Full Show Podcast: 22 December 2024

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News Talks EDB. Welcome to the Sunday Session with
Francesca Rudkin and Wiggles for the best selection of great Reads,
News Talks ab.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
Good morning and welcome to the final Sunday Session for
twenty twenty four. On the show Today, the one and
Only Lord Grantham joins us Hugh Bonneville. Hugh is joining
me to talk about the third Paddington film, Paddington in Prue.
The film is out on the first of jan and
it is a delight.

Speaker 3 (00:57):
We are going to.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Find out what it was like working with the newcast
members Antonio Manders and Olivia Coleman. We're going to go
behind the scenes to find out how they technically shoot
a film. We're one member your family is a cgi
bear and we may also have some news for Downton
Abbey fans. So Hugh Bonnyville is with me out the
ten Kerala released their second album, Skeletons, recently. It's filled

(01:18):
with South Pacific inspired roots reggae, touches a soul and
funk and gospel and popin even a bitter country. It's
the perfect sound for summer. So they are with us
after eleven for a chat and a song. Praturette and
Jason Walls are also with me this hour to talk
about the year in politics and of course love to
hear from you throughout the morning. Ninety two ninety two

(01:38):
is the text.

Speaker 4 (01:41):
The Sunday Session.

Speaker 2 (01:43):
Twenty twenty four has been a fascinating year for democracy,
with more than sixty countries holding election elections. It's been
the biggest election year in global history, with around half
the world's population having the opportunity to vote in local, regional, legislative,
or presidential elections. Democracy was tested as countries dealt with

(02:05):
voter apathy, attempts to suppress opposition groups, and the impact
of sophisticated disinformation campaigns. Let's just say not all the
elections were equal, but the results were equally important locally
and globally. The results impact the world's complicated web of
geopolitical linkages and issues and tensions. So what have we

(02:26):
learned from these elections and a year of political disruption?
Pure Research Center identified four trends. A tough year for incumbents,
the staying power of right wing populism, polarized battles over
tradition and change, and international conflicts with political implications. It
certainly was a tough year for incumbents. The Democrats, of course,

(02:49):
in the US lost the presidency, Congress, and the Senate,
and the United Kingdom fourteen years of Conservative Party rule
came to an end, which is nothing compared to the
upheaval in Botswana, where the Democratic Party lost power for
the first time in sixty years. There was a change
of government in South Korea in April as a means
to keep the president in check, and we've seen how
that's played out. Roughly eighty five percent of incumbents lost

(03:12):
power this year, and those left and power suffered setbacks,
such as in India, Japan, South Africa, and France, and
we're seeing how that's played out. One of the main
underlying issues was economic challenges such as rising costs, low production,
and the general state of economies post pandemic. Voters have
less patients if they don't like the direction their country

(03:33):
is going, and they're not holding back their whipping up
a storm on social media and voting for change, often
for change's sake. It's something that should be front of
mind for our leaders of coalition government as they head
into twenty twenty five. As the year has drawn to
a close, update on the economies have been gloomy. Low
productivity are dropping GDP, a deep recession that's as bad

(03:53):
as the twenty twenty COVID related slump, a four cast
surplus that has been pushed out, job losses, and families
struggling to get ahead. The government keeps reminding us how
dire things were before they arrived. Admittedly, there is a
bit of luck in the timing of when your government
takes over, but equally, if things are already going great,
you're less likely to have won the election. It was

(04:16):
never going to be easy to write the books, and
we're far from the only country struggling. But strong promises
were made and if they can't be achieved in three years,
voters will judge them for it. The government has a
lot of work to do in twenty twenty five to
show voters it is turning the direction of the country around.
Otherwise the incumbent curse may continue.

Speaker 4 (04:38):
The Sunday session most.

Speaker 2 (04:40):
Welcome to send your thoughts through. As I mentioned before,
the text number is ninety two ninety two. Small charge
applies coming up next though, Jason Walls and Clear Trevette
are going to be with us with their thoughts on
the year in politics. It is eleven past nine year
with News Talks EDB.

Speaker 5 (04:56):
Grab a cover.

Speaker 1 (04:57):
It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkinte and Whikles for
the best selection of great balings used Talks EDB.

Speaker 6 (05:04):
Good to have you with us.

Speaker 2 (05:05):
So we're going to kick off the show today with
our politics segment and I brought in the enzied Me
Big Guns to chat over the political year for our
political editor's panel. I am joined by Newstalk ZBS. Jason Walls.
Good morning, Jason Oh, good morning, good morning, and we
have Clear Trevette from the New Zealand Herald.

Speaker 7 (05:21):
Hi Claire, good morning.

Speaker 2 (05:23):
Could you both please pick a word to sum up
the year in politics?

Speaker 3 (05:26):
Jason Oh, done, finished over?

Speaker 8 (05:31):
No, I would probably say teething.

Speaker 6 (05:34):
Okay, nice Claire, goodness.

Speaker 9 (05:38):
Well.

Speaker 7 (05:38):
I just read over a rescope of the year and
I went for unrelenting.

Speaker 2 (05:44):
Okay, A little bit of a theme there, isn't it. It
has been a year of building, isn't it? Every party
seems to have been building or collapsing or collapsing. Let's
start with the coalition, Claire, How has the coalition achieved
as much as they had hoped?

Speaker 7 (06:03):
Yes, I think they have. I think they've done enough
to show that they are serving their voters. In some ways,
it's been a year of repeal. They've repealed a lot
of the stuff they said they'd repeal on the calendar,
and in other ways they've actually ended up doing maybe
moving a bit too fast. They've ended up having to
do a lot under urgency and with short select committee

(06:25):
periods and stuff like that. So they've kind of maybe
we'll slow it down for the next two years now
that they've set their ball running. But I think they
have done enough to show that they're serious about doing
what they said they'd doing the election. I also think
their main goal was just to survive the year without collapsing.
So so that's a tick.

Speaker 2 (06:47):
We will come back to that. Your thoughts, Dathan, Yeah,
I mean I broadly agree.

Speaker 8 (06:50):
The fact that Luxon sets out those quarterly plans has
been quite helpful for the government. It's that's the real
roadmap of what they want to do, and then they
can get to the end and they take off all
the various initiatives that they've done, and I think that's
in almost all quarters this year they've ticked off, if
not all of them, then most them. There was one
outstanding from this quarter, for example, but I think it
was thirty three out of thirty four in bad So

(07:12):
I think that they'll probably be telling their constituents this well,
the voters rather this summer, that hey, we're working for you.
Get ready for the next two years. And I think
I agree with Claire where they might try and slow
it down a little bit because the urgency and the
short and Select Committee appearances have been copying quite a
lot of flak.

Speaker 2 (07:30):
Clear best performer. I noticed in the Herald that you
thought the politician of the year was Simmy and Brown.

Speaker 7 (07:36):
Yes, I did go for Simi and Brown for that one,
and I will touch stand by my approach. I did
text him because he had to do the post cabinet
press conference last Monday, so I warned him he'd been nuts,
stuff it up because my credibility was now on the line,
and he didn't, so that was good. I think Shan
Jones has had a bit of a pearler of a year.

(07:56):
He's come into his own. Erica is always a solid performer.
Erica Stanford. She was pretty solid on education and delivering
the kind of over hole that they want there there
back to basics, and also the abuse and state care stuff.
I think the Law and Order team's also done pretty well.

(08:16):
Paul Goldsmith and Matt Mitchell, they've kind of been some
of the ones who've actually got the numbers turning around
the way they want them to turn around, fairly early
on in the past, so that they would be kind
of my best I guess your thoughts, Jason.

Speaker 8 (08:30):
Yeah, I mean they're all solid picks. I would probably
go Niicola Willis for mine. I think she's been an
outstanding communicator for much of the year, if not all
the year, in a lot of areas whether I think
the Prime Minister is actually lacking, she actually is stepping
in to fill a little bit of that void. David
Seymour as well.

Speaker 6 (08:47):
I think that you know we're are Jason.

Speaker 8 (08:51):
The Treaty's Principles Bill, you know, has been it's been contentious,
but he's done well in terms of putting his line
in the sand and staying true to exactly what he
says that he is fighting for within governments and for
his party and his constituents as well, so those would
be the top too for me. Although Simeon Brown I
like him as well. But in that same press conference
that Claire was talking about, I did call him a

(09:12):
teacher's pat in front of the Prime Minister, which I'm
not sure he appreciated.

Speaker 3 (09:16):
Well.

Speaker 2 (09:16):
No one has mentioned the Prime minister. How would you
write the Prime Minister's performance, Jason, Oh, you know, I.

Speaker 8 (09:21):
Think it's kind of fair to middling. I think what
he does well and he said it right at the
beginning of the year when he did his a little
reshuffle where he got out with Melissa Lee and Penny Simmons,
who is still they're both retain ministerial portfolios, but he
said he wants to get his aces in his places,
and I think that he's done that. He's quite good

(09:42):
from a people perspective that Claire was talking about Erica
Stamford and Simon Brown and the Law and Order guys.
I mean, they're all perfect for the positions that they're
in and I think he's doing quite well there. But
the Prime Minister himself, when it comes to that communications,
especially in the latter half of the year, I do
feel like we've been seeing him get a little bit
worse when he's talking to media or in the house

(10:02):
and getting a bit repetitive and really reverting back to
what you in the house, which is addressed the question
and not answering the question. And it's getting a little frustrating.

Speaker 2 (10:11):
Clear you mentioned the sort of the coalition stability before,
and there was some skepticism about this coalition heading into
the air and making it to the next election. Do
you any do you see any reason why they wouldn't
make it now?

Speaker 7 (10:27):
Well, the things that kind of tend to trap up coaltion,
I don't see any reason they wouldn't make it as
of where we're sitting today. The things that trap it
up is kind of one big issue that they just
cannot stomach and they walk away kind of from the
coalition from it. As of now, they've managed to negotiate
the potential issues in that regard. The Fairies instance was

(10:52):
as kind of the neglius for New Zealand first at
the moment and whether the Winston can come up with that.
But I think that they're they're running pretty solidly. They're
all aware of the need to keep that stability of
the coalition as kind of paramount no matter what the
kind of argie bargie is around the coalition, parties, promises

(11:13):
and stuff like that. So and then they're pretty stable
from where I sat, and I've spoken to a lot
of them over the last few months. I think there's
a few there's a lot of squabbles, but nothing you know,
that will paralyze the coalition basically.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
I suppose clear if you were looking at the Prime
minister's performance, is this one area he has done well
and he has managed to keep it all together.

Speaker 8 (11:34):
Yeah.

Speaker 7 (11:34):
I actually think his managerial approach does suit the coalition
because he lets them kind of do what they have
to do without overreacting to it. Really, so I agree
with Jason that he has had a bit of a
mixed year. He's been very good in managing the coalition
and keeping the focus of ministers on their game. And
that's what will kind of count to him is he

(11:57):
wants to get the achievements through before twenty twenty six basically,
and he's set up a strong foundation for that. But
he has had own goals when it comes to his
own you know, his own actions. I guess the allowance
the description of business delegations is c listers. I think
his corporate language is starting to be, you know, kind

(12:19):
of more accepted. People tend to get used to however,
a prime minister speaks and that will inevitably happen with him.
So so I think he's doing okay. But an extra
port cap seven I gave him. If you want a number,
do we go seven?

Speaker 2 (12:33):
Have you got a number?

Speaker 3 (12:34):
Jason?

Speaker 5 (12:35):
Well was six?

Speaker 10 (12:38):
Like it.

Speaker 7 (12:39):
We're not saying out of what you'll note, I'm going
to presume ten.

Speaker 2 (12:44):
Look we get a new deputy head boy halfway through
twenty twenty five. Jason Winston Peters has done a perfectly
good job as a deputy prime minister. Is it just
a bit silly to have to hand it over?

Speaker 8 (12:53):
Oh well, I mean, you know, channeling my best Winston Peters.
It's in the coalition agreement, and you stick to what's
in the coalition agreement. I think he would be the
first one to say that, Winston Peters. Yeah, I agree
with you. I think he's done a good job so far.
And I think that what Chris Luckson has done quite
good at is letting, as Claire said, letting Winston be
Winston and letting David be David. And what we're seeing

(13:13):
in the polls is the fact that New Zealand First
is actually holding up its a vote above five percent,
which means that come next election, if they're looking to
form another coalition, they'll be asue in because that's the
NATS combined with ACT in New Zealand First we've seen
consistently are appolling high enough to get into government. So
I think that he's definitely going to stick with the
plan to move Seymour into the deputy prime minister role

(13:37):
at the allocated time. I think it's June or July
this year, and I think that if he changed that
plan now, he'd have a lot of trouble on his hands,
not least from David Seymour.

Speaker 2 (13:47):
Do you think, though, clear that the Prime Minister would
prefer to have Winston's stay, just considering how Nickoli Seymour
can be.

Speaker 7 (13:54):
Well, I think he'd probably prefer to have Nikola Willis
as the deputy prime However, unfortunately that's not allowable.

Speaker 8 (14:04):
So.

Speaker 7 (14:06):
I think I think he'll be pretty philosophical about it.
And because David Seymour, you know, he's had a bit
of flack about whether it's appropriate for him to be
deputy prime minister given his chipping at the Prime minister.
But I just don't really think that matters that much,
and I think it will work out fine. I mean,
it's a good solution when you've got two kind of

(14:28):
what you call coalition partners. It's blood at halfway through
and we see how it goes. But you know, he
may regret it not being Winston if Winston then becomes
the one who starts chipping at him instead. So I
think it's half six or one half a dozen of
the other forums.

Speaker 2 (14:45):
To be honest, Jason, a broad question for you, which
party do you think has had the best year? I'm
sort of imagining that both of you would say that
the Greens have probably had the worst year. Feel free
to contradict me, but keen to know who you think
has had the biggest wins.

Speaker 11 (15:02):
Yeah, I mean biggest wins.

Speaker 8 (15:04):
You have to look at the parties like Act where
David Seymour is consistently and Chris Luckson actually made a
joke about this in as a German speech taking credit
for a lot of things. So you'd have to look
on balance and say, well, you know that've had a
good year. They've had a bit of a tumble in
the polls recently due to the Treaties Principles Bill, but
then it has come back as well, So sticking to
their guns has actually done them quite good.

Speaker 11 (15:26):
You have to and I alluded to this before.

Speaker 8 (15:28):
I mean New Zealand First often finds when they're in
a coalition government that their vault tends to tumble when
they've been in power for a while, but that's actually
held up quite well. So I think that both ACT
and New Zealand First have done quite well. And there
would be the ones that I would choose. I mean,
Green's obviously the worst performing. There's absolutely no one else
in their league when it comes to bad performances this year,
but I will say Chloe Swarbrick.

