Nights for Tuesday 2 December 2025

8:10 'Wicked' problems need a new approach

Many of the major issues we face as a country right now are long-term and complex. 

But does our current way of governing, including three-year terms and the variations of MMP, make it almost impossible to find lasting solutions?

Former chief science advisor and now Director of the Koi Tū Centre for Informed Futures, Sir Peter Gluckman, says we can't begin to solve these problems without more consensual policymaking.

He's laid out his thinking in a new report, and he joins Emile Donovan to explain how he believes we can get there.

8:20 The man who came close to designing New Zealand's official flag

It has been 10 years since New Zealand took a good, hard look in the full-length mirror and asked: 'Do we need a new flag?'

Ten years ago, the first of our two flag referendums was held, voting on five designs for a new national flag.

The winner was the Kyle Lockwood flag: The Silver Fern - set in black and blue on either side.

But we know what happened next: in 2016, we voted to stick with what we knew, 57% to 43%.

Emile Donovan is joined by Kyle Lockwood himself, on the line from Australia.

8:45 The House

Tonight, on The House, Louis goes along to a scrutiny week hearing on animal welfare. 

8:50 Shower Thoughts: Why does frozen ice cream get harder?

Every Tuesday we find experts to answer our curious questions about the world and how it works.

Tonight we have a very summer-appropriate question: why does ice cream seem to get harder every time you refreeze it? 

To help answer this we're joined again by friend of the show, Professor Richard Easther, from the University of Auckland.

9:05 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.

9:25 Rhian Sheehan: Putting sound to space

Wellington-based composer Rhian Sheehan has featured everywhere from BBC documentaries to National Geographic and Netflix, as well as across our screens here in Aotearoa.

He's also become a go-to composer for immersive experiences, creating scores for planetariums, theme-park rides and even NASA-linked projects, including a long-running collaboration with the UK's National Space Centre.

His work spans albums, film, TV, games and large-scale live multimedia shows.

Next Friday, he's performing a one-night event, The Space Between: Music and the Cosmos, at Te Wharekura Stardome in Tāmaki Makaurau.

9:45 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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10:17 The Detail

On The Detail - Regional councils have to find a different way of operating that cuts down on double-ups and layers of bureaucracy

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10:45 The Reading:'Cotton-Eyed Joe'

We take you back to 1964 Wellington and the girl who rejected the sentimental ballads and brass band music so popular at the time and got hooked on the blues.

Michele Amas reads the second part of 'Cotton-Eyed Joe' written by Susy Pointon.

11:07 Worlds of Music

Trevor Reekie hosts a weekly music programme celebrating an eclectic mix of trans global music, fusion and folk roots.