The Press

Further fall from grace

Spending the day in police custody was hardly how Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor would have wished to celebrate his 66th birthday – but, for once in the life of the former prince and Knight of the Garter, his power and position could not prevent it. His...

Square left behind

When Christ Church Cathedral’s tower and spire of fell on February 22, 2011, it was thought 22 people had died in the rubble. There was a viewing platform 30m up the 63m-high spire that gave visitors an elevated but intimate view of the square. It was...

Design that delivers

With their children having left the nest, this middleaged professional couple was moving into a modern apartment on Wellington’s waterfront. It was a blank canvas in terms of interior design, and the pair engaged interior designer Sandra Aiken, of D...

‘We’ve lost everything’

Dozens of primary students are holed up at a marae, properties are damaged and Little River’s main road has become a “raging river” after unprecedented rain crashed over Banks Peninsula. The area entered into a local state of emergency yesterday as...

15 years post-quake

Into the gorge

‘Hey, Emma, do you want to see a crocodile?” my guide asks from her kayak. Standing barefoot on my paddleboard, in only my swimsuit and lifejacket, I pause mid-stroke and consider my answer. “Uh ... yeah,” I eventually say, apprehensively. As it turns...

Appeal hearing

This week, convicted murderer and terrorist Brenton Tarrant’s case was heard at the Court of Appeal in Wellington. He was seeking leave to appeal his convictions and to vacate his guilty pleas for killing 51 people and injuring 40 at two Christchurch...

Back to race after 43 years

More than 40 years after they stood on Kumara Beach for the first ever Coast to Coast event, three of the 79 starters will take on the 44th edition of the race. Alister Metherell, 67, from Christchurch, Rex Randell from Nelson, and Julian Carne, 67,...

Cash prizes to help root out pretty pink invader

It’s hairy, pink, and two metres tall – and the regional council needs the public’s help to get rid of it before it chokes up Canterbury’s waterways. Environment Canterbury (Ecan) has launched a “great willowherb hunt” until the end of February....

Ratepayers hit again

Christchurch ratepayers are facing a 7.96% rates increase this year and could also end up paying more to park in the city, swim at the council’s pools, register their dog and be buried. Under the proposals a family could end up paying an additional...

$6.2m app isn't an app

Reaching individual fitness goals is now all about dialing up expert support that’s tailor-made for each person. Because whether the goal is to complete an upcoming half marathon, manage a niggly pain or just be that little bit fitter for the kids,...

New beach beckons but don’t pack your togs

Christchurch is about to get a new beach, butyouwon’twanttoswimatit. A 180m long “soft beach” is among a suite of work planned to help protect South New Brighton and Southshore from erosion and flooding along the Ihutai Avon-heathcote Estuary. The...

Fish foretold river collapse

Every year, in the waning heat of summer, the Rakaia River reliably flashed silver with salmon. Hundreds would cast lines into the river’s milky, glacial flow, hunting for the heaviest fish and the prestige that came with it. The Rakaia fishing...

Life Savings

Teachers Cherie Boyd and Angela Paxon were shocked when Water Safety New Zealand instructors tested their year 6 class from Christchurch’s Te Kura o Rātā Templeton. Out of their 24 students, only eight could swim competently when tested at Templeton...

Making her mark HOMED

Tina Worthington took over running her family’s fifthgeneration farm in Taranaki 17 years ago, and she and husband Bryan bought the worker’s house and two acres. The garden consisted of hedges, two cherry trees, a large rhododendron and little else,...

South Island gets denser

Townhouses are quietly changing what it means to build a home in the South Island, and the latest consents data shows the shift is no longer just a Christchurch story. Numbers suggest the building downturn has eased, with new dwelling consents up 11%...

Wolfbrook buys land for $42m

Housing developer Wolfbrook is planning a range of luxury apartments, houses and townhouses after spending $42 million on land opposite Hagley Park. In what is one of the largest development land deals ever done in central Christchurch, the company...

Boat damage ‘worse than anticipated’

Damage to a stranded wildlife cruise boat is “worse than anticipated” as authorities work to minimise the impact of thousands of litres of diesel now thought to have leaked into the sea. Black Cat Cruises says 38 passengers and three crew were...

