When celebrities go bad

Pamela Anderson and Richie Rich at Fashion Week. Photo / Babiche Martens

In a year where "moustache-gate" and "Wendy Petrie fist pump" became part of our vocabulary, and a former convicted murderer was the toast of many, it was clear New Zealand lacked any real celebrity scandal - or "celebrities", for that matter.

TVNZ broadcasters took over from Shortland Street stars past and present as fodder for newspapers and women's magazines.

Breakfast host Paul Henry first grabbed headlines when he said on air that a female guest had "a moustache".

Viewers were appalled, complaints were made to TVNZ and the Broadcasting Standards Authority, and Henry quickly became a villain in the public's eyes.

After a few months of reasonably good behaviour, he seemed to have been reined in by his bosses - until November, that was, when he called Scottish singer Susan Boyle "retarded" - offending her fans and disability groups, yet still kept his job.

Another broadcaster to get a second chance was disgraced TVNZ sports anchor Tony Veitch, whose career seemed over when he pleaded guilty to attacking former partner Kristin Dunne-Powell, in 2006.

He had resigned from his radio and television positions and in April admitted and was convicted of recklessly injuring his former partner.

The Radio Network announced this month that Veitch would return to the airwaves, on both Radio Sport and NewstalkZB, in the new year.

Another to behave badly was a "prominent entertainer", whose suppressed identity was the worst-kept secret of 2009.

The entertainer pleaded guilty in November to a March incident where he pushed a 16-year-old girl's head into his genitalia in a Wellington alleyway.

Nor was the identity of a comedian charged over an indecent act on a four-year-old girl this month kept secret, with his lawyer admitting the name had been leaked on the internet, but not saying if any action would be taken against the leakers.

Outside court, an embarrassing fist pump by One News anchor Wendy Petrie was caught on camera during her coverage of the David Bain retrial in June and quickly made its way onto the internet.

TVNZ had the clip pulled from YouTube, not wanting to mislead viewers - who were probably confused enough when Petrie reported Bain was guilty, rather than not guilty.

Following that verdict, Bain became the man of the moment, drawing adoration from the public (and a gushing TV3 frontman John Campbell) when he was cleared of the 1994 murder of five family members.

Women's magazines scrambled for his story, while supporters held David Bain-themed parties and called for their hero to feature on Dancing With The Stars.

Sadly for Bain, that show was canned in November, meaning former Shortland Street actors and other has-beens could be begging on the street by this time next year.

Flight of the Conchords saved a Masterton school from a permanent holiday when they performed a sold-out school hall concert at Makoura College in March.

Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie raised $70,000 for Clement's former school, after a teacher told him its declining roll may see it shut its doors.

The honour was his, Clement said, pointing out that it the school had taken him as a child to watch the Golden Shears shearing competition.

The duo announced this month that their hit US TV series would not return for a third season.

They didn't specify their future plans (beyond building a guitar-shaped transportation device), but promised their fans via their website: "While the characters Bret and Jemaine will no longer be around, the real Bret and Jemaine will continue to exist."

In their absence, fellow New Zealander Anna Paquin is left to hold the fort on US television, starring as busty southern blonde Sookie Stackhouse in vampire drama True Blood.

She won a Golden Globe for the role, and added all the sparkle needed of a modern day vampire phenomenon with an engagement to co-star Stephen Moyer.

Another busty blonde, former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson, strutted the Air New Zealand Fashion Week catwalk in an outfit resembling a west Auckland tragedy.

Wearing little more than a sheer scarf around her torso, high heels and a pink g-string, Anderson was in the country to showcase her A*Muse line with design partner Richie Rich.

Parts of the country got a glimpse of real runway mastery in December, when former supermodel Tyra Banks brought her America's Next Top Model team and the show's new contestants to New Zealand to film a series of challenges.

Between takes in Queenstown, Matamata and Auckland, Banks announced her new Beauty Inside and Out campaign to "celebrate and help redefine beauty" and show curvy girls can be pretty too (and if they stop eating, they can even be top models).

December also saw director Peter Jackson return to New Zealand with his new film, The Lovely Bones.

He brought a little Hollywood glitz to the capital, with stars Susan Sarandon, sans shoes, and Saoirse Ronan walking the red carpet down Courtenay Place.

Critics were unconvinced by Jackson's screen adaptation of the Alice Sebold novel, offering up scathing reviews about its extensive use of CGI animation.

Meanwhile, James Cameron's 3D epic Avatar, filmed in New Zealand with effects by Weta, received rave reviews for its groundbreaking animation - and instead of rating his own film's Oscar's chances, Peter Jackson picked Avatar to be a big winner at next year's Academy Awards.

There was national mourning when singing legend Sir Howard Morrison died in September.

His career had begun more than 50 years earlier, with the Howard Morrison Quartet before he began performing solo, at one point billed alongside Glen Campbell and Sammy Davis Jr.

Sir Howard joined the Order of the British Empire in 1976 and was knighted in 1990 for his services to entertainment.

He was described by his nephew, actor Temuera Morrison, as "a big totara tree in the world of entertainment".

How Great Thou Art, his best know song, summed up his talent and zest for life - an epithet no other Kiwi celebrity came close to laying claim to.

- NZPA