Sunday Morning for Sunday 7 April 2024

8:10 The real Alan Bates tells his story 

Nearly 1000 British sub-postmasters wrongly prosecuted or convicted of theft, false accounting and fraud, due to a faulty computer system. Compounding the injustice, the UK Post Office spent years denying the system failure.  

Former postman Alan Bates led a successful class action lawsuit in 2019 to clear the names of 555 sub-postmasters. However, the fight for fair compensation continues for hundreds of others.  

The story of the scandal is told in TV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office which is streaming now via TVNZ Plus. 

Alan Bates joins Jim. 

8:35 Jack Whaley-Cohen: The Sunday Quiz    

Quiz master Jack Waley-Cohen joins us once again as our Sunday Morning question master.      

Jack is the mind behind the questions on BBC quiz show Only Connect which is known for being both difficult to crack and totally obvious.   

It’s Sunday morning, so wake up your brain and have a go!   

8:40 Jackson Stewart from Castaway unveils their new single 

Ōtautahi band Castaway are back with "Satellite," the second single from their upcoming "Nondual" EP. The track, which tackles the universal search for hope and the shared struggles and finding connection, was produced by Greg Haver. 

The bands guitarist and lead singer Jackson Stewart joins Jim Mora. 

9:06 Mediawatch

This week Mediawatch talks to an editor keeping an eye on where public money for public services ends up. Also: how the government’s new political action plan got the media’s attention this week - and how the long-standing problem of rebuilding schools suddenly hit the headlines.

9:35 Hayden Paddon “Don't just dream it, achieve it!” 

Former World Rally Championship driver  Hayden Paddon is currently defending two rallying titles on opposite sides of the world – The FIA European Rally Championships and the New Zealand Rally Championship. 

Hayden joins us for a catch up. 

10:06 Succession writer Lucy Prebble talks: Love, Ethics, and the Power of Pills 

Lucy Prebble, the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Emmy award-winning writer behind HBO's addictive drama Succession, brings a different kind of story to the stage.  

Six years before the Roy family grabbed our attention, Prebble penned a thought-provoking play called The Effect. This acclaimed work, which explores love, ethics, and the science of happiness, makes its New Zealand debut at the ASB Waterfront Theatre later this month! 

The play, which touches on love, ethics, and the science behind happiness, makes its NZ debut at the ASB Waterfront theatre later this month. 

Lucy speaks with Jim Mora. 

10.35 The headlines we didn’t read 

RNZ producer, Ayana Piper-Healion, has been reading all the headlines - so you don’t have to.  

She discusses: why - according to Scientific American - walking backwards can improve arthritis, how human milk could repair our microbiome, why rich people are ditching the curtains, and the best way to eat broccoli.  

11:05 Calling Home: Volcanologist Chris Conway is too tall for Japan 

Chris Conway is a volcanologist based in Tsukuba City. Chris works at the Geological Survey of Japan specialising in chemical volcanology. He studies the composition of volcanic rocks and minerals to understand the processes and timescales of magma formation and eruption. 

Before moving to Japan Chris grew up in Wellington’s Lyall Bay obtaining his degree and later PhD at the cities Victoria University.  

Chris loves his life in Japan but does have one complaint “things generally aren’t built for tall people.” 

He joins Jim for Calling Home. 

11:35 The “Unpolitician” pipped to be the next UK PM 

British journalist and former Labour party senior advisor Tom Baldwin is the author of a new biography Sir Kier Starmer: The Unexpected Rise.  

Sir Keir has become a pivotal figure in British politics. A lawyer by trade, his ascent to the leadership of the Labour Party surprised many. But what makes this man tick? What are the experiences that have shaped his political views and his approach to leadership? 

Baldwin's book sheds new light on Starmer's formative years, his legal career, and his often-underrated political acumen. Tom joins Jim Mora to explore the influences that have driven Sir Keir, the challenges he’s faced, and the path that led him to the helm of the Labour Party.