Court Theatre responds

There will be no wholesale changes at the Court Theatre, following a wave of complaints about seating comfort and sightlines, but its chief executive says that is not the end of the conversation. After a week of criticism focused on the $61 million...

‘Fines’ copped for using free parking

More than 2500 people have been slapped with a $75 ticket after parking at Parakiore – even though they parked within the free two-hour limit. Christchurch City Council confirmed 2585 breach notices – totalling almost $200,000 – were issued to people...

Long lines and big bills back

Long queues snaked through NZ Uniforms stores this week as parents scrambled for the new school year, with some families spending hundreds of dollars on required clothing and waiting for items to be restocked. “This particular week that we’re in at...

Same fuel, different price

On Christchurch’s Cranford St, the price of diesel can vary by almost 30 cents a litre in the space of 1.5km. BP’S full-service station was this week charging 194.9c a litre. Head north and Waitomo’s unmanned site at the end of Cranford St was...

Carter a contender

Green Party list MP Kahurangi Carter has declared her intention to win the Christchurch Central electorate seat in this year’s general election. She says the Greens have shown that they can be effective electorate MPS.

Sheeran in the rain – a glorious feeling

Ed Sheeran, Apollo Projects Stadium, Christchurch, Saturday, January 24. Rain killed all but two of Ed Sheeran’s guitars, and an earpiece, and caused a mechanical bridge to malfunction for a bit, but he still put on a show to remember. Sheeran...

Should warnings have been seen?

The worst had passed. The skies had dumped a record deluge overnight, but by the time Tauranga’s red rainfall warning expired at 9am on Thursday, the sun had taken charge again. But half an hour later, just before checkout time at the Mt Maunganui...

Frantic dig for missing

Desperate families could only wait and hope as rescuers searched for people, including children, missing after torrential rain and devastating landslides in the upper North Island yesterday. In Tauranga, rescuers were digging in search of survivors...

‘Go through line by line’

The 2026 election will be held on Saturday, November 7. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon made the announcement yesterday at the National Party caucus retreat in Christchurch. Luxon said “continuing the recent tradition of announcing the election date...

Rates cap can’t work, council says

Christchurch City Council is taking aim at the Government’s proposed rates cap saying it is “unrealistic and unworkable”. The policy is not well considered and does not use the best evidence, the council says in a draft submission to the rates cap...

Feel full for longer

Looking for a high-protein breakfast? These oat pancakes with cottage cheese & berries have you sorted.

Beach fun a tradition

Camping has been Sandra and John Gow’s summer default since they were kids. Now, it’s an intergenerational joy. Their parents each took them camping. Then, when they met and got married, they carried on the tradition. Now, they take their...

Steep rise, steeper fall

Breakdancing across the Waikato Stadium turf after the Crusaders’ 2023 Super Rugby Pacific title, Scott Robertson was on top of the world. The man dubbed “Razor” had just guided the red-and-blacks to a seventh championship in as many seasons in his...

Stadium not an Airbnb boost – yet

Aside from New Year’s Day, Electric Avenue has the most Airbnbs booked in Christchurch for 2026, closely followed by Ed Sheeran next week. One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha’s opening events? About half the number of bookings. Winter timing and high...

More new homes than post-quake

More new homes are going up in Christchurch now than during the peak of the post-earthquake rebuild. In the year to November, more than 6400 homes were consented across Christchurch city and the Selwyn and Waimakariri districts, according to the...

The stench is back

The stench from Christchurch’s wastewater treatment plant has spiked again this summer, angering residents, and driving them inside behind closed windows and doors. Residents are at breaking point, and the city council must do more to support their...

Health NZ apologises for letter ‘sent in error’

A patient who feared an indefinite wait for surgery for his chronic pain condition because Christchurch Hospital only had “capacity to treat patients with a nondeferrable condition such as cancer” was sent the letter in error, Health NZ has...

Makeshift red zone camp a haven for many

Dozens of people, including workers, pensioners and a family, are sleeping in tents, cars and buses on land in Christchurch’s red zone. The group were directed to the area by the Christchurch City Council, but while it is a safe haven for the...

What’s next after Maduro?

