Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Kevin Milne's old stomping ground, Avalon TV Centre, is being made into apartments. He's been reminiscing with Jack Tame about his time there. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2013, I was living in the U.S and charged with covering most of North America as a reporter for TVNZ. I remember ringing my manager early in the year and asking about our plans for the San Francisco America’s Cup.“No one really cares about the America’s Cup.” She said. “If it was here in New Zealand, maybe we’d do a bit more. We’ll have one reporter in San Francisco but that’ll be more than enough.”To be fair, my manager at the time was from overseas and had only been living in New Zealand for a year or two. Subsequently, I felt obliged to push back a little bit.“Ummm…” I said. “I think you’re underestimating what this competition means for New Zealanders. “I get it… sailing’s a bit off-Broadway. But there’s something about this competition in particular that Kiwis just LOVE. Between events, sure everyone’s a bit ambivalent. Some of us moan about the court battles and the politics. But just wait! Just wait. When the America’s Cup rolls around, every New Zealander is suddenly a match-racing, hydro-foiling,

Kylie Minogue has a new album that's bringing back Disco, and Estelle Clifford's been taking a listen.LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Relationships expert Steven Dromgool has some advice for your relationships with the little people in your life: how to build your child's self esteem. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Relationships expert Steven Dromgool has some advice for your relationships with the little people in your life: how to build your child's self esteem. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Catherine Raynes has been reading Annabel Langbein's new memoir Bella, and Dawn French's new book, Because of You. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Controlling aphids It’s the time for aphids to explode in your garden. Whether you are growing roses, peaches, or at least another 400 different plant hosts, aphids will turn up at some stage in your life. Aphids are known as sap-sucking insects. But most importantly, aphids are great at transmitting virus diseases, from which a host plant rarely recovers. Aphids will continue to be a pain right through the summer and well into autumn, so get ready! Parthenogenesis is their game: females produce live young daughters who – in turn – will be able to produce their own off-spring within 10 days or so. This can explode quite quickly! Control has to be swift, to reduce female populations quickly. “Digital control” is the art of squashing the blighters between thumb and forefingers. It’s easy and organic – no pesticides! Biological control has many different versions: Buy yourself some parasitic wasps (Aphidius is the parasite to look for) and you can get them on-line. Alternatively, get some ladybird beetles that d

Relationships expert Steven Dromgool has some advice for your relationships with the little people in your life: how to build your child's self esteem. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Resident traveller Mike Yardley has been having some wild Times in Turangi.LISTEN TO HIS TIPS ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bob Campbell has a special wine to share this festive season: HaHa Brut Cuvee, Marlborough $21.99 LISTEN TO HIS REVIEW ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Google is starting to limit how much storage you get for free Google Photos currently allows you to store an unlimited number of photos - it's one of the reasons that people love it so much.  But as of June 21, 2021, any NEW photos you upload will start to be counted towards your 15GB Google account storage.   Once you start to go over that, you'll need to start paying. The same rule also applies to NEW or modified files in your Google Drive folder from June 21, 2021. Also, if you’re over your storage limits and not paying, then Google may delete files or documents you haven't touched in some time.  Instagram is changing up its home screen It’s going to make it easier to access their Reels and Shop offerings.  Reels is the TikTok competitor and Shop is something IG has been building up for some time now to allow people to buy products directly in IG. You can even tag items in photos for people to shop like an interactive catalogue. What makes this more sneaky, is that they've put these new icons in the spots

