Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

The River is Waiting by Wally Lamb   Corby Ledbetter is struggling. New fatherhood, the loss of his job, and a growing secret addiction have thrown his marriage to his beloved Emily into a tailspin. And that's before he causes the tragedy that tears the family apart.   Sentenced to prison, Corby struggles to survive life on the inside, where he bears witness to frightful acts of brutality but also experiences small acts of kindness and elemental kinship with a prison librarian who sees his light and some of his fellow offenders, including a tender hearted cellmate and a troubled teen desperate for a role model. Buoyed by them and by his mother's enduring faith in him, Corby begins to transcend the boundaries of his confinement, sustained by his hope that mercy and reconciliation might still be possible. Can his crimes ever be forgiven by those he loves?     The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner   Fame comes at a price…  The Griffin Sisters had the world at th

On the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast for Saturday 21 June 2025, Captain Kerry of the hit tv show Below Deck joins Jack to discuss antics aboard the St David superyacht and his three decades in the boating industry.  Jack travels with a baby for the first time... Mike Yardley continues his adventures in the Galapagos Islands.  And Estelle Clifford shares her Matariki playlist picks for the long weekend.  Get the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast every Saturday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wine: Tiki Single Vineyard Pinot Gris 2024, North Canterbury, $23.00   In recognition of Matariki and to highlight we have a growing number of Māori wine producers in NZ (Tiki, Tarras, Steve Bird, te PA, Tohu).   A crisp, dry style Pinot Gris with aromas and flavours of green pear and apple, some citrus highlights and a touch of quince. Just dry on the palate with an immediate bite of acidity and phenolics for texture and mouthfeel. There’s a fine less quality adding complexity and breadth across the palate. Best drinking from late 2024 through 2027.     The Food: A wine that is delicious with all sorts of hangi fare – especially kumara and pork belly. If you prefer seafood, then poached salmon with lemon is a great match. Vegetarians will like this wine with cashew nut dusted tofu burger with red beet and tasty cheese.     The season: 2024 was an excellent year for most growers in NZ.    LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the time of the year when my training sessions begin in all speed: teaching silvereyes and some other birds to come and visit our garden. After all, today’s the start of winter!  It’s not just about giving these lovely birds some well-deserved food for winter (although that helps!), it’s a simple way to get them to know where we live!   By regularly feeding these insectivores, they will be imprinted to come back in spring and summer, and that helps an entomologist (and his grandson) to identify the various individuals during the months of the year.   We feed these birds a number of yummy meals: Protein rich meat balls from the Mad Butcher, Lard Blocks, Nectar bottles, Cut-open fruit, etc.  Hundreds of them will visit our “kitchen”, and we know they will come back in spring and summer.   Why? Simply because this is where they get some great food, especially when it’s wintertime, but also in summertime, when our plants are damaged by scale insects and mealy bugs, whitefly and c

Rosa Flanagan of the Two Raw Sisters is serving up a delicious salad – perfect to take along to a long weekend gathering.  Serves: 6    Time: 40 minutes      Ingredients:  1 cauliflower, cut into florets    2 tbsp cooking oil    1 tbsp pomegranate molasses    1/2 tsp sea salt    1/2 cup quinoa    1 cup water       Quick Pickled Red Onion    1 red onion, finely sliced    3 tbsp apple cider vinegar    ½ tsp sea salt       Pomegranate Lemon Oil    3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil    1 tbsp pomegranate molasses    Zest and juice of 1 lemon    ¼ tsp sea salt       To Serve    3 stalks kale, stalks discarded and leaves finely chopped    1 cup herbs, chopped    ¾ cup seeds, toasted       Method:    Preheat the oven to 200C.    Pla

