Queen Camilla speaks about teenage train assault and anger that followed
Queen Camilla attends the Christmas Morning Service at Sandringham Church on December 25 in Norfolk. Photo / Getty ImagesQueen Camilla has spoken for the first time publicly about fighting off an attacker on a train when she was a teenager, in an interview broadcast today NZT. “When I was a teenager, I was attacked on a train, and I’d sort of forgotten about it, but I remember at the time being so angry,” she told BBC radio. I was reading my book, and you know, this boy, man, attacked me, and I did fight back. “And I remember getting off the train and my mother looking at me and saying, ‘why is your hair standing on end?’, and ‘why is the button missing from your coat?’,” she added.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 11:06 UTC
From cuts to culture: How leaders can lift performance in 2026 – Darren Levy
As we step into 2026, leadership and culture are no longer supporting acts to strategy. The first is a move away from leadership capability as the focus, towards leadership cognition – how leaders think, interpret situations and make decisions under pressure. In 2026, leaders will increasingly be judged not by what they know, but by how they think when the path forward is unclear. In 2026, leaders who equate safety with comfort will struggle. As New Zealand organisations move into 2026, the question is no longer whether leadership and culture matter.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 11:03 UTC
NZ welcomes New Year with a bang
The new year started with a bang in Auckland. Photo: RNZThe new year has started with a bang across the country. In Auckland, more than half a tonne of fireworks launched high up the Sky Tower. Photo: RNZHe had only seen Auckland's New Year fireworks on YouTube and said before they were let off that they looked "amazing". There was also a group from Las Vegas armed with celebratory horns who took to dancing in the street.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 01, 2026 10:47 UTC
Do you know the happiest place in New Zealand?
One of Dunedin’s strongest advocates is Dr Ian Griffin, director of Tūhura Otago Museum, who recently spoke to Stuffafter spending the early hours of Thursday watching an aurora at Hoopers Inlet on the Otago Peninsula. Griffin also highlighted Dunedin’s cultural depth, pointing to institutions such as Tūhura Otago Museum, the Hocken Collections, Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, and the Dunedin Public Art Gallery. “If you are starting a company or want to work remotely, then Dunedin’s the place to be,” Griffin said. “The whole world was watching our graphics as Rory McIlroy won that amazing event, and we were doing it from Dunedin,” Taylor said. The survey included 6,194 participants from Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Hutt City, Porirua, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, with 581 respondents from Dunedin, Stuff has reported.
Source:Stuff
January 01, 2026 09:22 UTC
Rhythm and Vines transport backlash as pre-booked buses fail to show
Performances from Sunday and campers setting up tents at Rhythm and Vines in Gisborne. She said they were forced to squeeze onto other bus services and walk the rest of the way each night. “It was all kind of up in the air, so we didn’t know what to do,” she said. Fireworks to welcome the new year at Rhythm and Vines in Gisborne. A Rhythm and Vines spokesperson told the Herald they were working directly with affected customers and that refunds would be provided to those who are eligible.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 06:38 UTC
China’s beef import restrictions unlikely to impact New Zealand beef exporters
“New Zealand exports are unlikely to face restraint under the arrangements.”McClay said the outcome reflected strong engagement between New Zealand and China throughout the investigation process. “I’ve been able to make the case to my Chinese counterparts on three occasions last year that New Zealand exporters are not harming the Chinese beef market and therefore should not be adversely affected by safeguard measures. “New Zealand beef exporters can have confidence in the Chinese market, where demand for high-quality, safe food products continues to grow,” McClay said. In the 12 months to November 2025, 19% of New Zealand’s beef exports by value, $961 million, went to China, representing approximately 4% of China’s total beef imports. Brazil is likely to be one of the hardest-hit countries, as China accounts for nearly half of its total beef exports.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 06:37 UTC
Chevy Chase documentary director says SNL star was ‘so rude’ in interview
Chevy Chase's reputation for being difficult was reinforced when he insulted Marina Zenovich during their interview. Photo / Getty ImagesChevy Chase's reputation for being difficult was reinforced when he insulted Marina Zenovich during their interview. Photo / Getty ImagesChevy Chase is the rudest celebrity Marina Zenovich has ever interviewed. When Zenovich told Chevy “I’m just trying to figure you out”, he replied: “It’s not going to be easy for you. You’re not bright enough.”She told Variety: “I’d never done an interview where someone was so rude to me.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 06:27 UTC
Hulk Hogan, Diane Keaton, Ozzy Osbourne: Celebrity deaths of 2025 remembered
Diane KeatonThe Godfather actor Diane Keaton died on October 11, 2025. Police believe Arakawa died first of a respiratory illness followed by Hackman up to a week later of heart disease. Photo / SuppliedBritish actor Prunella Scales, best known for playing Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers, died of vascular dementia at age 93. Ozzy OsbourneFormer Black Sabbath member and hard rock musician Ozzy Osbourne died on July 22, 2025, after suffering a cardiac arrest. The Way We Were actor Robert Redford died in his sleep at his Utah residence in September.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 06:13 UTC
