos: TVNZ / Design: Tina Tiller)

Why is New Zealand so obsessed with The Rookie?

For actor Melissa O’Neil, the show is about much more than just fighting crime.

By Tara Ward | 8th May, 2026

Image by Tina Tiller

Please don’t buy your mum anti-ageing skincare for Mother’s Day

Everyone wants your mum drenched in overpriced goo this Mother’s Day, but why?

By Alex Casey | 8th May, 2026

The political party leaders of 2026

Six months and six million dollars until the election

It's time for a political health check-up.

By Madeleine Chapman | 8th May, 2026

Contributing editor

The Spinoff’s New Zealand Citizenship Test

The Spinoff’s New Zealand Citizenship Test

Step aside, Brooke van Velden. We've done the thinking and we're bringing forward the rollout date.

By Veronica Schmidt | 8th May, 2026

Maiki Sherman

Three former TV political editors on the whole Maiki Sherman saga

Is the level of media attention on TVNZ political editor Maiki Sherman warranted? Has the media done a good job of covering a story about one of its own?

By Henry Oliver | 8th May, 2026

Image: The Spinoff

Three-and-a-bit years and $50m+ of political donations, visualised

Six months out from the election, one party is dominating on the donation front.

By Alice Neville | 8th May, 2026

Money, money, money. (Design: The Spinoff).

Ngāi Tahu vs Santana: the latest chapter in the Bendigo gold mine saga, explained

Accusations of backroom demands have prompted political outrage. What's going on?

By Liam Rātana | 7th May, 2026

Laser Kiwi are performing at The Hannah Playhouse in Wellington as part of the Comedy Festival this week. (Photo: RocPhotography)

Laser Kiwi, Muckle Flugga, and an archaeology festival: The Spinoff event guide

Edinburgh's poet laureate comes to Wellington.

By Claire Mabey | 7th May, 2026

Society

The cost of being: A solo mother with ‘very organised’ bank accounts

The cost of being: A solo mother with ‘very organised’ bank accounts

'It’s important I make my money work for me.'

By The Cost of Being | 5th May, 2026

a collage of images showing a white spraypainted tag in the shape of a jandal

I’m obsessed with the jandal tag all over Auckland

After years of either ignoring or shaking her head at graffiti tags, Madeleine Chapman has fallen in love with the jandal.

By Madeleine Chapman | 4th May, 2026

Stalking survivor Zeni Gibson on what happens when you speak up

In 2024, Zeni Gibson detailed her harrowing account of stalking on The Spinoff. Today, she plays a key role in a new documentary exploring the systemic failings that leave victims unprotected.

By Alex Casey | 4th May, 2026

Why I turn the heating down when New Zealand friends come over

'I see blokes eating outside in shorts in Wellington at 8°C without batting an eye.'

By Brit Bunkley | 3rd May, 2026

Love, actually: ‘It’s possible to hate the person you’re married to intensely at times’

'The thing that makes me a good partner? I don't actually know that I am one.'

By Love actually | 3rd May, 2026