Better account security is coming to Facebook   They will be adding passkey support. Why are Passkeys better? Because they prevent you from being tricked into giving your credentials to a fake site. They also can't be stolen, guessed, or leaked.    A password doesn't care who it sends it to, you just hand it over and if it matches it lets you in, but you could be handing it over to anyone, the real site, or a fake site. A passkey is a more sophisticated form of authentication that first sends you a secret key. If that secret key matches, meaning that site and your device can now confirm they know each other, then a different key is sent back to log you in – the site also verifies that.   Think of it like a secure handshake with only the one person you want to shake hands with – everything is verified before sending any details.     Meta and Oakley are teaming up for a smart glasses collab   Meta really wants smart glasses to be a thing! They're releasing five Oakley styles t

Trainwreck: The Astroworld Tragedy  Featuring exclusive interviews with survivors, paramedics and festival staff, this documentary examines the 2021 Astroworld tragedy and its aftermath (Netflix).     American Manhunt: Osama Bin Laden   An exploration of how the world came together to hunt down al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the events of September 11, 2001 in New York City (Netflix).     Underdogs   Ryan Reynolds narrates a celebration of the unique behaviours of animals who don't usually get to be the stars of the show, from their hidden talents and unconventional hygiene choices to their unsavory courtship rituals (Disney+).    LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Echo Valley   Kate's secluded life is interrupted by her troubled daughter when she shows up frightened and covered in someone's blood. As Kate unravels the truth, she learns how far she'll go for her child.    Merchant Ivory   Archival footage and interviews provide insight into the partnership, both professional and personal, between director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant.    LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Everyone says the best time to travel with a baby is before it can walk. Makes sense, when you think about it. Most toddlers, once they’ve learnt to trot around the place, live for nothing more. All they want to do is walk. In fact, if you think about it, you really don’t want to get close to even blurring the line between rolling and crawling and waddling away. The moment your child is old enough and independently spirited enough to drag themselves around, you’re done for. There is no reasoning with an exhausted one-year-old on a packed 777. You can’t calmly explain that actually the pilot has just put on the fasten seatbelt sign. You can’t even vegetate them with a screen. As the old advice goes, if you’re going to travel with a young one, you’re best to do it when they’re really young. Hold them tight and they’ll mistake turbulence for rocking. Chuck them on the boob or the bottle if their ears are popping. And hey, you’ll be at your destination in no time! Or not. As someone who usually prides themselves

Queen of the stage, Alison Quigan is a mainstay in New Zealand’s performing arts scene.   You may know her best as Yvonne Jeffries, Shortland Street’s maternally-minded receptionist, or from one of her many theatre productions, as Quigan has spent her career creating stories that portray the real lives of Kiwis on stage.   She’s back to her theatrical ways, directing a brand-new production by Sir Roger Hall, ‘End of Summer Time’.  It’s the story of retired cow cocky Dickie Hart and his wife Glenda’s move to Auckland, a decision Dickie thinks is the beginning of the end.  Quigan told Jack Tame that Hall’s a great observationist, and it’s his understanding of his audience that allows them to connect with his works.  “He’s been telling the story of this particular generation for 50 years, and he is very loyal to them and they are very loyal to him.”  She started directing his plays in the late 80’s when she took over Centre Point Theatre in Palmerston North, but as a solo show, this

Taskmaster NZ, The Traitors NZ, The Chase NZ – Kevin Milne is wondering if New Zealand has run out of ideas of our own.  Being inspired by the success of overseas productions is fine, he says, but we shouldn’t just be copying them outright.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Their 27th album and their most theatrical yet, Phantom Island is the latest release from Australian psychedelic rock band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.  It’s a partner to their prior album, Flight b741, and was recorded during the same sessions, continuing on with the same themes, but with a more orchestral sound.   Estelle Clifford joined Jack Tame to share her thoughts on the album.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid   In the summer of 1980, astrophysics professor Joan Goodwin begins training to be an astronaut at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond; mission specialists John Griffin and Lydia Danes; warmhearted Donna Fitzgerald; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer. As the new astronauts prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined and begins to question everything she believes about her place in the observable universe.  Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.       Vianne by Joanne Harris   On the evening of July 4th, a young woman scatters her mother’s ashes in New York and follows the call of the changing winds to the French coastal city of Marseille.  For the first time in her life, Vianne feels in control of her future. Charming her way into a job as a waitres

