Share Story×Share StoryFacebookTwitterBlueskyRedditEmailLinkedinWhatsappMessenger More Reading The Side Eye is a monthly non-fiction comic by Toby Morris, supported by NZ On Air. Read the rest of the series here.
Gone By Lunchtime: Do you get déjà coup?An emergency response to an emergency showdown at the OK caucus. By The Spinoff | 12th August, 2026Staff writers
As it happened: Luxon survives leadership vote, Penk sackedAn insane day ends with Christopher Luxon hanging on to the National Party leadership and Chris Penk stripped of his ministerial portfolios.By The Spinoff | 12th August, 2026Staff writers
Eight parties vie for students’ votes in raucous Dunedin election debateFeaturing an orange man, curtains and the politest protest in history. By Tara Ward | 12th August, 2026Staff writer
The highs and many lows of Christopher Luxon’s leadershipWith a recent run of gaffes, difficulties managing his coalition partners, and two almost-coups, it’s easy to forget that Luxon has also had some significant wins in his time in politics. By Joel MacManus | 12th August, 2026Senior writer
All the times Christopher Luxon said ‘fix the basics and build the future’ in one 76-second press conference, rankedThe phrase made up nearly 10% of all the words spoken.By Hayden Donnell | 12th August, 2026Senior writer
Dating Files: A 44-year-old man who’s ‘done so many speed dating events it’s not funny’'When I was travelling I met a woman and we had a really good connection over two dates. That was three years ago, but she has always stuck in my mind. Sad huh?'By Dating Files | 12th August, 2026Guest writer
Vietnam’s bold new(ish) leader lands in NZ today. Here’s what to knowTo Lam, the most powerful Vietnamese leader in decades, arrives in New Zealand today – the latest effort by both sides to diversify partnerships and hedge against an increasingly fractured world order.By Anna Fifield | 12th August, 2026Guest writer
The cost of being: A healthcare worker paying off their mortgage as fast as possible'I give money away to... My parents. They're the whole reason I can call myself successful.'By The Cost of Being | 12th August, 2026Guest writer
NZ’s retirement village population is almost entirely white. Where is everyone else?Caring for family elders is an ingrained cultural expectation for many New Zealanders, for whom it's both privilege and burden.By Madeleine Chapman | 10th August, 2026Contributing editor
After 20 years in NZ, I feel like a tourist when I go home to the UKThere’s a new heaviness in England, but I carry my own grief about what’s unfolding in NZ.By Kathy Young | 9th August, 2026
Love, actually, at 51: ‘We have different political views, which is an ongoing source of tension’'We just don't talk about politics any more.'By Love actually | 9th August, 2026
‘What is a volvo?’ The joys of teaching kids about pubertyOnce the initial giggles have passed and the students get more comfortable with the subject, the lightbulb moments begin to happen.By Alana Palleson | 9th August, 2026
What I learned at a singing course for the shy and shamed-outStaring down a lifelong fear of singing flat, Alex Casey attends a nerve-wracking community course to conquer her demons. By Alex Casey | 8th August, 2026