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Some serious New Zealand news made international headlines in 2015: the sad death of Jonah Lomu; the baby formula 1080 contamination threat; that rugby thing we won; whale strandings and more whale strandings. But there was also a good deal of laughter at our expense.

Laser Kiwi of the Long White Sheepcloud: International media had a field-day with the not-so-serious contributions to our national flag debate, after someone trawled through the thousands of design competition rejects. Washington Post writer Abby Ohlheiser even wrote a letter asking us to reconsider nine of her favourites, which included Fire the Lazar!, The Fons and Deranged Cat Raking Its Garden.

The prince and the bumble bee: A prince, a prehistoric lizard and a bumble bee perilously close to some sensitive bits delighted Royal watchers. Prince Charles was apparently frightfully worried when a bumblebee alighted on his upper thigh at the Orokonui Ecosanctuary, near Dunedin. At least the royal couple had a laugh about it.

Haka Heroes: Even given it was a Rugby World Cup year, the haka stories were inexplicably numerous. There were the internet's best haka videos. Prince Harry learning the haka. The Kiwis national league team performing a haka at Liverpool FC which, according to Bleacher Report, was the most intimidating thing to hit the club's canteen since a hungry Luis Suarez (football's notorious biter). And let's not forget former England halfback Matt Dawson's infamous hakarena.

Incredible ink: Who could resist this gorgeous gesture by a Taupo dad, who got a tattoo to match his daughter's cochlear implant, so she wouldn't feel like the odd one out. Certainly not international media - it was picked up by news outlets around the world.

Frogmen and francophones: Never ones to miss a chance for a dig at the French, British media reported French Secret Agent Jean Luc Kister's first public apology for bombing Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior. Both the Brits and Americans were also amused at a humble Kiwi beating the French at their own game, when Nigel Richards became Francophone Scrabble champion, despite not speaking a word of the language. Even CNN was impressed by the "Le Bron of Scrabble".

The 'n-word' and other unmentionable places: Even the venerable BBC was intrigued by one geography boffin's discovery of three racially offensive map features, all incorporating the word "nigger". They might, however, benefit from employing their own geography boffin, after reporting that the three places are all located "in North Canterbury, in the Southern Alps on South Island".

Ponytail gate: An Auckland waitress's complaint about John Key's weird ponytail-pulling fetish rocketed around the world. One News reporter Rebecca Wright's intro to the story about "the prime minister, a ponytail and some pinot noir" particularly excited HBO comedian John Oliver, who called it "the single greatest news tease I've ever heard".

The milk of life: Well who didn't cover the great tale of lost runner Susan O'Brien, who drank her own breast milk to survive a cold and lonely night out in rugged Wellington bush, after getting lost on a trail run. International interest spanned everything from Cosmopolitan magazine to America's Fox News.

Droning on: It's been the year of the drone and news coverage was not exempt. First there was the Rosmini College boy's bullseye kick that knocked a drone from the sky while it was filming a promotional video. The film certainly earned the school plenty of exposure, with almost 850,000 views on YouTube. Then there was Central Otago farmer Brett Sanders's drone that rounds up sheep, getting sheep dog tails in a twist from Washington to London.

Inseparable love: One of the year's saddest but sweetest stories was that of Wellington couple Hugh and Joan Nees, who after 67 years of marriage died of natural causes just hours apart. Hugh, 94 went first, followed just two hours later by 92-year-old Joan.

The unconscious pianist: 12-year-old Napier schoolgirl Isabelle was an internet hit when a family member posted a video on YouTube of her playing the piano while sleepwalking. Isabelle's mother, Renee Welby, said the footage was only intended as family entertainment and 21st birthday embarrassment fodder. "It's gone a little bit viral, which we didn't expect, so I am freaking out a little," she said.

Tongue-tied: Prime Minister John Key made international headlines for becoming all tongue-tied when asked to name Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al Baghdadi: "it's al Jabiri something". He wasn't alone - Australian defence minister Kevin Andrews also failed to name the chief, despite both countries contributing troops to the fight against IS. And then there was the Auckland fly that got its tongue stuck on a frozen steak. Yes, really.

Sex in the city: The video of a couple's Christchurch office sex romp in full view of a pub opposite went viral. Enough said...

Headline act: Onlookers at a Bay of Plenty petrol station thought Halloween had come eight months early when a man walked in with an iron bar sticking out of his head. It turned out to be very real - the young man had been attacked while sitting in his car.

- Stuff

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Year in review: The not-so-serious New Zealand news that made global headlines

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Some serious New Zealand news made international headlines in 2015: the sad death of Jonah Lomu; the baby formula 1080 contamination threat; that rugby thing we won; whale strandings and more whale strandings. But there was also a good deal of laughter at our expense.

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It isn't often I speak highly of a teachers, but I have to comment on this upstanding example of teaching.