The Venezuelan dictator was in a supposed safe house when the Delta Force commandos burst in just after 2am and snatched him and his wife, before his security team had time to secure the property’s final defence of two heavy steel doors. Even if they...

Critic's choice

Was 2025 a great year to go to the movies? Yeah, I think it was. Attendances were up, and there was a terrific return to form for dramas especially. I also reckon the NZ International Film Festival delivered some genuine gems. So, in no particular...

Road toll down sharply

The South Island road toll has dropped sharply this year, with 59 people killed on its roads, down from 82 deaths last year and well below higher tolls in the past four years. Across New Zealand, 272 people died on the roads, down from 292 at the same...

Festive start to 2026

Thousands of Kiwis across the South Island have ushered in the new year soaking up international artists at major festivals. In Christchurch, Rolling Meadows expected some 8500 attendees yesterday and Rhythm and Alps (R&A) 10,000. It was Rolling’s...

Ratepayers on the hook

Christchurch ratepayers have been quietly paying the cost of unstable ticket sales on the iconic central-city trams. Although the gap between costs and revenue significantly improved in 2024 – $282,970 compared with $105,302 the year prior – it was...

Where the ocean meets the vines

When winemaker Alejandro (Alex) Perez needs inspiration for his next vintage, he follows a trail in Whakanewha Regional Park, where the bush meets a crescent-shaped beach on Waiheke Island’s serene south coast, to a pā site with multimillion-dollar...

Music boom and bust

Call it the festival recession. Across New Zealand, iconic music festivals are unplugging their microphones – many for good. Splore, decades old. One Love, a household name. And, most recently, underground grassroots festival Twisted Frequency told The...

English couple fly in for Chch parkrun milestone

At 8am sharp on Christmas morning, thousands of people across New Zealand laced up their running shoes for the global exercise phenomenon, parkrun – but Riverlution parkrun’s first-ever Christmas Day event in Christchurch was particularly...

Sunburnt nation still tempts fate

Kaylee Mccormack checked her phone on a 29C day at Sumner Beach in Christchurch. Not for messages or Tiktok, but for the number that would determine her afternoon plans. UV index: 9. Perfect tanning weather. “I’m definitely not a re-applier,”...

A century on the edge

A new generation of climbers is aiming for the top with the Canterbury Mountaineering Club, which is celebrating 100 years of exploring the South Island’s peaks, with plenty of triumphs and losses along the way.

Quintessentially Kiwi

A love letter to the no-frills 1970s bach

Blessings and curse: The drugs that keep terminal cancer patients alive

Bronwyn Harris is defying the odds. When she was diagnosed with stage-four ovarian cancer two years ago, she was given a year to live – 18 months at most. She is still here and likely has years of life ahead of her. And luck has nothing to do with it,...

Small towns, big increases

It may be a buyer’s market across much of the country, but house prices in some of the South Island’s rural hubs are still trending upwards – and selling well. First-home buyers have been taking advantage of lower mortgage rates to maintain a record...

Hi-tech turf at Te Kaha

For months, the new Christchurch stadium has stood as an impressive concrete and steel shell looking largely naked on the inside. Now, with nearly a hectare of specially world-class grown turf laid across its floor, the venue is finally dressed up for...

Moneyball

Canterbury seamer Sean Davey finally quelled Auckland’s resistance at Hagley Oval to move the red-and-blacks to within one point of the Plunket Shield lead. Davey took 4-41 including the final wicket of Adi Ashok to dismiss Auckland for 324 and...

Student job applications hit record high

A record number of job applications were made by tertiary students in New Zealand last month, with some young people moving cities to find work. The “demoralising” search for employment is something Zita Fairbrass knows about first-hand. She spent 18...

Some residents stay put

City retirement village becomes ghost town

Be my guest

There’s a certain level of planning involved in hosting an event – even a modest one. But while time might be spent refining the menu, finding enough chairs or checking if the festoon lighting still works, there’s one room in the house that is too...

RMA reforms

Plans for a major overhaul of resource management laws have been welcomed as a sure way to lower housing and building costs, while environmental groups are fearful of their effects on native species and landscapes. Yesterday RMA Reform and Housing...

