Kiwi Yarns

We see our country's Armed Offenders Squad in the most serious of circumstances - but who are the people behind the helmets and balaclavas?

This week I met the amazing Sergeant Eseta Autagavaia, who, alongside being one of the few women in New Zealand Police's AOS, also plays netball at a professional level.

She talks about how physically and mentally challenging getting into the AOS was, and how that experience and being on the netball court complement each other.

From pre-planned jobs to unpredictable moments demanding calm under pressure, she shares how her mindset is her biggest weapon.

A fascinating look at the life of a pretty inspiring young woman.

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Award-winning comedian Pax Assadi is having a massive month as his new book, Mortified, hits the shelves. The book contains the most embarrassing things that have happened in his life, including a legendary mishap in a Pakistani mosque. Pax wants us all to lean into our cringe, and why he’s over the curated perfection we see on social media. We talk about his family’s escape from Iran, and his Baha'i faith, the concept of progressive revelation, and how his spiritual beliefs shape his view of a fractured world.
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Laura McGoldrick is everywhere. And that’s an understatement. The Sky Sport Presenter is in the bach this week for a really solid heart-to-heart. From our accidental wedding in Vegas, to the raw reality of motherhood and navigating devastating miscarriages.

Laura is hands down one of the most talented broadcasters on our screens, and it’s through hard work, hard slogs and dogged determination. She deserves the flowers every day of the week.

How she shuts out the noise of being in the public eye, how she does it all and still has time for more - and, is Ashwagandha the key to her success (spoiler: we don’t think so).
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This week is an incredibly special episode with Jono Ridler - the open water, ultra marathon swimmer who, on Saturday 4 April, 2026, completed a 1367 kilometer swim - the length of the North Island.

Jono didn’t do this swim for accolades or records, he did this swim because of his love for the ocean, and to raise awareness that we aren’t doing enough to protect it.

Jono’s Swim4TheOcean campaign is a call to end bottom trawling - because we are the last country still doing it in the south Pacific High seas.

Hear how he got through the hard days, the jellyfish stings, the shark sightings, the vomiting, the cold water, the rough seas.

This is a remarkable story, and in my opinion, will go down as one of the greatest endurance feats ever by a New Zealander.
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This week meet the fabulously hilarious comedian, Courtney Dawson.

We discuss her experience as a young mum, her Te Reo Māori journey and the highs and lows of performing stand-up comedy. When her jokes bomb, she leans into it!

Courtney talks Celebrity Treasure Island, I test out her work as an Agony Aunt, and how to make the most of a trip to Australia for a court hearing (hint: it involves Dreamworld).

Courtney Dawson will perform at the NZ International Comedy Festival from May 1st to 24th.
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