Of course some wowser has found their little pool of outrage and complained.

An Idaho biology teacher is facing possible disciplinary action after killing and skinning a rabbit in class to show students where their food comes from.

Nampa School District spokeswoman Allison Westfall says the teacher killed the rabbit in front of 16 students by snapping its neck on Nov. 6 at Columbia High School.

The rabbit was then skinned and cut up in front of the 10th graders.

Westfall says the demonstration isn't part of the biology curriculum.

She says students who didn't want to view the lesson were allowed to leave ahead of time.

The teacher's name hasn't been released.

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2014 - Page 144 of 1208 - Whale Oil Beef Hooked | Whaleoil Media

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It isn't often I speak highly of a teachers, but I have to comment on this upstanding example of teaching. Of course some wowser has found their little pool of outrage and complained. An Idaho biology teacher is facing possible disciplinary action after killing and skinning a rabbit in class to show students where their food comes from.

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21 Things You Can Only Do In New Zealand

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If you've ever braved long-haul flights and inevitable jet lag to get to the other side of the world, you've probably heard the statement "oh wow, you came all the way from New Zealand?!".

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David Bowie's favourite new star was New Zealand's 19-year-old pop genius Lorde, whom he said sounded like "tomorrow" - and according to Bowie's pianist Mike Garson, he also called Lorde "the future of music".

Lorde herself is dishing out the praises these days, on Tuesday (June 14) declaring Irish electro-pop guy EDEN's new song 'Sex' "messy and emotional and twitchy and kind of in love and definitely freaked out as that situation feels." Calling to mind Lorde's synaesthesia - the condition that causes her to see colours when she hears music - she added, "It does something very simple and intense to my brain.

"I wasn't sure how to contact you," she wrote, "so I went for the old Facebook wall lol. But just wanted to say hi and please keep making lovely things - I'll listen."

Ng is a 20-year-old singer/songwriter/producer from Dublin who used to be known as The Eden Project. Now he's simply called EDEN - and under this new moniker he released his first EP, 'End Credits' in August 2015. 'Sex' is the first taste of his next one, 'I Think You Think Too Much Of Me', due out on August 19. Check out the video for 'Sex' below and see Lorde and Eden's Facebook chat after the jump.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaSn9UYn34g

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Listen To Lorde's Favourite New Song 'Sex' - By Rising Irish Producer Eden

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David Bowie's favourite new star was New Zealand's 19-year-old pop genius Lorde, whom he said sounded like "tomorrow" - and according to Bowie's pianist Mike Garson, he also called Lorde "the future of music".

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All the different fruit make a colourful topping to this traditional Australian dessert.

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New Zealand's tallest building, the Sky Tower, is celebrating it's 20th birthday after welcoming nearly 15 million guests through it's doors.

And despite initial controversy around it's planning and conception, the Sky Tower has become an icon of the Auckland skyline, major tourist attraction and a focus for celebrations - having been lit up for more than 100 causes in the past.

To mark the occasion, the public will have free access to its lighting controls for the first time in history.

Punters can choose from a range of colours or a dynamic rainbow swirl in honour of a special occasion, person, cause, or simply their favourite colour.
READ MORE:
* ​Sky high views from the top of Sky Tower
* Ten-year-old Sky Tower one of NZ's top sights
* Architect of Auckland's Sky Tower defends design as voters want change
Looking back, it was unlike any construction project undertaken at the time - using 15,000 cubic metres of concrete and almost 3000 tonnes of steel.

Sophisticated techniques were needed to ensure the tower was perfectly straight including shooting laser beams at the shaft to ensure its vertical lines.

It took over two years to build and resulted in Builders Fletcher Construction developing a world first construction technique, a self climbing 'Jumpform'.

It's foundations alone fork more than 13 metres in to the ground - the equivalent of two giraffes.

However, it was never meant to look like it does and actually has never been finished.

When the tower was first pitched to Aucklanders it was a far more elegant spire .

Original owners Harrah's convinced Aucklanders to back the project with artwork showing a futuristic 'satin finish' aluminum cladding.

It was only once the tower got consent and was actually being built that it was announced the cladding would not be put on after all.

Initial reaction to leaving the tower a plain grey concrete shaft was mixed, with at least one expert deriding it as resembling a "sewer pipe"

Twenty years on, many in a Stuff poll say they would like the tower finally finished with the promised cladding.

It opened with a laser show on 3 August 1997, boasting 360 degree views of Auckland some 80 kilometres into the distance.

On a clear day you can see approximately 82 kilometres from the Sky Tower - as far north as Leigh Peninsula, as far east as Great Barrier Island, as far west as the Waitakere Ranges, and as far south as the Bombay Hills.

At 328 metres it was one of the 10 tallest structures in the world at the time of construction - now it's been bumped down to 23rd place.

