John Bluck writes
-
A long-dead Anglican missionary shows us how to be Pakeha today, says John Bluck
31 Jan 2021In a talk specially recorded for RNZ, John Bluck puts forward the case that the life of a forgotten Victorian missionary, Charles Reay, is a good role model for Pakeha in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Read more Audio
-
Tikiti to the Pikitea: a lifetime at the local cinema
30 Aug 2020Writer John Bluck shares a very personal perspective on how moviegoing in New Zealand reflects our character, history and preoccupations. Read more Audio, Gallery
-
Lawnmowing – a simple task with an illuminating history and uncertain future
23 Aug 2020John Bluck explores the past, future, and current state of lawnmowing in a light-hearted but informative talk in six closely-cropped chapters. Read more Audio
-
Being Pakeha means what? It means being uneasy – John Bluck
12 Aug 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This first episode introduces the themes he'll go on to tease out in the other programmes. Read more Audio
-
Māori and Pakeha history is different but entwined – John Bluck
13 Apr 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This second episode is entitled Different yet entwined. Read more Audio
-
Why is the word Pakeha so controversial? – John Bluck
14 Apr 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This third episode is entitled What's in a name? Read more Audio
-
We Pakeha need to get our history right – John Bluck
15 Aug 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This fourth episode is entitled Hearing the full story. Read more Audio
-
Standing upright here involves using both feet – John Bluck
16 Aug 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This fifth episode is entitled The New Community. Read more Audio
-
Dreaming of a future for Pakeha and Māori – John Bluck
16 Aug 2019John Bluck explores what it means to be Pakeha in a series of talks. This sixth and final episode is entitled How might it be? Read more Audio
-
Down the Rabbit Hole: what it's like to be diagnosed with cancer
8 Nov 2018John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 1. Read more Audio
-
A medical tattoo opens the door to an exclusive club - of radiotherapy patients
15 Nov 2018John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 2 Read more Audio
-
The power of optimism, a fundamental of oncology care
23 Nov 2017John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 3. Read more Audio
-
John Bluck on crutches, earthquakes and the art of waiting
30 Nov 2017John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 4. Read more Audio
-
Heavy experiences, weighty words: how cancer brings you to the edge of things
7 Dec 2017John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 5. Read more Audio
-
“Why me, why now?” – the questions everyone with cancer asks. But they should ask “Why not me?”
14 Dec 2017John Bluck traces the course of his treatment for cancer in a series of candid, moving, and wry observations about how his life changed because of what he experienced. Episode 6. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 1: a free childhood cocooned by the safety of the charmed ‘50’s
23 Aug 2018John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 2: what the shop, school, church and Post Office had in common
24 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 3: Dads didn’t talk of the war in the 1950s
27 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Video, Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 4: motors, machines, mechanics, and a very male world
28 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 5: hazards? what hazards? - a 1950s childhood unrecognisable today
29 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 6: in the 1950s the Pictures lit up the screen, and our imaginations too
30 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 7: Was 1950s cuisine colourless, bland and unhealthy? Or fresh, local, seasonal and hospitable?
31 Aug 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 8: From sentimental slush to double-entrendres, music provided an escape from small-town life
3 Sep 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Nuhaka Dreaming 9: The wider world beckons as childhood ends
4 Sep 2017John Bluck explores his memories of growing up in Nuhaka in Hawke's Bay during the 1940s and 1950s. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 1
26 Dec 2017John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this first of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 2
27 Dec 2017John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this second of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 3
28 Dec 2017John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this third of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand's history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 4
29 Dec 2017John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this fourth of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand's history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 5
1 Jan 2018John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this fifth of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand's history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
-
Roads Run Through Us: 6
2 Jan 2018John Bluck explores the ways of the road in this final of a series about the place roads have in New Zealand history, consciousness and identity. Read more Audio
Photo: RNZ / Paul Bushnell
John Bluck
John Bluck was born in Hawkes Bay, educated at Napier Boys’ High School, the University of Canterbury and the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge Massachusetts. He's had interwoven careers in journalism and ministry for the Anglican Church, spending time as a reporter in Boston, USA.
A former journalism tutor and chaplain at the Wellington Polytechnic, he has edited a number of publications including the World Council of Churches’ "One World" magazine in Geneva.
His ecclesiastical career started in Gisborne and took him to posts as varied as Director of Communications at the World Council of Churches, Professor of Pastoral Theology and Communication at Dunedin's Knox Theological Seminary, and Dean of Christchurch Cathedral. He was the 14th Anglican Bishop of Waiapu.
After resigning his See in 2008, he left moved to a rural setting near Warkworth from which he has continued to write and publish.
