British MP Austin Mitchell began his career as a lecturer and broadcaster in New Zealand, back in the 1960s. He went on to write about Aotearoa in a bestselling book. In this final part of his 2002 return to Godzone, Mitchell takes Auckland's pulse in a pre-Supercity era. John Banks is mayor, and the America’s Cup is in the cabinet. Mitchell also examines music and sport. The series ends with musings on Kiwi identity from some of the people he has met along the way, including Helen Clark, Sam Neill, and Michael King. Watch out for a young Valerie Adams roughly four minutes and 30 seconds into clip four.
New Zealand is isolated and insular and it’s very easy to become provincial in a place like this. It’s very easy to become smug and say this is god’s own country, there’s nothing better than this. It is blessed but there are many, many other great places in the world and it’s good for you to have a look at it.– Sam Neill
McDougall Craig Limited
Log in
×