The one episode of Shortland Street you have to watch this year
Plus: A new Australian psychological thriller, a Rose Matafeo comedy special, and a heartwarming Netflix comedy.
If something big is going to happen in Ferndale, it’s going to happen at Christmas.
If there’s one episode of Shortland Street you should watch each year, it’s the annual Christmas cliffhanger. The final episode of the year is always a super-sized dose of drama, devastation and death, with past cliffhangers featuring bombings, shootings, fires, kidnappings, murders and stabbings. Trucks have crashed through reception, brides have died on their wedding day, and Santas have lost their shit. If something’s going to happen in Ferndale, it’s going to happen at Christmas.
The 2024 one-hour Christmas cliffhanger screens this Monday night, and this year, you can expect the final episode to be bigger and badder with many teases that not every character will make it out of the cliffhanger alive. Who will return from the past to bring terror to the present? (Leanne, I’m counting on you). What disastrous calamity will befall the hospital and all those in it, and does it have anything to do with Chris Warner’s beard???
Given that Shortland Street is going down to three episodes a week from 2025 due to falling advertising revenue, there’s a sense that the show wants to bid goodbye to this year with a literal bang. Lucky us, right? Here’s everything you need to know about what’s been going down in Ferndale before the iconic New Zealand soap leaves us hanging on Monday night.
I’d like to report a murder
The last few months in Ferndale have centred on the mysterious death of Louisa Gunnell, a woman Nicole met in an online grief support group but who turned out to be a freaky stalker with grand plans of kidnapping Nicole’s grandson, Knox. Louisa even locked Nicole in a chest freezer inside a haunted house, but karma bit hard when, later that day, Louisa died at Nicole’s house. She bonked her head on the bench and was hit on the head with an urn or something – but was it Nicole or Maeve’s teenage drug addict daughter-in-law Cassie who committed the crime?
In the best crossover of the year, Siale from The Traitors NZ turned up to investigate who was faithful and who should be banished to prison. Nicole went on trial for murder, and while we thought (prayed) that this storyline was over when the jury found Nicole not guilty, she then had a freaky flashback and confessed that she did actually kill Louisa. Oopsie! Where to now for Nicole and Maeve, who spend their lives lurching from one depressing crisis to another?
Harper and Drew are getting back together again
I’m worried about these two. The last few weeks have been tumultuous for Ferndale’s power couple, but they also ended last night’s episode far too happy, which means they’re likely to have a terrible time in Monday night’s cliffhanger. After Harper had a steamy affair with colleague Phil and Drew discovered his wife’s lies, he immediately demanded a divorce, and everyone in Ferndale cried about it. Phil and Drew even argued about it while they operated on some unfortunate patient, whose insides slowly filled with the hot tears of a spurned lover and the humiliated rage of Ferndale’s moodiest alpha male.
But things shifted this week when Harper was offered a prestigious promotion in New York. Watching Harper deliver a baby in ED made Drew realise he didn’t want his cheating hornbag wife to leave Ferndale, and they reconciled. They spent Thursday’s episode in a loved-up state of marital bliss, which I hope they enjoy because you don’t have to be the ghost of Leanne to sense that this joy will not last past Monday night.
Esther is breaking all the rules
Celebrity Treasure Island star Turia Schmidt-Peke returned to Ferndale recently as Nurse Steph, and she’d barely been back for five minutes before hospital CEO Esther diagnosed her with cancer. Rude! Thankfully, Chris Warner discovered a wonder drug, and Steph began a new medical trial, even though the official red tape hadn’t been sorted. Esther evidently loves a fast-track project, but what bureaucratic hot water will this put her in? Esther doesn’t care because Steph was Esther’s husband Curtis’ secret gang girlfriend from when Curtis was working as an undercover cop in Christchurch before he was killed in the line of duty. With a classic connection like that, Esther isn’t about to let Steph cark it without a fight. “The whole system is broken!” Esther told her husband Marty, who nodded. Marty is a very good nodder.
That you, Harry Warner?
I can’t believe it’s been twelve whole months since the fruit of Chris Warner’s loins went rogue and killed sweet Dr Rahu in last year’s Christmas cliffhanger. Rahu had discovered that Harry Warner had faked his medical qualifications, and finding out about his son’s lies made Chris Warner grow much hairier than he’d ever been. “If I ever get the chance to bring Harry to justice, I won’t hesitate,” Dr Love told the assembled mourners at Rahu’s one-year memorial service this week. But wait, what’s with the mystery phone call that Chris received in the middle of the service? What could make Dr Love so angry that he refused Selena’s heartfelt gift of a new cap? Was Harry calling to offer Dr Love a new hat, too?
It’s Christmas and the doctors are doing some weird singing
It’s not Anchor Me, but it’ll do.
The one hour Shortland Street cliffhanger screens on Monday 23 December at 7pm on TVNZ2 and streams on TVNZ+.
