Jack Perkins

A colourful portrait of Blackball, told from the vantage point of 1975 - four years after the government closed The Paparoa Mine at Roa. With the great days of coal gone, the inhabitants of this West… Audio

Spectrum for 10 January 2016 (A Workin' On The Whalin' O - Part 2) Dan Bergin sings of his life as a whaler working out of Great Barrier Island in the 1950s and recalls his work as a deer-culler and… Audio

Spectrum for 10 January 2016 (I Remember Mother's Mother - Part 1) Dan Bergin sings a tribute to his Irish grandmother as part of his recollections of Wanganui's Dublin Street and the colourful folk… Audio

Spectrum for 3 January 2016 (I've Swung An Axe and Humped A Swag) Bob Edwards provides a detailed account of his life as a swaggie and bushman. Audio

Spectrum for 27 December 2015 (The Homefront War) Ena Ryan talks to Jack Perkins about wartime Wellington of the 1940s. As battles raged and casualties mounted, those left behind to keep the home… Audio

After 56 years in National Radio and 43 producing Spectrum, Jack Perkins is calling it a day. His swan song is a 2 part chat with Spectrum's co-founder, Alwyn (Hop) Owen about the life and times of… Audio, Gallery

Jack Perkins began the iconic Radio NZ show Spectrum, with Alwyn Owen, in 1972, and whether or not by design it has become one of NZs most valuable libraries of oral history. Audio

Roger Lusby's skills define versatility:- mechanic, builder, craftsman, recording engineer, musician, balladeer, performance poet. Based on experience, he's written about fruit picking in Central… Audio

Maverick and visionary, Mother Suzanne Aubert was responsible for New Zealand's first purpose-built child daycare centre behind Wellington's Basin Reserve. Both government and the public were… Audio

Spectrum's Jack Perkins explores the philosophy and history of Levin's Radio Reading Service which provides regional and national news and current affairs for the print disabled. A Print Disabled… Audio

Dotted along Wellington's waterfront are plaques and inlaid benches quoting from some of New Zealand's finest writers. Accompanied by Spectrum's Jack Perkins, Rosemary Wildblood, Barbara Murison and… Audio

Taupo's annual Medieval Fair celebrates the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, an attempt to make peace between unpopular and unscrupulous King John and the English barons. Magna Carta has resonated… Audio

By March 1915 the war had settled down to a round of recruiting, sending parcels to Belgium and hearing news of the New Zealanders training in Egypt. The anti-military training lobby of the pre-war… Audio

Little Dog Barking Theatre, directed by Peter Wilson, creates endearing tales for children using puppetry and clever props. Spectrum's Jack Perkins drops in on a rehearsal of 'Guji Guji' by acclaimed… Audio

The New Zealand native falcon (karearea) is severely threatened with fewer than 6000 left. The Marlborough Falcon Trust (supported by Brancott Wines) is determined to save this beautiful bird by a… Audio