Screentime queen Tara Ward has some suggestions about what to watch this weekend. The Comey Rule: a political drama miniseries based on former FBI director James Comey’s book about his experiences in the run-up to the 2016 election and the early months of Donald Trump’s presidency (Neon).    The Crown: season four of the royal drama hits the 1980s, this time starring Gillian Anderson as Margaret Thatcher and Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth (Netflix, from Sunday)  All Creatures Great and Small: a heartwarming reboot of the classic British series based on James Herriot’s books about a trio of vets working in Yorkshire during the 1930s (Vibe, from Monday)LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jessica Towsend is sometimes referred to as the “JK Rowling of Australia”...but it's no longer a name she relishes...more on that later.  The first three books of her young adult Nevermoor series was sold for a six-figure sum, and the rights have been sold to 20th Century Fox.  The series follows Morrigan Crow, who was born cursed - doomed to die at midnight on her eleventh birthday. She's forced to take part in near-impossible trials in order to join the Wundrous Society and escape her fate.   The third book in the series, Hollowpox, has just been released, and she's been talking to Jack Tame about the release. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Film reviewer Francesca Rudkin has been watching Freaky, which is based on the classic body swap premise, and Charlatan.  LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Golden syrup & sourdough tart  There’s no other way to describe it, this tart is dead dreamy!  Makes one 20cm tart / serves 4-6  1 sheet sweet short pastry  Filling 2 medium eggs 50mls cream 1 teaspoon sea salt  350g golden syrup  70g butter, melted ½ cup sourdough crumbs 1 tablespoon lemon juice + 1 tsp zest  Ice cream or crème fraiche (or both!), to serve Heat oven to 180 C. Roll the pastry into a 5 mm thick disc to fit your tin. I used a 20 cm tin but you’d get away with a slightly larger, less deep one. Press the pastry firmly into the base of the tin and prick all over with a fork. Rest and chill in the freezer for 15 minutes  Next, blind bake the tart shell. Line the pastry case with baking paper and fill with dried beans or rice – fill it right to the top. Bake for 20 minutes, carefully remove the paper and beans and bake for a further 10-12 minutes, until golden. Cool. Make the filling by lightly whisking the eggs, cream and salt in a bowl.  Add golden syrup to the melted butter and mix to combine

Kevin Milne's been looking at a new quiz that suggests career changes to those who've lost their job thanks to COVID.Keen to hear what the suggestions were?Listen to the audio aboveSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This morning we’re making history together. To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time a nationwide show has been broadcast in New Zealand, from within managed isolation. Hopefully the technology holds. Hopefully my tests come back negative. But if you hear a bang on the door in the background...it might be my breakfast.  You don’t find out where you’ll be quarantining until the plane hits the tarmac in New Zealand. A policeman is the first person down the air bridge. He takes the microphone at the front of the cabin.  “Hi everyone, welcome back to New Zealand. On behalf of the New Zealand Government I’m in charge of organising your transportation to a Managed Isolation Facility. Today, we’re taking you to Hamilton.”  Bugger. Nothing against the Tron… but after schlepping across the states, and 13 hours over the Pacific, no one’s terribly keen for a bus trip.  Before we passed through customs, we were screened by a nurse. You know the little arrival cards where they ask if you’ve got fruit or veggies

Donald Trump may have lost the US presidency, but Jack Tame watched on in Washington, as 70 million people still voted for another four years of Trump presidency.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If I could charge a dollar for every question I answer on talkback radio concerning spittlebugs and passionvine hoppers, I’d be retired and lying on a beach in the Bahamas – or perhaps more likely in Namibia or Amazonia, the high desert of Arizona. Characteristic patches of bubbles up (spittle) and down the stems of lavender, Coprosma and a heap of other host plants. Many of these are caused by the so-called meadow spittle bug (an exotic species from Europe. We have about 15 species in NZ - many native – few introduced ones. Most gardeners in southern regions will know these frothy bubble-houses and most gardeners think they are “disgusting”. I reckon they’re a marvel of engineering! The larval critters suck sap/fluids from the plant, excrete this through their bottom and add some glue-y excretion from a gland on the abdomen. Then they use their abdominal contractions as a “bellows” and pump air into the watery mixture, causing fine and coarse bubbles to form. Try that in the bath, next time!  When you wipe a

Back in 3500 BCE, the Ancient Egyptians used baking soda as a cleaning agent and to dry out bodies for the process of mummification. Also known as sodium bicarbonate, it's actually a salt. Go ahead and try it; you’ll find that it tastes like a milder version of the salt in your shaker. It is slightly alkaline (the opposite of acidic), which is key to understanding why it’s such a good cleaner.  Keep your fridge smelling nice: Baking soda absorbs odors, so just leave a box of it in your fridge. That’s because most odors are acidic and, because baking soda is alkaline, it reacts with the acids in the air to neutralize them.  Unclog your drains: Baking soda reacts with vinegar, and this acid-base reaction is the reason baking soda and vinegar are cleaning partners in crime. The baking soda and vinegar volcano might be a science-fair classic, but that same explosive chemical reaction can do wonders in your kitchen or bathroom. Pouring baking soda and vinegar down a drain can unclog it; slathering a baking soda pa