Jan Tinetti Labour MP This summer will be our first under COVID conditions. In the past year New Zealand has significantly lifted its ability to respond to COVID. But we know the pandemic is raging overseas and this is a tricky... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder The graph below shows the range of Tauranga's December rainfalls, from an extreme high of 447 mm in 1962 to a low of only 4 mm in 1930. The second wettest December was 2018, when 278 mm was recorded The... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus This is the last column of the year and it comes with traditions. There's a cocktail recipe coming up, and I'd like to offer a big swoop of the Bogie Fedora to the finalists of this year's... Read More

Daniel Hutchinson From The Hutch It's that time of the year when we pick the lint out of our belly buttons and gaze at our navels. But not us - this year our piercing gaze is firmly fixed on the font. In recent months we have... Read More

Sideline Sid Sports correspondent & historian www.sunlive.co.nz Desmond Joseph Ferrow passed away in early December 2020, aged 87 years of age, after a life well lived. While Des Ferrow was a very well known Western Bay of... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder In the bleak mid-winter, Frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone, Snow had fallen, Snow on snow, Snow on snow, In the bleak mid-winter, Long ago. These words, from... Read More

Angie Warren-Clark Labour MP 2020 has been an epic year and one which will forever be recorded in history as both memorable and momentous for a number of reasons stemming from the covid-19 global pandemic. We learned so much in... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus We're taking next week off, so this'll be the last column before Christmas. Traditionally for this one I try to include a bunch of recommendations for Christmas presents, involving local music. That's... Read More

Daniel Hutchinson From The Hutch Meri Kirihimete fine folk of the Bay of Plenty from all of us here at Sun Media. Christmas has come early to you in The Weekend Sun. Next Friday, our feet will be up and Santa will not be delivering... Read More

Sideline Sid Sports correspondent & historian www.sunlive.co.nz Sideline Sid had a small grin on his dial after reading reports that Olympic-bound Kiwi heavyweight boxer David Nyika is scheduled to have a professional fight on... Read More

Beer with me Matt Martin Sawmill Brewery, the best thing to come out of Matakana since...I have no idea. So I googled Matakana. There is a cool farmers' market and some sculptures of giant pink snails and elephants made... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder During November 2019, Tauranga had its warmest November ( average afternoon temperature of 23.2 degrees Celsius), since records began in 1913. The average afternoon temperatures in November 2020 was... Read More