NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Entertainment

The Spinoff's TV Week: National Mothers, Vomiting Detectives and Dancing Hosts

Herald online
18 Jul, 2015 03:00 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

TV obsessed website The Spinoff brings together the best, worst and weirdest moments on television each week.

1. The Mother of the Nation Rises Again

This week on Paul Henry, Hilary Barry's regular spot was filled with another beloved member of TV news royalty. Judy Bailey showed up to keep her seat warm whilst Hilz holidayed, presumably on a similar TV star retreat with Mike Hosking. From one Mother of the Nation to another, it was made very clear that one of the key sources of M.O.N power is held within the subtle bouffant:

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Paul was accommodating of Judy, despite being intensely jealous of her star on the rise all week. From her social media den, Perlina broke the sad news to Paul that "Judy Bailey" was now the number one trending topic in New Zealand.

Nothing like a popularity competition to throw off the PH balance. / AC

2. Save the Last Dance For Dom (and Sharyn)

Dancing With the Stars is one heel lead away from finishing, which means one lucky star is desperately close to securing that outrageously bad mirror ball trophy on Sunday night. We've been there every quick-step of the way, podcasting and power ranking till our toplines bleed. What is a topline? Who plays the bull in the pasodoble? How does the voting work? We still have many, many unanswered questions. And heaven knows the text machine doesn't help.

Finalists Simon Barnett, Chrystal Chenery and Siobhan Marshall will duel it out on Sunday night for their charities, but there are two new stars taking the stage. After her successful hashtag-based campaign #domfordancing, Chrystal has finally got her wish, with both hosts Dom and Sharyn rumoured to be kneesliding their way onto the D-Floor. Speaking of D-Floor, why not do yourself a favour and listen to the penultimate episode of The D-Floor, our own Dancing With the Stars NZ featuring three people who know nothing about dancing? / AC

3. Not a Lot of Life in Kiwi Living

TV One's new lifestyle show began last Friday night, bringing us everything from cruise ship advertorials, to advice about eating chicken for breakfast, to Erin Simpson glueing a giant tiki inside a shadow box. Splicing up these segments with awkward banter from the world's biggest fake lounge, my father best described it as "Good Morning at night". Assaulting you with sponsors and branding from the get go, I found Kiwi Living less inspirational and more deeply depressing. "We're all friends here," host Miriama Kamo insisted. Sorry Miri, my friends don't make me feel terrible because I live in a cold damp house, don't eat goji berries, and don't wear heels to work. These are all essential parts of Kiwi Living apparently, but a tirade of these middle-class buzzwords feels incredibly out of touch with a lot of Kiwis to me:

Seems telling that the only thing I was able to put into action post-Kiwi Living was drinking a glass of water first thing every morning. Everything else involved mood boards, Masterbuilders and money. Lots of money. But, who knows? I'm not the target audience, I won't be gardening and worrying about lichen for at least another five years. Thankfully, according to Kiwi Living, I've still got a lot of things to keep me busy till then. Anyone know where I can get some goji berries from? / AC

4. Bad Blood Spilled on True Detective (spoilers)

Monday night's episode featured an action sequence that shook me out of my True Detective coma. Director Jerry Podeswa, also responsible for the controversial Game of Thrones Sansa episode, orchestrated a harrowing shoot-out scene that, in true True Detective style, came out of absolutely nowhere. Spanning nine minutes and involving all three leads, the violent massacre included an absurd amount of casualties from civilians and police officers alike.

Taking over five days to shoot, the taut realism of the sequence expanded so far as to Rachel McAdams actually throwing up during the filming. Whatever your take on the action, it was a blindsiding scene that nailed apathetic viewers like myself right between the eyes. / AC

5. Game of Thrones Slays Emmy Nominations

The Emmy nominations for 2015 were announced this morning, with Game of Thrones up for 24 awards. Other big hitters include HBO's bleak portrait of a woman on the edge Olive Kitteridge, and the grisly 1950s pulp of American Horror Story: Freak Show. The competition in the acting categories could be particularly interesting to watch - with the curtain falling on Mad Men, will Jon Hamm and Elizabeth Moss get their last hurrah? Or will bold new performance from Taraji P Henson (Empire), Frances McDormand (Olive Kitteridge) and Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul) sweep up? We've placed our tentative bets, feel free to peruse the full line-up and see where your television loyalties lie. / AC

Discover more

Entertainment

Jonathan Pryce: High and mighty

14 Jun 12:00 AM
Entertainment

The best TV moments of the week

19 Jun 03:00 AM
Entertainment

Best TV moments of the week

26 Jun 03:00 AM
Entertainment

Gilmore Girls star: Stop abusing fans

26 Jun 06:00 AM

Watch this weekend:

Watch: Pete and Pio, Maori TV Friday at 8.30 - Comedian Pio Terei and foodie Pete Peeti pair up to travel New Zealand in a journey of hunting, gathering, eating and telling massive jokes.
Binge: American Horror Story on Lightbox - With the latest in the anthology sweeping 19 Emmy nominations, spook yourself senseless in a Murder House, an Asylum and a Coven.
Movie: Captain Phillips, TV2 Sunday 8.30 - Based on a true story, the gripping tale of a boat captured by Somalian pirates. Tom Hanks' most disastrous holiday since Castaway.

Like The Spinoff on Facebook / Follow The Spinoff on Twitter

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

- The Spinoff

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Entertainment

Entertainment

The return of Bieber: Fans celebrate new album Swag release

12 Jul 03:41 AM
Entertainment

Dai Henwood on performing live comedy with stage four cancer

12 Jul 12:00 AM
Premium
Entertainment

'Dirtiest-minded young woman in NZ': Dame Fiona's lifetime of flouting convention

11 Jul 10:00 PM

Get your kids involved in your reno

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

The return of Bieber: Fans celebrate new album Swag release

The return of Bieber: Fans celebrate new album Swag release

12 Jul 03:41 AM

The hashtag #SWAGOUTNOW trended globally after the album's release.

Dai Henwood on performing live comedy with stage four cancer

Dai Henwood on performing live comedy with stage four cancer

12 Jul 12:00 AM
Premium
'Dirtiest-minded young woman in NZ': Dame Fiona's lifetime of flouting convention

'Dirtiest-minded young woman in NZ': Dame Fiona's lifetime of flouting convention

11 Jul 10:00 PM
Theatre stalwart's triumphant return after PTSD recovery

Theatre stalwart's triumphant return after PTSD recovery

11 Jul 02:00 AM
Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP