Stories by William Ray

The last of the ‘lunatic asylums’ closed only 20 years ago. They were founded on ideas of paternalism and social progress and survived on the basis they offered safety. But as William Ray explains,…

There's a surprising link between Argentina's dinosaurs and Aotearoa. William Ray visits the new Patagonian dinosaur exhibit at Te Papa museum to find out more. Video, Audio

This week on Our Changing World RNZ podcast producer, and occasional dinosaur correspondent William Ray visits Ngā Taniwha o Rūpapa Dinosaurs of Patagonia, a special exhibition at Te Papa Museum to… Video, Audio

Floods in India claimed hundreds of lives this monsoon season, but an Indian expat in New Zealand is hoping his new invention will help bring the toll down. Produced by William Ray. Video, Audio

This week we're travelling back in time 66 million years ago with producer William Ray, to a time when dinosaurs roamed. Join William as he meets two Tyrannosaurus rex fossils at the Auckland Museum… Audio

New Zealanders like to think we have a “Number 8 Wire Mentality” - a rough and ready enthusiasm for fixing and building stuff with limited resources.  Video, Audio

From a standing start of little tank engines chugging along wooden rails, New Zealand built a vast rail network, made up of enough steel rail to wrap halfway around the moon. Video, Audio

Marine mammals were a source of food and clothing for Māori and Moriori, and valuable oil for Europeans. Hunting them brought cultures together, made fortunes and cost lives but today it's saving them… Video, Audio

These are the wars that cost more lives than any other in our history. Stretched over more than a decade & the entire country, these conflicts changed Māori warfare & much of what came next.

Moriori are the original people of Rēkohu (aka Chatham Island or Wharekauri) & they have a tragic and inspiring story. Unfortunately, that story's often been twisted into, well, utter rubbish. Video, Audio

The 1950s saw an explosion of youth culture. “Bodgies and widgies' ' tearing round on motorbikes & hanging out in milk bars scandalised many Kiwi adults. Was “the teenager” invented in the 1950s? And… Video, Audio

New Zealanders have battled Covid-19 for more than two years, but if you think it's the first time disease has knocked us around, well, this one's for you. Epidemics have long been part of our story. 

The first 500 years of Māori settlement in Aotearoa saw significant, dynamic changes to how people lived; changes that challenge the idea of Māori culture as something carved in stone. Video, Audio

Summer science continues with a play of a science related episode from RNZ's Black Sheep podcast. Invasive tells the story of one man who released thousands of invasive fish into New Zealand's rivers… Audio

When flamboyant orchestra conductor Eric Mareo was convicted of murder for a second time, the judge raised grave concerns about the verdict with the Attorney General. So, did 1930s prejudice and… Audio

When is the Covid-19 vaccine coming? Will it work? William Ray talks to NZ experts charting our path towards immunity. Audio

Lawn owner William Ray looks at the ecological benefits of not mowing and letting your grass grow longer. Audio

Minnie Dean must rank as one of New Zealand's most infamous figures. The only woman to be judicially executed in New Zealand history. For years she was portrayed as a cold-blooded killer who murdered… Audio

Flora MacKenzie is one of the most colourful characters in New Zealand history: A hard drinking, hard talking brothel owner from the 1960s and 70s who won the affection of sex workers, police and… Audio

In part two of Black Sheep's series on Edward Gibbon Wakefield we see theories of "systematic" and "humanitarian" colonisation run into bitter realities. The result is conflict, death and disaster… Audio

Edward Gibbon Wakefield used to be known as “The Father of New Zealand.” But modern historians have pointed to the disastrous impact of his colonial policies on indigenous people, his misleading… Audio

Bush fires are growing in severity and frequency. William Ray finds out about the latest research into how fires burn and how people react when flames threaten. Audio

Felix von Luckner was a child aristocrat who ran away to sea, he captained the last square-rigged sailing ship ever to serve in combat, he sailed three thousand kilometres across the Pacific in a… Audio

After the war came a new quest for security and identity. With it came new political debates and alliances. Maori and Pasifika moved to the cities. The way we viewed ourselves as a nation was… Audio

Around 850 years ago Polynesian explorers found an empty land and the story of people in Aotearoa began. A new culture emerged; tangata whenua had arrived and started to thrive. Audio