Stories

Harry Parsons had a Smokefree Rockquest win, a debut single, a degree in pop music and a clear trajectory to stardom ahead of him. The only thing missing was Harry. His heart wasn’t in it. “Being a little pop star” had lost its allure. So in 2019 Harry took time out from gigging and spent a year writing songs, hanging out with producer Ben Malone and getting back into the big band sounds he loved but had forgotten. Bands like The Smiths, The Cure, The War On Drugs and The Killers.    Harry wrote about 50 songs during this period. He also changed his name to MACEY, the name under which he has released his debut album, Lovers – a “proper” album, he says, with a story of heartbreak, loss and ultimately a kind of resolution. And it’s as MACEY that he is finally getting the attention as an artist that he...

The crater of a volcano is full of fire and energy and in the case of Lyttelton, deep pools of creativity as well. Only fitting, then, that a fundraising art auction for the local school should become famous for the quality of works on offer. The late Bill Hammond, for example, regularly donated works for the auction. Bill Hammond originals went under the hammer for under $10,000 in 2019 and 2017. This year his widow Jane has donated a 2007 etching Bone Eagle C, expected to fetch over $4000. The biennial Peninsula Art Auction, which began in 2005, was not held in 2021 due to Covid-19 planning challenges. With over 100 artists in this year’s auction with links to the port town or the wider Banks Peninsula, it is an opportunity for emerging artists to exhibit alongside the famous. As well as the Bill Hammond, there will be works by Jason...

Two major exhibitions coming to Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū celebrate art as storytelling, the first through relics and artworks from the gallery’s historical collection, the second through works by 24 contemporary artists whose personal and collective stories encourage us to reflect on social and cultural concerns. Out of Time opens at the gallery on Saturday 23 September. Filled with tales of the unexpected, the exhibition includes an early Bronze Age Cycladic figurine more than 4000 years old and originating from the Greek islands. Among the most recent works is a Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock made in 1860 by Yoshitora Utagawa to commemorate a 12th-century hunting party. Returning to display for the exhibition is The Physician by Gerrit Dou, accompanied by a rare pottery flask remarkably similar to the one in the painting. Out of Time runs till 28 April 2024. It will be introduced by curator Ken Hall in...

Cityscapers, it’s time to apply your hard-earned expertise to the search for a winner of the People’s Choice category in the upcoming Canterbury Hospitality Awards. Industry insiders have already voted to select the finalists in the 18 other categories for the awards, to be held at Te Pae on Monday 16 October. The Canterbury community is now able to vote for its favourite establishment. Voting is open until 1 October and the winner will be revealed on the night. Cast your vote here. Newly established boutique luxury hotel Majestic at Mayfair is leading the way in the industry categories, with an impressive five nominations, including Outstanding Café. Sophie White has been nominated for Outstanding Barista, Zachary Chin for Outstanding Bartender and Ben Hamilton for Emerging Chef. The fifth nomination is for the coveted title of Outstanding Front of House Team. Majestic At Mayfair will be up against Little Poms, Estelle and...

Whether you are vegan-identifying or just curious, the 2023 Vegan Expo on Sunday 15 October will give you a safe place to explore a smorgasbord of plant-based cuisine and to hear about the beauty and benefits of a vegan lifestyle. The annual expo, hosted by the Christchurch Vegan Society at Haere-roa, University of Canterbury, is a celebration of plant-based living and sustainability. The programme includes talks, demonstrations of eco-friendly products and live music. And in case you still think vegan food is boring, the expo is an opportunity to indulge in a diverse array of delectable cuisine from vegan food brands and stalls as well as food trucks. There will be options to satisfy every craving. Sustainability is central to veganism so the expo will also feature second-hand clothing stalls offering unique and eco-friendly wardrobe choices. A programme of interactive cooking demonstrations offers the opportunity to learn from talented chefs and cooks as they demonstrate preparing delicious and nutritious vegan dishes. Wherever...

Mayfield. Crow Valley. Albury. Kellands Pond – four Canterbury place names with a special claim to fame in this year’s Dulux Colour Forecast. The annual forecast, the result of extensive research into global and local trends, celebrates its 15th birthday this year with a trio of palettes – Solstice, Muse and Journey – featuring rich golds, olive greens and reddy browns. Dulux Solstice is a warm and reflective palette of rich browns, clay and warm neutrals with a sun-loving yellow as an accent, designed to evoke a comforting, familiar and inviting feeling. Dulux Journey takes its inspo from travel and the cultural differences we discover, highlighting rich mid-tone hues with yellow green at the heart and rich decadent reds for contrast. Dulux Muse strikes a balance between nostalgia and modernity with its colourful array of mid-tone hues – warm browns and rich tans, accented with deep blues and soothing greens. Canterbury’s colours and tones feature...

