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PODCAST

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin

News, opinion, analysis, lifestyle and entertainment – we’ve got your Sunday morning listening covered with The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin on Newstalk ZB.

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All Episodes

15:50

Melanie Lynskey: Kiwi actress speaks ahead of the...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/12

New Zealanders will get an insight into the Pike River tragedy that continues to be felt by relatives - and on the West Coast. A film based on the 2010 explosion that took the lives of 29 men is being released in New Zealand this week. Starring Kiwi actresses Melanie Lynskey and Robyn Malcolm, it tells the true story of Anna Osborne and Sonya Rockhouse's fight for justice. Lynskey says it was important for the men to be remembered as individuals. "Anyone who's had a loved one be a victim of

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4:00

Whitcoulls Recommends: The Loneliness of Sonia and...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/12

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai. Sonia and Sunny live, study and work in America, but their families back home in India worry about the loneliness they feel in a strange country and try to bring them together. They do eventually connect, but relationships in their new world are not straightforward and there are a lot of things to navigate including finding the place where they belong - plus class, race, history, and the complicated bonds that link one generation to the next. This is

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4:12

Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge writer on her...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/12

Megan Singleton's latest travel adventure has taken her to Rarotonga, and she's noticed more people seem to be flocking to the islands. Between the variety of accommodation options, the bars and restaurants and wildlife - including crabs, whales, friendly dogs and turtles to snorkel with - there's plenty of options for all prospective travellers. Megan unveiled her personal highlights - read more about her travel tips here. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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9:34

The Sunday Panel: Why don’t people take local body...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/12

This week on the Sunday Panel, Director at Capital, Ben Thomas, and NZ Herald senior writer, Simon Wilson, joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! The local body elections wrapped up this weekend and recent data is showing the voter turnout was historically low. Why don’t people take local body elections seriously? Is it a lack of decent candidates? Is it a thankless task? Do we need to change the way we vote? Both Andrew Little and Wayne Brown have mentioned

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4:10

Erin O'Hara: Naturopath and wellness expert on...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/12

New research indicates making healthy choices might require more effort than updating your grocery list. A new study claims women's eating habits are more socially sensitive, and when isolated, they're 85 percent more likely to stop eating vegetables daily and twice as likely to stop eating fruit. The study also claims that when women's social networks shrink or become less diverse, women lose the social scaffolding that supports healthy eating patterns. Naturopath and wellness expert Erin O'Hara

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3:47

Francesca Rudkin: How do we get good candidates and...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

So, guess what - according to Local Government NZ, voter turnout around the country for the local body elections has been dismal. Surprised? On Friday afternoon, 983,466 votes had been received around the country, which represented 28.49 percent of all eligible votes. That's under 30 percent. Blimey. As of Friday, our biggest city, and one with a multitude of issues apparently, had the lowest voting percentage of 21.8 percent, followed by Hamilton City with 22.98 percent and Porirua City with 25.11

en-US

5:15

Mike van de Elzen: Onion tart-tatin with asparagus...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Onion tart-tatin with asparagus and fried haloumi Cook time: 30 minutes Prep time: 30 minutes Serves: 6 1 batch short crust 2 small red onions, peeled and sliced into 1cm rings 2 tbsp grapeseed oil 1 tsp flaky salt freshly Ground black pepper 4 tbsp caster sugar 1 big hand asparagus 8 servings haloumi 1 cup flour 2 tbsp oil 10 sage leaves 1 fresh lemon Handful rocket leaves, to serve Preheat a oven to 180*C Place sugar in a small heavy-based frypan over high heat. Cook until sugar

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117:04

Full Show Podcast: 12 October 2025

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

On the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin Full Show Podcast for Sunday 12 October 2025, Kiwi Emmy nominee Melanie Lynskey is back in New Zealand for the premiere of her new film Pike River. She tells Francesca the sense of responsibility she felt portraying Anna Osborne. Chef, broadcaster, author Peta Mathias lives a full life, she shares her tips on being fabulous and living life in a big way. Local Body Election results are in - elected Mayors of the major centres share their visions for the

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5:03

Dr Michelle Dickinson: nanotechnologist on the new...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

For decades, researchers have documented a curious pattern in happiness, where people tend to start adult life feeling relatively positive, dip into unhappiness during middle age, and then rebound later in life. Psychologists called it the 'unhappiness hump' and the rest of us called it a mid-life crisis, referring to a midlife peak in stress, worry, and dissatisfaction that eventually faded as people aged. But new research suggests that this once-universal feature of human psychology (and men

en-US

5:29

Steve Newall: Flicks.co.nz editor on the death of...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Hollywood superstar Diane Keaton is being remembered for a legendary career spanning decades. A family spokesperson told People magazine the 79-year-old has died in California. Keaton is best known for her Oscar-winning performance in 1977’s Annie Hall and her role in The Godfather films. Flicks.co.nz editor Steve Newall says her career just kept on going. "There's a whole bunch of movies she made with Nancy Meyers, the Father of the Bride films, Something's Gotta Give, the Book Club franchise, The