Wake Up Dead Man

Benoit Blanc is back on the case

Several open to selling of council asset

Many Christchurch city councillors say they are open to selling ratepayer-owned Enable – worth hundreds of millions of dollars – as one potential investor called it an “attractive asset”. The controversial idea will face stiff opposition, however, as...

How a top lawyer got away with sexual harassment

When Ripeka Tamepo arrived to run a small Māori immersion school in Kaikōura five years ago, she was shocked at the state of it. Hāpuku Kura’s buildings, more than a century old, were barely insulated and freezing. There was no play equipment and no...

Film pick and mix

The impending festive season and the end of 2025 offer up plenty of exciting options for movie fans. As well as a bunch of blockbusters, December’s lineup features some potential awards-season contenders. For those who prefer an in-cinema experience,...

Sanctuary by the sea

Call for super city instead

GOVERNANCE Christchurch City Council advisers are proposing a Greater Christchurch super city as an alternative to the Government’s “weak” plan to shake up regional governance. At a city council briefing yesterday, staff said the Government proposal...

Councils face tough decisions

Capping rates increases to 4% will lead to some tough calls for councils, as one Christchurch city councillor proposes selling fibre broadband company Enable to free up cash. The Government announced yesterday its widely anticipated plan to force...

New wave of youth crime

A new wave of youth crime has reared up in Christchurch, with children as young as 10 targeting businesses in reckless ramraids and carrying out brazen armed robberies on shops in broad daylight. Yesterday, two boys barely into their teens were...

Hagley College to lose $1m for part-time students

A Christchurch woman says she owes her education – and future career – to support she found in one city high school offering part-time study, and fears a funding cut will shut out students like her. Te Puna Wai o Waipapa - Hagley College is losing a...

Back to where they once belonged

Energy vampire

The lights are off, the house is quiet and nothing seems to be running. But electricity is silently flowing through the plugs in your home. This hidden drain is known as phantom energy. Also called vampire energy, the wasted electricity comes from...

Joe Bennett

‘Où sont les neiges d’antan?” asked François Villon in 1455, “Where are the snows of yesteryear?” The line remains famous five centuries later because it captures a sense that we all know. It is the sense of a lost past, where the snow fell deep and...

Finding joy in every jar

On recent afternoons, Rosamund Mcdonald has invited friends and family into her home to rank the 23 yeast-based spreads she has sourced from around the world. They can test Vegemite, Our Mate, Promite and Bovril. There is an Our Mate XO – standing for...

Mud snorkelling sees tourists surfacing in tiny Welsh town

It started like a lot of good ideas do – over a beer in the back bar of the pub. The topic of conversation was tourists – specifically the lack of them. It was 1980 and the tiny Welsh former spa town of Llanwrtyd Wells was losing visitors fast....

Construction bounces back

After two tough years, Canterbury’s construction sector is finally picking up pace, with fresh signs the region is laying the groundwork for a rebound. “Canterbury’s actually doing pretty good,” said construction analyst Mike Blackburn. “Across...

Cup Day in colour

Sara Hargraves set herself a challenge to do 60 new things before turning 60, with entering the fashion show first on her list. All the flowers on her outfit came from her own garden.

Age, perfected

L’oréal Paris Age Perfect Cell Renewal Day Cream L’oréal Paris Age Perfect Cell Renewal Revitalising Day Cream SPF 15 combines two active ingredients rich in polyphenols and vitamins specifically formulated for mature, dull skin. The luxuriously...

Run(a)way success

Models wearing garments from dozens of established and emerging designers took to the stage for Christchurch’s inaugural Spring Fashion Festival, which came to an end yesterday – having given the city its first taste of New Zealand Fashion Week.

'Furkey' off the Christmas menu

Still reeling from a decision to close her bistro a week ago, Christchurch hospitality entrepreneur Flip Grater has had to put her company, Grater Goods, into voluntary liquidation. “There’s been a lot of back and forth and a lot of last-minute...

Code-red ED new normal?

Christchurch’s emergency department (ED) is spending almost a third of its days in “code red” and doctors fear it could become the new normal without urgent fixes to the health system. Figures released under the Official Information Act (OIA) show the...