Bill Bailey has a lot on his mind. Again. The hit UK comedian shares a slice or two as he prepares for a mammoth tour of Aotearoa. You are visiting 14 gems in our crown over a month – sounds more like a house-hunting trip than a tour. There’s a lot to see here – it’s twice the size of the UK. Plus the wildlife is the best – not too bitey, not too big. It’s Goldilocks – just right. Have you thought of just staying on and seeing if anyone notices? You could hide on Stewart Island. I tried that last time but I ended up on Instagram – there’s no escape these days. You were an environmentalist back when people thought it a bit kooky. So was the now King Charles. Not so kooky now, eh? Exactly – feels like a vindication. Oh, the ‘tree-huggers and bunny huggers’ –...

Yesteryear glamour and next-wave technology combine in the best of both worlds. Glam Advances in materials and construction mean minimalism can be very minimal these days. Now, for the maximalists, some relief – decoration is back on the palette, with designers taking inspiration from jewellery in adding some filigree to the function. Round 3D spheres or 2D circles are a key design trend for 2024. Balls, with their organic form, chime with the increasingly eco-conscious consumer. Soft light enclosed in a glass sphere also works well with the modern trend to smaller living spaces. Sculptural Again, modern materials have made just about any form possible and designers have responded with gusto. The results are sculptures that adorn the room first and light it second. Modular Old trend, you say? Sure, but applying it to lamps is bringing some fun to the function for next year. Versatility and customisation are the keywords...

Hands up if you are one of the 40,000 people at a Come Together gig over the last three years? The series of rock concerts recreating classic songs by Elton John, David Bowie, Dire Straits, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, The Beatles and Rolling Stones has become one of our most successful. Now, for a banger end to 2023, the Come Together crew of Jon Toogood, Julia Deans, Sam Scott, James Milne (Lawrence Arabia), Dianne Swann, Brett Adams, Matthias Jordan, Jol Mulholland, Alistair Deverick and Mike Hall will deliver the biggest and best songs they’ve recreated in those three years. Audiences and critics have raved about the concert series. “These folks didn’t ‘cover’ the songs performed tonight, they inhabited them,” said one. “A concert that many in attendance will never forget,” said another. Here’s a chance to see a Kiwi supergroup breathe new life into rock’s songbook. Come to party!...

Books to read, television to bingewatch, music to dance to and podcasts to fill your spare time this September. Bingewatching What We Do in the Shadows: From the hilarious original film set in Wellington comes this US series, now up to season 5 and still going strong. A look into the nightly lives of four vampires who have lived together on New York’s Staten Island for over a century. Kin: If you like your series gritty, look out for season 1 of Kin. Charlie Cox leads this Irish gang war drama about a deadly feud between a small Dublin family and an international cartel. Co-stars Clare Dunne, Aidan Gillen and Ciarán Hinds. The Morning Show: Back for a third season, this behind-the-scenes look at US morning television has many parallels for New Zealand viewers. This season, the future of the network is thrown into question and loyalties are pushed to the...

Ringmaster Jeremy Corbett is taking the 7 Days comedy circus back on the road for another series of live shows. No cameras, no censors, no lawyers. Gulp! How does it feel not having that TV safety net of editors and producers? Not too different really. There is a lot of rude nonsense talked during the recording of the TV show, and the live audience on the day seems to enjoy that. Our awesome edit team takes that and makes it 7:30pm TV-friendly. The live tour is much like the recording. It's great fun. Does it make you bolder? I think I speak for the other comedians when I say it’s about being funny first. Knowing we can be a bit risqué just gives us more options. It’s not rude for the sake of it, but sometimes it’s great to make jokes about adult stuff with other adults! What’s one thing people probably don’t...

Just being back in front of a live audience is thrill enough for Matt ‘Suffa’ Lambert of Hilltop Hoods. We talk to the rapper on the eve of Hilltop Hoods’ Christchurch gig. Tell us about last year’s sold-out Australian arena tour. The ‘Show Business’ tour was amazing. It felt like the first time that we’d been properly back on the road since the start of the pandemic. So honestly, that was probably the highlight. Don’t get me wrong, the shows were amazing, but that feeling of returning to live music was huge for me. Also, we took along A.B. Original and Elsy Wameyo for the ride and they crushed it. That was great to watch. And you’ve just completed your biggest UK/Europe tour. How was that? The UK and Europe were amazing. Some of the biggest shows that we’ve ever done over there. It was crazy going into their summer and seeing...