Speaker 11 (15:49):
I've been quite impressed with her.

Speaker 8 (15:51):
She's been doing it by herself because Madame and Davidson
obviously away with her cancer diagnosis, and she's had to
deal with about seven or eight different major curve balls,
and I think that for the large part, for the
main part, she's handled them pretty well and done what
she needs to, done what she's needed done.

Speaker 11 (16:07):
Do you sorry?

Speaker 8 (16:08):
The problem was, of course the Greens are democratic to death.
So the Darling Tana saga stretched on for a long time,
but that was more of a constitutional issue than it
was a Chloe issue.

Speaker 3 (16:17):
Claire.

Speaker 7 (16:19):
Yeah, I'm giving best party to Party Maori. Actually, they
have played at a blinder and it's largely thanks to
the act Party kind of giving it to them. I
think they've opposed all the raft of stuff that the government,
the coalition government parties are doing which have impact on martyrdom,

(16:40):
very very well, and they've been unrelenting in their opposition
to it. I mean, it's not easy to organize a
hikoi of the size that we saw arrive at Parliament,
which was Yes to Party Mardi were instrumental in organizing it,
but it was way too big for the government parties
to simply dismiss it as a kind of to Party

(17:00):
Mardi rally, to be honest. So they're the only ones
who've ended the year with a massively high polar writing
in their head at the election, and I think they've
done very very well.

Speaker 2 (17:12):
Indeed, steer into your crystal ball for me, Jason. Do
you think that Chris Hopkins will be leading the Labor
Party in a year's time?

Speaker 9 (17:18):
Yeah?

Speaker 11 (17:18):
I do.

Speaker 8 (17:19):
I don't think there's anybody else that's really willing to
step up and take his place at the moment. I mean,
you could think of the likes of Kieran McNulty, but
he's been very firm that he doesn't want to do that.
I mean, they all are until they do it, since
he seems to be the sort of tradition and leadership
leadership usurping. But I think that you know, he's not
actually doing a bad job. Is Chris Hopkins. You know,

(17:40):
the Labor Party has been almost invisible this year. You
don't really hear from them all that much. But that's
not necessarily too bad of a thing that first year
of a coalition. I think that he's probably going to
keep chipping away, come up with some policies and really
kind of put a bit of more of the pedal
to the medal this year, and we'll see a little
bit more of him. But I don't think he's going anywhere.

Speaker 7 (18:00):
Claire, Yes, I also think that he will still be
the leader in the year takes am. Their polling hasn't
collapsed at all. If anything, it's firmed up a little
bit and it takes some things been a bit more
grim to roll a leader, and as Jason just said,
none of the others seem to have any appetite to
roll them.

Speaker 2 (18:20):
Well, look, thank you both very much for your time today.
I hope you're both getting a good a nice break
to recover from the what was it unrelenting and teething year?
Jason King the time off.

Speaker 8 (18:31):
No, I'm actually doing the Summer Drive Show with ZB
SO I'll be on air from four till eight pm
every night, so doing some talkback. So eight one hundred
and eighty ten eighty if you want to call in
and talk to me about some things, so.

Speaker 7 (18:42):
I'll be calling in every day, Jason every day.

Speaker 2 (18:45):
He might need it clear clear any surf promotion you'd
like to get across.

Speaker 7 (18:49):
No, I've got zero self promotion, am I am off,
I am off and out.

Speaker 10 (18:55):
Well, thank you, Other than my calls to Jason.

Speaker 2 (18:58):
And well, look, I'll join you on those. Thank you
both so much for your contribution throughout the year as well.
I appreciate your time this morning. It as twenty eight part.

Speaker 1 (19:10):
It's the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin on News Talks
at b.

Speaker 12 (19:16):
SO.

Speaker 2 (19:17):
I want to introduce you to a Kievy man who
is on a worldwide letter delivery mission. His name is
Johnny Bedmore aka the Galapagis Postman. So in March this year,
Johnny collected fifty letters from an ancient postbox in the
Galapagus Islands, left there by travelers in the hope that
one day they would be delivered. Johnny is now traveling
the world delivering the letters to their intended recipients. His

(19:40):
mission is to raise awareness and funds for motor neuron disease,
both here and in the UK, and he is currently
in New Zealand and Johnny joins me, now, good morning.

Speaker 13 (19:49):
Good morning, Francesca.

Speaker 3 (19:50):
How are you?

Speaker 2 (19:51):
I'm very good. Thank you. Where in New Zealand are
you at the moment?

Speaker 13 (19:54):
I am in sunny Taradale looking out over the town
at the moment, at a friend's place. It's a lovely
place to be at the time.

Speaker 2 (20:02):
Yeah, wonderful. Tell me what letter number are you on?

Speaker 13 (20:07):
I have delivered forty five letters, Letter forty six, Well,
it was actually forty one in Japan. I'm hoping it
is going to be delivered today by my I had
to leave it there because I didn't have the full address.
It's the one postcard that I wasn't able to go
to the address so far on this journey, and I'm
we've tracked it down and hopefully it'll get delivered today.

Speaker 2 (20:28):
How did this mission of yours come about?

Speaker 13 (20:31):
I was in the Galapicus Islands in January of twenty
twenty three and I found out about the post box.
And I was at that stage I was looking for
a new adventure. My father, who had mode a neuron
for eight years, had passed away in October of twenty two,
and so that gave me the space to be able
to go off into the world and do a grand adventure.

(20:53):
And I always knew that he was the inspiration and
I wanted to do something in his name.

Speaker 2 (20:58):
Johnny, What island was this post box?

Speaker 9 (21:00):
On?

Speaker 13 (21:02):
Is Floriana in the Galapicus Islands. It's one of the
multitude of islands. There lots of people sail around the
islands and this is now one of the tourist stops
where you it's just a bay, there's a beach, there's
nobody there. It's just got a whiskey barrel and people
stop and put their postcards in.

Speaker 2 (21:19):
And so I'm having a moment, Johnny, because this year,
I read this brilliant book by a woman called Abbott
Kaylor called Eden Undone. It's set in the nineteen thirties
and it tells the story of a German doctor and
his wife came out to an island, and then an
aires and her two lovers, and then there was another couple,
and then there was They all mysteriously disappeared, and it
talks about this mail box and how they'd leave mail

(21:42):
there and passing ships would pick them up and take
them to mainland and maybe a couple of months later,
is that the same letterbox?

Speaker 11 (21:47):
Absolutely?

Speaker 3 (21:48):
I walked it is so cool.

Speaker 13 (21:50):
I walked past the actual building where they lived. The
story gets told as part of the tour when you're
there about the you know, the mysterious relationships and people
disappearing and the what's left of the stone building that
we're living is still there.

Speaker 2 (22:06):
Because Johnny, it's quite a romantic story about how you know,
you're living in the middle of nowhere and you leave
letters in a letter box and you hope that they
will be delivered. So what has the reaction been like
when you've delivered these letters?

Speaker 11 (22:17):
Oh fantastic.

Speaker 13 (22:18):
Really, you know, there's never really been anything bad happened,
No negatitivity, there's just you know, uncertainty, you know what's
going on where, you know where, what exactly is this?
And then you show them and that you explain what's
what are you doing? And because the letter itself has
come from somebody they know or a family member, that
really is a golden ticket to them just opening up

(22:39):
and sharing their own personal stories, which has been amazing.

Speaker 6 (22:43):
Oh look, now there is a special inspiration behind your travels.
You mentioned your father before. You're raising awareness and money
for most in your on charities. Tell me a little
bit more about how your dad inspired what you're doing.

Speaker 13 (22:55):
Well, he was just a generally, you know, good bloke.
You know, he was out there doing stuff. He traveled
around the world, and that's what sort of you know,
inspired me to go out and explore the world. And
you know he obviously he had mode in neurine for
eight years and he all the way through that he
kept his humor. And you know the people that have
mode in youurine that you know, their ability to speak goes,

(23:18):
their mobility goes, and they're all key factors and traits
of somebody like me traveling the world needs and all
the way through that time, he never lost his humor
because the person that has out MMD is still the
same person inside and their brain is still one hundred percent.
So it's quite a cruel disease, but you know they
all face this often with great humility and great humor.

Speaker 2 (23:40):
How old are some of the letters and postcards that
you're delivering?

Speaker 13 (23:45):
The oldest one I have is was we had delivered
was fourteen months and that was ta Keito and Ecuador.
Nobody there's no Ecuadorians going to the island on tour
to take a letter, so it sat there for quite
a while. But most of it isn't within one to
two months. The turnover of the letters is very high.
People come in every day put letters in and they

(24:05):
take a few weeks with them, and so they don't
stay there very long.

Speaker 2 (24:09):
Fascinating. So where are you off to next?

Speaker 13 (24:12):
Joe Berg for New Years? I've got a letter to
deliver there. Then I'm up through Africa. I've got a
couple more in Morocco, and then I've got a big
finish in February around Europe before i finish in London
on the first of March, which is one year from
when I started on the first of March this year,
and do.

Speaker 2 (24:31):
You have any idea what you're going to do then, Johnny,
I'm going to have a nap because it sounds like
an amazing adventure. But I do imagine that it has been.
It's been quite challenging at times.

Speaker 11 (24:43):
Oh absolutely.

Speaker 13 (24:44):
I mean I didn't know where I was going till
day one, so I've been doing all the logistics right
from you know, I still haven't figured out what I'm
doing exactly in Africa, and I'm there in two weeks.

Speaker 5 (24:55):
Do you know?

Speaker 2 (24:56):
The other thing I love about this story is how
great is it to receive a letter in the mail
that isn't a bill?

Speaker 3 (25:03):
These days?

Speaker 2 (25:03):
I mean, I hardly get anything in my letter box
anymore except to post card from Jack Tame. He's a
Christmas card from Jack Tame. He's the most reliable Christmas
cards center you see in your life, but you don't receive.
So I mean, I love the form, you know, I
love letter writing as a form of communication. It's quite
special to have something sort of to hold in your
hands and things. Do you read any of the postcards?

Speaker 3 (25:23):
Yeah, all of them, all of them.

Speaker 13 (25:25):
Because there's a postcard you can see it. I mean,
they're all characters for me now, like so I'm looking
at that and I'm reading them before I go to deliver.
I'm trying to figure out what the relationship is. Because
people aren't very good at writing this anymore. Some of
them don't have names on them, they don't have dates.
You can't figure out what's going on. So it makes
it a bit mysterious. And there's a bit of detective

(25:47):
work going which makes every delivery unique. I think they're
all going to be different, they're all going to be
the same, and each one has some uniqueness about it
that I you know, it makes it special.

Speaker 2 (25:58):
Oh, Johnny, thank you so much for your time this morning.
Really nice to catch up with you. Best of luck
on the rest of the tables. You can follow Johnny's
adventures on Instagram at big o Adventures, and from there
you can link to link to his fundraiser for motion
you're on and a tracking map to see where he
is up to. The fundraising page and tracking link also

(26:19):
up on our Facebook page. The Sunday session with Francesca
Rudkin Don't Forget Our to ten Hugh Bonneville from Downtoon
Abbey and Paddington in Peru is with us. It is
twenty one to.

Speaker 1 (26:30):
Ten Sunday with Style the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin
and Winkles for the best selection of great Reeds news
talk Zebby.

Speaker 2 (26:40):
Thank you very much for your feedback. I'll get to
some of that soon. Someone just texted to say, what
was the name of that book that I mentioned while
talking to Johnny there. It's a book by Abbot Kayla
and it's called Eden Undone and Abbot Kaylo tells you
all about it. I interviewed her this year. If you
just google Abbot kaylor k a h l e Er
Sunday Session, you'll hear the interview and she'll tell you

(27:02):
the story about this island where Johnny found this ancient
post office box and we'll post box there's no office
post box, and you'll get a real feel for what
the mission that he's on and also the incredible history
around that island. Right, we are just a week out
from New Zealand's premier tennis tournament, the ASB Classic. It

(27:23):
gets underway on the thirtieth of December. To talk us
through preparations, ASB Classic Tournament director Nicholas Lamper and is
with me now. Good morning, Nicholas, Hi, good morning. Right,
we're down to the business end, aren't we really. How's
it all shaping up.

Speaker 9 (27:39):
Yes, it's all shaping up nicely.

Speaker 12 (27:41):
However, there's always some last minute preparation and this year
we were starting a week earlier, so it's always a
little bit challenging to get everything ready when you have
like Christmas and boxing down in the middle.

Speaker 9 (27:54):
But we'll be ready on time.

Speaker 2 (27:57):
I've been driving past the Tennis Center and it's looking
like there's a lot of action, Nicholas, A lot going on.

Speaker 9 (28:05):
Yeah, there's a lot going on. It's you know, it's
it's a temporary.

Speaker 12 (28:08):
Site that we build across the road in a place
that we call the sir which is the hospitality area.
It takes it takes a month to get everything ready,
so everyone's still working during the weekend as well.

Speaker 2 (28:25):
How happy are you with the field that you have
assembled for the women's Enemenes Tournament?

Speaker 12 (28:31):
Pretty happy, you know, As I keep reminding, it's it's
always a challenging time of the year in the way
that you know, we we're facing strong competition with with
other events in Australia. Whether it's the United Cup or
Brisbane or Adelaide. We know players enjoy coming to New
Zealand as a as a leader of to do try

(28:52):
and open and we you know, we always trying to
identify the key talent that we know the fans will
enjoy watching.

Speaker 9 (29:00):
And I believe this is what we've done again this year.

Speaker 2 (29:03):
Who are the players to watch?

Speaker 12 (29:07):
So now I mean Zakia, you know, the four time
Grand Slam winner, former number one, is returning to Aukland
first time since twenty seventeen, so she'll be she'll.

Speaker 9 (29:16):
Be really exciting.

Speaker 12 (29:17):
She's coming back with the coach who used to be
with Serena when when she won the tournaments back in
twenty twenty. So we're hoping that, you know, somehow history
could could repeat itself. You know, there's also in Raducanu.
I think she's arriving today in Auckland, and we went

(29:37):
after an American player called.

Speaker 9 (29:42):
Madison Keys who will be a top seed as well.

Speaker 2 (29:45):
And lu Luson has had an incredible year. How big
is it to have her playing in the tournament.

