Nights for Wednesday 25 September 2024

8:30 The House

Tonight, on our Parliament show - the House - Phil Smith talks to two MPs about who decides the funding of Parliament. 

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 Nights Jukebox

Emile Donovan plays your requests - as long as you've got a compelling reason, or a good story to go with it.

Send in your requests to nights@rnz.co.nz or text 2101.

8:45 The Reading:

Tonight, all the "Magpies" to "come home to roost" as our story careers towards a shattering climax in the reading tonight. 
Here is part eleven of The Axeman's Carnival, written by Catherine Chidgey and told by Nigel Collins.

9:07 Nights Quiz

Do you know your stuff? Come on the air and be grilled by Emile Donovan as he dons his 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 Our Changing World's Claire Concannon on what makes a wobbly polar vortex

Claire Concannon from Our Changing World joins Nights to chat about some interesting stories in the science and science-adjacent worlds, including mid-winter storms. in the South, what makes a wobbly polar vortex, and new research from the University of Otago on anxiety and the brain-body connection. 

9:30 Midweek Mediawatch

Hayden Donnell joins Emile Donovan shares the latest news and happenings in New Zealand's media, including the coverage of the Philip Polkinghorne trial, Don Brash issuing legal threats to a series of media outlets and the reaction to RNZ pulling an Anika Moa podcast.

10:17 What you need to know about the Fonterra financial result

There was encouraging news for dairy farmers today, with a solid annual result for dairy giant Fonterra.

It reported a net profit of $1.1 billion and milk payout prices are also looking healthy.

So what does this news mean for the wider economy? And indeed, why should we care so much about the fortunes of dairy farmers?

Julia Jones is an independent advisor in the ag industry, and she joins Emile Donovan.

10:30 Mishearing lyrics: The world of mondegreens 

Have you ever been singing along to your favourite song; only be told you have the lyrics wrong?  

Mishearing or misunderstanding a word, whether in a song or everyday speech is a common occurrence, and usually the subject of great amusement...

The name for these misunderstandings is mondegreens.

So how long have humans been mishearing lyrics, and what are the wider implications of mondegreens for language?

Pam Peters is Emeritus Professor of Linguistics at Macquarie University, and Pam joins us on Nights.

10:45 Meet the man behind what could be NZ's capital of gemstone collecting 

The tiny settlement of Birdlings Flat about 45 minutes from Christchurch could possibly lay claim to be the capital of gemstone collecting in New Zealand.

Vince Burke is the proprietor of the Birdlings Flat Gemstone & Fossil Museum which houses one of the largest, if not the largest collections of natural gemstones in the country.

Vince estimates there's about 10,000 plus pieces in the museum.

But at 85 he reckons it's time to step back and let someone else manage the massive collection which is now for sale. 

11:07 Pocket Edition

On this week's Pocket Edition with Maggie Tweedie music lecturer Dave Wilson introduces us to songs with healing properties and Jan Hellriegel play favourites.