It also boasts being so stable, that it can withstand storms with gusts up to 200 km per hour and an 8.0 magnitude earthquake occurring within 20 kilometres of the tower.

However, on election night, September 19 2005, the tower was evacuated after an Auckland man hijacked a light aircraft and threatened to crash it into the tower, before eventually crashing into the sea at Kohimarama Beach on the Auckland waterfront.

Police afterwards said the aircraft was too small to have seriously threatened the tower and would not have brought it down but could have knocked off the top part.

Since then, celebrities such as Beyoncé, Michael Bublé, Justin Bieber and Tom Cruise have all taken their turn walking around the outside or jumping off it.

The Sky Tower is host to two restaurants and the SkyJump and SkyWalk activities - both operated by AJ Hackett.

Hackett himself achieved the world record bungy jump from a fixed platform off the Sky Tower in 1999.

But that's not the only record, the Sky Tower is host to the largest FM combiner in the world - the most stations transmitted on one aerial.

It also assists in a broad range of other telecommunications such as broadcast, land mobile services, laser links, traffic cameras, and weather equipment and measurement services for NIWA.

It is frequently lit up with different colours for charities or community initiatives that Sky City supports financially, to mark national holidays, milestones or other major celebrations or events, or as a symbol of respect or solidarity.

It will be lit up like a flickering candle for it's 20th birthday celebrations.
BIRTHDAY EVENTS
Free entry for New Zealand residents on August 3, from 9am to 10pm (with proof of address).

Public lighting event on August 3, 4, and 5 from 6pm-9pm.

Discounted $20 tickets for one adult and one child for the rest of August for New Zealand residents.

COLOURS

- Red and green for Christmas.
- Blue for the Blues, the Sky City breakers or for Blue September to raise awareness for the prostate cancer foundation.
- Pink for Pink October, to raise awareness for the breast cancer foundation, and for Mothers day and the birth of Princess Charlotte.
- Red for the Red Cross annual appeal and Red Nose Day.
- Pulsing red for Heart Kids NZ or world heart day or for firefighters taking part in the Sky Tower stair challenge.
- Orange for world vision's 40 hour famine, and for Auckland's annual Matariki festival.
- Black and white for national sports teams including the All Blacks, Black Caps and Emirates Team New Zealand.
- Rainbow for Auckland's pride festival and New Zealand's rainbow community.
- Royal purple to celebrate the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's official visit to new zealand in 2014.

- Stuff

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New Zealand's tallest building turns 20 years old

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New Zealand's tallest building, the Sky Tower, is celebrating it's 20th birthday after welcoming nearly 15 million guests through it's doors. And despite initial controversy around it's planning and conception, the Sky Tower has become an icon of the Auckland skyline, major tourist attraction and a focus for celebrations - having been lit up for more than 100 causes in the past.

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This full body cow costume is made from a soft cow print fabric. The hood is fully lined and fastens with Velcro at the neck. The body features a zip up front, elasticated wrists and ankles and a swis

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Our black witch dress is made from a beautiful soft panne velvet and fastens at the back with a Velcro tab. A fantastic and versatile addition to the dress up box. Wear it this Halloween as is or add

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The Best of The Billy T James Collection | Television | NZ On Screen

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The Best of The Billy T James Collection - Billy T's unique brand of humour is captured here at its affable, non-PC best in this compilation of skits from his popular 80s TV shows. There's Te News ("... somebody pinched all the toilet seats out of the Kaikohe Police Station ...

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Agathis australis , commonly known by its Māori name kauri, is a coniferous tree of Araucariaceae in the genus , found north of 38°S in the northern districts of New Zealand's North Island.

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manus

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Tui are notoriously aggressive, and will defend a flowering or fruiting tree, or a small part of a large tree, from all-comers, whether another tui or another bird species. They vigorously chase other birds away from their feeding territory with loud whirring wings.

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Auckland's Independent Maori Statutory Board says Auckland Council is missing significant opportunities not just for Maori but for the region as a whole by failing to invest in Maori outcomes.

The board released a independent assessment by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers of the council's activities to improve Maori economic, social, cultural and environmental development over the past two years.

It found Te Toa Takitini, a group of senior managers from council and council-controlled organisaitoons set up after a simiilar auditr in 1014, has only been partially effective.

Budgets have been under spent, particularly in areas like putting Maori wardens on trains, road safety programmes aimed at young Maori drivers and passengers and marae based road safety initiatives.

Expenditure was over-reported, with Te Toa Takitini reporting the Auckland Tourism and Economic Development Agency (ATEED)'s expenditure on Maori outcomes $222,600 higher in 2016/17 than ATEED reported in its own financial statements.

Chair David Taipari says a council committed to lifting the wellbeing of Maori could unlock significant social, cultural, economic and environmental returns.

