The TV Guide

BLACK CLASH!

KIERAN READ AND DANIEL VETTORI’S CELEB TEAMMATES FOR EPIC CRICKET BATTLE

INDUSTRY: OUR CHAT WITH KIT HARINGTON

Superstars of tennis

CELEBS CLOAK UP FOR THE TRAITORS US LENNY HENRY’S PERIOD DRAMA

MESSAGE TO SUBSCRIBERS:

Christmas is only a few days away and if your subscription expires in January, now is a good time to renew it to avoid any disruption to delivery over the holiday period. Not only that, you will be able to take advantage of our great Christmas...

Oh baby!

ROWAN ATKINSON BRINGS THE LAUGHS THIS CHRISTMAS

With TV Guide Production Editor James Croot

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.” Meredith Willson’s words, popularised by singers from Perry Como and Bing Crosby to Michael Buble, never feel more appropriate each year than in relation to what’s screening on television. You can pretty...

With TV Guide Journalist Melenie Parkes

We’re all about Coro this week, as we celebrate the blue sapphire anniversary of the world’s longest running soap and its famous cobbles. Condensing 65 years of television history was quite the challenge and there are many moments of mayhem, murder,...

EDITOR’S LETTER

Who is your favourite TV presenter? Judging by the emails and handwritten letters we receive at TV Guide, a lot of you are big fans of our Bradley Walsh. But some of you think The Chase host is overexposed and overrated. You may have seen him fronting...

7 TERRIFIC FILMS TO STREAM FOR FREE

EDITOR’S LETTER

Perhaps enough time has passed. Maybe a live audience would be better behaved now. Almost four decades after one of the most notorious moments of live broadcasting, it feels right to reconsider broadcasting our annual celebration of Aotearoa’s film and...

WHICH A-LIST ACTORS STARTED OUT ON REALITY SHOWS?

MORGANA O’REILLY STARS IN AUSSIE THRILLER

WHITE LOTUS ACTOR’S HOT NEW THRILLER

SMALL TOWN, BIG SECRETS IN LOCAL DRAMA THE RIDGE

NZ’S TOP-SELLING MAGAZINE

The Celebrity Traitors begins this week with a cracking cast of UK stars eager to deceive, manipulate and outright lie to their fellow famous faces. The series has become a global phenomenon, but, interestingly, The Traitors is based on the party game...

With Editor Lifestyle Magazines Frances Morton

This is the time of year when it feels like the calendar suddenly speeds up. As soon as the clocks jump forward for daylight savings on Sunday, September 28, we find ourselves accelerating towards end-of-year functions, Christmas preparations and...

EDITOR’S LETTER

It’s perhaps appropriate that the 15-year saga of the Crawleys should end in a feature film (Story p4). After all, it’s arguable Downton Abbey would never have existed had it not been for Julian Fellowes’ Oscarwinning “dry run” Gosford Park .Likethe...

Hot property

NEW ZEALAND’S BEST HOMES WITH PHIL SPENCER IS BACK

EDITOR’S LETTER

When it comes to recipes, I’m not interested in anything that has a ridiculously long list of ingredients and requires spending halfa-day in the kitchen. Like many working parents, I don’t have time to devote hours and hours making fancy dishes −...

EDITOR’S LETTER

With Editor Lifestyle Magazines Frances Morton The outrageously popular Outlander, which debuted in 2014, is based on Diana Gabaldon’s historical fantasy novel series, first published in 1991. It’s a genre which has boomed in recent years, with sales...

With TV Guide Production Editor James Croot

As a former multiplex worker and film reviewer for more than three decades, I’ve always found the cinema as the most immersive environment for visual storytelling. But as consumer preferences have changed and at-home streaming services grown in pulling...

EDITOR’S LETTER

When it comes to escapist TV, My Life Is Murder ticks a lot of boxes. Witty dialogue? Tick. Intriguing storylines? Tick. Attractive locations? Tick. Terrific cast and excellent guest stars? Tick tick. There is lots to like about this local...