You might also like: Shortland Street: Reflecting a Nation (TVNZ+)
But wait, there’s more. This new documentary takes a look back on how Shortland Street has held up a mirror to New Zealand over the past three decades, showing us who we are in a multitude of surprising and revealing ways.
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If you’re already a member, thank you. If you’re a member who wants to spread good cheer and good journalism, you can support The Spinoff by gifting someone else a membership for Christmas.
Why you should watch: Fake (ThreeNow)
Asher Keddie and David Wenham star in this slow-burn Australian psychological thriller about a woman who gets involved with a romance scammer. Keddie plays Birdie, a magazine writer who reluctantly gives online dating a try and, against her better judgement, falls for a farmer called Joe. He’s smooth and dodgy as heck, and the series follows Birdie as she unravels at the hands of an expert manipulator. It took me a while to get used to the show’s slow, measured pace, but it fits with the same controlled way that Joe starts to mess with Birdie’s life. Asher Keddie is at her brilliant, compelling best, and this is a deliciously tense – if not a bit stressful – watch.
Why you should watch: Rose Matafeo: On And On And On (Neon, December 21)
Since Horndog won Best Show at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2018, our own Rose Matafeo has been on a meteoric rise to stardom. Her TV romcom Starstruck was a smash hit, and she’s now the presenter of Junior Taskmaster. Matafeo’s hotly-anticipated second stand-up special, Rose Matafeo: On And On And On, sees the comedian humorously musing on the trials and tribulations of her love life. Expect some sharp truths about relationships, aging and gender roles, as well as “smarts, self-mocking humour and striking perspectives.” You’ll likely want the special to go… on and on and on. / Thomas Giblin
More pop culture news from The Spinoff:
If you’re looking for a quality series to binge-watch these holidays, we’ve got some fantastic recommendations in our favourite TV shows of 2024 list.
The Spinoff’s biggest stories of 2024 featuring many pop culture bangers
Thomas Giblin has all the new shows and movies streaming this week.
“If I let “hawk tuah” into my brain, what am I going to lose? My dad’s phone number? My already ropey understanding of how tides work?” Alex Casey made it all the way through 2024 without finding out what “hawk tuah” means.
This week’s My Life in TV profile sees entertainer Frankie Stevens talk about his big break on a talent show, being a judge on NZ Idol, and his brief stint as…a Russian spy?!
“A great song is one you can dance and cry to”: art rock singer-songwriter Elliott Dawson shares his perfect weekend playlist.
The results of our reader survey are in, and we’ve got the best books of 2024 just in time for your holiday reading.
Banger alert: the song of the summer is ‘Harty Māori Stylez’
Get the best of the Spinoff sent to you over summer
Sign up for The Spinoff Daily to receive our twice-weekly summer digest. Sent to you at the leisurely time of 10am on Tuesdays and Fridays over the summer break, you can enjoy a handpicked selection of the best of The Spinoff this year. Perfect for beach, bach, backyard or travel reading.
Why you should watch: A Man on the Inside (Netflix)
It’s been floating around Netflix’s top ten shows for a week or two, but it’s not too late to discover charming comedy A Man on the Inside. Created by Michael Schurr (Parks and Rec, The Good Place, Brooklyn 99), A Man on the Inside sees 76-year-old Ted Danson play a retired professor who is hired by a private detective to infiltrate a San Francisco rest home in search of a jewel thief. He’s got one month to find the culprit, but in his role as a mole on the inside, Danson’s character accidentally finds a new lease on life. It’s a heartwarming and gentle series, with lots of laugh-out moments as well as thoughtful reflections on the passing of time and what old age really means. Danson is so likeable here, and the show’s smart humour reminded me a lot of The Good Place. A delight, and a great choice if you’ve got lots of different generations wanting to watch something together this Christmas.
Before we pop off…
It’s one of Netflix’s biggest ever shows, and ahead of the second season of Squid Games (Netflix, December 26), a Squid Game-esque challenge was held in Auckland’s Britomart.
Important investigative journalism: The iconic ‘No left turn except access to KFC’ road sign has vanished, and Joel MacManus is determined to find out what’s happened.
It’s the question on everyone’s lips: what is it like to play Robbie Williams as a chimp in new upcoming movie Better Man?
Hera Lindsay Bird has festive advice for everyone with inlaws
Duncan Greive catalogues the ten defining events of a torrid year for New Zealand’s media
“I just want to walk out of the water without my labia winking at people” — Anna Rawhiti-Connell takes one for the team and tries to find a decent pair of togs.
Toddlers everywhere are reported to be thrilled: a Bluey movie is coming (in 2027).
And as finish up Rec Room for 2024, we’ve got the perfect gift guide for people who really don’t want to buy shit. Meri Kirihimete!
That’s it for Rec Room for this year. Thanks for reading. We’ll see you back here in 2025. If you liked what you read, why not share Rec Room with your friends and whānau.