Latest fromMatamata-Piako District
Seen the movie, booked the flight
Just how influential are the movies in transforming audiences into potential tourists?
'Suspicious' death in Matamata
Police are treating as suspicious the death of a man who collapsed and suffered a head injury last night in Matamata after reports of an altercation.
What will happen to Hobbiton?
Hobbiton has put Matamata on the map, but with production of The Hobbit shifting overseas, the town's future as a tourist hub is in jeopardy.
Wife-killer in $1.4m luxury hideaway
Greg Meads enjoyed his final months of freedom in a plush beachfront home with another woman before being convicted of murder.
Stepdaughter recalls mother's cold killer
Kimberley White remembers her stepfather Greg Meads enforcing silent meals at the family dinner table as he watched television.
Racing identity on trial for killing wife
A shooting victim told her husband days before her death that she wanted to move out of their home and move on with her life, a court heard.
Battling actors have a hobbit onside
The furore over The Hobbit is the normal process of a union trying to talk to an employer who is refusing to talk back, says actor and director Ian Mune.
Couple struggle with daughters' loss
Kerry and Lynne Martin are unsure about swimming in Samoa after losing their two daughters in the tsunami.
Girl dies in her father's arms
A grieving dad has told how he cradled his 10-year-old daughter in his arms as she passed away from an asthma attack.