By Katie Ham ofPhoto: RYAN ANDERSON / STUFFAn elaborate TradeMe scam has left an Auckland collector $10,000 out of pocket. The woman showed Ian's wife what appeared to be proof of a bank transaction and left with the coins, he said. But by the following day, no money had appeared in Ian's account. "I emailed the TradeMe account, and they came back with what they said was a receipt of the transaction. CCTV footage taken by the marina shows the woman arriving half an hour before meeting Ian's wife and daughter.

Photo: RNZStuff has announced its Sunday News newspaper will wrap up at the end of July. The paper, which has been going for 61 years, was infamous for its sensationalist headlines. Stuff announced the closure in a news article in its paper and on its website on Sunday morning. Stuff masthead publishing managing director Joanna Norris said they had been reviewing their portfolio over the past 12 months and decided that Sunday News was no longer a good fit. The news comes just days after Stuff said it was shutting its last remaining Northland community newspapers.

Photo: Stuff / RNZStuff has announced its Sunday News newspaper will wrap up at the end of July. The paper, which has been going for 61 years, was infamous for its sensationalist headlines. Stuff announced the closure in a news article in its paper and on its website on Sunday morning. The news comes just days after Stuff said it was shutting its last remaining Northland community newspapers. Rival publisher NZME said it was cutting staff at most of its regional newspapers so it could divert resources to major centres.

“We’ve been reviewing our portfolio over the past 12 months and have decided the Sunday News is no longer a good fit for our stable,” Stuff Masthead Publishing managing director Joanna Norris said in today’s Sunday News. That website will no longer be updated after this Friday, leaving huge opportunities for Stuff, the Herald, RNZ and TVNZ. Photo / RNZSunday News editor Tracy Watkins wrote today about some of the paper’s memorable moments. “So how would Sunday News announce the end of an era for the 61-year-old publication?” wrote Watkins. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.

In most cases, those readers want more romance books, and Parker (fantasy), O’Keeffe (comedy) and Castel (historical) all offer variations on a theme of love. “Romance writers are our most professional and best-earning writers,” says Jenny Nagle, CEO of the New Zealand Society of Authors. There’s a direct link between that rural childhood and the epic fantasy romance books she writes as an adult. Parker found herself turning down meetings with traditional publishers before choosing Harper Voyager, the fantasy and science fiction arm of HarperCollins. You’ve got to respect the creative process, and you’ve still got to be excited to get up and write those books.”

Novotel Queenstown GM Jim Moore’s packing his bags to take up the role of ‘‘cluster GM’’ in Fiji late next month, where he’ll manage twoNovotels and a Mercure hotel, in Nandi and Suva. He quips ‘‘Queenstown will be taking over’’, given former Queenstowner Vincent Macquet’s still Accor’s Fiji Islands area GM. Moore, who’s been in Queenstown for 16 years, says the time’s right for him and wife, Sue, to make the most of the opportunity. ‘‘We love Queenstown, love the hotel, but … the kids have mostly gone … two will be overseas next year and a bit more independent, so it’s an opportunity [for us] to travel. ‘‘We love Queenstown — we’ll be back at some point.’’[email protected]

Locke belonged to a generation that still believed in a world that could be, through struggle, relieved of its chains. That struggle constituted the core of a life lived with purpose, courage and determination. would, no doubt, have been surprised to discover that Keith Locke was ...

Queenstowner Emma Rout’s lacing up her skates for the Wakatipu Wild this year — her first full competitive season in about 15 years. Photo: Tracey RoxburghIt's been a hot minute since Queenstown ice hockey fans saw the name ‘Rout’ on the back of a jersey in a national league. But this season, former Ice Fernz player Emma Rout, 34, is bringing it back, playing for the Wakatipu Wild women’s ice hockey team. "I just wanted to get back on the ice, if I’m totally honest; dust the skates off and give it another shot." Last season’s runner-up in the New Zealand Women’s Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL), coach Colin McIntosh says the 2024 squad is looking sharp going into this year, and they’ve added some other new faces into an already strong core group.

