Saturday Morning with Jack Tame

Kevin Milne walks with a bit of a limp. 

He's got an arthritic knee, which specialists have advised him not to get replaced just yet, and despite the suggestions of a physio friend, he refuses to use a walking stick.

But why? Kevin joined Jack Tame to chat about why he refuses to use one. 

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The line-up for the 2027 Laneway Festival has been announced. 

Irish post-punk band Fontaines DC is headlining on the back of a sell-out European arena tour, alongside powerhouse Paramore frontwoman, Hayley Williams. 

Also performing are major and growing names like Slayyyter, Adéla, Kim Petras, and Balu Brigada. 

Chris Schulz joined Jack Tame to share his thoughts on the line-up. 

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"After savouring the Pacific Coast Way’s succulent and scenic delights in North Queensland, I pointed the car south for the 700km ride from Townsville to Yeppoon. The drive time, from point to point, clocks in around 8-9 hours, so you will certainly be keen to slice and dice the trip over several days."

"Two hours south of Townsville, hop off the highway for coastal splendour galore at Bowen. You’ve entered the Whitsundays region and Bowen is beloved for its award-winning beaches and secret coves, caressed by turquoise seas."

"Fringed by the Southern Great Barrier Reef, Yeppoon is perched in the heart of the Capricorn Coast, taking its name from the Tropic of Capricorn and sharing the same latitude as Rio de Janeiro and Mauritius. As a first timer to this instantly agreeable seaside town, Yeppoon soon emerged as one of my favourite destinations along the Pacific Coast Way.  There’s an easy-going, appealing spirit to Yeppoon and its embracing locals."

Read Mike's full article here.

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Hollow Bones by Jodi Picoult  

On September 11, 2001, when Molly Fitzgerald was only two months old, her mother went to an appointment at the World Trade Center and never came home. Her father and the stepmother who raised her couldn’t have loved her more, but she still grew up with a healthy dread of disasters. 

Now an adult, she runs the Rhode Island Department for Emergency Preparedness, mapping out ways to save lives during storms, epidemics, and airplane crashes. She and her husband, Jesse—a police polygraph expert with his own history of crisis—have found a love that is a solace in a dangerous world. But then the unexpected upends their new marriage, leading them both to question everything they thought they knew. 

Moving between past and present, Hollow Bones is an epic story of the lies we tell ourselves as we write the narratives of our lives, the plans we design to protect ourselves at the worst moments, and the ties that bind mothers and daughters. 

Redwood by Ben Macintyre  

The year is 1981. Tehran is in violent turmoil in the wake of the Iranian Revolution. The Soviets are planning to overthrow the Ayatollah’s fledgling Islamist regime. If they do so, one response from America – unknown to the public – would be to use nuclear weapons. This is the story of how at the height of the Cold War, one mysterious double agent, known to MI6 as ‘Redwood’, revealed the Kremlin’s secret plot and prevented Armageddon. 

This unsung, hitherto unknown hero of the Cold War, a six-foot-four Russian intelligence officer had a problem, a sexual secret, one that if revealed, would turn his life upside-down. So he reached out to MI6, believing it to have the only solution – in return for the KGB’s secrets. Then, facing exposure, he demanded that the British smuggle him out of Iran in a high-stakes escape plan. 

This is the gripping tale of one man’s courage; about friendship, marriage, betrayal and sexual dysfunction; and about how decisions made in secret can have huge, long-term ramifications. 

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We’ve been hearing lots about the upcoming El Nino and how this might lead to a hotter summer for us, and how Europe has had massive heatwaves this year. Most of us are aware of the physical dangers of extreme heat, such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

However, researchers are now finding that heat can also affect mental health – with even a small increase in temperature associated with increases in mental health-related problems. Specifically, people can experience more:  

• Irritability  
• Anxiety  
• Depression  
• Sleep problems  
• Worsening symptoms of existing mental illness  
• Increased use of mental health services  

However, not everyone is affected equally. Those more at risk include:  

• People with caregiving responsibilities as looking after children, elderly relatives, or someone with health problems can increase emotional strain and reduce the ability to look after one's own needs.  
• People taking certain medications, particularly those that interfere with the body’s ability to regulate temperature including antidepressants and some heart medications.  
• People who have increased heat sensitivity including pregnant mums, women in menopause and perimenopause, and people who are sleep deprived (e.g., new parents!). Also, those people who are more exposed to heat such as people who work outdoors, those with poorly ventilated homes, or who work around machinery.  

So what helps protect mental health during heat and what we can do to prepare?  

• Having strong family and community connections help people cope practically and emotionally. Supportive relationships can provide:  
  • Reminders to stay hydrated  
  • Help accessing cooler places  
  • Emotional reassurance  
  • Monitoring of vulnerable individuals  
• Access to green and blue spaces (parks, gardens, bodies of water). These environments may provide not only physical cooling benefits but also psychological benefits e.g., increased ability to enjoy being outside, more socialising and receiving support from other people.  
• Social participation. Activities such as visiting friends, participating in community groups, and maintaining social contact helped protect against depression during heatwaves. Often during extreme heat people become isolated as they stay inside in an effort to remain cool so keeping up social participation can reduce this loneliness and depression.  

It's important to start thinking about and preparing for summer heat now, to protect both your physical and mental health. It will benefit you and your family, but also wider society if we can reduce pressure on Emergency Depts and medical services. Start thinking about who in your world might be vulnerable over summer. Make some plans ahead of time about keeping connected – try and include trips to blue and green spaces when you connect. Go and buy some fans now and beat the rush. Don’t wait till the middle of summer when we’re all suffering! 