Speaker 12 (29:51):
It's really critical for us to have you know, Kiwi
is doing well not only at the tournament but throughout
the year, because this is what you know, creates affinity
towards the sport and helps, you know, generating passion for
the up and coming generation. So Kick Lulu has a
tremendous story. She's an unbelievable season. She's already in New Zealand.

(30:17):
We're just going in the next few hours off to
Sunny Hills.

Speaker 9 (30:23):
She'll be playing with about fifty kids.

Speaker 12 (30:26):
And then she'll she'll start a preparation for next week
and be ready for the tournament.

Speaker 2 (30:31):
Well, that's fantastic. I know that you're quite big on
the community engagement. I think last year Cocoa Golf managed
to get out to the tennis club.

Speaker 12 (30:39):
Was that right, Yes, So basically we're replicating what we've
done with Coco last year this year with Lulu. We're
always trying to pick a different club in the in
the Oakland region and trying to bring as many kids
as possible so they get a chance to not only
interact with Lulu ask questions.

Speaker 9 (31:02):
But then also they have some time on court with
her afterwards.

Speaker 6 (31:04):
Oh brilliant.

Speaker 2 (31:05):
How of tickets sales?

Speaker 12 (31:06):
Bean ticket seals have been going extremely well, actually stronger.

Speaker 9 (31:12):
Than last year, which was a record year.

Speaker 12 (31:15):
So We're very optimistic about the numbers.

Speaker 9 (31:19):
We still have.

Speaker 12 (31:21):
Some slots available for the first three days, so the thirtieth,
thirty first and the first, and we are currently running
a promotion on the website, so anyone who doesn't have
the ticket yet, I would encourage them to check out
the website.

Speaker 2 (31:40):
So what does the next week look like for you
and your team necklace? I mean, it is quite a
hicd time and with Christmas in the mix as well.

Speaker 9 (31:48):
It's basically full on.

Speaker 12 (31:51):
You know, don't I don't get much of a break
during Christmas and Aby, you know French people we normally
celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve who have a family dinner,
but then from the twenty fifth onward then it'll be
it'll be on in sight every day. You know, it's
a big commitment for our families as well. But you know,

(32:13):
it's really worth it because it's as you explained in
the introduction, I believe it's New Zealand's premiere summer events.

Speaker 9 (32:24):
We've got thirteen days of extraordinary.

Speaker 12 (32:27):
Tennis and we just want to make sure everything's ready
on time for the fans and the players to enjoy it.

Speaker 2 (32:33):
It's such a great event Nicholas. I went to it
for the first time last year after watching it on TV,
and I was totally blown away at the intimacy. How
you really feel like you are there, literally on the
court with these players. It's fantastic and all the hospitality
that you've got there as well as brilliant. So I
wish you the best of luck with the tournament.

Speaker 9 (32:55):
Thanks very much, thank you.

Speaker 2 (32:58):
That was ASP Classic tournament director Nicholas lamperin with me there.
The ASP Tennis Classic runs from the thirtieth of December
to the fifth of January Auckland. It be followed by
the men's event starting on the sex. Good time to
be in or conto because everyone leaves so it's really
easy to get around. It's really easy to kind of
get to places, get to town, move around. It's like

(33:18):
being back in the eighties. It is a twelve to
ten News Talks.

Speaker 1 (33:23):
Sunday with Style the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin and
Winkles for the best selection of Greg g Reas HEAs talks.

Speaker 14 (33:31):
Hebby of yourself A Merry little Christmas, let.

Speaker 3 (33:38):
Your heart be live.

Speaker 5 (33:44):
From now.

Speaker 2 (33:45):
I'm sure you recognize the voice this is of course,
the beautiful voice of Tim Beverage. We thought it would
help up as royalties over the Christmas period. Now this
is Tim Beveridge, help him yourself the Merry Little Christmas
off his album Christmas is Gosh, what a young looking
Tim Beverage on the front of the CD. Thank give

(34:07):
your feedback. Martin Klunes visited the Galapagas Islands and the
Islands of the Pacific TV show and visits that letterbox
you're talking about and tells the story of that island.
Very interesting documentary show worth the watch. Thank you for that.
That's Islands of the Pacific if you want to have
a look at that. A few other texts here. So
funny putting repealing things on a list of achievements, How
hard was that? Having policies that would replace those repeals

(34:29):
are sadly lacking. Thank you, Steve Neil. Text to say, Francisco,
a big advantage the government has is the mess that
the opposition left. There's no viable alternative right now and
most voters know it. And Francisca, six years of total
shambollock mismanagement has not been turned around in one year.
You're in Lana Land. As for your commentators left of
lefts and no surprises there, Paul. I wasn't expecting them

(34:50):
to have turned turned the ship around. But you want
to see things being implemented, which indicated is heading in
the right direction to end time, turn things around. You
only have to look around the world and see that
there are so many economies dealing with the same thing
and it is going to take some time. The point
I was making is that voter is a less patient.
Vote is a less patient to go. Actually, we've given

(35:13):
you three or four years. We don't like the direction
things are going, and we're not actually prepared to sit
and wait here. And they're making a move on, you
know well, with their vote, their changing government. So it
was more that point that I was trying to make.
But thank you very much for your text. Hey, We've
had a wonderful year here on the Sunday Session and

(35:34):
we've been really fortunate to speak to a lot of
amazing people, from Rick Astley to Robbie Williams, to Eric Idol,
to David Wallams to Marrying Keys, Trent Dalton, Richard Osmond,
all sorts of people and lots of incredible locals really
loved meeting me. And Mottu. This year, Madeline Sami has
been in Andrew Fagan loved talking to him about venture,

(35:57):
sailing and things. We have pulled all these fantastic interviews
together in a podcast which is kicking off on the
twenty third of December. It's called Great Chats. It's basically
each each episode has some of the highlight some of
the highlights. Some of these feature interviews from throughout our
year which will just be great listening over the summer.
If you need something to you listen to while you're

(36:19):
gardening or going for a walk or just in the background,
do feel free to check that out. So it's called
Great Chats with Francesca Rudkin. Some of our fabulous interviews
from the year you can get at iHeartRadio.

Speaker 6 (36:29):
Or wherever you get your podcasts seven to ten.

Speaker 3 (36:34):
Heap.

Speaker 4 (36:34):
It's simple.

Speaker 1 (36:35):
It's Sunday the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin and Wiggles
for the best selection of great Breens news talks Envy.

Speaker 2 (36:44):
The recent Paddington Bear film series has been a massive success,
prompting a renewed interest in this famous bear. We even
saw the Late Queen get in on the action. The
films are really fabulous. They're filled with charm and humor.
They mix live action and CGI beautifully, and they also
include creative animation and visuals to bring these stories to life.

(37:05):
I think the perfect kind of family film. They're great
for adults and great for kids. And the third film
in the series has been released on the first of jan.
Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville plays mister Brown and he joins
me afternoons and sport to talk all things Paddington bare
now taking us to the break is a new cast
member in this film, and Livia Coleman, who doesn't love

(37:27):
Olivia Coleman, And in this film she plays a nun
and she has written and performs this particular song that
you're listening to in the film, and she's kind of
got her guitar and she's roaming sort of the hills
of Peru. It is very much a tribute to the
sound of music. So just to get in the mood,

(37:48):
this is Let's Prepare for Paddington by Oliver Coleman taking
us to the news back shortly the pros plans have

(38:16):
been about can be left on the only system loved.

Speaker 15 (38:21):
At the Nations.

Speaker 2 (38:23):
Everyone opinion and talking and nothing and second speaking and
and and and.

Speaker 8 (38:49):
Coming.

Speaker 4 (38:55):
It's Sunday.

Speaker 3 (38:56):
You know what that means.

Speaker 1 (38:57):
It's the Sunday session with Francesca Rutkin and Wickles for
the best election of Great Reeds used talks.

Speaker 9 (39:04):
It be.

Speaker 2 (39:11):
Good morning. This is a Sunday session. I'm fro Chisca
bud Can.

Speaker 16 (39:14):
Good to have you with us.

Speaker 2 (39:15):
I'm with him till midday to day right. Hugh Bonnieville
is most well known as Lord Grantham from Downtown Abbey,
but I think one of the most delightful roles he
plays is mister Brown alongside the lovable Paddington Bear. And
Paddington is back. This time he's heading back to his homeland.
The film is called Paddington in Peru.

Speaker 3 (39:34):
Paddington. There's a letter for a Pero.

Speaker 15 (39:37):
Dear Paddington, Lucy. She's gone and we have no idea
where she is.

Speaker 6 (39:42):
She raised me when I was orphaned. There's a cup
if you ever get lost.

Speaker 9 (39:47):
Just raw.

Speaker 4 (39:50):
I know, I know.

Speaker 11 (39:51):
It's not as if we can drop everything and fly
to Peru.

Speaker 2 (39:56):
Earlier this week, I was delighted to catch up with
Hugh Bonnyville, albeit in the wee small hours of the morning.
I started the interview by asking you how good is
it to be back in the Paddington world.

Speaker 17 (40:07):
Well, as you can see here, I am speaking to
you from Darkest Peru. It's lovely to be back with
the gang and to tell this new adventure.

Speaker 2 (40:16):
The last time I spoke to you, we spoke about
the film to Olivia, and I feel like you have
been playing a real range of characters over the last
few years, and edgy characters are good. But is it
quite lovely just to get back to this charming, wholesome
world of Peddington.

Speaker 4 (40:35):
Oh?

Speaker 11 (40:35):
Well absolutely.

Speaker 17 (40:37):
This bear is so beloved around the world, not least
in New Zealand, so it's great to bring him back
to the screen. Obviously, his reputation precedes him, and his
egos got bigger, so he comes out of his trailer
fewer and fewer times. But when he does, he bounces
down and we've had standings, know, we work with standings
most of the day, and then suddenly about four o'clock
he arrives and says, I'm ready for my close up.

Speaker 11 (40:58):
And it's always worth it because he's.

Speaker 17 (41:01):
So charming, and in this particular adventure, we go to
the heart of the jungle to the heart of where
he came from. So it's not an origin story, but
it does make him reflect on where he's from and
where he's going.

Speaker 2 (41:14):
So is he responsible for the reason why there's been
seven years between films.

Speaker 17 (41:20):
Yes, because he had so many other commitments. He does
a lot of work for charity, and then there was
a big stint in Marmalade rehab.

Speaker 11 (41:27):
But he's now out.

Speaker 17 (41:28):
He's fine, he's handling it all and he's back on
track and he's on the promotional trail.

Speaker 2 (41:34):
I imagine it was very difficult because the cast is
it's an incredible cast in these films. I imagine it
was quite difficult getting everybody together to do a sequel.

Speaker 11 (41:44):
Well, yes, it wasn't. It wasn't.

Speaker 17 (41:45):
There was a thing called the pandemic which really got
in the way initially, and then you know, issues to
do with budget and tweak. There's no point making a
movie unless the script is absolutely right, and so Dougal
who's our director, and Rosie Allison, our producer, and the
writing team really worked hard on you know right up.
In fact, even on the set we were weaking bits

(42:06):
and bobs to make the story as rich and as
tight and as fun as the previous two movies.

Speaker 3 (42:14):
This film, of.

Speaker 2 (42:15):
Course, the third film some new cast members and I'll
get to them in just a moment that you mentioned Google, there,
Google Wilson. This is the first time he has directed
a feature film. I mean, this is quite a large
project to take on. This is not a straightforward feature film.
He's done a very good job.

Speaker 11 (42:38):
Well he's done. I think he's done a terrific job.

Speaker 17 (42:39):
And also must have been nerve wracking for him, you know,
as he himself has said, he had large shoes to fill.
Paul King did such a mangisterial job on the first
two movies and set the tone and the color palette
and the look and the feel.

Speaker 11 (42:52):
Of the movies.

Speaker 17 (42:53):
But Google has brought his own, his own taste to
this third film. But it's only developed what's already there.
So he was very nervous. You know, He's come from
the world of of commercials and short music videos and
so on, so to take on a proper big movie
was nerve wracking for him. So in fact, most of

(43:15):
the movie was spent reassuring him that he was rather brilliant,
which it wasn't a task because he's a lovely guy
and has the same wonderful outlook on the world as
Baddington does.

Speaker 2 (43:27):
And I was thrilled to see that he's brought a
lot of creative sort of ingenuity to this film, because
that's what we expect. It's such a mix of live
action and animation and interesting visuals, and he's really stipped
that up, hasn't he.

Speaker 17 (43:43):
Oh completely, And he's a great storyboarder. I've never met
a director who's so well prepared. Mind you, he did have,
you know, several there were not false starts, but there
was several times when we thought we might go and
then couldn't because of various issues. So he's been more prepared.
He's had more time to repare than any other director
I've ever met. But he's meticulous in that preparation, but

(44:04):
also inventive. He's dogged at trying to get you know,
the jokes right, the visual jokes as a glorious reference
to as a Buster Keaton reference for instance, which is
anyone who knows those films will will really enjoy. And
the film is peppered as the other two were, with
visual references but also smart verbal gags and great character

(44:26):
development as well. With huge heart at the center of it,
and that's hugely down to Google's input.

Speaker 2 (44:33):
You're joined by some new cast members, Emily Mortimer Stixon
to Sally Hawkin's role of Missus Brown and she, weirdly,
she was such a good fit that it took me
a moment to go Hugh's got a new wife.

Speaker 11 (44:48):
Absolutely well.

Speaker 17 (44:49):
We were very sorry that, you know, Sally, for her
home personal reasons, stepped back and she was just taking
a break, which we all completely understand. And bizarrely, as
Rosie the producer was telling me this, the first image
the first name and face that popped into my head
was Emily's and I just blurted out, Emily will And
we were so lucky that when Rosie and the team
approached her she said yes, and it all fitted. She

(45:12):
does fit in absolutely seamlessly, and we felt like a
family from from the outset. So it was a joyous
thing to have her on board as well.

Speaker 2 (45:21):
And the other person who fits them seamlessly as well,
and very much got the memo of you know, how
you know what to bring to a Peddington film was
Olivia Coleman.

Speaker 6 (45:31):
I mean she hid me and stitches immediately.

Speaker 17 (45:36):
Yes, so Olivia plays the reverend mother who runs the
home for Retired Bears, where of course Aunt Lucy's we
know lives and it was very much invested with the
spirit of Julia Andrews and the sound of music and
will burst into song with a guitar whenever she can,
and so hence you see roller skating nuns, nuns doing
cartwheels and you know, skipping through the hills of the

(45:59):
andes of Peru. She was She absolutely embraced the role
and was huge fund to have her own.

Speaker 6 (46:07):
Because it's spent a while since the two of your
work together.

