The 2026 Taite Music Awards took place last week, where Kiwi artists and industry experts celebrated New Zealand's independent music scene.

Geneva AM, The Mint Chicks and Marlon Williams were among the big winners on the night.

Entertainment correspondent Steve Newall explained further.

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There's growing concerns about the impact of social media on young people, with advocates calling for tighter regulations.

Politicians have voiced support for a teen social media ban in line with Australia, but experts say more needs to be done in this area.

B416 advisor Jade Varney says education is important, but the technology's gone too far to let young people use it without a proper intervention. 

"These technology platforms have been engineered to intercept our control functions in our brains, and a young person relying on the knowledge they've been taught in school just may not be enough at this current stage."

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There's concerns about the stability of the coalition after National and NZ First had it out last week.

Winston Peters' office released emails showing Prime Minister Chris Luxon wanted the Government to explicitly support US/Israeli action in Iran, which Peters later rejected.

Former Minister and commentator Peter Dunne says Peters is running rings around Luxon ahead of the election - and it's unclear what this could mean for the coalition after the election.

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The A-League will have a new champion after Auckland FC ended Melbourne City's season in a thrilling 14-goal penalty shootout.

The Kiwi side will play Adelaide United across a two-leg semi-final.

CEO Nick Becker says it was 'crazy' watching the team's performance on the night.

"Sport is such an incredible thing, I think with football especially, because it's such a low-scoring game - the scarcity of goals and then the drama... it was a real emotional rollercoaster. 

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ACT has launched its immigration policy ahead of this year's election - with surcharges and tougher limits for serious offenders. 

It includes a $6 a day infrastructure surcharge on temporary work visas, which is expected to pocket $80 million a year.

The party also wants stronger English language requirements, and would also establish a dedicated unit around enforcement for people over-staying their visas.

Leader David Seymour says New Zealand was built on immigration, but it's important to keep the right balance.

"What those waves of settlement have done is two things. One is that they built a Kiwi character that's the envy of the world...whether it's our troops out there doing peacekeeping, our sportspeople, our businesspeople - Kiwis have a reputation that we can fix anything, we do what we say we're going to do, we're compassionate and thoughtful people."

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James Reyne is regarded as an Australian musical icon thanks to his success in Australian Crawl, and he's set to celebrate the band's success in his new tour.

Alongside the full band, Reyne will be performing the hits of Australian Crawl next month in Auckland and Wellington.

Reyne says he knows it's unusual to celebrate the fall of a band, but it felt right.

"I'm very grateful for that, as I get older, I realise how grateful I am." 

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Influencer and mental health advocate Jazz Thornton has been campaigning hard for stalking to be criminalised, with new reforms set to be added to the Crimes Act next month.

Thornton was targeted by obsessive messages from a stranger overseas back in 2024, and things escalated when the individual flew to New Zealand and turned up at her house.

Inspired by her own story and those of others, Jazz has created a new documentary ‘Stalked’ - which is coming soon to Sky.  

"It was the unpredictability, and you have the commander of the police on the phone and all of these detectives, and cameras are getting installed in your house...and you know there's concern from the police and you can't know why."

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The Other Catherine by Lauren Keenan: this is the story of two women bound together through generations of a family, each making their own way in a turbulent world. In 1793, eighteen year old Catherine is sentenced to the colonies and finds herself in the abject misery of the hold of a convict ship sailing to Australia where, despite the horrors and deprivation, she manages to forge enduring bonds with some of the other convicts. Two generations later, another Catherine - known in her native reo as Keita - finds herself and her loved ones caught up in the arrival of sealers and whalers to the shores of Aotearoa, and a profound change to their way of life. History and blood unites these two women, each of whom navigate their way through periods of great change.

Murder in Paris ’68 by Edward Chisholm. Paris in 1968 was a world of chic, celebrity and glamour alongside a parallel underworld in which the demimonde lived dangerous and darker lives. Alain Delon was a movie star of the era - globally famous, he moved in fashionable circles. When a young man was found dead on a road outside Paris it was initially assumed he was indigent, but his clothes and well manicured fingernails told a different story and he was soon linked to Delon. This is extraordinary narrative nonfiction in which politicians, police, diplomats, gangsters, petty criminals and a raft of famous names became caught up in scandal and corruption. 

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BloggerAtLarge.com writer Megan Singleton's been exploring Nashville and taking in the city's history.

She got to go to the Grand Ole Opry and listen to the Oakridge Boys singing Elvira - as well as take some studio tours.

Read more about Megan's experience here.

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On the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin Full Show Podcast for Sunday 26 April 2026, in 2024 mental health campaigner Jazz Thornton feared for her life when a stalker flew to New Zealand and turned up on her doorstep.  She was shocked to learn New Zealand had no laws in place to protect her.  She joins Francesca to talk her own situation and her new documentary Stalked.

It's been 40 years since the end of iconic Australian band Australian Crawl, lead singer James Reyne is commemorating the end with a tour, he joins Francesca to talk about the hey day of the band that shaped the sound of Australian music.

When Dr Clive Price moved to New Zealand from the UK, he saw gaps in our bowel screening processes. He joins Francesca to talk about what he's doing to help younger people be more proactive about bowel screening.

Francesca looks at Christpher Luxon's decision to cancel his weekly Breakfast interview with TVNZs Tova O'Brien and questions whether it makes him look like he can't handle the pressure.

And the panel discuss Anzac Day and whether it hit a bit differently this year with the current world situation.

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