The Best Of

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An early and strong contender for book of the year. 

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

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'I just remember seeing them live for the first time and thinking to myself: This is it. This is the reason. This is what life is all about.'

‘It was my Eras tour’: Meet the world’s biggest TrueBliss fans

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Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change.

Labour has forgotten it was in government

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Rising membership has been cited as rationale for a crackdown, but this is what we actually know about gang numbers.

Have gang numbers really ‘skyrocketed’ in recent years?

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Why Restore Passenger Rail has set its sights on stopping cruise ships

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Buses will replace trains on weekends in Wellington for the next 10-15 years. But there are a few things to look forward to while we wait. 

A list of transport projects Wellington could actually deliver in the next 10-15 years

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Trust me, I know: I’ve been living in a damp, violent hotel in central Auckland for six months and counting.

There’s no need to make emergency housing harder. It’s hard enough already

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An essential guide to all the holes you can drive through in this country.

All 29 road tunnels in New Zealand ranked from worst to best

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Of course I wind down my window at the lights to profess my love to the strangers in the black De Tomaso Pantera. And of course they accommodate me with amused grins.

Confessions of an unlikely petrolhead

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I was one of hundreds of people who lost my government job this week. Here's exactly how it played out.

What it’s like to be made redundant by the Ministry of Education

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They pressured me to have children, and I had two. Now they won't lift a finger. 

Help Me Hera: My parents won’t help out with my kids

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Mild headache? School. Severe headache? Home. Don't know how to read your kid's mind? That's your problem.

How to tell if your child is well enough to go to school or is in fact sick

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Shortsightedness in kids is skyrocketing overseas. Is New Zealand next?

Staring down the ‘silent epidemic’ of myopia in children

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'People always joke that they hope I never contact them. Because 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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'Some people might take the news elegantly … not running around the house like I did.'

‘Several hours screaming’: Jess Hong on being cast in Netflix’s most-watched series

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Did advertisers create this mess? Or are they our best shot at fixing it?

Advertising largely funds the media. How do ad execs view the current crisis?

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Subways, palaces, gold heists, rockets on trains and luxury nightlife? You Bollywood in Wellington.

When Wellington starred in a Bollywood spy thriller: a scene-by-scene breakdown

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We're more likely to see Judith Collins waving at us from space than 12 years of data on child poverty.<br />


All the things we won’t know in 10 years

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Their relationship strikes me as unhealthy and it's making me angry. What should I do?

Help Me Hera: I set up two of my closest friends and bitterly regret it

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Eyebrow wigs, oil spills, or Facebook Marketplace: where your cut hair ends up is anyone's guess. 

Do you know where your hair goes after it’s cut?

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If you think you don't remember Montana Sunday Theatre, try hitting play on one very particular piece of classical music.

‘Apologies to Dvořák’: How a serenade for strings cemented one of New Zealand TV’s strongest partnerships

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One works with wood, the other makes rugs – and their new exhibition is a perfect union of the two artists' practices.

In the studio with artist power couple Claudia Kogachi and Josephine Jelicich

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Thank you, Dr Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, for your brilliant invention. 

An ode to the muesli bar, a national treasure

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'After you’ve chopped up that carrot, who cares what it looked like?'

Waste not, want not: New series Food Rescue Kitchen turns food trash into treasure

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Dog of the month: Scout, who is so independent she could be a cat

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‘I know reality TV is one of those things people love to hate and hate to love, but it’s something New Zealand should be proud of.’

‘I don’t know if we were brave or stupid’: Megan Alatini on changing reality TV

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A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services.

Behind the counter: Wellington shopkeepers

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It's more than just a kids' cartoon about talking dogs, OK?

I saw ‘The Sign’, and it opened up my eyes: All the fuss around Bluey, explained

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A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law.

‘The worst piece of law proposed since 1979’: Reactions to the Fast-track Approvals Bill

In the final instalment of The Side Eye, Toby Morris investigates a small town mystery and uncovers a hidden gem: 82-year-old Errol Johnstone, a master of his craft.

Editor’s note: This is the 55th Side Eye comic The Spinoff has published since 2017. For half a decade, Toby Morris has illustrated the stories of Aotearoa, from broad explanations of inequality to deeply personal tales of life as a working New Zealander. This is the final instalment, but all 55 in the series will always be relevant and available to read 

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

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The final instalment of The Side Eye investigates a small town mystery and uncovers a hidden gem: 82-year-old Errol Johnstone, a master of his craft.

The Spinoff

The Best OfAugust 31, 2023

The Side Eye: Signs of life

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