Speaker 17 (46:10):
We did a show called twenty twelve, which is all
about setting up the twenty twelve Olympics. She played my
doggedly loyal secretary and she was genius in that. It
was great to be reunited on this.

Speaker 11 (46:23):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (46:24):
Antonio banderas of course joins him as well as a
cursed Amazonian river.

Speaker 6 (46:29):
Capten. Was he fun to work with as well.

Speaker 11 (46:32):
He's great.

Speaker 17 (46:33):
I mean he's a you know, maybe a massive, great,
big movie star, but he's a proper actor. He comes
from theater, so I always called you know, people like
that one of us. He gets it and knows about teamwork,
and in his case, knows about having to play lots
of characters. I think he after a couple of weeks
he said, I thought it was going to be fun
playing all these different characters, but actually it's a lot
of time in makeup. Because there's a nice nod to

(46:55):
kind hearts and coronets, and that he plays various ancestors
who revisited him during the course of the story. He's wonderfully,
He's very funny and as I said, complete team player
and committed to the team.

Speaker 11 (47:08):
He led from the front wonderfully.

Speaker 6 (47:11):
This is much more of an action film, too, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (47:14):
I mean, you know, the Brown family gets out of
London and they've got to get their action boots on.

Speaker 17 (47:21):
Yes, well, because we go back to visit Aunt Lucy
and then in the process discovered that she's gone off
on her own adventures, so we need to follow her
track her down.

Speaker 11 (47:30):
That does lead us into the jungles.

Speaker 17 (47:32):
Of South America, and you can imagine that we encounter
all sorts of adventures there, not least when you've got
a bear leading the way. He thinks he knows the way,
but of course hasn't been there since he was a cub,
so relying on him for compass and navigational purposes is
probably a bit of a mistake. But we all have
to confront things, not least our own fear of spiders.

Speaker 6 (47:56):
Which you do brilliantly.

Speaker 2 (47:58):
I have to ask, and I don't want to give
away too much of the magic of making a movie,
but the integration of the animated Peddington is exceptional. So
I'm really curious to know when you're in the middle
of you know, a Peruvian you know, rainforest and things,

(48:18):
and you're it's full on and you're acting, who is
on set as Peddington?

Speaker 6 (48:24):
Who are you acting to? Are you being feed the
lines and things?

Speaker 17 (48:28):
Well, I just will to make absolutely clear to you
and to your viewers that the bear is real. But
as I said, sometimes he has to have a little
eyed down. If you ate that many marmalade sandwiches in
a day, you'd have to. So we do have assistance.
We have an actress called Lauren who has been on
every movie. She is the same height as Paddington, and
she dons his coat and hat and walks through the

(48:50):
scenes with us, and so we shoot with her first
and then then we might do another pass without her there,
but with our eyes following in the direction where she's been.
Sometimes it's a bit more simplistic than that. It's a
stick with a bit of sticky tape at three foot six,
which is where eyes are, and so it can be
it's a very bitty and fiddlely process, as I say.

(49:12):
But then when the star does emerge and steps into
graceus with his presence from the magic happens.

Speaker 6 (49:20):
Hugh, I must ask you while we hit you with us.
This year we lost day.

Speaker 2 (49:23):
Maggie Smith, and I can't and allegiend and I'm just
wondering if you could share with me, so you know
what you've learned from working with her over the years.

Speaker 17 (49:31):
Well, strangely that my most vivid memory of her probably
is the is the last scenes we were filming with
her back in the at the end of the second
Down from Abby film, and you know, while the cameras
were setting up, I was just you know, sitting next
to her, and I just reflected on the fact that
this was the last time I was going to see
her on screen, and that I'd had the privilege of

(49:52):
ten years calling her mum, and I just thought back
over the career, and many of the performances that i'd seen,
some that I hadn't. You know, you go right in
my memory bank, going back to watching her on screen
as Desdemona, to Olivier's Othello, to watching her on stage
in the West End, and not to mention her two
Oscar winning performances in Plaza Suite and The Prime and

(50:13):
Miss Jane Brody and this extraordinary range of this beautiful
mercurial woman. And I'd been lucky enough to work closely
with her on and off over that decade. So I've
got that fond memory to hold on to, and luckily
we've got the great legacy of all her screenwork to
cling onto. But you know, she was her own toughest critic,

(50:35):
and so you all had to raise we all had
to raise our game when we were on set with her,
because she didn't take any prisoners, least of all herself.

Speaker 2 (50:43):
So Peddington and Peru is a wonderful way to start
twenty twenty five. What does the risk of the year
hold for you? I hear there is talk about a
third film from Downton Nebby.

Speaker 17 (50:54):
Yes, And we finished that just a few months ago,
and so that's coming out. I think in September, certainly
in the UK, so I'm not sure when it reaches you, guys,
but that was a a lovely rounding off of the
story really, so I think those who followed the show
since it's beginning fifty two episodes and three films ago

(51:15):
will be delighted to see the story coming into land.

Speaker 11 (51:19):
So that's on the horizon.

Speaker 2 (51:20):
Yeah, Fantessa, I can't thank you enough for joining us.
It's lovely to talk to you again, and thank you
for such just gorgeous, wonderful cinema.

Speaker 6 (51:30):
Appreciate it.

Speaker 11 (51:31):
Thank you so much. Nice to talk to you.

Speaker 2 (51:33):
That was Hugh Bonneville. You can see Hugh in the
wonderful cast of Paddington and Peru in cinemas from January first.
And don't forget that award winning Kiwi band Corella are
with us at eleven for a chat. They're gonna play
us a song as well. It is nineteen past tenep
it simple.

Speaker 4 (51:49):
It's Sunday, the Sunday Session with.

Speaker 1 (51:51):
Francesca Rudkin and Wickles for the best selection of the
Great News Talks Envy.

Speaker 6 (51:58):
If you're looking for.

Speaker 2 (51:59):
Last minute Christmas gifts for the readers in your life,
look no further than the Wickles book recommendations, which take
the hassd out of choose. The Wikkel's Top one hundred
is a list of books voted for by New Zealand readers,
which means they've been loved by literally thousands of New
Zealanders and chances are your favorite readers will love them too.
Then there's the Whikkel's Top fifty list for Kids, voted

(52:20):
for by children from right around the country and their
enthusiasm is just waiting to be passed on to the
young readers in your life. Jones Picks is a selection
of hand picked books which the wit Calls head by
has read and loved. It's an eclectic mix with some
real gems and are highly recommended with the kids at
Top one hundred Kids Top fifteen Jones Picks. There really

(52:42):
is something for everyone at wit Calls. Merry Christmas from
the Wickles.

Speaker 1 (52:45):
Team Grab Recover It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin
and Wickles for the best selection of great bringings used
talk Z'd be twenty three past ten.

Speaker 2 (52:55):
Steve Neuill forro editor at flicks dot cot on Z
joins me now to Talk Entertainment.

Speaker 18 (53:00):
Good morning, Good morning.

Speaker 2 (53:01):
We were just having a little talk. I was saying
to you know, I've really sort of struggled to pull
together my favorite of the year, mainly because I feel
like I've watched a lot of average stuff both on
the big screen and on TV this year. And you
just sort of said to me, yeah, you know what
I mean, there have been there's been some great stuff,
but across the board.

Speaker 6 (53:20):
Yeah, not a stali year, not.

Speaker 18 (53:22):
A heighten maybe not the strongest, and I think possibly
lacking a kind of critical consensus about sort of what
the standout things, what were the cultural, culturally impactful shows
of the year. I mean probably Baby Reindeer was the
last thing that became a critical thing to watch at
that particular time. That feels like so long ago.

Speaker 6 (53:41):
Now, well that's the other thing.

Speaker 2 (53:44):
So you kind of need to get your diary out
to remember what you've actually watched and looked at. What
have been some of your favor Would you like to
start with shows?

Speaker 19 (53:51):
You let's start with shows.

Speaker 18 (53:53):
I was a lot more impressed with the range of
cinema that was on offer in twenty twenty four, but
just blitzing through TV rivals, I think this was probably
the most pure fun show of twenty twenty four. Jillie
Cooper coming to the small screen on Disney class boardin US, bonking, backstabbing,

(54:13):
a bit of broadcast.

Speaker 2 (54:14):
Currently, that's what the world needed.

Speaker 3 (54:16):
There we go absolutely.

Speaker 18 (54:17):
It turned out that we needed another show about extreme
white privilege, and Rivals gave it to us in spades.
The Curse sort of The Curse looked at white privilege
in a very different way, much more sarcastic and sort
of singular show. This was Nathan Field of Benny Saftie
and Emma Stone's show about NEPO Baby White Savior real

(54:38):
estate developers. Pretty weird, pretty specialist, I think this one.
But also for specialists of spelling. Guy Montgomery's Guymont's Spelling
be still still doing a great service here in New
Zealand also in Australia this year so nominated for TV
Awards in both countries, which is awesome to see for Guy.
A couple of others to mention Ludwig, which I talked

(54:59):
about a couple of weeks ago, David Mitchell's kind of
Jonathan Creeklake mystery series which I found really entertaining.

Speaker 6 (55:06):
It's a way to described it arrived.

Speaker 18 (55:08):
Well, yeah, I can't take the credit for that. I
stole off of Mate, but it arrived just at the
time of year when I needed something easy to watch.
I think about maybe fours four or five weeks ago,
and look, I really dug it season three of The Bear.
This is a show that has kind of thrived on
nervousness and anxiety, but I think audience has got a

(55:30):
little bit challenge to the sea with the fact like, oh,
maybe it's not about narrative, maybe it's not about resolving
the story. Maybe it is just sitting in this tense
situation with these characters.

Speaker 2 (55:40):
I dug it excellent.

Speaker 18 (55:42):
So it's TV in movies land, much broader landscape. We
just published the results of our Flex writer's poll last week.
Twenty writers sent lists and there are one hundred movies
in total, eleven three hundred and two minutes of viewing time,
which makes me feel a bit ill really, and the

(56:02):
results of that, you know, consensus, Pole and Malgo made
it out of a different writers' lists. June Part two
was in fifth place West Bank Land Confiscation, Doca No
Other Land, and fourth Luca Guardacino's Tennis Tennis Love Triangle
challenges a number three Film Festival favorite. I Saw the

(56:24):
TV Glow polled second and number one. Still the most
impactful movie of the year the Zone of Interest. Although
it's probably not one to pop on and put your
feet up over the summer break.

Speaker 6 (56:35):
No, if you did not get the chance to see it,
it is absolutely It is one of those films that
everybody must see.

Speaker 18 (56:41):
Basically, and that does sound like homework, but it's also
very true. This is Jonathan Glazer's masterpiece film, filmed around
Outschwitz and kind of recounting the psychological weirdness of working, living, laughing,
having lives right next to auto mass extermination.

Speaker 2 (57:04):
It's not like Love. Actually, you're not going to put
it out every Christmas, but I do recommend if you
haven't been had the chance to see it, you do
try and track it down.

Speaker 18 (57:11):
Is it one like if you want to punish the
extent of family.

Speaker 2 (57:14):
But I just think it's a reminder of the power
of the power of cinema. To be honest with you,
you know, they did things a little bit differently, you know,
the way the soundtrack and the audio tracks and things
were absent and not there, and as you say, you
sort of sat in this discomfort for so long. I
just think it's a reminder of the power of the
medium of film, and I thought it was so masterfully created.

(57:40):
It was it was really studying.

Speaker 6 (57:41):
Actually, it was a really good start to the year.

Speaker 18 (57:43):
It was really yeah, Okay, But I think the other
thing was the zone of interest is just that it
like it weaponizes absence of something like nothing else this year,
So you're constantly aware of the context of what's taking place,
even if the characters are kind of pushing it to those.

Speaker 6 (58:03):
What's not shown, which is more horrifying than what is shown.

Speaker 18 (58:05):
Yeah, I'm going to relate that slightly to Long Legs,
the Nicholas Cage starring horror where he's on screen for
I think a total of seventeen minutes in this film,
but his presence haunts the whole movie. This is one
of the best horror films of twenty four, kind of
built on a silence of the Lambs type chassis FBI
investigating a string FBI agent investigating a string of murders

(58:29):
gets a bit more occult and then sort of totally
creepy at the end. But yeah, Cage's performance in that
as a ratio of screen time to impact pretty standout
this year. A couple of other I'll mention a couple
of fun things to wrap up because it does all
sound a bit heavy, and you know a weighty This
morning Love Lies Bleeding. It's Kristen Stewart film from midiear

(58:53):
like a small town queer noir. So bodybuilder comes into town,
strikes up a relationship with the manager of a gym,
who also happens to be the daughter of a crime family.
This is a really entertaining film, like B movie, knowing
it but pushing the boundaries all the way through. And
if to pull out one more I would say it's

(59:15):
a toss up between thriller Rebel Ridge, which is on
Netflix at the moment. Loved this film, took it for
a rewatch a couple of weeks ago, really really impressed.
Jeremy Saornier, the filmmaker who made Blue Ruin and Green Room,
tells the tale here of corrupt small tem police department
knocking a man of his bike, confiscating his cash, and

(59:35):
then the kind of increasingly absurd steps he needs to
go through to retrieve that money. With a fantastic villainous
termed by Don Johnson, as has said, small town Sheriff
and maybe it's not fun one because it's a bit tearful,
but wrestling drama, The Iron Claw. This was another one
from the start of the everybody stuck with me this one,

(59:56):
And I think the initial allure was, oh, you're casting
all these beefcakes to play wrestlers like Zac Efron and
Harris Dickinson, Jeremy Allen White from the Bear, But there
was much more going for it than a bunch of
stunt cast.

Speaker 2 (01:00:08):
And amazing family drama as well. Yeah, indeed, can I
ask you just really quickly before you go. We've just
had quite a lot of news in the last few
days about music festivals. The Juicy Fest has been canceled.
It looks like the summer Timeless Tour. Also we've seen
the sixteen and seventeen year olds booted out a Lane Way.
I thought that had gone well last year with Laneway
having the underage I guess there. It just seems that

(01:00:32):
there's a bit of a licensing issue. It seems to
be coming back to the same thing, and it comes
to do with people and alcohol. A lot of amount
of people in an area where alcohol is available.

Speaker 18 (01:00:41):
Yeah, look, the government wants to reduce regulatory burdens on businesses,
but in the area of music, regulations getting in the
way of people being able to have a good time.
I'm worried about audience development for something late Laneway. It's
fantastic for people in their late teens to be going
to an event like that and participating in something that's

(01:01:04):
not just off turneddate. Now I can get wasted.

