The Bigger Picture: 70 years since the Tangiwai rail disaster
On Christmas Eve, 1953, an express steam locomotive hauling 11 carriages left Wellington.
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Hemma Vara: The TikTok trends that need to end in 2024
The worst - and weirdest - TikTok trends of 2023 and why they need to end.
Did we win anything? Our not so bad year in sport
Not a vintage year for NZ sport but it wasn't bad, either. So why does it feel worse?
Little at large: Government tackles crisis you never knew existed - make English official
Of all the urgent problems you didn't know you had, was the status of English one of them?
The Listener weekly quiz: December 20
How will do you know Christmas? Take our festive season quiz.
Pav deconstructed: How to make the perfect pavlova - and why we still argue about its origins
Arguments about who discovered pavlova continue to bounce across the ditch.
Katherine Mansfield and the spy who loved her
How Mansfield was a literary lifesaver to the most decorated female agent of WWII.
No talking in the library? The surprising “aloud” reading revolution bringing Kiwis together
Groups are gathering to do something many haven't done since childhood - read aloud.
It’s a celebration: Julie Biuso’s festive feast
Turkey is the main event, with sourdough stuffings and a potato pie in between.
The Listener weekly quiz: December 13
Why was American-Canadian musician and activist Buffy Sainte-Marie recently in the news?
Writer Renée championed working class women’s experiences she knew well
Playwright and novelist Renée dies in Wellington aged 94.
How Kiwi language is changing for plebs and prime ministers
Languages are living and sometimes the appeal of a sound beats a sense of correctness.
Law & Society: The problem with wealth taxes and the politics of envy
David Harvey: Welfare state reinforces the concept of the helplessness of the individual.
Behind the Photo: The Te Aroha man keeping 1800s photography alive
Adrian Cook specialises in the wet plate collodion process, which predates film.
Little at Large: English is a linguistic mongrel, born out of various waves of invasion and colonisation of England itself
There are good reasons to temper enthusiasm about the dominance of English language.
Archaeologists race against rising seas and eroding coastlines to explore threatened NZ heritage sites
Sites rich in history are being lost at an alarming rate because of coastal erosion.
The Listener weekly quiz: December 6
Sir Patrick Stewart has a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame. True or false?
Finding Whakapapa: How to grow a credible family tree
Growing a credible family tree requires more than just a web browser.
Finding whakapapa: Colleen Brown’s family history journey and the overwhelming emotions of a welcome home
Unaware of her Ngāi Tahu roots until uni, Colleen Brown set out to find her whakapapa.
Inform your opinion: How did the 15-Minute City concept become a conspiracy theory?
Urban planning philosophy doesn't usually become the stuff of conspiracy theories.
Upfront: Why we're thanking organ donors this week
Organ donation requires precise circumstances, starting with incredible generosity.
How they saw us: 250 years of quotes about New Zealand
Writers and royals, adventurers and celebrities have had vastly different takes on NZ.
The Listener weekly quiz: November 22
The hottest chilli pepper now, hotter than the Carolina Reaper, is called Pepper what?
The Listener weekly quiz: November 15
The TV advertisement that included the phrase “Togs, togs, undies!” was selling what?
The great divide: As new suburbs continue to mushroom around the country, they are defined by one thing
"Capitalism loves fences; it thrives on their poetry."
Law & Society: The apolitical political figure who helps goverments make the law
The Attorney-General role gets little attention but is vital when it comes to law-making.
Sound and fury: Risks and realities collide in plans to fix overcrowding at premium tourist destination
Bold plans to manage Milford Sound's one million tourists are mired in red tape.
Insurance retreat: Homeowners in flood-prone areas abandoned and facing risk
With sea level rise gaining on us, there’s little sign of a plan for a “managed retreat”.
The Listener weekly quiz: November 1
Which former All Black became famous for advertising Toffee Pops biscuits?
Why the man set to become NZ’s first Pasifika district commander was asked to resign
"A piece of paper handed to him across a desk brought a stunning career to a halt."
The Listener weekly quiz: October 25
True or false? The Renaissance painter El Greco was Greek.
Canterbury writer’s unconventional route into sports journalism in Paris
Ian Borthwick is “the guy” on the rivalry between the All Blacks and Les Bleus.