Family connections remain Katchafire’s bedrock after two decades together. The roots reggae masters’ hectic tour schedule will bring them to Christchurch in September. It’s been a while since Katchafire performed in Christchurch. There was an epic gig at The Esplanade in New Brighton in 2005. Yes, that was a real meat and potatoes venue for us. It would have been a quintessential Katchafire gig, that one. We’ve been back to New Zealand every year except for during COVID but it’s been a while since we played Christchurch. Who is on the tour? We’ve got the full band and the full horn section. Every horn section here in New Zealand is busy so we have to share! Some of our horn section also play with Troy Kingi, for example. They’re very talented musicians. Has your relentless touring schedule slowed down at all? No. We’ve just completed an eight-week tour of the US....

It’s 90 years since Alfonso Bialetti brought espresso coffee into the home kitchen with his iconic Moka Express, the original stovetop espresso maker.  That’s a birthday any bean head will want to celebrate. Cityscape has teamed up with Bialetti to mark the occasion with a limited-edition Moka Express decorated in the work of graffiti spaghetti artist Mr Doodle, aka Sam Cox. You’ll need coffee with that so we are including a 3-month subscription of Supreme Stovetop Grind Blend, delivered to your door fortnightly. You can buy your own Bialetti x Mr Doodle’s limited-edition Moka Express from early September at Supreme and selected roasters and online at Bialetti.co.nz. Each purchase comes with a Bialetti 90th anniversary drawstring bag. To enter the lucky draw, go to our socials and tell us who your coffee buddy is. Entries close 10am 30 August, 2023. bialetti.co.nz

Tim Finn is taking the songs of Split Enz, Crowded House and his solo material back on the road. We talk to him ahead of his Christchurch show. You’ve got a huge catalogue of songs to choose from – how was it coming up with a set list? I had done a one-off show in Manly towards the end of last year. For the first time I played the songs in the order they had been written. It started in 1977 with ‘My Mistake’ but I only got as far as the early ‘90s before it seemed the right length. I’ve added in a few extras for this tour, but again, it’s chronological. It somehow suits my natural theatrical bent to play all these characters and go through the years with them again. It’s probably the closest I’ll get to re-living my life.  Are you looking forward to being back on...

Fans of live comedy, get ready for a slew of international and local talent bringing the laughs to Christchurch over the next few months. From the UK comes Kevin Bridges, Bill Bailey and Russell Howard; from the US, Iliza Shlesinger; and from Australia, Carl Barron. The 7 Days team swoops in for a live show, and Christchurch’s Jo Prendergast unleashes the dodgy parenting advice of her alter ego, Jo Ghastly. Meanwhile, don’t forget the locals at Good Times Comedy Club and The Court Theatre’s Scared Scriptless, bringing you the laughs since ages ago. Time to get your diary out and mark these dates: 7 Days Live Host Jeremy Corbett leads a cast of comedians in an evening of stand-up followed by a no-holds barred version of 7 Days, live and uncut. Christchurch Town Hall, Fri 1 September. Iliza: Hard Feelings Tour American comedian, actor and television host Iliza Shlesinger has made a name...

A contemporary retelling of Béla Bartók’s operatic masterpiece Bluebeard’s Castle that presents the opera as a love story between a long-married couple living with dementia will take to the Christchurch Town Hall stage on Saturday. British dramatic soprano Susan Bullock and American dramatic baritone Lester Lynch will perform, alongside the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Dutch-Maltese conductor Lawrence Renes, highly regarded for his ability to balance orchestra and singers and for delivering performances of passion, nuance and style. Composer Béla Bartók’s only opera, this award-winning and innovative revival of Bluebeard’s Castle from Theatre of Sound (UK) premiered in London in 2021 to universal praise. Susan Bullock is the first soprano to sing four consecutive cycles of Der Ring des Nibelungen at the Royal Opera House under Sir Antonio Pappano. Appearances as Richard Strauss’ Elektra have brought her equal international acclaim. Further career highlights include Liz Stride (Jack the Ripper) for English National Opera; Mother (Greek) for...

North Canterbury winery Black Estate is The Alchemist’s Table Winery Restaurant of the Year in the 2023 Cuisine Good Food Awards. Also in the South Island, Amisfield, in Queenstown, is again the American Express Restaurant of the Year and has been awarded a 3-hat status, signifying it to be “extraordinary and approaching perfection”. The Cuisine Good Food Awards, the annual industry celebration regarded as the country's pre-eminent hospitality awards, this week announced 18 category winners and 84 Hatted restaurants. The exceptional restaurants which took home “hats” – either 3, 2 or 1 – have been named as the best in Aotearoa New Zealand. Similarly, those establishments and industry players who took home category wins are those considered to be the leaders of their craft. Dining at Amisfield is described by the judges as “magical, entertaining and memorable”. The restaurant is led by former Cuisine Chef of the Year Vaughan Mabee, who,...