Between Two Beers podcast: The inside story of Fletch & Vaughan’s journey through radio

ZM's Fletch and Vaughan. Photo / NZME

Carl Fletcher and Vaughan Smith are radio royalty in New Zealand.

Together with comedian Hayley Sproull, they currently host Fletch, Vaughan & Hayley on ZM, one of the country’s most popular radio shows, which is also repurposed as a podcast and downloaded nearly 500,000 times each month.

In this wide-ranging, long-form interview on the Between Two Beers podcast, the duo open up about their rise to the top of the charts and how they’ve stayed there so long.

In this episode they discuss:

🔘 Their 19-year journey working together and how they keep things fresh

🔘 Their start at The Edge and how Vaughan *won* his job through a competition

🔘 Their controversial cross-company move from the drive show on The Edge to Breakfast radio on ZM

🔘 The shift away from stunt-based radio

🔘 Vaughan’s parenting journey and how he decides how much to share

🔘 Hayley Sproull, commercialising a friendship and much more.

Show notes | Episode 125 | Fletch & Vaughan

2:04: Our first foursome since Jono and Ben

3:31: Hambassador chat with Vaughan

6:59: Some thoughts on Fletch from Morgan the Sexologist

11:38: Quick reflections on 19 years of work

13:53: The coming together of Fletch and Vaughan

20:29: The shift from stunt-based radio to a conversational show

24:22: The looseness of afternoon radio

33:45: Moving to ZM

43:03: From afternoon drive to breakfast radio

49:23: Fletch: The best in the game

54:57: The art of never punching down

59:12: Audience engagement and fan interactions

1:03:56: Vaughan’s dad journey

1:09:11: The ratings game

1:12:05: Looking ahead (and is Hayley Sproull still busy)

1:15:11: Last words from Steve, Seamus, Fletch and Vaughan

Between Two Beers is part of the Alternative Commentary Collective - NZ’s Home for Sports Entertainment. Check out more podcasts, events, details on live commentaries and sports watch alongs here.