Weather warnings or watches have been issued for the entire North Island, as Aotearoa braces for the arrival of Cyclone Vaianu. There's an orange heavy rain warning for parts of Northland that kicks in from 9pm Saturday. Some kumara growers are rushing to harvest before the weather hits. Further down the island, Coromandel Peninsula and Great Barrier Island currently have the highest level warning, a red strong wind warning from 5am til 6pm on Sunday. Damaging Wind gusts of up to 140km/h are expected Sunday afternoon. MetService Meteorologist John Law spoke to Lisa Owen.

Americas correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Lisa Owen about how he First Lady, Melania Trump, issued a surprise statement denying any links with the dead paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and how Cuba's leader has hit out at the US government in a recent interview. She also spoke about a Mexican miner being rescued after being trapped in a flooded tunnel for two weeks.

Wallace Chapman and producer Tessa Guest preview tonight's instalment of The Panel.

Nicola Toki and Jesse discuss the Moehau stag beetle as this week's critter of the week. These beetles measure between 2.1 to 2.7 cm, with males reaching 2.7 cm while the females top out at 2.3 cm. They are black in colour, which can be glossy or dull. Their exoskeleton has tiny indentations which makes them appear pitted.

We talk about all things doors with the wonderful design guru Sylvia Sanford.

Connie Clarkson shares a cracker recipe which she says can become so many things to so many people for so many occasions - entrée, canape, lunch box filler, can also be turned into a burger! Cooked in a pan, in air fryer, on the BBQ.

The latest RNZ Pacific news.

Kate Rodger is with Jesse to share what's on at the cinema. She'll chat about The Drama and do a roundup of school holiday films - GOAT, Super Mario Galaxy and Hoppers.

Kate Rodger is with Jesse to share what's on at the cinema. She'll chat about The Drama and do a roundup of school holiday films - GOAT, Super Mario Galaxy and Hoppers.

The latest RNZ Pacific news.