Kiwi Yarns

Welcome back to the first episode of 2023!

We kick things off with a woman I admire hugely. Rikki Swannell is a trailblazer in the world of sports journalism, and flies the flag for women's sport in so fiercely and loudly, I’m basically fist pumping right now at how awesome she is and for what she has achieved in her career.

Rikki and I first met when we worked in radio together back in 2010 - and I’ve watched her shine ever since.

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Merry Christmas!

Jo Kane (aka Mum) thought it might be a nice idea to do a Christmas bonus episode where she interviewed me...so we did it!

Hope you enjoy.

Thanks for all your amazing support, and we'll see you back in 2023!

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Today’s guest is one of the country’s most high profile journalists. Paddy Gower is fiercely passionate about telling stories and has been that way for over 20 years. His dogged determination to get to the bottom of issues here in Aotearoa is something to behold, and he certainly hasn't been afraid to piss anyone off along the way. But what Paddy also has which makes him so good is empathy, and what makes him unique is he isn’t afraid to completely immerse himself in the story - which this year resulted in him staging his own intervention, and getting off the booze - in front of the nation.

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Today’s guest is an ultra marathon runner like me (haha I can say that now)! But Daniel Jones just won the Kepler Challenge - a 60 kilometre mountain run in Fiordland at the weekend for the FIFTH year in a row. And, while it was the same race I did, he was SIX hours faster. Now, I’m not beating myself up about that at all, I’m saying it to highlight what an absolute weapon Daniel is. This, after winning the Queenstown Marathon two weeks prior and the Auckland Marathon a few weeks before that, for the third year in a row. He’s out of control, so let’s hear how he moves so damn quick.

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Today’s guest is one of our country’s great comedians (I bloody love our comedians) - the 2018 Billy T Award Winner Melanie Bracewell.

Not only has she had a stellar career here, she currently lives in Melbourne, and has made a solid dent in being extremely funny in Australia too.

She hosts Cheap Seats and was nominated for a Logie this year - something she didn’t even realise she was eligible for!

A glorious chat with a wonderfully talented young woman.

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Today’s guest is the extremely funny, ridiculously wonderful Eli Matthewson, who I am very lucky to be able to call my friend, thanks to our experience this year on Dancing with The Stars. Eli is a comedian, and a breakfast radio host for The Edge, and has also managed to squeeze into his extremely busy life a new doco about porn, with good friend and fellow funny man Chris Parker. 

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Today’s guest is one of our wonderful sportswomen - world class all-rounder White Fern, Amelia Kerr. We recorded this amazing conversation while Melie was in Adelaide, playing in the Weber Women’s Big Bash League for the Brisbane Heat.

At 22, she's already had an incredible cricket career. It runs deep in her family.

Melie has also just released an amazing series called “Treading Water”, where she shares hers and other Kiwis' experiences with mental illness. 

She is truly an extraordinary young woman.

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Today’s guest is the incredibly talented DJ, producer, broadcaster, Aroha Harawira.

She regularly headlines big festivals and opens for international acts, and is currently living in Melbourne. Aroha has for a long time been a well-respected voice within the media industry, and a staunch advocate for equality for women working in music.

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A warning: This episode discusses mental health, suicide and bipolar disorder.

Today’s guest is a wonderful young man by the name of Oscar McCallion. In a few days, Oscar will be running 57km - and he’s running that far to raise $20,000 for the I am Hope charity. And, he’s running it in memory of his Mum, who at 57 years young, took her own life after a long battle with bipolar disorder.

Oscar's kōrero is so important, and he is just such a remarkable young man.

If you want to donate to "Scrambled Legs on Hope" here's the link:

https://givealittle.co.nz/fundraiser/httpswwwinstagramcomoscar-mccallion

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Today’s guest is the absolutely fabulous Cassie Roma.

If someone asked me what Cassie does, I would answer it with “well, she does everything and she can do anything”. 

She’s a digital marketer, a social media expert and consultant, a public speaker, and she’s been her kick-arse self on the TV on The Apprentice Aotearoa, and more recently Celebrity Treasure Island.

She's such a wonderful person to engage with, I love her!

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