Miriam Margolyes is in New Zealand, and her timing couldn’t be better
Plus: a new Jonah Lomu documentary, Sir David Attenborough's awe-inspiring Mammals, and a Netflix series about an Australian conwoman.
Miriam Margolyes is back behind the wheel, and this time, she wants to find out what makes us tick.
After a prolific career on stage and screen, 83-year-old Miriam Margolyes is on the road again. The BAFTA-award winner is known for her roles in the Harry Potter movies, Call the Midwife and Doctor Who, but she’s also written a memoir, appeared on the cover of British Vogue at 82, and her appearances on The Graham Norton Show are infamous for her profanity and naughtiness. In recent years, she’s made several travel documentaries like Miriam and Alan: Lost in Scotland and Miriam Margolyes: Australia Unmasked. She is a brilliant storyteller. She also never misses an opportunity to fart on camera.
Now Margolyes is farting her way around our country in her new travel documentary series Miriam Margolyes in New Zealand. She’s visiting Aotearoa to play a nun in an upcoming movie, but as a British-Australian who’s never been here before, she’s keen to find out what being a New Zealander is really like. Driving the length of the country in a camper van, Margolyes wants to experience our mountains, sea and hills, but also understand what challenges we face as a nation. “What sets the country apart?” she wonders, as she flies into Wellington, picks up her rental van and cheers with delight when she realises her feet successfully reach the pedals.
It’s clear that this is more than just your usual celebrity-visiting-new Zealand series. While Margolyes admits to being open to new experiences, she also declares she won’t pretend to like things if she actually doesn’t. It’s refreshing to see a tourist arrive in the county without immediately saying how quaint and wonderful everything is. “Fuck off!” she yells a few minutes into episode one, berating a Wellington driver who honks their horn impatiently when she struggles to restart her van.
It’s a delightful start, and Margolyes sets off on her journey through the North Island more interested in learning about who we are, warts and all (farts and all?), than ticking off every must-see tourist activity. Sure, she’s won over by a dramatic Hurricanes rugby game and a tour of Hobbiton – where she casually upstages a chat with Sir Peter Jackson by revealing she knew JRR Tolkien as a child – but she also travels to Tyburn Monastery and visits the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Community, where she wonders why New Zealand only accepts 1500 refugees each year.
She journeys north on the narrow rural roads beside the Whānganui river to reach the marae at Kaiwhaiki, where she meets local iwi who campaigned to have the river legally recognised as a person. She’s visibly moved by the experience, and of learning about the connection between Maori and the awa. “If you think of it as a person, you treasure it. You care for it. You respect it,” Margolyes muses later, as she sits in front of her camper van and looks out over the river.
Margolyes is also inspired by her visit to Te Kura Taumata o Panguru in Northland, where she’s told about the power of reo Māori in creating identity and pride. “If you take away people’s language, you dent their identity, you extinguish their traditions,” she reflects, before she drives down to Taupō to meet the Black Ferns. Ruby Tui – wearing the uniquely New Zealand combo of socks and jandals – explains why while not being Māori herself, it’s crucial that she embraces the haka. “Maori culture is part of the culture of the country I’m representing,” Tui tells Margolyes. “How can I not respect that and educate myself about that?”
“You represent more than you are,” Margolyes replies in understanding.
All of this makes Miriam Margolyes in New Zealand an incredibly timely show. At the same time that the government is removing te reo Māori names from government departments, withdrawing funding for te reo Māori teacher training and introducing a divisive Treaty Principles Bill, this 83-year-old arrives with an open mind and curious heart to find out what identity really means in Aotearoa. There’s no doubt Margolyes will amuse viewers with her unpredictable bluntness and incorrigible spirit, but her journey around the country will also remind us of what makes us unique, and highlight the importance of respecting and nurturing the different parts of our national identity.
As Margolyes explores Aotearoa, her road trip is a chance to see ourselves through a fresh set of eyes. This series is less about showing off our green hills and bustling cities, and more about acknowledging the many voices of the people who live among them. In getting to know us, Margolyes takes viewers on an entertaining and thoughtful trip around the country. We might find that after watching, we’ll know ourselves a little better, too.
Miriam Margolyes screens on Sky Open on Sunday 9 February at 7.30pm and streams on Neon.