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7:20

Michael Sergel: Newstalk ZB local election reporter...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Results from this weekend's local elections are still rolling in, with some races still too close to call. But Auckland's Wayne Brown and Christchurch's Phil Mauger have definitely won second terms with decisive victories. Andrew Little's the new mayor in Wellington, and Tim Macindoe's won in Hamilton. Voters in just 17 council areas have opted to keep Māori wards, with voters in 25 opting to scrap them. Newstalk ZB election reporter Michael Sergel says Sophie Barker is leading Dunedin's mayoral

en-US

5:57

Tim Macindoe: Hamilton's new mayor outlines the...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Former Hamilton West MP and current Hamilton city councillor Tim Macindoe's won the mayoral race in Hamilton. He's committed to bringing down wasteful spending and improving resources for the city. Macindoe says Hamilton ratepayers have faced some of the highest rates rises in the country - a fact that's not set to change. "They are really feeling the pain - and unfortunately, there are no easy options for us to take that can suddenly get things down in a hurry. But we have to eliminate wasteful

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4:21

Phil Mauger: Christchurch mayor outlines priorities...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Re-elected mayor Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger is calling for a rethink to local election voting systems. Mauger says he's humbled by the margin of his victory over rival Sara Templeton, but admits the country needs better engagement. "And our general elections are very well-subscribed, because we're going down and voting and the postal system's just not working. We need to do something different." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

6:22

Andrew Little: Wellington mayor outlines his...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Andrew Little is laying out his priorities as he takes the Wellington mayoral chains. He won a landslide in the capital, getting more than 34,000 votes. His nearest competition was Karl Tiefenbacher on 8807 votes. He's acknowledged leading Wellington is a big job, but he's determined to take the necessary steps. "I'm serious about a council where everybody has a role, has a place and a stake in what we do - and then sort of knitting that together." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy

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6:23

Wayne Brown: Auckland mayor on winning a second term...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/11

Wayne Brown says his second term will see the continuation of cutting wasteful spending. He surged to victory, scoring 90,000 more votes than nearest opponent Kerrin Leoni. He says he's committed to making a city-wide deal with the central Government - so both entities can work as equal partners. "We don't fit into the role of other small councils, and so we want to be negotiating as equal partners with the Government over things. No more secret bridge crossings and stuff like that." LISTEN ABOVESee

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16:01

Suzanne Lynch: famed Kiwi singer looks back on...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/05

Kiwi pop icon Suzanne Lynch's had a long-running music career, and she's looking back on her legacy in a new memoir. Lynch got her start at 14 after a chance encounter with guitarist Peter Posa, which led to the creation of The Chicks, often considered New Zealand’s first successful girl group. Since then, she's worked with many well-known artists - and even toured the world with Cat Stevens twice. "I was just doing something I loved, and I'm still doing something I loved. Until I started writing

en-US

15:44

Richard Osman: author and television presenter on the...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/05

TV personality and author Richard Osman recently took a brief writing hiatus, but he's returned with the latest instalment in the Thursday Murder Club book series. The series focuses on a group of retirement village residents who investigate unsolved murders, and it's gotten so popular, it's received a Netflix adaptation starring Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren. Osman says he's enjoyed returning to the series and he's promised this next instalment will be a 'treat' for readers. "It's always

en-US

3:55

Whitcoulls Recommends: Gravity Let Me Go and Boleyn...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/05

Gravity Let Me Go by Trent Dalton. Noah Cork should be on top of the world. His new true crime book is a bestseller, but strange things happening around him are deeply unsettling. As a major storm threatens Brisbane he’s caught up in one of his own, failing to see what’s right under his nose in this brilliant story about murder and marriage and one man desperate to do the best by his family, with no idea how to go about it. Boleyn Traitor by Philippa Gregory. Jane Boleyn was the sister of Anne

en-US

4:03

Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge.com writer on the...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/05

The Holiday Inn Express recently unveiled a new morning alarm system that's designed to be more pleasant than a blaring clock. The Holiday Inn Express Breakfast Alarm Clock is designed to wake guests up with the smell of bacon, coffee or muffins. BloggerAtLarge's Megan Singleton got the chance to try it out to find out if this technology's worth the hype. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

3:26

Francesca Rudkin: I was reminded just how much I take...

The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin ·

2025/10/04

I had an interesting experience this week, one that reminded me that sometimes even the obvious needs to be pointed out. For a very brief moment I got a small taste of what it’s like to have low vision. Blind Low Vision New Zealand hosted a breakfast - during which I was given glasses to wear which mimicked glaucoma, and then I was guided into a café where I tried to read a menu. This all required a level of concentration and effort I don’t often call on. Thankfully, I was able to remove the

en-US

3,143 results

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