EDITOR’S LETTER

“The Addams Family − click, click.” I still remember the theme tune of the original TV Addams family, who lived in a big creepy house where enchanted happenings were the norm. What is it about this spooky family that has remained so appealing 60 years...

EDITOR’S LETTER

New Zealand is lucky to play host now to a number of regular celebrations of cinema. As well as the long-running New Zealand International Film Festival, curated annual programmes of Italian and French tales have become well-established, while the...

HOLLYWOOD’S FAVE FOOTBALL TEAM COMES TO TOWN

WHAT’S NEW ON STREAMING SERVICES

With Editor Lifestyle Magazines Frances Morton

The All Blacks’ season kicks off on Saturday, July 5 with a visit from the unpredictable and entertaining French team Les Bleus, here for three test matches in Dunedin, Wellington and Hamilton. That means one thing. Armchair commentators throughout the...

With TV Guide Production Editor James Croot

As this week’s cover story (page 4) reveals, there is plenty of fabulous television to look forward to during the next six months. Personally, I can’t wait for the final season of Stranger Things, the Mark Ruffalo-headlining Task and Wellington...

NZ’S TOP-SELLING MAGAZINE

We can’t seem to get enough of property shows in New Zealand and Moving Houses ticks so many of the boxes we love − there’s not just real estate, but renovation, transportation and great travel banter. The series returns this week, with a new season...

EDITOR’S LETTER

The nationwide celebration of Matariki has brought a little sparkle to the winter − and I’d like to see even more. One of the nuttiest things we do at Christmas time is erect lights when sunshine hours are at their longest and you have to keep excited...

With TV Guide Journalist Sarah Nealon

There are some TV shows that become so popular you almost feel embarrassed for not understanding what all the hype is about. You might start watching something that “everyone” is raving about and then become so bored by what’s happening on screen that...

MEET THE KIWI DOMINATING MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA

COMEDIAN BUBBAH IS ALL GROWN UP

Best of British

THE FINEST DRAMAS TO WATCH NOW STARRING HELEN MIRREN, EDDIE REDMAYNE, AIMEE LOU WOOD AND MORE

With Editor Lifestyle Magazines Frances Morton

In this Mother’s Day issue, I’m reminded of the freezing cold mornings that my mother would spend on the sidelines of our town’s netball courts. They sat at the top of a cliff, a prime location for exposure to the wind whipped off the ocean, as us...

EDITOR’S LETTER With TV Guide Journalist Sarah Nealon

Love them or loathe them, there is no denying the influence food programmes have had on popular culture. From MasterChef to MKR to The Great British Bake-Off, there are a glut of offerings out there. I usually dip in out of these type of shows, rather...

TEN POUND POMS’ DRAMATIC RETURN

WILL & GRACE STAR’S MEXICAN MURDER MYSTERY

OUR LOVE AFFAIR WITH MAFS AU: EXPLAINED

THE GRIPPING CRIME DRAMA EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT

EDITOR’S LETTER

Happiness comes in many forms, but in the world of local television, it’s the title of a new musical comedy coming to Three. Set in Tauranga and starring Rebecca Gibney (Under The Vines) and Harry McNaughton (Shortland Street) ,ithasa distinct Kiwi...

BIG LITTLE LIES WRITER'S HOT NEW DRAMA

EDITOR’S LETTER

With TV Guide Journalist Melenie Parkes It’s always so exciting when a Kiwi actor makes a big splash on the global stage. And it’s especially gratifying when it’s someone who is so deserving of success. Melanie Lynskey has had a long career, beginning...

KIWI BRIDE'S WILD RIDE ON MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT

Pilgrims progress

Plymouth Argyle’s reward for their shock FA Cup victory over English Premier League leaders Liverpool is an even more difficult task − a trip to Manchester City. Bottom of England’s secondtier Championship, the Pilgrims defeated Arnie Slot’s side 1-0...