Speaker 2 (01:01:07):
Well, what concerns me about that is that they've changed
really who the audience who they're trying to appeal to.
It is appealing to a much younger audience. If you
don't get them in there, we're going to be to
get my way back to New Zealand.

Speaker 6 (01:01:18):
Yeah, okay, yeah, so you.

Speaker 18 (01:01:20):
Know, let's look at lightning the red tape. Load on
fun cultural things, not just boring business things.

Speaker 2 (01:01:28):
Steve, thank you so much for all your contribution this year.

Speaker 19 (01:01:32):
Have you as always great popping in Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:01:35):
Mary, Christmas, I hope you get a good break over
the Sunday. We'll see you next year.

Speaker 1 (01:01:42):
It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin on News Talks b.

Speaker 6 (01:01:48):
Enjoining me now is doctor Michelle Dickinson with her science
Study of the week. Good morning, Good morning.

Speaker 2 (01:01:53):
Now, when I heard about the study where moths can
hear the thirsty screams of plants, which is so fascinating
in itself, I thought back to another study that you'd
brought in where you talked about plants emitting this very
high frequency that we would need humans would need to
get a little machine. What was it was machine that
you could monitor no winter water.

Speaker 15 (01:02:14):
You're pirdly, So this is why I did this study
because that previous study where we finally learned that plants
can do this ultrasonic scream, this that we can't.

Speaker 6 (01:02:23):
Hear 'psite that my plants are screaming at me.

Speaker 15 (01:02:26):
Well then, because you know, it's like it's summer, so
my poor tomato plants every time, I'm like, I'm so sorry,
I've you know, they just always seem to thirsty. And
then that study that we talked about two years ago,
these these people have gone. I wonder if anybody else
is listening to these screams and apparently insects. Oh so
beautiful study. It's in the journal bio archive. It is

(01:02:47):
free if you would like to read it in its
oposauce and basically they've took these moths, and these are
lab reared moths. And this becomes important later on. So
they have never seen a plant before. They've been brought
up in a lab, no exposure to anything other than
a lab box. And they put them in this arena
filled with plants, and they were fertile musts. So they're

(01:03:08):
ready to lay their eggs. And they decided to watch
where they laid their eggs. And what was interesting is
they put them in a box with tomato plants, and
one was a very thirsty to market plant, and one
of them was a very healthy water tomato plant. And
they watched all of the musks go to the healthy
tomato plant and lay their eggs and ignore the screaming one.
And they said, well, are they ignoring them because they're

(01:03:29):
looking at it and going that's a bit of a
disheveled plant.

Speaker 2 (01:03:32):
Are they kind right?

Speaker 15 (01:03:33):
Are they sniffing the plant and going that doesn't smell
like a healthy plant, or are they listening to it?
So then they put a bunch of healthy tomato plants
into this box, and then they put a little speaker
in there that screamed the same scream of a thirsty
tomato plant even though it wasn't thirsty, and all of
the MutS only laid on the non screaming, healthy tomato plants.

(01:03:57):
So it can't be visual yeah, because the plants look
the same. It can't be smell because the plants smelled
the same. So they must be listening to the screams
of the plant and going.

Speaker 2 (01:04:07):
Na not here.

Speaker 15 (01:04:08):
So why would a muth care? Or must lay eggs
and those eggs tend into caterpillars, and the caterpillars need
a healthy plant.

Speaker 6 (01:04:14):
You want to be the best chance of survivor health plant.

Speaker 15 (01:04:17):
Yeah, but these must have never seen a plant before,
so they're listening to a queue that they've never been
exposed to, which shows that it must be genetically hardwired
in the moss to listen to whether or not a
plant is thirsty and healthy or not make that decision.
Why does this even matter? Why does Michelle care? Why
is the study of the week? Well, think about it.

(01:04:38):
What do we care about in agriculture reducing pesticides? What
do pesticides do? They reduce amount of insects that are
eating our plants.

Speaker 3 (01:04:46):
So maybe the.

Speaker 15 (01:04:47):
Solution and this is moving on from our two thousand
and three where we're like, we could put these little
speakers into our plants. That's one of those day. What
if we did the opposite, What if we put a
speaker next to all of our healthy crops that pretended
our plants were thirsty, and then the bugs would go
lay eggs elsewhere.

Speaker 9 (01:05:02):
Ha I.

Speaker 2 (01:05:04):
I just study the original study of brought and just
stayed with me because I sometimes I walk around my
house and go, I really need to work my plants,
and they're all just quietly screaming, which is quite upset.

Speaker 15 (01:05:16):
Do you know if we could hear our plants, I
don't think any of us would own plants.

Speaker 16 (01:05:19):
I don't.

Speaker 2 (01:05:20):
Well, that's the way, and unfortunately it's not probably not
ideal to bring the mosson and have them laying, you know,
chick and shiky plants to work out who's lying, what
we're and all that kind of thing. So I'll just
keep better at water, That's what.

Speaker 6 (01:05:31):
It comes down.

Speaker 15 (01:05:32):
Yeah, and just know that they are screaming at you.
We just can't hear it, but all of the insects
seem to be able to hear it. They did the
study on musk, but they know that a whole bunch
of other insects have that same frequency that they can hear. So, yeah,
just think of your plants as screaming and know that
all the things around you are noticing while you're walking persons.

Speaker 2 (01:05:48):
So if you took it to a large field, would
you be able to cover it with the sound that
was required to cover us?

Speaker 3 (01:05:53):
Who knows?

Speaker 2 (01:05:55):
I don't see why this researcher. I don't see why not.

Speaker 15 (01:05:59):
Yeah, and so why not put a speaker in our
crops and just make our plants sound like they're thirsty
and the bugs will go elsewhere.

Speaker 2 (01:06:06):
It's a It is a good theory. I like this stunny.
I love it too, Michelle, thank you so much. Have
a lovely Christmas. Thank you with your twins. I'm sure
they're very excited about Christmas.

Speaker 15 (01:06:16):
It's a beautiful age too. Yeah, Santa's find me a person.
Oh great, We're gonna have a fab one.

Speaker 6 (01:06:22):
Thank you so much.

Speaker 2 (01:06:24):
We will see you in the new year.

Speaker 6 (01:06:25):
Take care.

Speaker 2 (01:06:26):
We are in the final week of our four Steps
to Christmas with Mike vander Elsen. The Sweet Stuff is next.
It is twenty twleven.

Speaker 4 (01:06:34):
There's no better way to start your Sunday.

Speaker 1 (01:06:37):
It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rutkin and Wiggles for
the best selection of Greg breaths use Talk Sedy.

Speaker 2 (01:06:45):
Joining me now is Mike vander Ellison, our residence chief.
Good morning, Good morning. We are really on the countdown.

Speaker 4 (01:06:51):
Now.

Speaker 2 (01:06:51):
If you're sounding tripper, you're sounding much more tripper this today.

Speaker 10 (01:06:55):
I made it to the end. I got there.

Speaker 4 (01:06:57):
Yay.

Speaker 6 (01:06:58):
There's something about.

Speaker 2 (01:06:59):
It being within sight, isn't it That just gives you
that little bit of energy to get over the line.

Speaker 10 (01:07:04):
Now I'm just going to get the farm ready so
we can have a break.

Speaker 2 (01:07:07):
There is that too? Anyway, We've been loving the four
weeks of Christmas preparation, and this week we are on
to the sweet stuffs, a dessert or at a little
post dinner or mid afternoon.

Speaker 10 (01:07:20):
Treat before you have a little sleep before you have.

Speaker 2 (01:07:24):
It or after the sleep.

Speaker 3 (01:07:26):
Yeah. I don't know if the rules.

Speaker 2 (01:07:29):
I feel like the rules of eating around Christmas kind
of go out that go out the door. You sort
of do whatever you want, whenever you want for a
couple of days, don't you, And then you kind of
get yourself back on track.

Speaker 20 (01:07:38):
And that's kind of part of the part of the
glory of it and Also, it's just that little bit
of difference, you know. It's like I can actually sit
down and have a reasonably large meal for lunch, and hey,
I'm not going to have any dinner because it doesn't
really matter.

Speaker 10 (01:07:52):
I'm on holiday.

Speaker 3 (01:07:53):
It's try.

Speaker 2 (01:07:54):
There's nothing wrong with the scrambled egg.

Speaker 6 (01:07:56):
That's it on toast.

Speaker 10 (01:07:58):
Yep, yeah, delicious.

Speaker 20 (01:07:59):
Last night we had quite a big lunch yourselves and
flocks for the day, which was amazing down there, so hot.
And it flew back late last night and Hazel had
actually made a noodle salad Checken noodle salad, and she
was so proud of it.

Speaker 10 (01:08:12):
And I came home and said, Hazel, I am absolutely.

Speaker 4 (01:08:15):
Choker, and her little eyes just dropped.

Speaker 11 (01:08:20):
She was a dad.

Speaker 10 (01:08:21):
I made it just for you you've been away, and yes, anyway,
it is so thoughtful.

Speaker 2 (01:08:27):
I tell you what, Tell Hazel to pop round to
my place. I would have appreciated that. If I ever
get home and someone's thought about cooking a meal. I'm
an ever, and I think you deserve a.

Speaker 6 (01:08:34):
Medal for that. So good honor.

Speaker 10 (01:08:37):
I'm having it for lunch.

Speaker 2 (01:08:38):
No good idea. Now tell me about these. Give us
some tips for our desserts.

Speaker 20 (01:08:42):
Okay, so desserts, I don't know, a few people probably
freak out around the SERTs, but I probably find them
the easiest because it's the one thing that you can
really truly do beforehand. So choose desserts that can be
easily stored in the refrigerator or in a cupboard for
it a couple of days. So these can include, you know,

(01:09:03):
in the fridge. For example, you might make up a cheesecake.
Some panic cottas are really good, you know, Panic coottas.
You could probably get four days out of a pan
o cotta before you need to use them. Classic pav labor,
you know, store them in an airtight container and then
put them somewhere into a copvered far away where they
don't get damaged.

Speaker 10 (01:09:19):
Tira misu.

Speaker 20 (01:09:20):
You know you probably get two days, possibly three days
out of a tira me sue.

Speaker 10 (01:09:23):
Some say they get even better. Brandy Christmas cakes with
brandy ice cream.

Speaker 20 (01:09:27):
You know you make some ice cream. You know you
can make that today. Ice cream is going to last
a month in the dumb ice cream? Did that you
start your ice cream brand?

Speaker 9 (01:09:35):
No?

Speaker 2 (01:09:35):
I didn't.

Speaker 6 (01:09:36):
I made just sort of a very creamy one with crunchy,
crushed up all on it.

Speaker 20 (01:09:40):
Well delicious, or you can make a trifle. Trifle may
not last as long. I would say a trifle probably
potentially needs to be eating the day after, but it
depends on how.

Speaker 11 (01:09:50):
How much booze you put it.

Speaker 20 (01:09:53):
So yeah, and then you've got desserts that can be frozen.
You know, these can be frozen for up to two
to three months. So you've got like these could include
like cookies, we just take them out of the freezer,
fire them into the oven. They could include chocolate brownies
or even Christmas Men's pie. It's probably a little bit
late for that because we've already got a couple of
days to go. And then also texture, think texture when
you're thinking desserts. Try not to put everything out onto

(01:10:15):
the table that's soft. Try and break it up with
a bit of texture, so that being like a crunchy
sort of a crumble max or even some broken up biscuits.
You know, get some ginger nuts, crush them up and
sprinkle them over. It could even be like nuts, some
toasted almonds crushed up, put over something.

Speaker 10 (01:10:33):
Texture is an important thing when you're eating dessert.

Speaker 20 (01:10:37):
And then also you know, a lot of desserts are
quite heavy, and dairy quite heavy, and cream quite heavy
and sweetness.

Speaker 10 (01:10:43):
So fresh fruit is super important. And this time of
the year.

Speaker 20 (01:10:46):
That's why we're so lucky at the side of the
world to have Christmas in summer, because the strawberries, if
we're not already sick of them, they are plentiful. Blackberries
are just coming on, boisonberries are coming on, blueberries are plantful.
And then also you've got the cherries. So all these
things combined together make a great thing to lighten up
the desserts.

Speaker 5 (01:11:06):
Do you know.

Speaker 2 (01:11:06):
I noticed the berries an increase of cost. I went
to my little local and purchased two punnets for seven
dollars on.

Speaker 6 (01:11:19):
Friday.

Speaker 2 (01:11:20):
By Saturday they were one punnet for five dollars. It's
just you're just like, here we go, here goes.

Speaker 6 (01:11:29):
I mean, look, I don't know what's happening with supply
and things like that.

Speaker 2 (01:11:32):
Mike, You never know, do you.

Speaker 6 (01:11:33):
But I was on a human gag. Well, obviously we all.

Speaker 2 (01:11:35):
Love it, but a few berries around this time of
the year, so of course.

Speaker 10 (01:11:39):
So yeah, that's it. And you know, we've got a
massive berry cage here.

Speaker 20 (01:11:43):
And so although the other day there was a bird
and God knows how they get in there, but they
find a way in. And you know the blackberries up here,
and obviously we were up in litteral wise, so it
changes depending on where you are in the country. But
our blackberries and our blueberries are just coming on now,
so they in theory they should be affordable.

Speaker 3 (01:11:59):
Ready to go.

Speaker 2 (01:12:00):
Mike, have a wonderful Christmas with the family. Thank you
very much for all your contribution this year to the
show and we look forward to catching up with you
in the new year. Mike has a wonderful yogurt cheesecake
with blackberries recipe that we're going to get up on
our website today. Newstalk ZIDB dot co dot z forod
slash Sunday or you can find it good from scratch

(01:12:20):
dot co dot in z.

Speaker 4 (01:12:22):
Relax, it's still the weekend. It's the Sunday session with.

Speaker 1 (01:12:26):
Francesca Rudgin and Wiggles for the best selection of great
reads used talk ZEDB.

Speaker 2 (01:12:32):
So Mike vander Alson has just you know, given us
some great tips from some lovely sweet treats to have
over Christmas, and Aaron is no with us. Erin O'Hara
Natrepeth to talk wellness and just to remind us to
maybe just find some balance over the Christmas period. Good morning,
good morning.

Speaker 16 (01:12:50):
Yes, it's all about balance, not the Grinch of Christmas.
Keeping that balance where our nutrition is super important at
this time of year, and I know that quite often
we've got that accessibility to a lot more desserts, a
lot more sweet foods, a lot more alcohol, chocolates, all
those things that we can over indulge in, but we
can also keep the balance and still enjoy some of

(01:13:11):
those things as well. So it's not about having no
treats and making your whole life miserable, but actually making
it so it works for you, so you can still
feel good and not feel really bloated and sluggish and
tired through this time.