Lifting Maori income and employment rates to mirror those of Pakeha in Tamaki Makaurau would add $1.8 billion per year into the Auckland economy.

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Auckland's Independent Maori Statutory Board says Auckland Council is missing significant opportunities not just for Maori but for the region as a whole by failing to invest in Maori outcomes. The board released a independent assessment by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers of the council's activities to improve Maori economic, social, cultural and environmental development over the past two years.

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Auckland's Independent Maori Statutory Board says Auckland Council is missing significant opportunities not just for Maori but for the region as a whole by failing to invest in Maori outcomes.

The board released a independent assessment by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers of the council's activities to improve Maori economic, social, cultural and environmental development over the past two years.

It found Te Toa Takitini, a group of senior managers from council and council-controlled organisaitoons set up after a simiilar auditr in 1014, has only been partially effective.

Budgets have been under spent, particularly in areas like putting Maori wardens on trains, road safety programmes aimed at young Maori drivers and passengers and marae based road safety initiatives.

Expenditure was over-reported, with Te Toa Takitini reporting the Auckland Tourism and Economic Development Agency (ATEED)'s expenditure on Maori outcomes $222,600 higher in 2016/17 than ATEED reported in its own financial statements.

Chair David Taipari says a council committed to lifting the wellbeing of Maori could unlock significant social, cultural, economic and environmental returns.

Lifting Maori income and employment rates to mirror those of Pakeha in Tamaki Makaurau would add $1.8 billion per year into the Auckland economy.

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Auckland's Independent Maori Statutory Board says Auckland Council is missing significant opportunities not just for Maori but for the region as a whole by failing to invest in Maori outcomes. The board released a independent assessment by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers of the council's activities to improve Maori economic, social, cultural and environmental development over the past two years.

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Did you know? Lemon and Paeroa, better known as L&P, is a soft drink manufactured in New Zealand. The name is derived from its main ingredient, Lemon and carbonated mineral water from the town of Pearoa.

The carbonated water from Paeroa spring was accidentally discovered in 1904. Residence would then add lemon to the spring water to make a refreshing drink. Not soon after, L&P was developed and introduced in 1907 by Paeroa Natural Mineral Water Company, a company owned by Robert Fewell and his brotherin-law Frank Brinkler. It was not until 1970s that Coca-Cola took over the production of the iconic drink.

L&P fizzy drink is available internationally and can be found in most New Zealand restaurants.
(source: L&P facebook page; wiki)

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Did you know? Lemon and Paeroa, better known as L&P, is a soft drink manufactured in New Zealand. The name is derived from its main ingredient, Lemon and carbonated mineral water from the town of Pearoa. The carbonated water from Paeroa spring was accidentally discovered in 1904.

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As well as the tranquil uphill Gondola ride and the thrilling downhill Luge tracks, Skyline offers plenty of other attractions like walking tracks, mountain biking trails, cultural experiences, adventure activities and great dining options, all with unsurpassed scenic views.

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Our Maori cultiure is significant to us and when other countries try to either pronounce words or explain what maori is they get it so wrong we are the only ones really who understand and know what it is.

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TOUCH this image to discover its story. Image tagging powered by ThingLink

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Trawlermen are demanding more money for their catch.

Low wages mean many parents are too poor to buy a winter coat for their children

But the dispute, which started last month, will also hitting the UK fishing industry, with cod and haddock stocks running low.

The usual price of cod is around £2.80 to £3 per kilogram with haddock £2.20 to £3.30.

However, these prices are set to rise as supplies continue to dwindle, according to The Mirror.

Grimsby Fish Market, Britain's biggest importer of Icelandic fish, buys two thirds of its fish from the Nordic island, but levels are down by 50%.

Motorcyclist dies after pheasant smashes into his helmet fracturing his skull

And the company has been forced to cut its workforce down from 32 to 26.

On Tuesday, just 514 boxes of fish were sold at auction - described as the 'least supply ever'.

Martyn Boyers, chief executive of the group that operates the fish market, said it is a question of how long the strike will last.

'In due course there will be a knock-on effect as there will be less fish available and if the demand stays the same then generally the price will go up,' he told The Mirror.

Teen mum who stubbed cigarette butt on ex-boyfriend's face spared jail

Mr Boyers said Iceland's government needs to resolve the issue before sellers are forced to put up their prices.

'There is a reluctance to increase prices. I think it is going to be difficult and everyone is trying to cut their costs, but if the raw material has gone up in price and there is nothing you can do about it,' he added.

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Fish and chips are about to get more expensive

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Trawlermen are demanding more money for their catch. Low wages mean many parents are too poor to buy a winter coat for their children But the dispute, which started last month, will also hitting the UK fishing industry, with cod and haddock stocks running low.

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What We Do in the Shadows - Google Search

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They Think we shag sheep