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The legacy of Sir Peter Blake is a lot bigger than many people are aware of. We know him from his yachting around the world: America’s Cup, Whitbread, etc, etc. Wonderful stuff!  

My first connection with Peter was via his mother Joyce, who rang me on talkback radio (Newstalk ZB of course) to see if I could help Peter and his sailing team with an outbreak of fleas in the guys’ wetsuits.  

A boxful of Permethrin was dispatched to a port in South America – that worked!  

I kept an eye on Sir Peter’s activities. He became more and more involved with environmental work, not just in New Zealand, but right around the planet. He sailed with a message and spread the importance of environmental Education. “Seamaster” was the home of Blake’s Expedition Journey.  

December 6th, 2001, was the tragic end of Sir Peter’s life, but his environmental work never stopped. 

The Sir Peter Blake Trust was established, —later becoming Blake— to continue Peter’s mission: environmental awareness, activities, adventures with New Zealanders, especially kids (and teachers!) to instil a deeper sense of Kaitiakitanga within them. A lot of people became involved. 

Blake Inspire (for teachers), Blake NZ Virtual reality, Blake Expeditions, Blake Ambassadors, Blake Awards, and Blake Young Leaders Awards.

These two weeks we’ll take about 70 teachers to Tawharanui Reserve, and to Goat island if weather is okay, and Campbells Bay to look for Marine life. We'll collect plankton at Murrays Bay, go to Centennial Park to work with freshwater quality, invertebrates and fishes, and visit the Stardome/Planetarium. We'll also go to schools with great environmental work and there are talks and work with artists – all parts of an inspirational number of Curriculum bits. 

A group of teachers involved with Blake Inspire. 

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On the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast for Saturday October 3, 2026, British comedian, author and former doctor Adam Kay joins us to talk about his live show, 'Twas The Night Before Christmas', touring New Zealand this December. 

Jack delights in the joys of taking his 1 year old bike riding. 

Digger, the new Tom Cruise film, has hit the cinemas and Francesca Rudkin debriefs his performance. 

Ruud Kleinpaste joins us in the studio to honour Sir Peter Blake's legacy. 

And our gig guy Chris Schulz debriefs the 2027 Laneway festival lineup.

Get the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast every Saturday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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What is scabies and how common is it in New Zealand?  

• They're tiny mites that burrow into the top layer of skin, causing allergic reactions with intense itching and a rash.  
• It's common in New Zealand, but exact numbers are difficult to know.  
• It's more common where there is close contact or household crowding, and particularly children and young people.  
• Anyone can get it – it's not a sign of poor hygiene.  

How do you catch it?  

• Mainly through close skin-to-skin contact with someone who has scabies.  
• It spreads between household members, family members, and sexual partners.  
• It can spread through shared bedding, towels, or clothing.  
• You can spread scabies before realising you have it – symptoms can take weeks to appear.  

How do you recognise it?  

• Classically, it causes very itchy skin, particularly at night.  
• Small, red bumps, scratch marks, and tiny burrows, often between the fingers, on the wrists, armpits, waist, and groin.  
• In babies and young children, the face, scalp, palms, and soles of the feet can also be affected.  
• It can look like eczema or other itchy skin conditions.  

How do you treat it?  

• A prescribed cream applied over the body, left on for about 10–12 hours, then washed off – repeated one week later.  
• Everyone in the house needs treatment at the same time, even if they have no symptoms. 
• Wash bedding, clothing, and towels to prevent reinfection.  
• Tablets called ivermectin can be used if cream doesn't work. 
• The itching can continue for up to six weeks after successful treatment.  
• New spots, burrows, or worsening symptoms should be rechecked by your GP or nurse. 

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The 'AI Assistant' battle is heating up  

We talked about Muse last week, now OpenAI has announced their 'always on' assistant called Dots. Each company seems to be trying to make AI friendly, helpful, fuzzy and warm with these cute mascots. But do you find all this confusing? I do. I don't understand why there is ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work, Codex, now Dots... can it not all just be inside ChatGPT? That simplicity is partly what made the whole thing feel so magic at the beginning.  

The US Government held a tech launch event to rival Apple  

The flashy launch of America.gov was... impressive! Despite what people might think about Donald Trump and his administration's policies and actions, there was almost a collective "wow" in the tech world that the US government launched something so great. America.gov wants to be the front door to every government service. Need a passport? Need to change your name? Need to get a statement from the tax department? Want to visit a national park? it's all there. And it looks gorgeous. A playbook for New Zealand? I'm available to help launch hello.govt.nz ;)   

Google's quest for data centres in space has begun  

The literal liftoff was this week with a prototype 'data centre' on board the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.   

Project Suncatcher is Google's ambitious project that has all kinds of unknowns. Firstly, there's no guarantee this will even work, or the project will make economic sense. There are many obstacles they're going to need to figure out how to overcome, including the radiation their chips will be subjected to, how to disperse heat, and how to handle the risk of other satellites crashing into a data centre. They've done about as much testing as they can do on Earth, so now their chips will be under the harsh conditions of space. 

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East of Eden  

In the early 1900s, a fiercely independent woman drives a rift between two brothers, igniting a saga that unfolds across two generations. A seven-episode dramatic limited series adapted from John Steinbeck’s landmark 1952 novel (Netflix).  

Brothers  

Hollywood actors Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson have been best friends for years – but a shocking family secret suggests their connection might be closer (Apple TV). 

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