Afternoons

 

1:15 How drones and other technology is transforming the battlefield

Last night SYOS Aerospace won Business of The Year at the Tauranga Business awards, recognised for its "rapid growth and global relevance".

The Mount Maunganui based company designs and builds drones, and other autonomous vehicles, that are used in global defence. 

And that got us thinking about drone warfare and how technology is transforming the battlefield. 

To discuss that and the conflict happening in Iran, Jesse is joined by friend of the show, retired Major General John G Howard

1:20 Meet the Rotorua teenager squashing the competition

Animaia Payne has won major squash titles including the Oceania Junior Championships, the New Zealand Juniors, and a gold medal at the Aims Games.

Next month she'll travel to Australia to represent New Zealand as part of the 2026 Junior Trans Tasman Test Team.

And she's only 13!

Animaia chats to Jesse. 

1:30 Wellington Library is back! So, what does it look like?

The central library was one of Wellington's most beloved public spaces until structural concerns forced its closure in 2019. 

Creative Capital manager Gisella Carr, who led the redesign project, is with me now to share what we can expect from the new space. 

1:45 A new survey shows we're losing faith in the internet, find out why

Earlier this week we saw a headline that piqued our interest, it said New Zealand is losing faith in the internet.

The Newsroom article is based on a survey by InternetNZ which showed that one in five of us don't see the internet as a "net positive" for society. 

Here to talk us through what's driving those statistics and what else the survey revealed, Newsroom reporter Fox Myer joins me. 

1:55 Freaky Friday

It's time for Freaky Friday, your home for spooky stories and eerie coincidences, if you have an experience to share or maybe you have a scary campfire story that you tell so well it belongs on the radio get in touch on 2101 or email me at jesse@rnz.co.nz and one of the Afternoons team might give you a call. Today we're speaking to Jack about a couple of his ghostly encounters.

2:05 Why Chris Parker wants you to take a good hard look at him

Jesse gets the inside word about what to expect. 

2:10 Film Review: Project Hail Mary and Oscars Chat!

Afternoons film critic Kate Rodger joins Jesse to review Ryan Gosling's latest offering Project Hail Mary and to preview the Oscars.

2:20 NZ Live: Muroki takes centre stage

Each week, for the past 20 years, we bring some of the country's best musicians to play for you, it's called NZ Live and there are no tickets required.

This week we're joined by Raglan's own Muroki. He's been in this studio before with other bands, but today he's here to show off his recently released debut solo album 'Amber Skies'.

3:08 Food: Panfried Duck Breast with Balinese Spices by Connie Clarkson

Let's talk food now because Connie Clarkson, the manager of Auckland Council's The Kitchen Project is with me, with a great sounding duck breast recipe. 

Recipe is here

3:16 What's on Music 101 this weekend?

Kara Rickard, host of Music 101 here on RNZ each Saturday afternoon, talks about what's happening on the music scene over the weekend and what's coming up on her show this weekend. 

3:25 Weekend Stuff: Gardening with Lynda Hallinan

Let's talk about gardening now, our green thumbed guru Lynda Hallinan is with me to discuss autumn trees.

Some of Lynda's faves:

1. Acer rubrum October Glory - this is a maple but not a Japanese maple, more like a Canadian flag maple. It goes torch-red even in autumn. 

2. If you have swampy soil, or - an actual swamp - there are two stunning options. The swamp cypress, Taxodium distichum, which is a deciduous conifer that grows to 25m (for big gardens only) and sheds its feathery foliage in a rusty orange display. Or plant Nyssa sylvatica, which takes about 5 years to reach 3m tall, and has bright red foliage. It's exquisite.
 
3. Liquidambars are lovely but tend to be a bit brittle in exposed gardens, but they're reliable for autumn colour even in warmer areas.

4. The claret ash, Fraxinus 'Raywoodii', is wicked for red-wine coloured autumn foliage, but if you'd rather have gold, go for a Gingko biloba as a specimen tree. They're incredibly slow growing though - and make sure you get a male tree as the females produce kernels that smell like vomit. (There's no other way to put it) 

5. And for small, city sections, the smoke bush (Cotinus) and the small tree Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy' both have burgundy foliage during spring and summer that is shed in a brilliant display of copper, orange and yellow.

6. Ginkgo biloba  - such a fantastic display of buttery yellow, late in autumn

3:35 We put the spotlight on the only living bear in NZ

To find out how to care for her and answer any other questions you may have, Animal Care Manager at Te Nukuao Wellington Zoo Robert Harland chats to Jesse.

3:45 The pre-Panel

Wallace Chapman previews tonight's instalment of The Panel.