Rnz: Afternoons With Jesse Mulligan

Julie Biuso brings us a scrumptious and beyond belief celebratory meal. The buttery crust flakes off as you slice the lamb - make sure you spoon it on top of the sliced lamb before serving. Get the recipe here.

Dominic Corry is in for the last film review of the year. He reviews Cannes winner Anora and Robbie Williams biopic-with-CGI-monkey Better Man.

Stories from New Zealanders and their experiences of the supernatural.

Here in Aotearoa, and on Afternoons in fact, we love our critters. And that passion for insects, bugs and plants is backed up by the fact that we've logged nearly three million observations on the citizen science platform iNaturalist.. The website, which has been running in New Zealand since 2012, brings together curious members of the public with expert identifiers to track populations of thousands of species. This has led to new sightings of native species, and important discoveries of invasive species. Jon Sullivan is an ecologist based at Lincoln University and is one of the founders of iNaturalist.

The 77th model flying national champs at the end of this month. Jesse talks to Kevin Botherway, the president of Model Flying New Zealand about the competition and what people can expect from this display of tiny aeronautics.

At this time of year, it's easy to forget that not everyone in New Zealand celebrates Christmas. Hundreds of thousands of New Zealander don't observe the religious holiday. This year, December the 25th holds special significance for the Jewish community - it's the first day of Hanukkah. Joining me now is Abby Bachhalter. Abby is part of the lay leadership team at Temple Sinai - the Progressive Jewish Congregation in Wellington.

Dr Grant Morris from Victoria University has been our guide through history this year. And for his final segment for 2024 he's asking a big question: where do we come from?

Retired farmer and commentator Steve Wyn-Harris joins Jesse to talk about his latest meteorite adventures and the pressures the Christmas period puts on farmers.

If you were paying attention to Olympic sports in the 90s, you'll have fond memories of swimmer Anna Simcic-Forrest.

Elliott Childs reviews crime podcast Gone South, which focuses on crimes in the southern states of the US. He also reviews some terrible podcast ads!

2024 has been a massive year in the world of women's sport.

Attendees at this year's Rhythm and Vines will receive the bonus of free period products. A new initiative called Ads on Pads will be stocking up portaloos.

Members of the public have reported thousands of drone sightings in the last month. Officials haven't been able to confirm what they are, and the lack of concrete answers has led to an explosion of conspiracy theories and panic.

On her recent trip in Antarctica, Claire Concannon caught up with a team of NIWA researchers who are discovering new methane seeps.   These are areas where methane gas or fluid escapes from below the seafloor through cracks or fissures.    The first active seep in Antarctica was found in 2012 at a place called Cinder Cones.   NIWA microbial ecologist Dr Sarah Seabrook visited the site in 2016 as part of her PhD research. Now she’s returning to investigate further.   

Kelly Gibney brings a Christmas miracle and offers two recipes for the last Easy Eats of 2024! Seaweed, sesame and chilli salt and honey and berry shrub. Get the recipes at the links.

Turns out getting away from it all in New Zealand's biggest city, is much easier than you think.

Meet a man who willingly mows verges - including one that's enormous and a few kilometers from his home.

Dentists are sounding a warning about the perils of pork crackling this Christmas - and other teeth-cracking treats.

When you think of Greek food, what comes to mind? A tomato-heavy salad or souvlaki? Not all of those things were staples of the ancient Greek diet. 

Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay talks about the G-ZERO initiative and his hope that the world will start redefining its broken relationship with the planet.