MĀTAI SMITH ON THE OLYMPICS OF KAPA HAKA

COUNTRY CALENDAR ESCAPES TO THE SOUTH

COUNTRY CALENDAR ESCAPES TO THE SOUTH PADDY GOWER ON HIS HALBERG AWARDS DREAM

SHORTLAND STREET’S WELCOME RETURN

WHY LOVE DOCTOR JOHN AIKEN IS SMITTEN WITH MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT AUSTRALIA

25 NEW LOCAL SHOWS NOT TO BE MISS IN 2025! 2025!

25NEW LOCAL SHOWS 2025!

EDITOR’S LETTER

With TV Guide Production Editor James Croot I hope you enjoyed the festive fare served up on free-to-air television this year. It’s certainly an improvement on the days of lame sitcom specials and Circus With the Stars. However, if the current...

FOR ALL YOUR NEW YEAR’S LISTINGS

BUMPER HOLIDAY MOVIE GUIDE

EDITOR’S LETTER

With TV Guide Journalist Melenie Parkes Documentary New Zealand wraps up this week. We’ve had four enlightening stories covering a range of topics so far, including 501 deportees, trans pregnancy, youth crime and ageing. They’ve been moving,...

With Sarah Nealon Journalist

TV Guide What makes a good drama? This is something we often think about at TV Guide. Excellent casting, terrific acting and a clever script, usually make for compelling viewing. But there are other factors worth considering too. One drama worth...

With TV Guide Deputy Editor James Croot

Taskmaster aside, QI is probably the best TV concept to come out of Britain in the past two decades. The combination of fascinating facts and comedians offering up witty observations and amusing anecdotes ensures fun for all the family, even if it...

With Deputy Editor James Croot

TV Guide Has there ever been a better time to be a Kiwi cricket fan? Over the past few weeks, both the Black Caps and White Ferns have stunned the world with their incredible performances in India and Dubai. Who would have thought the Ferns would turn...

EDITOR’S LETTER

I’ve been wondering about when is the best time to say goodbye and, sadly, for me at least, the answer is today. After 35 years working for this wonderful magazine, it’s time for me to move on. But before I do, I‘d just like to pause and reflect on...

EDITOR’S LETTER

When it comes to hockey, it seems I have a fair bit in common with Scotty Stevenson. We both played at school − only he had the luxury of switching to rugby when he found the sport too dangerous (story page 10). I wish I had been that lucky! Dangerous...

EDITOR’S LETTER

If there’s one thing you can say about the upcoming American election, it’s that it’s too close to call. Anyone who has tried it in the past has come out with egg on their face and no one was more eggy than the Chicago Daily Tribune in 1948 ,when a...

EDITOR’S LETTER

I’ve been reflecting on my school days this week, thanks to nOOb actor Ryan O’Kane, below (story p8). It’s hard to express how I feel about what is often referred to as “the happiest time of your life”. All I can say is, it wasn’t. There were certainly...

NZ’S TOP-SELLING MAGAZINE

Hands up if you’ve had plastic surgery. I’m picking very few of you are waving five fingers here. But ask the same question of your daughters and I’d say the answer would be very different. A quick poll, admittedly a very unscientific one with the...

EDITOR’S LETTER

With TV Guide Editor Julie Eley A few years ago, I interviewed Veep showrunner David Mandel, who was lamenting the lack of variety in TV series. “Hollywood,” he said, “always rushes to where lightning strikes”...meaning if a show or genre is a hit,...

A rough diamond: Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner talks about her starring role as a real-life jewel thief.

EDITOR’S LETTER

Cancer – it’s a six-letter word guaranteed to strike fear into the heart of anyone who hears it – as I know from experience. Every day nine women in New Zealand are diagnosed with breast cancer – and 10 years ago I became one of them. I consider myself...