Afternoons for Wednesday 7 May 2025

1:10 Op shops cannot take your dumping anymore 
 

Rubbish dumping continues to be a headache for charity op shops around the country.

Volunteers turn up to work to find piles of trash outside their frontdoor and are left to clean up the mess.

1:20 Social housing for crayfish

We're heading to the Bay of Plenty where a special project is underway to restore marine life.

Huge sediment plumes caused by severe weather events like Cyclone Gabrielle, have destroyed marine habitats across part of the motu. In Tauranga moana - Tauranga Harbour, port dredging has also played a part.

1:35 Muttonbirding and living off the land

For many of us getting food is as simple as visiting the supermarket, but Dan Tarrant has had a lifetime of working and living off the land in the rugged deep south.

Dan is a big believer in food sustainability and kai sovereignty and passionately shares his knowledge with tamariki, both in person and online on Facebook and Instagram as @ruapuke.uncut. 

1:45 Heading off: farmers and the move to high-country tourism

Heading Off is our weekly travel segment where we pick a destination and learn what's it's like to visit, what you'll see and what you can do. 

Today we're heading to Te Waipounamu - to speak to Jonathan Wallis who manages Minaret Station at Lake Wānaka

Minaret station has been owned by his family since 1995 and like many farming families across the motu, the Wallis' have been diversifying their income through high-country tourism.

2:10 Music Critic: Foxes in the Snow by Jason Isbell

Dianne Swann profiles solo artist Jason Isbell's new album Foxes in the Snow. 

2:20 Easy Eats: red curry chicken and pumpkin tray bake

Kelly Gibney says good quality spice pastes are one of the best short cuts to get a delicious meal on the dinner table fast. This simple tray bake takes no time to put together and delivers big on flavour. Get the recipe here. 

2:30 Bookmarks with Chaos In the CBD

Today Jesse is joined by Louis Helliker-Hales, he's one half of Chaos in The CBD alongside his brother Ben. 

Originally from Auckland they now live and work and make music in London.

Whilst the duo do have a following here in Aotearoa, it's fair to say that they're our second most successful current musical export - after Lorde. If you catch them in Europe or the USA, it'll be in front of thousands.

Jesse caught up with Louis while preparing to play a festival in Japan. His picks are below.

Music
⁠ ⁠Nyron Higor - Ciranda (2025)
⁠ Fresh Heir - Corte Verde (1995)
⁠ The B-52's - Deep Sleep (1982)
⁠ Yellow Magic Orchestra - Rydeen (1979)

Books
⁠ Norm MacDonald - Based on a True Story: Not a Memoir
⁠ Hubert Selby Jr - Last Exit to Brooklyn 
⁠ Stefan Zweig - Chess Story (A.K.A 'The Royal Game' in some versions)
⁠ Aldous Huxley - Island
⁠ Tao Lin - Trip: Psychedelics, Alienation and Change
⁠ Seichō Matsumoto - Tokyo Express

Podcasts
⁠ Otherworld
⁠ Doomscroll
⁠ The Brandon & Jamal Show

Film and TV
⁠ All of Us Strangers
⁠ Pusher
⁠ Rap World 
⁠ Billy & Molly: An otter love story
⁠ ⁠Chime

3:10 Feature interview: the secret life of muscles 

From the cradle to the cane, muscles are the invisible engine behind everything we do.  They shape our health, our identity, and our independence and yet we take them for granted says author, journalist and contributing editor to Vanity Fair, Michael Joseph Gross.

His new book weaves together science, history, and personal stories to show that muscle strength is about far more than appearance, it's the foundation of how we live, move, and endure. The book is called Stronger: The Untold Story of Muscle in Our Lives.

3:30 Our Changing World

Coming up on Our Changing World, Claire Concannon sits down with science prize winner Professor Jemma Geoghegan to talk about science communication.

3:45 The pre-Panel

Wallace Chapman and producer Tom Riste-Smith preview tonight's instalment of The Panel.