Features

The Detail - Facebook's new currency plans were barely more than a press statement before they came under fire from US lawmakers. Why do people hate the idea, and is it likely to fly?  Audio

Ross Ulbricht AKA "Dread Pirate Roberts" (DPR) is serving a double life sentence plus 40 years, without the possibility of parole for creating the darknet drug marketplace - his family are fighting the sentence. Audio

New Zealand's Minister for Pacific Peoples says an attack on the prime minister's visit to Tokelau by the opposition leader is divisive dog-whistle politics.

Samoa and Tonga turned down the chance to play last weekend's Pacific Nations Cup rugby test in another country despite World Rugby expressing concern about the state of the playing field at Apia Park.

The first Tongan Warrant Officer in the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), Mark Latu, was lucky enough to meet KingTupou VI during the Tongan ruler's recent 60th birthday celebrations.

Widescreen - Rumours about authorship disputes don’t get in the way of an entertaining second season of Big Little Lies, reports Dan Slevin.

Dr David Halpern, an experimental psychologist, was part of the original 'nudge unit' put together by the British government which used behavioural science to better form policy. Audio

Your new free classical download is music from 'Romeo & Juliet' - composed by Prokofiev and played by the NZSO.

Professor Ciara Cremin explores the politics of gender identity in both her personal and professional life. Audio

Russian cellist Lev Sivkov was mid-performance when his bow – worth approximately $NZ12,000 – accidentally collided with conductor Benjamin Northey. Audio

A London pub is aiming to be the world's most ethical by employing the homeless and offering beer brewed from leftover bread.  Audio

Blood-letting, tying a dead mole to the head; these are just a few of the ways migraines have been treated over the centuries. The pain can be so debilitating, patients have agreed to have holes drilled in their heads to stop it. Audio

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Dr. Angelina Sanderson Bellamy, an ecologist and a research fellow at Cardiff University, offers a potted history of the banana and the threats it faces.  Audio

Tokelau's High Court has backed the government's dismissal of two public servants, but found it unlawfully withheld pay from them, in the first-ever decision from the New Zealand territory's highest court.

Samoa's campaign to save its national bird, the manumea, was jointly launched on the weekend by New Zealand's Prime Minister.

China has warned Solomon Islands the window of opportunity for meaningful engagement is closing fast.

What do you know about shooting guns? Can you back a trailer? Or muster some sheep? Laura Douglas can do all of these things and she's teaching other young women these, often lost, country skills. Audio

Star cellist Lev Sivkov was performing with the CSO when his $12,000 bow collided with the conductor, spun through the air, crashed to the stage... and broke. He tells us what happened next. Audio

Re-visit Marshall Walker's award-winning series which recounts episodes in Walker’s life and the powerful effect that Sibelius had in them – on Walker himself and on the members of his family.

Opinion - One bad game's a bit disappointing. Two becomes a trend. Welcome to a Curmudgeon's Rugby World Cup diary, where the All Blacks' title defence suddenly looks rather shaky.

Trevor Reekie plays songs and talks about blind from birth singer and songwriter Gurrumul, who's final album is the first performed in an Australian indigenous language to go to number one on the Australian album charts. Audio

Kiwi music legend Dave Dobbyn talks about writing and composing his 1998 album The Islander, which reached number 1 on the charts. Audio

In 2000 a group of Raglan locals re-mortgaged their home to take over their town's waste management system. They created the organisation Xtreme Zero Waste. Audio

Here are works from two concerts recorded at the 2019 Adam Chamber Music Festival in Nelson, including Dvořák's charming 'Bagatelles' played on accordion by James Crabb, with two violins and cello.