Photo: 123RFFrom next week, people aged 14 and over will have to pay for Covid-related visits to the GP. Health New Zealand / Te Whatu Ora said it was part of the plan for Covid-19 to be managed in a similar way to other communicable diseases from July. Vaccinations will still be free, as will antivirals for those who qualify. The government this month also extended the deadline of free Covid rapid antigen tests (RATs) until the end of September. "We encourage people to ensure everyone in their whānau keeps up to date with their Covid-19 vaccine and all other available vaccinations."

Russia Bans Another 36 New Zealanders From Entering BordersRussia has banned a further 36 New Zealanders from entering its borders. In a statement, the Russian foreign ministry said it was in response to the sanctions New Zealand had placed on Russia, and entry for these people should be "closed in perpetuity". This was the fourth list of its kind, bringing the total number of banned individuals to 229. The first list, released in April 2022, included all 120 members of the Parliament of the day, and Governor-General Cindy Kiro. Further lists included senior executives at RNZ, Stuff and NZME, and the partner of then-prime minister Jacinda Ardern, Clarke Gayford.

PHOTO: TONI MCDONALDThe endless cycle of rinse-and-repeat training exercises paid off big time for Invercargill Airport and the city’s emergency management team last week when things got real. The captain chose to land at Invercargill Airport on one engine, where well-drilled emergency response teams were on hand. But initially, when that plane touches down, it’s the fire service that was in charge of it, Mr Harris said. The Boeing sat on the Invercargill tarmac until emergency staff were satisfied there were no further associated risks. However, it still had the whole team turn out with Fenz, police and everybody," Mr Harris said.

Russia has banned 36 more Kiwis from entering its borders — including mayors, journalists, public figures and defence force leaders — who are accused of "shaping an anti-Russian agenda". ADVERTISEMENTThe NZ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was not the first set of "retaliatory" sanctions Russia had issued against Kiwis. "Russia’s latest sanctions list includes members of New Zealand’s Defence Force who have been training Ukrainian troops to assist Ukraine in its own legitimate self-defence. In July 2022, 32 more New Zealanders were added to the list, including then-Auckland mayor Phil Goff, then-Wellington mayor Andy Foster, then-Nelson mayor Rachel Reese, then-Christchurch mayor Lianne Dalziel and then-Dunedin mayor Aaron Hawkins, among other elected officials. In January 2023, a further 31 Kiwis were banned from entering Russia, including then-TVNZ chief executive Simon Power and Clarke Gayford, the husband of former Prime Minister Ardern.

ID fashion festival organisers (from left) Margo Barton, Victoria Muir and Sally McMillan are calling on all Dunedin designers to sign up for the Dunedin Railway fashion show in 2025. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSHCalls for designers have gone out as Dunedin prepares for the return of the city’s premier fashion event. The iD Fashion Show will be back next year to grace the Dunedin Railway Station platform and organisers are urging Dunedin designers to take part. Criteria for entrants is that designers be either Dunedin-based, have a connection to the city or be producing "directional, commercial and sustainable adult fashion". Event manager Victoria Muir said the show was "high voltage" and audiences "absolutely love" the opportunity to be among the first to see the designers who will be driving the future of the sector.

Source: City of LeedsThe council and universities in Leeds are urging the city’s 50,000 students and their landlords to be good neighbours during the summer changeover period. As many student tenancies end this month in Leeds, the council is working closely with the University of Leeds, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds Arts University, Leeds Trinity University and Unipol to support students, landlords, and their agents to help keep noise and discarded waste to a minimum. The University of Leeds and Leeds Beckett are supporting events throughout June for students to sell and swap their unwanted possessions. Collections by Revive will be stocked at a free community shop at Rainbow Junktion, supporting Leeds families who need it. “We always work hard alongside the universities to encourage students to feel part of the local community and to show consideration for other residents.

- Advertisement -Mid Canterbury grown goodies are set to be on show at this year’s Ashburton A&P Show as new president Ben Stock takes the reigns. The Hinds dairy farmer has chosen the theme The Food Basket of Mid Canterbury – From the Paddock to the Picnic. “It’s making people aware about what is actually going on in Mid Canterbury,” he said. Stock hoped stalls would include all the show usuals as well as feature newcomers on the value-add side of the products. Stock, and his wife Mary-Anne, have called the district home for 20 years.