Nine To Noon

Louise O'Brien reviews Horse by Geraldine Brooks, published by Hachette NZ.

Dropped off by helicopter into remote Fiordland, Tanya Bottomley embarked on a 600 kilometre journey to traverse the 45th Parallel, from Caswell Sound to the beaches of Oamaru. Starting at the end of January, Tanya's trip lasted 26 days- 300 kilometres of which was on foot, 22 kilometres of paddling, and around 270 kilometres of cycling. She had no track to follow and multiple mountain ranges and lakes to cross. Tanya Bottomley is speaking at the Mountain Book and Film Festival later this month and will be releasing a film about her expedition next year.

UK correspondent Matt Dathan joins Kathryn to look at why the government's plans to send asylum seekers to central Africa were thwarted at the last minute, the EU is launching legal action against Britain over its attempts to change the Northern Ireland Protocol, and businessman Arron Banks loses his long-running libel case against a freelance journalist.

An unexpected "swarm" of marine life has been found in a newly explored Antarctic river deep beneath the ice. A team of scientists from Victoria University, NIWA, and GNS made the discovery while studying a suspected under-ice estuary, hundreds of kilometres from the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf. When they drilled down into the river, their camera was inundated by dozens of small amphipods - a type of animal from the same family that includes lobsters, crabs, and mites. Kathryn speaks with Professor Craig Stevens, NIWA Physical Oceanographer who was part of the team.

As Christchurch ratepayers have their say on the future of the city's beleaguered new stadium project, the Prime Minister has made it clear there'll be no more money from central government. The 30,000 seat covered stadium was initially projected to cost $533 million, but ballooning costs mean another $150 million is needed, taking the project to $683 million. The government is contributing $220 million to the project, and the Prime Minister yesterday ruled out providing more support to cover the increasing costs. A large chunk will have to be absorbed by Christchurch ratepayers, an estimated extra $39 a year per household would be needed, pushing up rates bills by $144 a year in total for the stadium. In response to the blowout, the council is now consulting the public on three options; accept the $150 million cost increase, delay and redesign it, or stop the project altogether. Kathryn speaks to Sam MacDonald, Christchurch city councillor and Leeann Watson, chief executive of the Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce.

Science commentator Dr Siouxsie Wiles joins Kathryn with some interesting studies, including one where Australian researchers found a species of worm able to feed on polystyrene. US scientists have developed 'millirobots' which use magnets and origami folding to flip, spin and even swim! And women's blood pressure measurements may be inaccurate because of their height - a Canadian study compared people's blood pressure measured during an arm cuff and another inside their arteries during surgery.

Demographer Professor Paul Spoonley tells Kathryn Ryan Covid-19 has had a major impact upon life expectancy around the high-income world. New Zealand is one of only three countries to see life expectancy increase during the pandemic.

Elisabeth Easther reviews Happy-Go-Lucky by David Sedaris, published by Hachette NZ.

House sales are taking longer to complete, properties are staying on the market for longer and the upward pressure on prices are easing. The Real Estate Institute has just released its residential sales data for May. Median house prices have decreased 4 percent since April, but are up 2.4 percent since this time last year. Meanwhile across New Zealand, the number of houses sold have decreased 28.4 percent annually, from 7,758 houses sold last year, to 5,556 this year. Kathryn speaks to Jen Baird, Chief Executive of REINZ.

When Wendy Davis was attacked at work the incident wasn't taken seriously. Like so many women of her generation, she'd been told never to make a fuss. Her attacker, Bradley Robert Edwards, would go on to become a serial killer, leading to one of the longest-running and most expensive murder trials in Australia's history. Wendy Davis's memoir is Don't Make a Fuss - It's Only the Claremont Serial Killer. It highlights the importance of listening to women when they speak up about assault. Wendy joins Kathryn from her home in Hobart.