Speaker 2 (01:13:25):
But there's a difference between enjoying a day or two
of some of some lovely eating with friends and family
and then having that kind of extend out over the
whole summer holiday.

Speaker 6 (01:13:36):
You know.

Speaker 2 (01:13:36):
It's sort of like I look forward to the Christmas
and we indulge when we do that, but then I
don't think there's going to be anything really particularly in
order to eat in our house from boxing Dad it'll
be gone, you know that kind of if you just
sort of go, will wait, I'm not going to you know,
my whole summer's not going to go out the window
just because I'm going to go on holiday and get ready.

Speaker 16 (01:13:55):
Yeah, you can go on the diet holiday that never ends,
but actually not letting it get out of control and
be like, oh, I'm going to have some more relaxed
kind of no rules on these days, but also kind
of that balance and not labeling foods as like good
and bad or can and carn eat these things, but
instead creating a beautiful balance in your nutrition, which might

(01:14:15):
mean you know, limiting your alcohol intake, you know, throughout
the day, even on Christmas Day.

Speaker 2 (01:14:20):
Eat some veggies.

Speaker 16 (01:14:22):
Great way to kind of create that balance of sugar
levels as well as protein. With the vegetables. It will
just help you kind of keep your sugar levels balance
when you do have the dessert at the end. And
then it might mean after the meal, instead of sitting
on the couch, you know, going out and getting some
fresh air. It might be a little stroll along the
beach or stroll through the neighborhood for ten minutes. Doesn't

(01:14:43):
have to be excessive exercise, but just a little bit
of movement can actually make you feel good after your
Christmas meal, and it will help you regulate the sugar
that you've eaten for the dessert, so you don't feel
that sluggish feeling after having a BA dessert.

Speaker 2 (01:14:57):
Just keep moving.

Speaker 10 (01:14:58):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 16 (01:14:59):
It doesn't have to be excessive, and you don't have
to be going to the gym on Christmas Day, but
actually just a little bit of movement does wonders. Also,
keeping up your hydration really important, that we're not getting dehydrated,
especially if we're having more alcohol and sugar. And then
quality sleep, which I know on the holidays sometimes we think, oh.

Speaker 2 (01:15:16):
We're on holidays, so we'll stay up really late and.

Speaker 16 (01:15:19):
We can catch up on sleep tomorrow and sleep on
sleep in or have some naps, or maybe have too
many naps during the day you can't get to sleep
at night. But actually quality sleep can help you regulate
your sugar levels as well and actually make you feel
really good and you're more likely to eat healthier when
you are more rested. So it's about just keeping that
harmony and balance through this time and also after the

(01:15:43):
day after you've had Christmas Day, the next day. If
you know you've over indulged a lot and you're feeling
a bit on the boxing day or the day after
boxing day, is get back on some good nutrition and
get back on three meals a day, good amount of vegetables,
plenty of protein, lots of fiber, get your body moving
and you'll be back on track again.

Speaker 2 (01:16:02):
You're trying to say to me Erin, is that if
I've gotten a little bit of a hangover and I
just really want to cocon up, I should just have
a nice green smoothie and get on with my life.

Speaker 21 (01:16:09):
Right.

Speaker 16 (01:16:09):
Absolutely green smoothie, some hydration, some electrolytes and.

Speaker 2 (01:16:14):
A little bit of movement and you get to go Erin.
Thank you so much, Merry Christmas. Always love you to
have you on the show and we look forward to
singing back in twenty twenty five. It is five to
eleven NEWSTALKSB.

Speaker 1 (01:16:27):
Grabric cover. It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin and
Wikles for the best selection of used talk zed B.

Speaker 2 (01:16:35):
It has been a big year for Kiwi Band Kerala.
The single Blue Eyed Mario took out the number one
spot for the most streamed song by a local artist
here in New Zealand at this year's Spotify Rapped. It
also bagged the Breakthrough Single of the Year at the
Alto Music Awards back in May, and the band also
won Best Roots Artists that night. I can't think of
a better band to get us in the mood for summer.

(01:16:56):
They are with Me next for a chat and a song.
This is Corrella with how Will I Know, a Little.

Speaker 3 (01:17:05):
Fine Wait.

Speaker 1 (01:17:45):
Sunday with Style, the Sunday Session with Francesca Runcan and
Winkles for the best selection of great Greats News Talks
at Me.

Speaker 3 (01:17:55):
Oh my Blood had even even bought head.

Speaker 2 (01:18:03):
I'm the whole time you were with the Sunday Session,
I'm Francesca Rudkin with you until midday. It has been
a big year for reggae inspired band Keep Inspired kt
WE band Corella. Last year, this song launched them into
the spotlight. My fame continued this year, with the song

(01:18:25):
claiming Best to break Through Single at the Art Music Awards,
Corella also picking up Best Roots Artist. The band is
building on that with a new album, Skeletons, was released
a couple of weeks ago, and they're about to embark
on a pretty epic summer of gigs to get us
all in the mood for summer. A couple of members
of Corella are here for a chat and to perform

(01:18:45):
a song for us. Lead singer Pepe Campbell and guitarist
Nawe Tupe are here with me. Hi, guys, thanks for
coming in.

Speaker 5 (01:18:53):
La, good morning. Thanks for having us.

Speaker 2 (01:18:55):
So nice to have you in the studio.

Speaker 5 (01:18:57):
Pabe.

Speaker 2 (01:18:57):
It's been a big year. You kind of things kind
of took off last year, but it feels like this
year you're really seeing the impact of the band and
what you're able to achieve.

Speaker 22 (01:19:08):
It's been pretty crazy. I think surreal is probably the
right word. You know who Muori really took us to
a whole other level, and we've just been on the grind,
like you said, new album and just working hard for
making sure we have a good summer.

Speaker 2 (01:19:24):
What the what do the Music Awards mean?

Speaker 9 (01:19:28):
What? You know?

Speaker 2 (01:19:29):
Do it mean anything? Or is it pretty exciting?

Speaker 23 (01:19:31):
It was, like like Peep said, it was pretty surreal
for us, even just being at the Music Awards and
rubbing shoulders with all these amazing people and then luckily
enough to be named named as finalists as well as
just something that we didn't even think would even happen
to be honest, like when we first started this band, yeah.

Speaker 8 (01:19:52):
Pretty sure.

Speaker 2 (01:19:53):
When when did things change then? Did you say, because
you guys have been together for a while now?

Speaker 3 (01:19:58):
Yep.

Speaker 22 (01:19:58):
We started off as like a covers band, I think
in twenty seventeen. Then we moved to an original's band
in twenty nineteen, released our first single and twenty twenty
and we've just been slowly chipping away and you know,
working against this blueprint and yeah, things are just know happened.

Speaker 2 (01:20:16):
So is it just a matter of time or do
you think actually you kind of just had a nail
on the head, as you say, with that, with that
particular song and things.

Speaker 23 (01:20:24):
I think it's probably a bit of both, to be honest, Like,
there was definitely some like some some grinding. There's there's
like a lot of hard money went into the music
writing and stuff, but we we honestly just started writing
music that we like that we thought word vibe too.
So lucky lucky for.

Speaker 3 (01:20:42):
Us as well.

Speaker 2 (01:20:44):
But it should be hard work, right, It is hard.

Speaker 22 (01:20:47):
I always say it's like eighty percent of it's like
the stuff you do on stage and the performing. The
other twenty percent is sorry, that, and the other eighty
percent is all of the stuff you do behind the
scenes and all the grinding and making sure you're ready
for your opportunities.

Speaker 2 (01:21:01):
Style Clifford reviewed your second album, Skeletons, and the one
comment she said to me was, jeez, there was just
this really big step up across the board between your
debut album and Skeletons. Yeah, you're both smiling and oh yeah,
it might have might have got a few things.

Speaker 23 (01:21:20):
I think we kind of refined our craft a little bit,
a little bit more, and even just the music writing.
I've said this before, but the first album, or most
band's first album, you have your whole life to write
that album, you know what I mean, So like that's
that's music that we're written when we were kids. Album
number two had a lot of pressure on it, so

(01:21:40):
it was we definitely put a lot of time, a
lot of money.

Speaker 5 (01:21:44):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it was a good Right.

Speaker 2 (01:21:50):
The Roots Award, I suppose I know that you guys
don't feel that you are just a roots kind of banned.
I mean, you'll take the award, right, but but there
is so much more to you than that.

Speaker 13 (01:22:01):
Yeah.

Speaker 22 (01:22:01):
I always thought, you know, the Roots Award is probably
one of the hardest to win in New Zealand.

Speaker 5 (01:22:05):
Yeah, we were that award.

Speaker 22 (01:22:07):
We're up against Sons of Zion Coterie. I think you
see Lab sixty sixth year in that category too. But you're,
like you said, we just we're not necessarily just reggae.
We do perform some pretty good reggae songs, but we
like to do like to know, we see, we like
to do music that we like and we're just happy
that other people actually like it too.

Speaker 2 (01:22:28):
There's a little bit of pop there, there's some soul,
there's a little bit of country even. I mean it's
gone a little bit bright that feels to key.

Speaker 22 (01:22:35):
We say yeah, I mean like you said, we if
we like the music, we'll do it.

Speaker 5 (01:22:40):
Yeah.

Speaker 22 (01:22:41):
No real pressure to stay into one genre for us,
And like you said, there's something in this album I
think for everyone.

Speaker 2 (01:22:49):
As you mentioned, you've been together since twenty seventeen, and
I know that you guys all meet when you're in
the Royal who's in the navy? Is anyone still in
the navy?

Speaker 9 (01:22:56):
Just me?

Speaker 5 (01:22:57):
Yeah, it's still still full time in the navy.

Speaker 6 (01:22:59):
Oh my gosh. So how does this work?

Speaker 2 (01:23:01):
Because how many in the band seven seven members so
is that like hard work or really fun It's hard work.

Speaker 23 (01:23:10):
It's definitely hard work. It was actually funny when we
released our first album. I think we finished our our
album tour and then I went to sea for three
months and I didn't even I didn't even know about
until until until well into our trip, and people was like, oh,
you should probably look at TikTok bro.

Speaker 5 (01:23:28):
It's it's getting pretty popular.

Speaker 22 (01:23:31):
Yeah, but it's hard work. You know, with a seven
piece it's like hurting cats sometimes me and nowhere usually
the babysitters.

Speaker 5 (01:23:40):
Coming from a military background timing thing, Yeah, you'd think you.

Speaker 2 (01:23:43):
Guys would be quite you know, you'dn't be able to
kind of keep this together. So tell me just a
little bit about it for people that aren't so familiar
with it. You met your background, you meet in the
Royal newsyther A Navy. And then was that when you
were pretty much doing covers was.

Speaker 22 (01:23:58):
It yep, yep, we're doing We're just a covers band
doing you know, navy cocktail parties and bars around Devonport.
And then, like I said, too, was nineteen that we
meant to know Winter One Love and we looked on
the stage and thinking you know, maybe we should look
at trying to get up on the stage. And so
that's where the whole idea of becoming an original's being
really started. And yeah, that was our goal and we

(01:24:20):
sort of just worked towards it and managed to take
it off.

Speaker 5 (01:24:23):
We left left wagon Wheel behind.

Speaker 19 (01:24:26):
Nothing wrong.

Speaker 2 (01:24:28):
There's always a time of play, all right. There isn't
a wedding that happens without wagon Wheel playing.

Speaker 16 (01:24:35):
To know what?

Speaker 2 (01:24:35):
You are described as listed as the band's guitarists but
also the hype man. What does that mean?

Speaker 23 (01:24:41):
I think I think Pop's always been the one that's
given me that title. But no, I think I think
it's probably a name I've been given from like the
live performances.

Speaker 2 (01:24:52):
That's energy, Okay, bring the fire right okay, peepy. Is
it true that you live next to stand Walker growing up?

Speaker 24 (01:25:00):
Yes?

Speaker 6 (01:25:01):
How crazy is that?

Speaker 2 (01:25:02):
Yeah?

Speaker 22 (01:25:02):
Yeah, like city some he's actually my cousin, and you
know when I'm not just.

Speaker 5 (01:25:08):
Like the rest of all these my cousin.

Speaker 22 (01:25:11):
Yeah, and so yeah, growing up next to him and
a lot of my family members. You know, I thought
everyone could sing when I was young, So you're pretty blessed.

Speaker 2 (01:25:19):
It's awesome. So it is and I know that I
know that you're on the same label as well as
LAB having these kind of connections. Have you found these
other these other artists and bands just sort of stepping
up when it comes to sort of mentoring and helping
you through this on this journey.

Speaker 23 (01:25:36):
Yeah, one hundred percent like LAB. Myself and peeps always
followed LAB in there, and they're like musicianship and professionalism
and they're they're they're just on a whole other level.
But being able to work closely with them, do gigs
with them, it's it's something I say, is way different
to being a being in the crowd. Get to stand

(01:25:59):
on the side of the stage now and when it
comes to energy, they are on another level.

Speaker 2 (01:26:04):
We some aer coming out right, Yes, starting off rymen vines. Yeah,
could you do me a favor? Could you just at
some point stop and go oscar your mother hopes you
are behaving yourself. A few requests like that would be great.
But also you are traveling New Zealand and Australia, I
think with LAB.

Speaker 22 (01:26:25):
Yeah, yes, it's a big summer. Like say, I think
we've got three shows here in New Zealand and six
shows in Australia, and like I said, it's a bit
again the word surreal, but you know, getting to perform
with La b Stan Walker, Redna and you know it's
just it's just crazy to think.

Speaker 2 (01:26:42):
Yeah, well, we're pretty chafed that you were going to
do a little number for us here today. The song
is called Cookie. Tell me a little bit about the song.

Speaker 23 (01:26:50):
I'd say, like people are probably going to have their
own opinion of the song. We we just like telling
stories and having a different view of our history. I
think as well, in like, we've got a couple of
songs now that deuble into a bit of history and
it's not not to be any any side of of
their history, but just to have it up.

Speaker 2 (01:27:12):
Is it based on Captain cock the Son?

Speaker 22 (01:27:14):
Yes, it was a bit of a like what would
you call like not comedy, but it was. It was
a fun like just a funny sort of song.

Speaker 13 (01:27:21):
That were just three together.

Speaker 5 (01:27:25):
We started vibing with it. You know what, it's it's there,
it's good.