Bryn & Ku’s Singles Club – Coming soon to The Spinoff
Join comedians Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester on their cross-country quest to find love in a hopeless place: Aotearoa, New Zealand. Bryn & Ku’s Singles Club is a new documentary series that follows two best friends on a road trip like no other as they connect with New Zealanders from all walks of life over matters of the heart. Will they find what they are looking for at the bottom of a beer funnel on Castle Street, or find plenty more fish in the sea off Rakiura? You’ll have to join the club to find out.
Episode one premieres Tuesday February 11 on The Spinoff.
Why you should watch: Lomu: The Lost Tapes (ThreeNow)
Some anniversaries coming up this year: 50 years since Jonah Lomu was born, 30 years since the World Cup that made him rugby’s first and still biggest global superstar, and 10 years since his death. Apt timing then for a new documentary looking back on his life and legacy. The Lost Tapes is built from previously unaired early-2000s interview footage, and while they don’t exactly contain any shocking revelations or shed any new light on his story, they do offer a fairly intimate portrait of the softly spoken man behind the larger-than-life legend. Most exciting for me, it also gives us a good look at his outrageous car stereo, which at the time was the loudest in New Zealand (if not the world), reportedly capable of reaching 163 decibels. I also didn’t know that when he made his All Blacks debut he worked in a bank? There’s some footage of that too. / Calum Henderson
Why you should watch: Mammals (TVNZ+)
If you need a break from humans, I can highly recommend hanging out with the stars of Mammals, the latest David Attenborough joint which has just finished airing on Sunday nights on TVNZ. With each episode themed around different living conditions of mammals across the world – ‘heat’, ‘cold’, ‘dark’, ‘water’ – there have been countless moments that have left me more aghast and entertained than any MAFS dinner party. For example, in the ‘new wild’ episode, Attenborough’s team followed a big otter family who have adapted to life on the bustling city streets of Singapore. But when the loud traffic drowns out their usual method of communicating when crossing the busy roads, one of them becomes separated from the pack and can’t hear where they are. What transpires is a moving ‘Babe 2: Pig in the City’ style adventure full of peril, sadness and a tearful joyous reunion, just one of dozens of unforgettable stories without a trad-wife or a toxic groom in sight. / Alex Casey
More pop culture news from The Spinoff:
Breakfast and Seven Sharp both returned to TVNZ1 this week, and we recapped all the important moments (including Jeremy Wells’ new moustache).
Anna Rawhiti-Connell pulled off an erotically-charged double feature at the movies this week, watching new films Baby Girl and Nosferatu.
If you’re looking for a joyful read, don’t miss Alex Casey’s story about this 84-year-old kite influencer.
I loved chatting with comedian Eli Matthewson for this week’s My Life in TV, where he discussed the chaos of U Late and the fear and joy of Dancing with the Stars NZ.
This week’s Friday Poem is Quiet Delicate Wednesday Afternoon by Joshua Toumu’a.
Claire Mabey and Lyric Waiwiri-Smith review the Vivienne Westwood exhibition at Te Papa.
Duncan Greive looks into the decision to ban under 18s from this year’s Laneway festival.
Here’s all the books we got around to reading this summer, including a cracking edition of Woman’s Day.
Discover the new shows and movies dropping on your favourite streaming service this week.
We still need your help
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Please, if you value comprehensive coverage of Waitangi and te Tiriti issues and are not a member yet, make this the week you sign up.
Why you should watch: Apple Cider Vinegar (Netflix)
If you were on the internet in the early 2010s you might remember Belle Gibson, an Australian wellness influencer who beat brain cancer by healing herself with an all-natural diet she promoted through her insanely successful app. Turns out that it was all a con – she never had brain cancer. Netflix has now turned the outrageous story of Gibson into Apple Cider Vinegar, a riveting six-part satirical thriller that traces the rise and fall of the conwoman’s wellness empire. Starring American Kaitlyn Dever doing a choice Australian accent, the show is sure to be a stinging exploration of the dark side of wellness and influencer culture. / Thomas Giblin
Before we pop off…
Big news for UK fans of Dr Chris Warner (I know you’re out there): Shortland Street is returning to UK screens for the first time in 15 years.
Here’s all the big moments from the Grammys that you didn’t see on TV (which is probably most of it, given the ceremony wasn’t aired in New Zealand).
How does it feel to cark it on the telly? I enjoyed this article where actors from shows like Succession and The Sopranos relive their TV deaths.
That’s it for Rec Room for this week. If you liked what you read, why not share Rec Room with your friends and whānau.