"Do the Galapagos sea lions know how good they have got it? Sprawled across the pristine beaches, they wallow, snooze, and frolic across the powder-white stretches of sand, blissfully unconcerned by curious passers-by entering their slice of paradise on a goggle-eyed shore excursion. In fact, some of the sea lions waddled up to greet us into their realm of unrivalled wonder. The Galapagos grips you good, and doesn’t let go. I’m fresh back from my maiden visit to this extraordinary group of islands with Viva Expeditions, enjoying a four-night cruise aboard the magnificent La Pinta." Read Mike's full article here. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nearly a million people in New Zealand are currently receiving Superannuation, getting payments of between nearly $600 and just over $1000 every fortnight.   But in this cost of living crisis, how easy is it to survive on the pension?  Ed McKnight tried living on it for a week and came to a couple of conclusions around what it would be like to retire.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oral hygiene is incredibly important for maintaining your health, but when you’re brushing twice a day, you can burn through brushes pretty quickly.  With dentists recommending toothbrushes be replaced every three months, New Zealanders send an estimated 20 million toothbrushes to landfill every year.   Is there a better option? Kate Hall offers a few tips that could help bring down the waste.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast for Saturday 14 June 2025, legend of the screen and stage Alison Quigan joins Jack to discuss directing a brand-new theatre production from Roger Hall.  Jack considers what real life skills we need in the world of AI.  Kevin has a few thoughts on what skills we should be nurturing and hopes they might translate to more original ideas.  Francesca Rudkin dishes on the dishy stars in new film ‘Materialists’.  And Mike Yardley recounts his exploration of the Galapagos Islands.  Get the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast every Saturday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Damage in the garden can strike at any time.   Serious leaf damage (chewing and molesting of foliage all the way down the branches of a tree or shrub) is not something that small birds tend to do.    At ground level you can rightly guess that sparrows and quail are the possible delinquents, but when it really looks like full-on destruction you will need to do a bit of research:   Large bites in leaves: classic possum damage! Skeletonised Pohutukawa was bringing the trees to extinction – Project Crimson was the organisation that started the rescue mission.   Possums work on their local, favourite tree in the neighbourhood – constant chewing puts trees under pressure to make more leaves, often with an increased amount of sugar – Yum!   Bark damage is easy to spot: big scratches up and down the tree. Possum poo (1-1.5 cm in length) is often found under the tree – a dead give-away!   But the most ridiculous damage in your garden is possum chewing on fruit, especially citrus. I

Disney and Universal are suing AI image and video generator Midjourney   With just a couple of sentences you can create your own scene starring Homer Simpson, a Minion, or a Star Wars character. That's cool, but a problem for the studios who own the IP for that content.   The studios call Midjourney a “virtual vending machine” and “bottomless pit of plagiarism” in their suit.    Many of these AI companies have been using copyrighted material under "fair use" provisions to train their models, but this lawsuit directly challenges that. The lawsuit seeks damages ($150,000 per infringement) and an injunction that would immediately stop Midjourney’s operations.    Apple is bringing Call Screening to iOS26   Why are you calling me? That's the question the caller will now need to answer before you decide to pick up. Not interested, ignore them! This builds on the "live voicemail" feature they already rolled out. With this update, telemarketers will need to explain themselves before

David Attenborough: Ocean  David Attenborough explores the planet's undersea habitats, revealing the greatest age of ocean discovery and emphasising the ocean's vital importance while exposing its problems and highlighting opportunities for marine life recovery (Disney+).    Titan: The OceanGate Disaster   OceanGate's Titan tourist submersible imploded in 2023 on a deep-sea dive to the Titanic. This documentary details how a bold vision ended in tragedy (Netflix).    Paris Has Fallen  A protection officer and an MI6 operative team up after a terrorist attack. Realising there might be a mole in the secret services, the duo race to take down their dangerous enemy and thwart a larger conspiracy threatening Paris (Neon).     LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.