Speaker 22 (01:27:30):
It's the chorus when we're like, oh this is fun, alright,
let's do it. There's our song Cookie from our new
album Skeletons.

Speaker 25 (01:27:46):
Been sailing all around the world and what's been already done, ransacking,
nano plurging for fun, for fun, Oh nap cookie, Oh
what Ma Shuldnders did home on the river, Jims, Now

(01:28:08):
you're gone, your God, You're gone.

Speaker 3 (01:28:12):
You're gone. Cook you got cook.

Speaker 26 (01:28:19):
Cookie, got Christmas, Cookie, got bird making trouble.

Speaker 3 (01:28:26):
Won't be home for Novie. Scared, said cook you got
done cooking, got a cookill and Joe Fun. Now y'all
gone to the fire. Said he came from a farming.

Speaker 25 (01:28:51):
Lin bringing with them hearty, comping, false, got his body,
claimed to be.

Speaker 3 (01:29:00):
Its al and a Come on now, cooky, you.

Speaker 25 (01:29:05):
Know what you done for bady nose, say that you
l cheated your tomb phone and down into the fire
you go.

Speaker 3 (01:29:18):
Cookie, got cook.

Speaker 26 (01:29:22):
Cooking, got Christy, Cookie, got burn making trouble.

Speaker 3 (01:29:29):
Won't be homeful Nookie.

Speaker 14 (01:29:33):
So cookie got done, Cookie, got ivy, Cooky Jon Fun.

Speaker 3 (01:29:44):
Now y'all gone to the fire.

Speaker 2 (01:29:50):
And that was Corella with Cookie. Thank you so much, guys,
that is that was just fantastic. I love the humor
in that. Have an amazing summer. Beast of luck with
these gigs, these wonderful big gigs you're gonna play. Thank
you for coming in Merry Christmas.

Speaker 22 (01:30:06):
Thank you for having me your Merry Christmas.

Speaker 2 (01:30:09):
That was Kii van Carella. The song you just heard
Cookie is off the new album Skeletons. You can find
that on all streaming platforms now and head to loop
dot co dot in z for upcoming show dates. Up next,
we have the final panel of the year with the
Sunday Session.

Speaker 4 (01:30:27):
There's no better way to start your Sunday.

Speaker 1 (01:30:29):
It's the Sunday Session with Francesca Rutkin and Wiggles for
the best selection of great breaths.

Speaker 4 (01:30:36):
US Talk set be.

Speaker 2 (01:30:39):
Joining us on our final panel for twenty twenty four.
I have got Coast Day host and host of the
upcoming trip Notes travel podcast, Larna Riley Hi Lorna Kyotra
Kyota and also senior PR consultant at one plus one Communications,
Damien Valuto.

Speaker 3 (01:30:54):
Good day, Damien, good morning.

Speaker 2 (01:30:56):
Good to have you both with us. Hey, look, today
we started off our show here on the Sunday Session
by just talking to Cletrevet and Jason Walls, just sort
of trying to get a feel for how the year
been in politics, and I'd love to hear your views, Damien.
Maybe looking big picture, you know, do you feel that
the coalition government is on track with what they sort
of promised to achieve in their first year in power.

Speaker 3 (01:31:19):
It's been a bit of a mixture.

Speaker 27 (01:31:21):
I'd say there have been some things that they've done
pretty well and then some things that they've really struggled on.

Speaker 4 (01:31:26):
I think the one challenge with kind of.

Speaker 27 (01:31:30):
Determining the quality of the Coalition government's performance is that
the opposition has really struggled.

Speaker 4 (01:31:37):
So it's kind of like when you have a big
sporting team.

Speaker 27 (01:31:39):
You don't judge the All Blacks by how they've performed
against the maybea you judge them by how they've performed
against like the bigger teams.

Speaker 5 (01:31:46):
Right.

Speaker 27 (01:31:46):
So the reality is that, like the Greens have really struggled,
Labor's kind of been an autopilot.

Speaker 4 (01:31:51):
You don't really know what they're doing.

Speaker 27 (01:31:53):
So it does feel a little bit like the opposition
really needs to step up so that we can see
the government being tested, because at the moment it just
feels like they're not being tested at all.

Speaker 28 (01:32:04):
So I like the sporting analogies Lorna, Yeah, I mean,
I think the government's been very busy, but with things
that possibly nobody ever asked for, like cell phone bands
and schools changing waka kotahi zta to nzaktai boot camps
which don't seem to be working, raising speed limits on
certain roads, and also the Treaty Principal Bill, what a distraction.

(01:32:27):
It only seems to work for David Seymour and his party.
And I would say in terms of opposition, actually that
gave Tipati Maori an opportunity to really shine, and I
think they did. And I think in terms of opposition
they are the ones who have really stood out this year.
The government's chipping away at economic reforms, but they don't
seem to be pleasing either their power base on the

(01:32:49):
right or anyone on the left as well. You do
wonder a little bit who's leading the country. When your
own deputy says you're struggling in the job, I mean,
that's unbelievable and also says that the tax cuts are
unaffordable even though he voted for them. You've got a
few a little bit of sympathy I think for Christopher
Latson stepped between a rock and a hard place.

Speaker 2 (01:33:10):
But yeah, I mean nine normally expect daman n one
expected them to come in and fix all the problems
of the world. Every government around the country is struggling
to recover post COVID and deal with the political and
economic disruption which has taken place, I think, and I
think a lot of what they initially did was a
lot of repealing. They they stopped things that they didn't like.
And I wonder whether going into twenty twenty five, it's

(01:33:32):
going to be about seeing, you know, policy put into
place which indicates to us we're heading in the right
direction when it comes to our economic recovery, which I
think is on most people's minds.

Speaker 27 (01:33:45):
I think a lot of people would have been alarmed
in the in the last week when we saw that
big GDP figure come in and it showed how dire
our financial situation was, and that in the past year,
while we, I mean, anyone out there will tell you
it's felt really, really tough, twenty twenty four has not
been an easier for business, and I think there are
very few businesses out there that have had good time.

(01:34:07):
So I do think that we need to see some
active moves from the government of the coming year. I
think you're spot on. I think that you can't define
your your tenure as a as a as a leader
by what you've repealed. You have to define it by
what you've actually added to the game. And I think
we really need to see a shift. And then the
other thing that that that Lorna's has touched on. There

(01:34:28):
there are so many things that New Zealanders currently have
common grounds on, like if you talk about the economic crisis,
if you talk about the cost of living crisis, and
yet we've this last year it feels a lot like
politics has been defined by this one thing that we're
divided on, and that is that is a that is
a sign of a government that that hasn't really felt

(01:34:49):
the pulse of the nation. Why are we focusing so
much on the treaty principles? But when there are so
many things that we are united on and where we
where we're we're one on, and then we focused on
this one thing that the whole country is divided on,
and it just kind of like it kind of takes
five steps back when we should be looking.

Speaker 4 (01:35:05):
At how we can take a small step forward.

Speaker 28 (01:35:08):
Yeah, what I want to see, what I want to
see next year is less blame on the last government
and more focus on the future and delivering some of
those election promises in terms of economic growth. Yes, you've
touched on that. But also something that affects us all
in this country are our health services. And I think
we're all concerned that, you know, one point five billion
dollars cut from a system that was already in crisis.

(01:35:32):
I want to see how that is going to be
reformed to actually deliver more for New Zealanders because all
this stage I can see, is less for all of us,
and at some stage or another we're all going to
need it.

Speaker 6 (01:35:43):
No completely.

Speaker 2 (01:35:44):
Yeah, what about you, Damien, I is you from the
government next year?

Speaker 27 (01:35:49):
If you've sat in the emergency room with a toddler
who's really ill for hours on end. I think that
any person in New Zealand could agree that that's something
that we should be looking to fix. So I think
that those focusing on those things that appeal to all
New Zealanders are we all want fixed. That should be
the priority of the government.

Speaker 6 (01:36:08):
Oh look, it's not just toddlers, is it, Lorna.

Speaker 2 (01:36:10):
It's teenagers and our older people are and all.

Speaker 3 (01:36:14):
Our cancer.

Speaker 28 (01:36:17):
Patients who are having to wait way too long for diagnosis.
That then changes, you know, it's false economy because we
might wait, we make people wait so long that the
treatment then becomes much more extensive and much more expensive.
You know, early detections the key to curing any cancer,
and so we need to get onto.

Speaker 2 (01:36:34):
That, all right, guys. On a slightly lighter note, I
was talking to the chef Mark Gregory yesterday, who has
had an incredible career around the world as a chef,
and he was saying, look, if a family member is
largely hosting you every one, you just put forty dollars

(01:36:54):
in the kitty and pay for the Christmas and just
alleviate that sort of financial pressure. It's what you know
European people do quite often, and things like that. Laura,
would you sort of fear that it was it's truck
you're to your family?

Speaker 9 (01:37:12):
That?

Speaker 19 (01:37:13):
I mean, if I don't think I suggested.

Speaker 2 (01:37:17):
No I was going to say everyone was going to
bring a place, everyone was contributing, I wouldn't. But actually,
if the majority of the family were all just turning
up with a bottle of wine that they were going
to drink and not much else, I probably would be
tempted to go, Hey, I'll take care of all this
forty dollars in the kiddy, and I'll provide other.

Speaker 28 (01:37:33):
Ways past, and I always pay and this year because
I don't like to spend all day in the kitchen
and not with the family getting one of those whoop boxes.
But oh my god, they're expensive, like for eight people,
it's four hundred and eighty dollars hang out lots of money. Yeah, yeah,
And my fiance has very generously gone halves with me,

(01:37:53):
even though it's not his family, which I think is
pretty decent.

Speaker 2 (01:37:57):
But sixty, that's sixty making it really cute to your family.
That's sixty dollars ticket for them.

Speaker 28 (01:38:04):
But I have chosen to do that, and I've chosen
to do it in a certain way, and I've chosen
to do it with the fancy dishes. I mean, yes,
we could all bring a plate, and I'm sure everybody
would help if we wanted to just do a traditional
turkey and roast potatoes and all the rest of it,
but it would be chaos and it wouldn't be quite
the you know, the time I get to spend with
my family and all that kind of thing.

Speaker 24 (01:38:22):
So I have chosen to do that.

Speaker 28 (01:38:24):
I'm willing to take it on the nose. It's just
all part of the Christmas cost for me, which grows
every year. But we're having a barbecue later in the day.
All comers bring your own meat, will provide the salads, you.

Speaker 2 (01:38:36):
Know, and I think that's fair. Yeah, nice. What about you, Damien,
Would you have a charge your family member to come
for a meal.

Speaker 27 (01:38:42):
We probably wouldn't, But I mean, I can't speak for
all families because our unit in New Zealand is pretty small,
and we normally do Christmas even the Latin American style,
So we bring the whole family over at about nine
o'clock ten o'clock at night on the Christmas Eve, and
what we generally do is we make quite like humble food,
so ampaadas, and then we barbecue pork on the bone

(01:39:03):
and so these things are I'm very expensive, absolutely delicious,
and there's just something special about making the empires altogether.
You get flower footprints through the house of the toddlers,
whole thing. It's as lovely and there's no way that
I'm gonna It's a special thing that I look forward.

Speaker 4 (01:39:18):
To every year.

Speaker 27 (01:39:19):
So in terms of who's paying, like right now, I
can say I'm comfortable with that. Maybe maybe if the
economic crisis continues, are not going to be soreful.

Speaker 2 (01:39:28):
I shall look forward to talking to you both this
time next year to see how you're still feeling about
shouting how much more expensive that box is, Launa, very quickly.
I have a dear friend who gets very organized, and
she comes up with the word for the next year
that's going to describe how attitude, how she's going to
approach the year. I was wondering whether you'd be able

(01:39:50):
to give twenty twenty five a year for you, Laura.

Speaker 16 (01:39:54):
Yeah.

Speaker 28 (01:39:54):
I was looking at the dictionaries, you know, words of
the year, and we had brain rot and brat and
manifest and although I believe in manifestation, I think my
favorite was Macquarie Dictionary, which had intitification, which is a
graduate area of something, because I think we can see
that all around us. For me, though, it's going to
be the same word I had last year, and I
know it's all very happy to be, but it's believe.

(01:40:15):
I believed in finding love again and I achieved that
this year. I believe that in my mid fifties I
could still losso career wise in an industry that's shrinking.
I believe that we will get through this tough time economically.
I believe that things will get better, you know, the
whole believe achieve thing. In a way, I guess that
is manifestation.

Speaker 4 (01:40:32):
Oh.

Speaker 2 (01:40:33):
I always hear other people's words and I go, I'm
just taking that.

Speaker 6 (01:40:35):
That's brilliant.

Speaker 27 (01:40:36):
I love the way you see that you maybe so
happy now, like you gave me so much optimism, and
like you really gave me a bit of a buzz.

Speaker 21 (01:40:42):
I think that's a wonderful work.

Speaker 28 (01:40:44):
Sure is done.

Speaker 27 (01:40:46):
What's your word, Damien, Mine has completely self serving. Mine's
going to be offshore because I just want some offshore
winds so that I can go surfing as much as possible.
I think every surfer in New Zealand who serves on
the West Coast will be hoping for the same thing.

Speaker 2 (01:41:01):
I even basically saying, I'm out of here.

Speaker 4 (01:41:03):
Oh no, no, no, no, no, offshore winds, offshore, that's
all I want.

Speaker 6 (01:41:08):
Oh well, look, it's.

Speaker 2 (01:41:09):
Been It really is a delight to have you both
part of the Sunday session. We really appreciate it here,
so thank you both very much and have a very
merry merry Christmas. It's been lovely to have you a
part of the show. It is twenty six to twelve
News Talks het B.

Speaker 1 (01:41:26):
It's the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin on News Talks
at B.

Speaker 2 (01:41:32):
And joining me now is Jason Pine, who will be
with you at midday and week in Sport.

Speaker 19 (01:41:36):
Hi, Jason, good morning.

Speaker 2 (01:41:39):
What has been your favorite sporting moment from the year.
And I don't mean like who has achieved you know,
it doesn't necessarily mean to be a great sporting achievement.
I want to know what you have really loved watching
and being part of throughout the well.

Speaker 24 (01:41:53):
It is actually an achievement actually, so it's probably cheating
a little bit. I know what you're after. You're after
something like a feel good story or maybe a bettler
who hasn't quite got there, but we love the story anyway. Now,
my highlight was Hamish kurrn I jump at the Paris Olympics.
That for me was was the best I felt about
a sporting moment all year. You know, Hamish Kerr was

(01:42:15):
was on the brink of elimination before we even got
to the final through.

