Afternoons for Thursday 20 June 2024

1:15 The DNA of working dogs studied for the first time

They're man's best friend, but also play a vital role on farms up and down the country.

Now a new project aims to protect the future of our working dog breeds.

More than 200 dogs from Pāmu farms around the country are the first to provide their DNA to Massey University for the first phase of the research.

Dr Melissa Stephen is Senior Research Officer at Massey University, she speaks to Mark.

1:25 Speed freaks, running for recovery

Picking yourself up from addiction can take many paths.

For one group in Christchurch that path to recovery is best done at a steady jog.

They call themselves Speedfreaks.

They're a community of people seeking rehabilitation from drug and alcohol addiction and they support each other through regular running and walking sessions.

Anna Christophorou is a registered social worker and the founder of Speedfreaks. She speaks to Mark

1:35 Turning Waitaki CBD back into a thriving hub

Walk down the main streets of most of our cities and towns and you'll no doubt notice the empty shops and spaces.

As we frequently hear in the news, it can mean once thriving CBD's are now a magnet for crime.

However in Waitaki, the local council has launched an initiative to turn things around.

Revitalise Our Places Ōamaru programme aims to turn vacant into vibrant.

Placemaking Lead for the project, Cyndi Christensen, speaks to Mark.

1:45 Link 3 album: Great Haunting by Earth Tongue

This week's link 3 winner will get a vinyl copy of the latest album from Auckland based indie-rock duo Earth Tongue. The album's called Great Haunting.

2:10 Music Critic: Zac Arnold

Today Zac talks to Mark about music from Salvia Palth and Joe Kaptein

2:30 NZ Sporting History: Adine Wilson

A World Champion, Commonwealth Games gold medalist, six-time premiership winner, and now a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit - Adine Wilson is undoubtedly one of our most decorated netballers.

She joined the Silver Ferns in 1999 at the age of 20 and racked up 79 test caps with the team, including two years as captain.

She helped the team to victory at the 2003 World Netball Championships and the 2006 Commonwealth Games. At the local level, she played for the Southern Sting during their legendary run of five premiership wins.

She remains a stalwart of our netball scene to this day and is a regular game commentator for Sky.

3:10 Link 3

3:15 Solving the World's Problems with Dave Armstrong

Today playwright, author and Wellington resident Dave Armstrong looks at some of the issues facing our capital and what he thinks should be done.

3:20 History with Dr Grant Morris: "The history of politicians' perks"

How many perks should our MPs get?  What is fair and what is unfair?  This topic has been in the news and has a long and controversial history.  Today Dr Grant Morris explores the history of politicians' perks in New Zealand.

3:35 Spoken Feature BBC Witness: the invention of Tetris

In 1984, Russian engineer Alexey Pajitnov invented the popular computer game Tetris. But it was not until American businessman Henk Rogers joined him that the game became an all-time favourite in video game consoles across the world.

Chloe Hadjimatheou spoke to both of them about how the idea of the game originated and the challenges of exporting it from the Soviet Union. This programme was first broadcast in 2011.

3:45 The pre-Panel