Author Interview

Author Helen Beaglehole first visited the Marlborough Sounds in a small yacht after a very stormy Cook Strait crossing. She returned numerous times over the next 40 years, exploring and sailing the… Audio

Kathryn speaks with screen writer and director Michael Bennett. He was the 2020 recipient of the Te Aupounamu Maori Screen Excellence Award, given in recognition of significant contributions to the… Audio

Australian media personality Amber Petty is not a fan of fairytales, even though she's seen one close up. Her best friend Mary married Prince Frederik of Denmark and she was a bridesmaid at the royal… Audio

Author Lauren Roche has lived a life of constant reinvention. She was a high school drop out, who stowed away on a ship to the US at the age of 16. After being deported home she turned to prostitution… Audio

Wanaka-based mountain guide Gavin Lang has not only climbed some of New Zealand's highest mountains and remotest peaks, but as an adventure photographer he's captured their beauty too. His book… Audio, Gallery

Writing started as a way to relieve the boredom for actress Sarah Winman. Jesse talks to Sarah Winman as she embarks on a book tour in New Zealand. Audio

Silvia Vasquez-Lavado is a Peruvian-American explorer, mountaineer and social entrepreneur. In 2018, she completed the Seven Summits, the tallest mountain on each continent, from both the Messner and… Audio

It can feel impossible to achieve a goal when your motivation tank is empty. Scientist Ayelet Fishbach shares some surprising lessons in her new book Get It Done. Audio

Acclaimed Maori historian Monty Soutar has turned his hand to fiction for the first time, drawing on almost 40 years of research into the history of Aotearoa and his own ancestral line. Kawai: For… Audio

Three of the world's finest crime writers; Val McDermid, Michael Robotham and J.P. Pomare join Kathryn in the studio. The trio are touring New Zealand this week, with an event, Crime after Crime. Audio

Serhii Plokhy is a professor of Ukrainian history at Harvard University and a leading authority on the Cold War and nuclear history. He's written a number of books on the subject, including Chernobyl… Audio

When his first novel was rejected by publishers in Australia, Matthew Reilly did the ultimate DIY job - he took out a loan, published it himself and convinced Sydney book stores to stock it. The book… Video, Audio

Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Somewhere along the line, the pursuit became the point and happiness got lost say professors Benjamin and Jenna Storey. They see a deep sense of… Audio

Packing up their lives and becoming farmers was meant to be fresh start for New Zealand born writer and producer Nicola Harvey and husband Pat. But their move from young, burnt-out Sydney… Audio

Not much is certain about the life of Charlotte Badger, one of the first Pakeha women to live in New Zealand, but many stories have been woven about her over two centuries. A young Charlotte was… Audio

In November 2019, Zarifa Ghafari became the mayor of Maidan Shahr, the capital city of Wardak Province, Afghanistan. She is one of the only female mayors in Afghan history and the youngest - appointed… Audio

Set in Renaissance Italy, Maggie O'Farrell's ninth novel The Marriage Portrait imagines the lost story of Lucrezia de' Medici, who was betrothed to the Duke of Ferrara at age 13. Audio

Vidyamala Burch is a UK-based New Zealander whose mindfulness programme for chronic pain and other illnesses has just earned her an OBE. Through her own experience of extreme pain which began in her… Audio

Desire : A Reckoning is Jessie Cole's deeply personal second memoir. She examines her own experiences of longing, seeking answers on how and why women desire, and how external forces, and upbringing… Audio

In order for democracy to thrive, it needs one thing that has the potential to destroy it; freedom of expression. And with that freedom comes cancel culture, misinformation and sometimes chaos says… Audio