Nights

8:15 Pacific Waves

A daily current affairs programme that delves deeper into the major stories of the week, through a Pacific lens, and shines a light on issues affecting Pacific people wherever they are in the world. Hosted by Susana Suisuiki.

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8:30 Tenuous Connections

It's Friday night, so Nights is putting on a playlist of music with a loose theme based off an even looser starting point.

Tonight, it's songs about celestial bodies.

Photo: MARK GARLICK/ SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRA / AFP

9:07 Nights Quiz

Do you know your stuff? Come on the air and be grilled by Maggie Tweedie as she dons her quizmaster hat.

If you get an answer right, you move on to the next question. If you get it wrong, your time in the chair is up, and the next caller will be put through. The person with the most correct answers at the end of the run goes in the draw for a weekly prize.

The quiz is themed - find out more about tonight's theme on Nights' Facebook page.

9:15 This Weekend: Christmas karaoke in Auckland

Every Friday, we bring you some of the most interesting events and happenings coming up in Aotearoa this weekend.

On Saturday, Aucklanders can gather in Aotea Square to belt out some Christmas classics, accompanied on piano by musician Robin Kelly.

Drag king master of ceremonies Hugo Grrrl joins Maggie Tweedie.

Hugo Grrrl as Smart Object Photo:

9:20 Focus on Politics

The end-of-year has arrived, and with it, the traditional suite of end-of-year reviews and thinkpieces. RNZ deputy political editor Craig McCulloch looks back on the ups and downs of politics in 2024.

9:30 Short-Cuts with Dan Slevin

Nights' resident screen critic Dan Slevin joins Maggie Tweedie to review Mufasa: The Lion King (2024), documentary Sugarcane (2024), and a selection of free-streaming family movies on ThreeNow: The NeverEnding Story (1984), The Princess Bride (1987), and La La Land (2016).

Photo: Supplied / Walt Disney Studios

10:17 Universe 'lumpier' than originally thought, research shows

The universe is lumpier than first thought!

New findings from a team of New Zealand scientists shows that the universe does not expand at a constant, flat rate, but in a fluctuating or LUMPY way.

The research completely changes the dominant way of thinking about the nature of our universe, previously explained using a theory called 'dark energy'.

Lead researcher Professor David Wiltshire from the University of Canterbury joins Maggie Tweedie to explain.

This image courtesy of Fermilab-US Department of Energy (Dark Energy Survey Collaboration) shows a zoomed-in image from the Dark Energy Camera of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1365, in the Fornax cluster of galaxies, which lies about 60 million light years from Earth. Photo: AFP / Fermilab

10:30 Out Lately with Finn Johansson

He's back, and no doubt ready to inform, educate and entertain us with an array of eclectic music.

Featuring:

• Dirt by Lexa Gates
• Rangi-te-wawana by Riki Pirihi & Abigail Aroha Jensen
• RFC PT8 by Aphex Twin

11:07 Lost and Found

Tony Stamp shares some favourite songs from years gone by, rediscovered on hard drives tucked away in a drawer, compact discs gathering dust on a shelf, and the RNZ music library.