A very cool flip
& other things we're enjoying this week
Kia ora, welcome to this week’s newsletter.
What’s the coolest thing a New Zealand politician ever did before they were in parliament? Jacinda Ardern wore a South Park t-shirt and John Key made loads of money on the stock market before Sharesies was even invented, but both pale in comparison to 1996-1999 parliamentarian Tuariki Delamere. At a US college track and field meet in 1974, he did a flip into the long jump pit.
It was the first time anyone had done a somersault long jump in official competition, and even though he wasn’t that good at doing flips, Delamere managed to equal the top mark set by the reigning Olympic champion that day. Unfortunately, he never got a proper chance to perfect the new technique – it was banned by the IAAF within months, and remains illegal to this day.
In another timeline, the Delamere Flip could be to the long jump what the Fosbury Flop is to the high jump. As it stands, his story is little more than a curious footnote in the track and field history books. Which means it’s perfect for the latest episode of Scratched. Have a look:
–Cal
The Bachelorette NZ
Duncan says: “Unbelievably predictable of me, but I'm recommending The Bachelorette NZ. On Monday night I watched a bunch of guys aged 24-39 talk about how they dress up for an evening, their complex anxieties around relationships, how much they'd miss each other when kicked off and other banalities. The thing is, it feels like a few short years ago that the dominant ideal of masculinity within New Zealand was staunch grunting and abhorred any talk about feelings. That it now seems unremarkable is no small liberation for all genders, and while the show is not unproblematic (what isn't, though?), it was nice to be reminded, yet again, that while forever maligned, reality TV remains one of the great vehicles we have for chilling the hell out as a society. Also please listen to The Real Pod, where we talk about this every week.” (Read Tara and Jane’s weekly The Bachelorette NZ recap chats here.)
The Real Pod
A new episode of The Real Pod should be out tonight with all the latest The Bachelorette NZ chat and more – and while I wait for my invitation to go on and talk about Bach, let me go on the record as saying as of right now I think Todd is going to win! Anyway, Jane and Alex also recorded a bonus episode earlier this week to talk about the diabolical MAFS AU reunion show. Listen for a phone call with the dreaded Nasser that got very slanderous very fast. You should have seen the state of the editing room floor after this one.
CREEP
Janaye says: “Listen to the song CREEP by our fricken cool te reo Māori kaiako, Theia (and also Vayne who is not our kaiako) It slaps so hard and has a te reo pre-chorus.”
You’re Wrong About
Emily says: “I’m obsessed with You’re Wrong About, a podcast that reexamines pop culture moments we all think we remember, but which it turns out we don’t remember that well at all. The Koko the Gorilla episode is amazing – I was hysterically laughing one minute then just really sad. I mean did you know there was a lawsuit because Koko’s owner kept asking other scientists to show Koko their nipples? They sure left that out of the Koko’s Kitten book.”
The Fold
How many degrees of separation are you from cryptocurrency god Elon Musk? I’m a mere two, which is unfortunately still not close enough for me to get insider Dogecoin trading tips. Our connection is this week’s guest on The Fold – Hamish McKenzie was once the editor of Critic Te Arohi at Otago University, then went on to work at Tesla before leaving to found the disruptive newsletter platform Substack (which is what this newsletter is published on!). To hear more about Substack and why newsletters are the future, have a listen to his chat with Duncan.
@80snewsscreens
Toby Morris says: “The name says it all – @80snewsscreensis an Instagram account that posts screengrabs from crappy American news bulletins from the 80s. My favourite posts are their collections of interview faces with name and title graphics. Fall in love with "Mike Warnke, Former Satanic Priest", "Keith Brooks, Speeder" or "Guffy Glendinning, Long Time Customer".”
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK
Sam says: “If you’re bored or exhausted by the current US season of Drag Race, I recommend dipping back into the world of wonder across the Atlantic with Drag Race UK (TVNZ On Demand). The queens are much more engaged and there’s a camaraderie that’s lovely to see, not to mention a joy that the main season seems to be really lacking. Also, Ru’s Tyra moment is an all-timer for the series – you’ll know it when you see it. Bonus: The show has produced this legit hit single, which has been rattling around my brain for the past week. Bing bang bong! Sing sang song!”
Business is Boring
Anyone can become CEO at mind your own damn business on their Facebook profile, but to become the CEO of, say, a major insurance company? That generally takes quite a lot of work. Last week’s Business is Boring guest Blair Turnbull was recently appointed CEO of Tower Insurance – he told Simon all about how he got there, and what kind of new innovations the insurance sector has up its sleeve at the moment.
Mint Choc Chip KitKat
Jane says: “I very rarely fall prey to limited edition novelty snacks, but a cardboard merch stand piled high with shiny green and red packaging caught me in a moment of weakness during a recent visit to a petrol station. I’m not a massive chocolate fan, so it can only be fate that led me to purchasing the new Mint Choc Chip KitKat on a whim that blessed day. I’m now obsessed and already anxious about the limited run of these delights coming to an end. Please limit purchases to one per customer because if you buy up large and I can’t find them anymore I will never forgive you. (A tip: they’re even better when they’ve had some fridge time.)”
Any songs similar in premise/topic to "DONTTRUSTME" by 30H!3?
Josie says: “I recommend this Reddit thread about music to be a man slut to. The question is simple: what other songs sound like ‘DONTTRUSTME’ by 30H!3? Nothing is as good as that song, but the suggestions come pretty close (Breathe Carolina, Cobra Starship, Adam Lambert…).”
That’s all for this week! If you’ve got a rec to share or anything else to discuss please reply to get in touch. Share if you want, too! See you next Wednesday 👋