Friends star Matthew Perry memorial plaque installed two years after death
The Hollywood Graveyard Instagram post was captioned: “The crypt of Matthew Perry has been marked at Forest Lawn Hollywood — forever remembered in the hearts of friends and fans all over the world". Perry played the role of Chandler Bing on the hit sitcom series Friends, which premiered in 1994. He remained close with co-stars David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow after the show’s decade-long run. The cast of the 90s sitcom Friends (l-r) Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt Le Blanc as Joey Tribbiani. Page Six reported that the actors each signed limited edition artworks by Tim Wakefield that were sold at auction to benefit the Matthew Perry Foundation.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 06:10 UTC
Rolling Meadows festival accident: Two men hurt in Ferris wheel fall
Event Hire, which operates the ride, said the incident involved three men during one of the event’s final rides. Event Hire director Phil Anderson said all patrons were checked before boarding the ride “to ensure they are fit to ride safely”. The operator said they saw the men swinging the bucket they were sitting in during the ride, according to a statement from Event Hire. He said Event Hire notified WorkSafe of the accident and had also organised for an independent engineer to undertake a full technical review of the equipment involved. In Christchurch, police said behaviour at New Year’s Eve events was mainly good, with no issues at a Hagley Park concert and only minor incidents at the Rolling Meadows festival.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 05:37 UTC
ManageMyHealth data breach: What we know as up to 126,000 possible users affected
ManageMyHealth has “begun analysis to identify users affected” by a cyber breach this week. “We recognise that any incident involving health information can cause anxiety and distress,” he said. “ManageMyHealth and government agencies are working closely together to fully understand the scope of the breach and to protect the privacy of patients. Ramayah said to support patients and providers, ManageMyHealth would provide a detailed FAQ to “help resolve their questions where possible”. “We understand how personal and sensitive health information is, and we recognise the stress an incident like this can cause,” he said.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 05:37 UTC
Police warning after surge in on-road electric dirt bike crashes, injuries and fines
Helmets are compulsory for bike riders, including those who ride electric dirt bikes, police said. Police warning after surge in on-road electric dirt bike crashes, injuries and finesHelmets are compulsory for bike riders, including those who ride electric dirt bikes, police said. Photo / Getty ImagesPolice are warning riders about the consequences of unlawfully riding electric dirt bikes on roads, footpaths and cycle lanes, after a spike in crashes involving the increasingly popular vehicles. He said those caught riding illegally were exposing themselves and others to significant risk, with police taking action in regard to a steady stream of incidents involving dangerous riding. “We’ve seen people riding dangerously and crashes involving pedestrians and vehicles.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 05:31 UTC
Up to 126,000 ManageMyHealth users believed to be affected by cyber data breach
More than 108,000 ManageMyHealth users are affected by a cyber data breach. CEO Vino Ramayah confirmed the breach and said affected users would be notified within 48 hours. More than 120,000 people who use the ManageMyHealth portal are thought to have been caught up in yesterday’s cyber data breach. Ramayah said ManageMyHealth had “begun analysis to identify users affected”. “We recognise that any incident involving health information can cause anxiety and distress,” he said.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 04:42 UTC
Health app cyber breach 'incredibly concerning'
The country's largest patient information portal on Wednesday confirmed it had identified a cyber security incident involving "unauthorised access" to its platform. "I want to assure our users, customers, and stakeholders that we take the protection of your health information extremely seriously. "Health New Zealand is aware of the cyber security incident at ManageMyHealth and is working with them to understand any impacts. Ayers says it was a large data breach, even by worldwide standards and catastrophic on the New Zealand scale. But at 108 gigabytes, that's a pretty large data breach, and it looks like it's going to be much larger than the Waikato DHB data breach, which affected just over 4000 people."
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 01, 2026 03:45 UTC
My year of not listening to AI-generated pop music
We’re told that AI was inescapable in pop music this year, but I escaped just fine. Considering the embarrassing amount of money and hype wasted on AI-generated music this year, resistance was easy. But those technologies result in music only when deployed by human decisions — and, as listeners, much of our pleasure still lies in identifying those human decisions. But if we’re listening to music made entirely with generative AI, there’s no guessing game to play, no dancing to be done. And if sentient pop musicians ever figure out how to collaborate with generative AI in innovative ways, the innovations will be human.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 01, 2026 03:42 UTC