Speaker 2 (01:42:22):
You know, we all knew we've been watching him for
a year. We're like, okay, you know we are potentially
assuing here for a medal.

Speaker 19 (01:42:29):
In my goodness, Yeah, He almost didn't make it to
the final.

Speaker 24 (01:42:33):
He missed twice at two twenty, which is a I
mean few, and I that's it's quite quite good, unachievable,
but for him it's almost like you know that he
jumps that pretty comfortably most of the time, but competition,
and he talked about this after he won the gold medal.
He when he missed it the second time, and he
was basically he had one jump to stay in the
Olympic Games, not just you know, go for the medals,

(01:42:55):
but stay in to make the final. He the thought
into this mind, maybe I'm just not built for this,
maybe this just isn't me. But he picked himself up,
dusted himself off, jumped the two twins, he qualified for
the final, and then, as we all know, I mean
even in the final, he was he was one jump
away from elimination before the medals were handed out, got
through that all right, Then they had the jump off.

(01:43:15):
There was such high drama. It was a Sunday morning
back here, I remember, and it was just yeah, just
the whole rollercoaster of emotions. But to see him one
and then sprints off around that Olympics stadium, which I'm
not actually sure you're supposed to do, really, but to
see him celebrate with such delight for a guy who
I mean, he's a top quality human being as well,

(01:43:36):
which always helped. But yeah, for me it was Hamish Can.

Speaker 2 (01:43:39):
I think you've actually don a beautiful job there of
telling us a story of you know, a feel good
story there painting. I think you sold yourself short and
what you can deliver when asked, well, thank you?

Speaker 4 (01:43:48):
Do you know?

Speaker 2 (01:43:48):
I think probably for me if I mean, a lot
has happened this year, and has been a lot of
individual and team and tournament you know, achievements and things.
But I think the Olympics really did capture my attention
and I realized that I was just loving the comp
and loving Paris when I sat and watched the entire

(01:44:11):
men's and women's marathon that is, which is quite time consuming,
just watching them running through Paris and the areas they
were in and the competent. I don't know, it was
just I realized and then that I'd been really won over.

Speaker 19 (01:44:24):
By Paris, and yeah, I love the Olympics.

Speaker 24 (01:44:27):
And having had Tokyo three years ago, which was you know,
the COVID Games and there was none of that right.
There was none of the There were no crowds, there
was no atmosphere, there was there was nothing about it
that really captured your interest. But you're right, I mean
the crowds everywhere. The fact we did well was handy.
Well that it didn't look like we would for a while,
you know, three or four days and we panicked.

Speaker 19 (01:44:47):
But we're gonna win any middle. Now, where are they
coming from?

Speaker 2 (01:44:53):
A note for that and for time, don't panic people.

Speaker 19 (01:44:56):
They arrived at the back end.

Speaker 2 (01:44:58):
Hey, look, I know that you're carrying on throughout the
summer with weekend sports and things, but just wondering what's
coming up on the show today.

Speaker 24 (01:45:04):
Well a bits and pieces will look at some cricket. Obviously,
the White fans are reaction against Australia. A Duckworth Lewis
lost yesterday, but Molly Penfold took four wickets her best
ever bowling. She's on the show this afternoon. We'll also
look at Auckland FC's sher lacking yesterday at the hands
of Western United. I don't think anybody saw this coming
after seven games without a loss, losing four nil at

(01:45:26):
home to a team that's kind of you know, mid
to lower table so we'll try and break that down
for you. There's a bit of basketball the toey He
Final this afternoon. That's a domestic women's competition, and a
bit more on Liam Lawson as well. We sort of
touched on Liam's wonderful Week yesterday. We'll do a bit
more on that this afternoon and really look anything to
distract people from from their to do list with three

(01:45:48):
days to go unto Christmas.

Speaker 19 (01:45:49):
Franjesca will we'll just do that.

Speaker 2 (01:45:51):
Once again, Jason Pine, bringing you the best entertainment while
you sit in all those cues trying to get into
the shopping walls wherever you're doing your last minute Sure,
and Jason, it's been wonderful having you chatting to you
on the show each week. Thank you very much.

Speaker 6 (01:46:04):
Merry Christmas. We'll catch up over summer.

Speaker 19 (01:46:05):
Look forward to that, Francisca, all the best.

Speaker 2 (01:46:07):
It is nineteen to twelve Sunday with.

Speaker 1 (01:46:10):
Style The Sunday Session with Francesca, Runcan and Wiggles. For
the best selection of Greg Reeds use talk zebby travel
with Wendy Woo Tours unique fully inclusive tours around the world.

Speaker 2 (01:46:25):
And joining me now to talk Travelers. Meghan Singleton blogger
at large dot com.

Speaker 6 (01:46:29):
Hi Meghan, Hello Francesca.

Speaker 3 (01:46:32):
So, being the.

Speaker 2 (01:46:33):
Busiest day of the year at airports and things, you
very kindly took a hit for the team. You took
one for the team and decided I'm going to go
out there. I'm going to see what it's like to
really travel on the busiest day of the year. How's
that working out for you?

Speaker 4 (01:46:46):
Well?

Speaker 29 (01:46:47):
Completely by accident, I have to say.

Speaker 21 (01:46:49):
I set off yesterday to fly from Auckland to Napier
just as all the power went out across the central
North Island and so my flight was canceled after my
husband had already driven back home and my luggage was,
you know, somewhere going background the carousel.

Speaker 4 (01:47:08):
So you know.

Speaker 29 (01:47:09):
So I've always said this as.

Speaker 21 (01:47:11):
A tip, right as soon as you get that alert
that there's been a cancellation or whatever, don't go line
up at any desk. Gets straight on the app. This
is with their New Zealand and rebook yourself. So because
everyone's going to be doing the same thing. However, the
next flight to Napier was this morning, leaving for Wellington

(01:47:31):
at seven.

Speaker 29 (01:47:32):
Am, so work backwards.

Speaker 4 (01:47:34):
What time was I up?

Speaker 13 (01:47:36):
Yup?

Speaker 29 (01:47:36):
For something, and because you've got to allow that extra time.

Speaker 21 (01:47:40):
So I got to Auckland Domestic at six am and
the bag drop was queued up round the kiosks and
back down to the baggage carousel for flights this morning
they were calling.

Speaker 29 (01:47:51):
People forward for the next planes that were due out.

Speaker 6 (01:47:55):
So it was chaos.

Speaker 29 (01:47:57):
So there were people.

Speaker 21 (01:47:58):
There were people behind me huffing and puffing and saying
they will never do this again, and why haven't they
done this?

Speaker 29 (01:48:02):
Why haven't they got that. At the end of the day,
I chose my attitude, and I people around me and
Merry Christmas, and I explained that the reason the kiosks
are probably on pause right now is because the baggage
guy's out in the back are a little bit and
undated getting bags through.

Speaker 3 (01:48:18):
God.

Speaker 15 (01:48:18):
Well, you I'm here.

Speaker 2 (01:48:19):
I'm glad to hear that you practice what you preached,
because you tell us quite often you've got to pick
your attitude. But now, just have you made it to Napier.

Speaker 29 (01:48:28):
I'm here.

Speaker 21 (01:48:29):
I'm at my mother's house and I've made my pumpkin
salad which is due on the tables up at the
farm in about fifteen minutes.

Speaker 2 (01:48:37):
It's amazing what you got when you get up at
frame in the morning, so you flew to Wellington, then
you've got a flight up to Napier, so you've arrived
a day late, but you have arrived that bag dropping
things today, which was the sort of the situation at
the airport. Is that largely because there was a disruption
yesterday or is that just the way it is? Do
you just need to get out of that airport a

(01:48:58):
good hour early.

Speaker 3 (01:49:00):
Yeah, no, it is just the way it is.

Speaker 21 (01:49:02):
Yes, the disruption didn't help, but I was only on
a seat that was otherwise end right.

Speaker 29 (01:49:07):
So you know, everyone is trying to get their different
flights to day. It is the busiest day of the
year in New Zealand.

Speaker 21 (01:49:12):
It's been saying for ages, allowing hour more than you
normally would.

Speaker 29 (01:49:16):
I think the airport have been saying the same thing.

Speaker 21 (01:49:19):
And just make sure that you don't because if you
held up at Bagdrop, it was actually a breeze going
through security scanning. It was bag Drop that was the
hold up. So you know, just make allowances for all
of that and get there early and get a cup
of coffee and you will be sweet and everyone will
have a merry Christmas.

Speaker 2 (01:49:37):
Or do what you've always told us to do, and
that is get all your get all your your presence
sent directly to where you're having Christmas, and take your
hand luggage and life will be a lot easier. Meghan,
I'm glad that you have arrived. Sounds like lunch is
going to be lovely. Merry Christmas. We look forward to
catching up with you over summer when you're going to
join me on some of our weekend shows. You can

(01:49:58):
of course find more tips at blog at large dot com.
It is thirteen to.

Speaker 4 (01:50:02):
Twelve books with Wiggles for the vessel a Great Reads.

Speaker 2 (01:50:09):
Joan Mackenzie, Good morning, Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas to you too.
You have brought so many books to our attention throughout
the year, and I know it's been really hard for
you to sum them up and give us five of
your favorites, really great potential sort of Christmas gift ideas.
This week we're going to finish off with fiction and
it's quite.

Speaker 6 (01:50:29):
A list, Yes it is. It's a purely subjective list.
These are the books that I've loved yep, so I
get to talk about them again.

Speaker 3 (01:50:35):
I love it.

Speaker 2 (01:50:36):
Let's start with the Peacock and the Sparrow, which is
just a great name, great title.

Speaker 6 (01:50:39):
The Peacock and the Sparrow by I S.

Speaker 3 (01:50:41):
Berry.

Speaker 6 (01:50:42):
We haven't done on your show because the stock arrived
so late that I didn't have a chance to fit
it in, But we have it now. This one and
the next one I want to do, which is called
Moscow X by David McCloskey, which I loved, excellent. These
are two brilliant, brilliant spy thrillers. And if you're listening
and you like books like that, or you know someone
who does, then look no further than these two. I

(01:51:04):
say that these two authors essentially could be twins because
they both worked for the CIA, they both know the
inner workings of it, and they've both done extraordinary thrillers
about agents for the CIA, operatives in the field and
how that all works. And I just I loved them both.

Speaker 2 (01:51:21):
Nile Williams is sitting beside my bed time of the
child I'm looking forward to in the book. The book
is yeah, it's not my Christmas time.

Speaker 6 (01:51:31):
Ile Williams. This is a thing of beauty. He's an
Irish writer. It's set in a small town in Ireland
in the nineteen sixties when a baby is found abandoned
and handed over to the local doctor and his daughter,
who it is imagined they will find the right place
to send this child, but in fact they can't bear
to give it up. And it's the story of a

(01:51:54):
man and his unmarried daughter who lives with him. He
feels that he's somehow responsible for the fact that she's
never found happiness in her own life, and then this
baby arrives and it changes the household completely. This book
is so good that I had to read a lot
of sentences two or three times just to absorb. Just yeah,

(01:52:14):
wash over, you look, I haven't heard about Our London Lives.
Miss that book this year. Our London Lives by Christine
Dwyer Hickey is the story of two Irish misfits essentially,
who moved from Ireland down to London in the nineteen sixties.
They have a brief fling, they meet in London, have
a brief fling, and then they don't see each other
for many, many years, but they're never out of mind

(01:52:37):
even though they're out of sight, and it follows the
course of their lives over forty years in London, with
London as the most extraordinary backdrop for the story, and
all I can tell you is that I just loved it.
If you like a really good epic relationship story, then.

Speaker 13 (01:52:53):
This is for you.

Speaker 6 (01:52:54):
And look two more on the list Southern Man. Southern
Man by Greg Isles. He wrote the Natchez Trilogy and
his books are all set in Natch's Mississippi, as is
this one. All I can say is almost a thousand pages,
I think, and I couldn't put it down.

Speaker 2 (01:53:10):
And Kayleen Bradley's The Ministry of Time. I love this
book as well.

Speaker 6 (01:53:14):
Which is time travel, which I simply don't ever do,
but in this case she's almost made it plausible. It's
about how the British government has decided to invest in
trying to bring people from previous centuries into the modern day,
and they do that with a few of them, and
the backstories of those people, and how they suddenly find
themselves living in modern England where you can have mixed flatting,

(01:53:38):
or you've got Spotify, or you've got all sorts of
the Internet, things that they could never have imagined. It's
absolutely brilliant.

Speaker 2 (01:53:46):
Joan, thank you so much for your contribution this year,
all your recommendations to the Sunday Session. We really appreciate it.
Merry Christmas and to you, thank you.

Speaker 4 (01:53:54):
Believe it's simple.

Speaker 1 (01:53:55):
It's Sunday, the Sunday Session with Francesca, Rudkinter and Wiggles.

Speaker 4 (01:54:00):
For the best selection of great RELs news talk z'd be.

Speaker 2 (01:54:05):
I thank you very much for being with us this
morning here on the Sunday Session. This was our final
Sunday session for the year. We're going to be back
on the nineteenth of January. A big thank you to
Carry for her incredible work on the show throughout the year.
Also to the wider team, to Emma and Michael and Eden,
Jason and Will and thank you for sharing your Sunday
mornings with us. It's been a real pleasure hanging out

(01:54:26):
with you and I really appreciate when you take the
time to get in touch with us each week. Have
a fabulous Christmas. If you get some downtime with friends
and family, enjoyed, rest up, have some fun. Many of
you will be working throughout the summer. To those of
you making sure our summers are safe and fun, providing
services and making sure the world keeps turning. A big
thank you to you as well. I am going to

(01:54:47):
be back next weekend and then joining you throughout jan
on some afternoon talk which I can't wait, don't forget.
Our new Sunday session podcast, Great Chats, kicks off on
the twenty third of December. We're going to be releasing
two episodes a week with some of the best feature
interviews that we have done throughout the year, with some
fabulous guests, both local and international superstars. Definitely worth catching

(01:55:10):
over the summer. Perfect sort of summer holiday listening for you,
so you can get Great Chats wherever you get your
podcasts or at iHeartRadio. Merry Christmas, Take Care. We're going
to finish with Marlon Williams and Tapu Tipo.

Speaker 6 (01:55:27):
Oh Holy Night, my local.

Speaker 12 (01:55:33):
Argo on low ho.

Speaker 3 (01:55:43):
F oh.

Speaker 5 (01:56:25):
Mo.

Speaker 1 (01:56:34):
For more from the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to News Talks it B from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.

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